Kristina pushed the door open quietly, hoping she could sneak in without any questions. She should have been home at least two hours ago but Michael ended up falling asleep next to her, his arm wrapped tightly around her waist. He was exhausted, and the last thing she wanted to do was wake him. Also, even with the bruises and cuts on his face, he looked peaceful lying next to her.

If she were honest though, she would have to admit that she wasn't quite ready to leave him either.

They could revoke his parole for the fight, and it scared her to death. She pushed the thought away as best she could as she tried to comfort him but, in the quiet of the loft, it was an unavoidable thing, impossible to ignore.

She replayed the afternoon over and over again in her head – the brutal blows, the fierce look on Michael's face, the anger in his eyes. And later, at the loft, seeing him break down, the feeling of helplessness as he sobbed in her arms.

Of course she didn't want him going back to Pentonville, but she's starting to understand that he can't go on like this. He doesn't talk to anyone at school, rarely smiles, and always wears the same distant, haunted look in his eyes. She just didn't know what to do, or how to help him.

Shaking her head clear, she paused, listening for footsteps or voices. She held her breath, straining to hear even the faintest sound, trying to figure out if anyone was home and, if so, where they were. Met with nothing but silence, she stepped through the doorway with slow, careful steps and paused again. Still nothing. She closed the door softly behind her and was about to start creeping toward her room when Molly suddenly poked her head around the corner.

"Kristina!" Molly cried, running up to her. "Where have you been? I was calling you! Were you with Michael? Is he okay?"

"Shh, shh, shh!" Kristina held her hands up, so distracted by her attempts to shush Molly that it took her a second to realize what she had just said. "What? How do you know about that?"

"Morgan told me," Molly explained. "Since Dante is out of town the school called Carly."

"What did he say?" she asked quickly. "Is Michael going to get expelled?"

"I don't know," Molly said, shaking her head.

Kristina sighed. At least he wasn't expelled yet. She was pretty sure Morgan would have mentioned that. The relief was short-lived, however, as she remembered that a decision, completely out of her control, would be made, if it hadn't been already. And that all she could do was wait. Her head fell forward, suddenly too heavy for her neck, and she walked past Molly to the sofa. She let herself fall back into the cushions and closed her eyes, an exhaustion that had nothing to do with sleep settling over her. She felt the cushions shift under her and she opened her eyes to find Molly perched next to her.

"What happened?" Molly asked.

"I'm not sure," Kristina answered honestly, shrugging slightly. "Michael didn't want to talk about it and I didn't want to push him."

"But he's okay, right?"

Kristina hesitated. "Physically, yeah, I think he'll be okay." Sadly, she realized that was all she was really sure of right now. Anxious to change the subject, she turned her head, peeking over the back of the sofa.

"Where's Mom?"

"She's not home yet. She called earlier to say she had to work late. And don't worry," Molly added, "I covered for you."

"Thanks, Molly." Kristina said, trying to muster a small smile for her sister.

She really was grateful, the last thing she needed was another lecture or, worse yet, to be grilled over what happened today. It's unavoidable, but she just didn't think she could handle it now. She knew her mother already questioned Michael's self-control, his confrontation with Warren Bauer still fresh in her mind. She brought up Michael's stability several times and wondered aloud, in front of Kristina, whether or not he would be too much of a distraction for her in her senior year.

"What about you?" Molly asked, pulling Kristina from her thoughts. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just tired. It's been a long day."

It was obvious that Molly didn't buy it and Kristina sighed, waiting for the inevitable cross examination. But before she got a chance, a knock at the door surprised them both.

Molly whipped her head around at the sound and Kristina leaned forward to look past her.

"It's Taylor!"

Even though Molly was turned away, Kristina could hear the excited smile in her voice, an excitement that Kristina couldn't match. Reluctantly, she stood and walked to the door, pulling it open slowly.

"Taylor, what are you doing here?"

He held up her book bag, smiling. "I just wanted to return this."

She smiled back at him, awkwardly, reminded of how she threw it down earlier at school, and how desperate she was to get to Michael. "Thanks," she said, taking it from him

"Hi, Taylor!" Molly said, from somewhere behind her.

"Hey, Molly," he said, waving at her over Kristina's shoulder. "Um," he started, looking back at Kristina, "can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yeah," Kristina said, stepping aside to let him come in. She turned to Molly. "Molly, can you give us a minute?"

"Yeah, of course," she said. But she was slow to leave, eyeing Kristina suspiciously as she made her way to her room.

Kristina held up her hand, waiting until she heard Molly's door close before nodding at Taylor. "What's up?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her.

"I also came by because I was worried about you," he admitted.

"Taylor …"

"I know what you said. And Michael, he's been nothing but nice to me but …"

"But?"

Taylor shrugged. "Your brother is a little scary." Kristina frowned, and Taylor quickly started explaining himself. "I mean, I know he was defending you, and Bryce started it but -"

"Defending me?" Kristina asked, confused.

"Bryce was talking about you. I told him to knock it off," Taylor added, "but he didn't and then, out of nowhere, Michael was there."

Stunned, Kristina sat down. This happened because of her?

"They got into it and . . . well, you saw the rest." Taylor sat down next to her. "Kristina, it's just - after what you went through with Kiefer … and now with Michael..."

"Michael is nothing like Kiefer," she said, shaking her head vehemently. "You just don't know him. Yeah, he's going through something right now but … he's always been there for me. He would never hurt me, he's risked his life for me. He's sweet, and kind, and you would be lucky to have someone love you like he loves me."

Kristina snapped her mouth shut, her eyes wide. She looked at Taylor but he wouldn't look at her, his eyes darting around uncomfortably, and she felt her face flush.

"Okay. I'm sorry I said anything," Taylor said finally. "I guess I should go."

He stood, and Kristina didn't stop him, watching as let himself out. She shook her head. She needed to talk to Michael. Impulsively, she rushed to the door and yanked it open, nearly running into Alexis, keys in hand, about to come in.

"Going somewhere?"

"Oh, uh – no," Kristina said. "Taylor just dropped something off and I wanted to see if I could catch him … to tell him something."

"Okay … I almost believe that." Alexis looked back. "Well, he's already gone. Why don't you call him or, better yet, talk to him at school on Monday so we can get started on a late dinner?"

Kristina stepped back. "Sure."

"Good. Go get your sister."