**Ahna's POV**

I stared down, avoiding eye-contact with Tony as he grilled me about my eating. Fat, ugly, slut, I mentally hissed at myself, staring down at my giant thighs. I was one hundred fucking pounds! So fucking fat. "Can I ask you a question?" Tony requested softly. I nodded. "You're looking at yourself with such shame and hate from just wearing shorts, but you – with all due respect – got naked in front of Mike without a second thought. Why?"

"I honestly don't know. With my last boyfriend, I usually wore a big t-shirt every time. Damn, did Charlie get pissed off. He'd tell me that everyone knew I was fat and that I should just accept it and show my body. There was really no point in hiding what everyone had already seen," I confessed to him. "Mike… I can't even describe how I felt around him. From the moment he first approached me, I felt… what's the word?"

"Empowered?" Tony suggested.

"That's the one!" I exclaimed. "I felt like I could knock over the world and build one ten times better. Honestly, the entire time I was around him, I forgot that I hate myself." I poured my heart out to this stranger and I honestly have no idea why. Tony just had this vibe that told me I could trust him, it told me that he would protect me.

"Do you want to know what I think?" he asked softly, like he didn't want to scare me or something. I nodded. "I think that it's him you should be saying this to, because that guy has feelings for you like he hasn't had for anyone in a long time. Like, since his first girlfriend ever in high school."

"Are you CRAZY?!" I whisper-shouted. "I can't tell him any of that! I don't even know why I told you all of this shit!"

"Don't you think he deserves to know?"

"Don't you think I deserve to choose who I tell that I'm anorexic?"

---

**Milinda's POV**

"Hello?" I greeted, picking up my phone after shushing the four loud teens and one loud Jaime. Did I mention how awesome that guy was?! He came over because 'nobody wants to chill with the Hime' and him and the kids had been goofing around and playing video games as if he was just a regular guy. The girls had their brief seizures but, after that, they all got along like they'd been best friends for years.

"Hey, Millz? I was just wondering if maybe you wanted to get some lunch?" Vic asked me.

"Uh, I don't know… the kids are here and-"

"WE'RE NOT KIDS!" they all yelled with laughs – including Jaime.

"And," I emphasized, then spoke in a hushed tone, "what about Cara?"

"Oh, well… she's not around, plus it's not a date! We can all go out and get a bite, the kids too. I'm just bored," he explained.

"Um, okay, well you can come by our bus and we can all go for food?" I asked.

"Cool, see ya soon!" I could hear the smile in his voice. "Oh, wait, don't hang up!" he yelled just in time.

"Yeah?" I asked, bringing the phone back to my ears.

"Is Ahna there? Mike really wants to see her."

"No, her and Tony went out to lunch a while ago. But you an bring Mike along, I'm sure they'll be back soon." He agreed to that and hung up. As surreal as it seemed, I was getting used to the idea of being friends with Vic Fuentes.

---

**Ahna's POV**

We left the restaurant and – thank mother fucking god – Tony hadn't made me eat. We walked out to his car and made our way back to the venue, back to Mike. I told Tony everything about myself, my anorexia, my abusive relationship with Charlie, the way he'd beat me, that I grew up with an abusive father… Oh yeah, I guess I never mentioned that. These were all things that I'd never told anyone but Milinda. I trusted Tony for no real reason. I in no way had romantic feelings for him, I just felt like we could be really close friends. "I feel so awful for-"

"Tony, please stop. I don't want your sympathy. But thank you for being here for me." I leaned over as the car stopped and gave Tony a tight hug.

"I'll always be here for you, even if it doesn't work out with Mike. I think it will though," he told me with a smirk, "Oh, but if he hurts you, I'll kick his ass." Tony pressed a small kiss to my cheek and hugged me one more time. The gesture held nothing more than pure friendship, and it gave me the confidence I needed to talk to Mike.

"Thanks, Tone. I'm gonna go talk to him!" I looked down once more at my legs as I unbuckled. Maybe in longer pants… I added silently. I got out of the car and we headed back to our bus where I saw Milinda, the kids, Vic, and the last PTV guy who's name I never really caught. "Where's Mike?" I asked, realizing how weird that was the moment his name slid through my lips.

"He went out for a smoke, isn't he right outside?" Vic asked. I knew he wasn't, but let Tony respond as I went back outside after pulling on a thin hoodie.

I looked over to the guys' bus and saw a curtain shut quickly. I ran over and knocked on the door. "Tony isn't in here," Mike informed me awkwardly as he opened the door.

"I know, he's on my bus, but I came to see you. I wanted to apologize for-"

"Mikey, who is it?" I stopped dead in my tracks as I saw some blonde walk out in just her panties, leaving her pierced nipples out boldly. I didn't even wait for a response, I just turned and ran. I ran until I reached the edge of the venue and found a hill. It had only a few trees and nothing else to ruin it's natural beauty. I pulled off my hoodie and balled it up under my head as I laid down in the grass.

My phone went off many times, most of the messages from Mike, but this turtle had stuck her head out of the shell once and that got her burned. Bad. The only man I would ever go back to was Charlie. The only man I loved was Charlie.

Notes

thanks for reading, i hope you guys like this chapter!

QOTD: What happened with Mike on that cigarette break?!

{Title Credit To: Grow Up, Paramore}