Liam's outburst.

          I wanted to believe so desperately that it was Morgan. even thought the fact that the voice was so different was staring at me right in the face, I wanted to believe he could have caught a cold or something. I looked up, and my eyes met Liam’s.

"Liam."

"What are you doing on the floor?"

     I shook my head. "I was dizzy. Why'd you call me Sammy?"

     He laughed, shaking his head. "Well, are you all not Sammy's? I mean, Samuel, Samson, Samantha..."

     The look I gave him shut him up. It wasn't funny. He cleared his throat and adjusted his stance.

     "Sorry."

     I nodded. "Where did you learn to call me Sammy?"

     He shrugged. "Morgan said you liked it. By the way, where is he?"

     "Morgan told you that?" He nodded, looking around, then on finding or not finding whatever he was looking for, he shrugged and turned towards me, extending a hand.

     I ignored it and stood up on my own. "When did you talk to him?"

     "Before your birthday." He took in a deep breath. "You stood me up, Sammy."

     I closed my eyes, the name he was calling me getting to me horribly.

     "Don't Call me that." I said. "Why?"

     "Just don't call me that, I prefer Samantha coming from you."

He nodded. "Okay, Samantha. Why so grumpy today?"

     "I am not grumpy today, i've always been grumpy. Excuse me."

     He held my hand back, stopping me from walking out on him. "Samantha..we agreed to go on a date on your birthday...I wanted to celebrate that day with you."

     "Do my feelings not matter at all? Just you, you you! You like me, you own me, you wanna do this with me! I don't want to, Liam! I don't like you enough to go anywhere to celebrate my birthday with you!" I didn't care that I was screaming or that he looked really hurt, and I turned, grasping my bag, fighting back the tears as I walked away.

    "So you like Morgan enough to do all of that with him, huh?" He chuckled as he said that, but was a humorless one. "I thought you were all innocent. Morgan was being a huge hypocrite by giving me all the details. I was some.."

     "Liam. No one played you. You overrated yourself to me. You're the player, and you're the piece." I tried walking away again, but this time he came to my front, blocking my path. Almost everyone had gone to their respective classes, and the few that lingered had all their eyes on us.

     "Move, Liam."

     "You knew I liked you. You answered me when I called and when I asked you out, you said you'd love to. I bet you spent your birthday with your friend, letting him do whatever he wants, allowing him to.." I cut him off with a slap, and his right hand instinctively went to cup his cheek.

     "Don't you dare disrespect me."

     "Disrespect?” He advanced, and held both of my shoulders so hard, I felt squeezed.

   "Let me go!"

     "What is it about Morgan, Samantha? I kept trying so hard to be Ideal, to know what you liked, to understand you, but all for what? You still wanted him. I called so many times, waited so long, all for you. You shouldn’t have raised my hopes like that. You should have told me where I stood with you." He stooped, then raked his hands through his hair.

     I really didn’t understand why he was so angry. I stood him up from the beginning, not like we had something before. He was simply overreacting.

     "What is it he has that I do not have?” He said again. I opened my mouth to answer, but before I could, a third voice answered, one that sent the maddening shivers down my spine.

"Everything."