Summer kills

As the three of them made their way into the house, Evelyn couldn't shake the feeling that the butler was still watching them. She glanced back to see him standing in the shadows near the backdoor, his eyes fixed on them. His expression was unreadable, but the way he held himself made it clear that he was not happy.

"Is everyone else in the house?" Maddie asked, her voice shaking slightly. Evelyn could tell that she was still in shock from what had happened.

"I think so," Ruby replied, walking ahead of them towards the living room. "I'm not sure where Olivia is, though."

Evelyn's mind raced as they made their way through the house. Olivia had been such a

large part of what had happened, and they needed to find her to figure out how to fix this

mess.

In the living room, they

found Ruby's father sitting on the couch, looking equally stressed out.

"Your mother wants to see you," he said, gesturing towards the staircase. Evelyn looked at

Ruby, who sighed and followed her father upstairs.

Maddie and Evelyn sat down next to Jaxon, who was still shaking and pale from his

attack.

"We need to figure out what to do now," Evelyn said.

Jaxon shook his head. "I don't know. I just... I can't believe this happened. I never meant for anything like this to happen."

"We all know that," Maddie said softly. "But we can't ignore what happened. We need to

deal with it and make things right."

"Agreed," Evelyn said. "But we also need to make sure your brother is okay."

Jaxon

nodded, but his eyes were still full of guilt and fear. Evelyn knew that they had a long road ahead of them, but they had to stay strong and face the consequences of their actions.

As they spoke, the front door opened, and their parents walked in, followed by Olivia.

Olivia's eyes were red and puffy, and she looked like she had been crying. Evelyn could

tell that she was shaken, but she didn't seem angry or upset with them.

"Hi, guys," she said softly, sitting down on the couch next to her father.

"We're so sorry about what happened," Maddie said, tears filling her eyes. "We never meant for any of this to happen."

"We know," Olivia said, nodding. "We all got caught up in the moment, and things just got out of hand. But we need to figure out

what to do next."

Evelyn nodded in agreement. "We all need to apologize to Liam and make things right." Ruby's mother stood up and spoke. "We'll talk about this later. Right now, we need to focus on Liam and make sure he's okay."

Together, they walked out of the living room and towards the pool, where Liam was still lying unconscious.

As they approached him, Evelyn felt a wave of relief wash over her as she saw that Liam had regained consciousness and was now sitting up, rubbing his head.

He looked around, confused, until his eyes landed on Jaxon.

"What the hell was that all about?" he demanded, standing up.

Jaxon looked down at the floor, shame emanating from his posture.

"I didn't mean to. I lost control," he murmured.

Liam's eyes narrowed, and he took a threatening step forward.

"You attacked me, Jaxon," he said, his voice shaking with anger. "You could have

killed me."

Jaxon flinched, knowing that he had gone too far. "I'm sorry," he repeated, meeting Liam's gaze.

"I truly am. I just let my anger get the best of me."

Liam looked at him skeptically but eventually nodded.

"I want to believe that, but I need time to process this. We all do."

Maddie stepped in, taking Liam's hand in hers.

"We all agree. We need to take a step back and figure out how to fix this."

They stood there, holding each other's hands, with Ruby's family members looking on. It was a moment of humanity and vulnerability, acknowledging that mistakes had been made and that they needed to make things right. The butler, still standing in the shadows, watched them intently. Despite his loyalty to the family, he couldn't help but feel

disgusted by what he had witnessed. He had seen many things in his time as a butler, but never anything like this. He knew that he had to report this to Ruby's father and advise him to contact the authorities. They could not let this incident pass without consequences for the perpetrator.

As the sun began to set, casting its warm glow across the yard, Ruby's family members gathered around the pool, discussing how to move forward. It was clear that they

would need to come up with a plan to make amends to Liam and to each other.

But for now, they sat in silence, their eyes locked on the sky above, each one lost in their own thoughts.

Evelyn saw the butler watching them and felt a hint of unease. She knew that Ruby's family had a reputation to uphold, and she didn't want any more scandal attached to them. She glanced at her friends and saw the same concern in their eyes.

"We need to come up with a plan to make amends to Liam and each other," she said, breaking the silence. "What do you think we should do?"

Maddie glanced at Jaxon, who looked like he was ready to burst into tears at any moment.

"We could all apologize to Liam, but I think we have to do something more," she said, her voice shaking slightly.

Ruby nodded. "Maybe we can all attend a counseling session together? We could talk about what happened and how to avoid it in the future."

Liam looked at his friends and sister. "I don'

think we need to do something more than just apologize. We need to take responsibility for our actions."

"I agree," Evelyn said. "We need to take this seriously, and we need to find a way to make

it right."

They all looked at each other, nodding.

Jaxon took a deep breath. "I'll talk to my therapist," he managed to get out. "I can't promise that I won't make the same mistake again, but I'll do everything I can to make sure it never happens again." Maddie put a hand on his arm. "We're all here for you, Jaxon. We'll support you through this."

Olivia nodded. "We need to all work together to fix this. It's not just about apologizing and making amends, but about changing the way we interact with each other."

Ruby's father

looked at Jaxon, his expression serious. "You need to understand that there will be consequences for your actions. We cannot let this go unpunished."

Jaxon nodded, his eyes filled with regret. "I understand. I deserve whatever punishment comes my way."

Evelyn spoke up. "We all need to be accountable for our actions. This wasn't just about one person. We all played a part in what happened."

They all stood there, lost in thought, knowing that they had to make things right. They

needed to find a way to move forward, to learn from their mistakes, and to protect their friendships.

The sun continued to set, casting its warm glow over the yard as they stood there, each

one lost in their own thoughts, hoping that they could find a way to heal their broken bonds and come out stronger on the other side.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the yard in a warm, orange glow, the group stood in silence, contemplating their next steps.