From when Wynona left Ferris's house the night before to when she woke up Saturday morning, she was angry. She had never met the man, but she hated him. She wished she could rip him out of Ferris's life. The look on his face when he found out, crushed her. She never wanted to see Ferris like that again. She wished she could take away all the fear, but even she could tell that that was years of fear and insecurity pent up. Maybe her presence would help, but she doubted it would make much of a difference. She just wanted to be there in case he turned to her.

They were all in the car. Her, Ferris, and Nonna. Nonna had tried to convince Ferris to sit in the front, but he would not even looking at her. The entire ride was full of awkward silence. Wynona tried to make conversation with Ferris, but he stayed quiet. 

She spent most of the ride looking out the window, but she would take very small glances at Ferris. He looked awful. He was wearing a baggy black hoodie and black jeans that were too long on him. There were dark circles under his eyes and they looked irritated, but he still had the contacts on. 

The car ride felt extremely long, but they had finally pulled up in front of a large, gray building with wired fences all around it. There seemed to be a lot of security for a place that let a man get away with abusing his son. Ferris and Nonna seemed to know what to do whenit came to going through security. Wynona did her best to keep up. 

As they followed an officer, Wynona could see the anxiety on Ferris's face growing. He was paranoid, flinching at sudden sounds and watching everyone closely. Wynona tried to comfort him by reaching for his hand. He did not pull away, but he did not hold her hand back either. Wynona squeezed his hand, but his expression had not changed. 

They stopped outside of a small room. It looked almost like an interrogation room which was not what Wynona expected at all. Nonna had tried to talk to Ferris, but he only gave her a cold stare, the same stare he had given Wynona at the diner. She looked hurt and walked away.

Wynona watched her leave before turning back to Ferris. "Do you want me to wait outside?"

"No, you can stay." His eyes were glued on the ground. "There's a window. We won't hear you, but you should be able to hear us."

Wynona nodded and smiled awkwardly. She glanced at the large window a few feet away from the door. She turned back to Ferris and smiled gently. "It'll be okay."

Ferris forced a smile and quickly pulled his hand away. A slim man, standing beside the door, nodded toward Ferris and opened and closed it for him. Soon after, the man turned to Wynona.

"Are you observing?" He had a very stiff demeanor and stern voice.

Wynona nodded, taken aback by his professionalism. "Yes."

He nodded and motioned for her to go to the large window. "They won't see you. I'll be by the door if you need anything. If you see either one of them get violent let me know."

"Of course," Wynona nodded again. "Ferris isn't one to get violent."

The man was quiet.

Wynona walked to the window and peered into the room. It was a large brightly lit room with blank walls. Ferris was sitting in a chair with his back to the window. Across from him was a man, his father. He was in a jumpsuit, his hands on the table between them with handcuffs. He had a bushy beard and looked like a crazy homeless person, but his demeanor was very cordial and put together. 

"I'm really happy you came, Ferris." His father had a grin on his face, but Wynona could not tell if it was genuine.

Ferris was quiet.

His father shifted in his seat, the chains on the handcuffs clanging against the metal table. "Come on, I didn't want you here just to talk to myself." He forced his smile to be wider. "Say something." For a split second the gentleness in his voice vanished.

"What did you want to talk about?" Ferris finally spoke and Wynona could hear the tremble in his voice.

"Well," The gentleness in his father's voice returned. "It's been a long time since you visited. Last time I saw you, you were still shorter than me. You're in high school now?"

Ferris slowly nodded. "I am."

"Are you in any sports?" His father asked almost as if there was a right answer.

"I am."

His father burst out laughing and Ferris flinched. "That's my boy! I'm so proud of you! What sport?"

Ferris looked down at the table. "I–I play baseball." Wynona could see how uncomfortable he was. She wanted to ask how long the visit would be, but she also knew Ferris did not want her to get involved.

"Baseball! That's a good one, Ferris. Any man would be proud." His father grinned and waited for a response, but Ferris never said anything. The smile on his father's face slowly faded away. "So. Do you have a girlfriend?" His tone was curt and low, like it was a threat.

Ferris was quiet.

His father inched closer. "Who was that I saw at the door? I barely saw them, but it was a blonde."

Wynona felt anxious. She did not know much, but she had a feeling his father was not fond of Ferris dating. She could tell that he was panicking. It was almost as if he froze. For Ferris's sake, Wynona hoped he would lie. 

"That was a girl." Ferris was looking down at the table, his shoulders tense.

There was a long silence. When is this going to be over?

"You're dating that girl?" His father sounded amused. "Never thought my son would be interested in a blonde. Is she bitchy or does she know her place?" 

"Don't talk about her like that."

His father laughed. "If you put her in her place then she won't care about how you talk about her, Ferris." His grin slowly faded away into a scowl. "Or is she like your mother?"

Ferris did not say anything.

Wynona did not care what his father had to say about her. She only cared about how Ferris. From behind the window she could feel the tension and it was as thick as cement. Ferris was probably drowning in it.

His father stood up and leaned over the table. "If I had raised you, I'd have made sure you knew how to be a man in any relationship. That bitch of yours–"

Ferris scooted back. "This is between you and me, not Wynona."

His father scoffed. "What? Afraid if we keep talking about her she'll run away? Trust me Ferris, that girl's biggest mistake was choosing someone like you. I bet there's better men to choose from, but instead she settled for a sissy."

"That's not–"

His father laughed. "You really think anything is going to change, Ferris?"

Ferris looked down at his feet. "A lot has changed."

"No, it hasn't!" His father laughed harder. "You're just like your mother. You think someone could have feelings for you? You think this girl will settle for you? You're just as stupid as your mother. She was lucky I even bothered with her."

Wynona turned to the officer. "He can't say that, right?"

The officer took a quick glimpse at Wynona and walked to the window. He stood beside her and watched the conversation.

Ferris was still sitting with his head down. "I don't have to deal with this." He got up and turned to the door.

Wynona sighed with relief and got up expecting the visit to be over, but she was very wrong.

"You really think she's going to stay with someone like you, Ferris? Don't be ridiculous. You're an insolent brat that doesn't appreciate what he has."

Ferris stopped at the door. "You took everything I had! There's nothing to appreciate that you haven't taken from me! And now you're trying to take her away from me! But I'm not going to let you!"

A smug grin grew on his father's face. "I didn't take anything, Ferris. I made you. Half of you is me and you know it! Take off those damned contacts and let's compare. Whatever you lost was your fault because you refused to man up and shut up."

"I'm leaving." Ferris grabbed the handle.

For a split second, Wynona could see a panicked look on Ferris's father's face, but he quickly hid it. "Going back to that bitch? I'd like to meet her, Ferris. I want to see what's so great about her. She must have something special."

Ferris froze. "Don't."

That grin came back on his father's face. "Then enlighten me. Or should I find out for myself? I bet she looks–"

Ferris turned around, letting go of the door. "Shut up."

"I just want to get to know your girlfriend. Don't be so dramatic, Ferris." His father sat down, relaxed in his chair. "What do you think she'd look like in a bag? Almost as good as your mother?"

Ferris stormed to the table, grabbing his father by the collar and pulling him to his feet. "I don't care what you have to say about me, but threaten her again and I'll kill you."

His father chuckled. "And you think you're better than me?"

Ferris did not falter. "Shut. Up."

"You really think we're different, Ferris? I bet that girl doesn't think so anymore. She's better off leaving you." His father whispered in Ferris's ear, but Wynona could still hear it.

"Get him out." Wynona turned to the officer. "Get him out now!"

The officer almost jumped and turned to Wynona. "R–Right." He stumbled over his feet and started toward the door. Wynona followed after him. As the door opened, she heard more of the conversation. She ran back to the window to see what was happening.

"How stupid are you, Ferris?" His father was yelling. "You probably don't even like her, huh?" His father laughed. 

Ferris was still holding onto his collar. "Shut up!"

"What are you getting from her?"

"I said shut up! You don't know anything!"

His father laughed again. "Afraid because she's listening? Maybe she's only good for–"

Ferris, in a flash, pulled back his fist and punched him. Wynona watched his father stumble back, knocking over the chair. Ferris was leaning over the table. "One more thing about her and I'll kill you."

His father spit on the floor. "Your precious girlfriend means nothing, Ferris. She's insignificant. Nothing's different. You're still a wuss. A pathetic piece of shit. I promise you, she'll see that soon enough. You're nothing."

Wynona's eyes widened as Ferris walked around the table. She turned to the door and the officer was gone, the door wide open. Wynona ran to the open door and looked inside. The officer was making his way to Ferris, talking in his walkie talkie. She could see Ferris on top of his father. One hand on his neck and the other hammering away at his face.

Wynona's eyes widened. Another officer ran past her and practically dragged Ferris away from his father. Within seconds more officers were running into the room, restraining Ferris and his father. Wynona's eyes darted between the two. His father was laughing psychotically and Ferris was seething with rage. She had never seen such an ugly sight before. It pained her to see Ferris like that. 

"Hey!" Wynona turned and made eye contact with a pair of brown eyes that sent chills down her spine. "That's who you want? Leave that bastard! He's not worth it!"

Ferris tried to break free from the officers' grasp. "Don't talk to her!"

Wynona's eyes darted between Ferris and his father. So much was happening she had no idea where to look. Slowly the officers dragged Ferris's father out of the room and then there was silence, aside from Ferris's heavy breathing.

When they finally let go of Ferris, he stormed out of the room. Wynona was stunned for a moment before chasing after him. "Ferris!" 

She grabbed his hand, but Ferris snatched his hand back. "Stop, Wynona!" Ferris turned to her. He sounded angry, but Wynona could tell he was terrified. He was trembling and his voice was breaking. "Just go! Leave!"

"Ferris, stop." Wynona reached for his hand again, but Ferris avoided her. 

"Stop!" Ferris took a step away from her. 

Wynona frowned. "You're upset. That's okay, but I'm not going anywhere, Ferris, so you don't have to be scared."

Ferris hesitated. "I–I'm not scared."

"Ferris, it's just us." Wynona held her hands up. "It's just you and me."

He stared at Wynona and never said anything.

Wynona knew not to talk about what just happened. If she did, Ferris would panic more and leave and she really needed him to stay. "You want to know something?"

He was quiet.

Wynona kept going, "I've been interested in you since sophomore year. Specifically, near the end. We were having a spirit week and I was representing the piano class. I was mostly just handing out flyers. But everyday you would show up."

Ferris nodded slowly. "It looked like no one was taking flyers from you. I felt bad," He muttered.

"Well," Wynona smiled gently. "You were right. I felt like such an idiot just wandering around. I had such a hard time going up to people to advertise. You'd take a flier and then you'd ask me some random question about pianos that didn't make sense. I could already tell you didn't want to take the class or join the club, but you still came." She smiled at the thought. "I thought you were so nice. I mean, some days you'd even bring me a drink because it was hot outside."

Ferris cracked a small smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't think anything of it."

Wynona chuckled. "I know you didn't. You didn't even ask for my name, but it stood out to me so much I looked forward to seeing you that entire week. I was so disappointed when the week ended, but I'd always look for you around campus."

"Really?" Ferris looked down at Wynona.

"Yeah," Wynona reached for Ferris's hand and this time he did not pull away. "Then summer came around and I forgot about it, but all those feelings and butterflies came back so fast when I saw you at the diner. I just knew I was smitten," She teased.

Ferris laughed weakly. "You're funny."

Wynona leaned in closer and smiled smugly. "It did help that you happened to be so hot."

"Oh my God…" Ferris's quickly covered his face with his hand and turned away from Wynona. 

Wynona grabbed his other hand, pulling it away from his face. She quickly and softly kissed him. "I'm not going anywhere, Ferris, so you don't have to be scared."

Ferris abruptly hugged Wynona. He said something under his breath, but Wynona could not hear him. Instead of prying, she hugged him back. Ferris did not have to say anything for Wynona to know that this was all he needed. Wynona was relieved and happy that somehow she was able to take away the fear. Maybe not forever, but for now and that was enough for her. She just wanted Ferris to be happy, that was all that mattered in that moment. Nothing else.