Lovely chapter! I have been waiting for a longer conversation between Malania and Michael, and I am not disappointed:) It seems they have established a connection, and that they have things in common. It appears that Malania hides some trauma (and Michael perceived that) and the moment with her brother in the previous chapter is just a part of it. I loved that she was not intimidated or overwhelmed by Michael's status, nor did she act like a fangirl, but treated Michael like a human being.

I love how welcoming you have Michael being, as it isn't exactly how I would have written it. It's like a shade off, which makes it that much more enjoyable to read as I can't completely predict how things are going to go, yet it is still believable to me.

I liked the dance around their siblings and how she kind of bit into him with the diatribe about his brothers. It kept things real.... as with the food parenting, his (not so) subtle switch in topic, and the revealing of her wrist. Cutting, particularly amongst adolescents, isn't that uncommon. Most stats show that adults self-injure dramatically less often, but if that is true, I tend to think it is just because of turning to different ways of harming themselves....

Ooh. I'm so glad he pressed the point about her brother. I wonder if he will let her go home or insist that she stay? On the one hand, it could be dangerous for her to go home...at the same time, I don't know how he will explain her presence to his parents. Also, given the rage her brother had about Malania being associated with Michael, I have to wonder what his next step attempt to hurt her will involve. After all, I doubt she was so quick in moving her car that no one ran her license plate or found out her address....