“And that’s where you met Sydney?” Angel felt her tense up a little and straighten up again.

“Yeah,” she said quickly. “But most importantly we stayed there. For eight years. It may not mean a lot to anyone else, but to me it was everything. I was finally home. And then just before I can finish school, this happens. Packing up all my things brought back all the painful memories of when I was a little girl. Thank God for Valerie, I don’t know how I would’ve survived starting a new school all over again.”

Her expression turned affectionate. “It’s not that it’s so bad here, Angel. It’s just that it took so long for me to feel like I belonged somewhere. I just feel like I have to go back. I need to, it’s my home.”

Angel kissed her gently. “Sarah, you don’t owe me any explanations. I had no right questioning you to begin with.”

He was repulsed with himself. After everything she’d been through, she was sitting here trying to make him understand. She could go back to Arizona if she wanted to, she should. As much as he disliked the thought of her being so far, she deserved to be happy. Hell, he’d drive out there every weekend if he had to.

**************

It was almost unbelievable to Sarah, what an incredible mix of emotions this weekend had been. The roller coaster ride was over, and yet her stomach was still feeling the effects.

She’d kept Sydney updated all weekend on everything that was happening. When she told him about what had happened today, he was pissed at first, but she’d defended Angel ardently. He’d laughed, teasing that if he didn’t know better he’d say she was in love.

She got the feeling Sydney was happy that she had finally confided in someone else about her mom. She felt guilty now about the amount of crap she’d unloaded on him, and yet he’d always been there so ready to help her through it all. She hadn’t told him yet that Angel assumed he was a girl. She didn’t know why, but somehow she thought he might be insulted, betrayed that she was denying their friendship.

She glanced at the clock; it was 10:30 pm. She was almost out the room, on her way to brush her teeth, when she heard her phone ring. Her face lit up when she saw it was Angel. She answered it with a smile.

“Hi, Angel.”

“Hey.” His voice was low. “Sorry I’m calling so late. I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I still feel like an ass about today.”

“No, you shouldn’t.” She clutched the phone. “Actually, I feel a lot better now that I told you.”

“Good,” he said. “’Cause I want you to know you can to tell my anything.”

Sarah's heart sank. She knew she should’ve told him about Sydney already, but truth was she was beginning to wonder if he really needed to know. Valerie had been right she decided, about guy’s being territorial and Angel was making that pretty clear. She was certain now, especially after hearing his take on guys and girls being friends, that he wouldn’t understand her relationship with Sydney.

She reasoned with herself that he probably would never get the chance to meet Syd anyway. She’d already decided to keep the subject of Syd to a minimum. Still, she couldn’t help feeling deceitful.

She pushed Sydney to the back of her mind. There were other things she needed to get clear with him. “Listen, Angel.” She sat down on her bed. “I’m glad you called. With all the talk about my mom today, I completely forgot to talk to you about tomorrow.”

“What about tomorrow?”

“Well, I know we have an understanding now, but I don’t want that to change things at school.”

He was silent for a moment, but she heard the unmistakable change in his tone when he spoke again. “You don’t want anyone at school to know you’re seeing someone?”

“No.” She was surprised that he would even think that. “I just don’t want you to change anything you normally do, for me. I know how close you are with your friends. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to spend together after school and on weekends, there’s no need for me to cut in on your time with your friends at school.”

She really hoped he’d understand. The last thing she wanted to do was suffocate him. After all, this was his school, his friends, she was the outsider.

The truth was, she wasn’t entirely sure she was going be able to handle this. It was well known the way the girls, especially Dana, acted around Angel. Just the thought of watching another girl throw herself all over him now made her cringe.

“Hey,” he said. “I don’t have a problem with everything staying the same as far as you hanging out with your friends, and me with mine. But in case there’s any doubt, I wasn’t planning on keeping this understanding a secret.”

Sarah felt her heartbeat speed up. For the first time the reality of it all was sinking in. This was really happening, and with none other than Angel Moreno.

“Oh, I know that,” she said. “That’s not what I meant at all. I just don’t want to smother you Angel. I want you to still have your space.”

“You have it all wrong, Sarah,” he said “If anyone is gonna have to watch the smothering, it’s gonna be me. In case you haven’t noticed, I just can’t get enough of you.”

His words sent shivers up and down her spine. She felt the exact same way, yet Angel didn’t seem scared. She, on the other hand, was terrified. This kind of happiness was uncommon in her world. She wasn’t used to it and in some ways almost felt guilty about feeling so happy.