Don’t stereotype, Jenks. HAPA is an equal-opportunity hate group,” I said.

I will compensate all your one-inch, two-inch losses because I know how important every inch is to you aged, decrepit men.

My God", he whispered. What have I done to her? He thought, humbled. The spell was broken, but it wasn't sealed, and her soul was bare to him, the scars of her tragic past and her triumphs over pain and her aching need to find her place. He just wanted to hold her to him and tell her it would be okay, that she had survived and was beautiful.

He wanted that again, that feeling of standing with her against all odds and succeeding. He wanted it so bad, he was going to risk destroying everything he and his father had worked for.

So much for playing nice.Tired, I let my eyes shut while they argued, hoping I didn’t die in the interim and make the problem moot. I wasn’t ever going to get my water. Ever.

For all his sourness, he was ruled by his heart.

Like the end of a picnic, all the weenies will be roasted.