As lovingly as Paul can, he informs Kammy of her constant pet name, “You keep calling Ent your Elfie and your Edge.  Are you cheating on me, too?”

    Backing up at the very idea of this, K.C. almost starts to cry.  “Have I really been saying that all day?”  Her eyes fall from looking at Paul, signaling the flood of memories filling her head.  She drops to her knees and starts to scold herself.  “Gran was right to smack me.  I’ve been so careless today.  How am I supposed to be a System Guard if all I do is hurt people?  I’m sorry, Paul.  You know me.  I would never do that to you, no matter how I feel about Entoni.”

    Kneeling next to her, he asks, “How do you feel about Entoni?”

    She thinks honestly about this and sighs, “I like him.  I always have, but I’ve always felt so…insufficient for him.  But then, I realized I was so narrowminded for one stupid boy that I never had the eyes to look at the man standing right in front of me.”  She turns back to Paul and smiles.  “Yes, emotionally, I like him, but that’s not nearly the same thing as love.  I don’t love Elfie, and I’d never betray your trust.”

    His mind brings back the words said by one of the J Tots from earlier.  “Kammy, one of the girls said they had always been keeping you and Elf apart.  You two are supposed to be together, but I was drawn in to let Faye have Elf without you bothering her.  So, now that we know the truth, that says that, well, I should let you go.”

    “ReAlLy?!” Kamron says, almost jumping up.

    With his heart sinking at her excitement, he says, “So, I guess it’s over.  I’m breaking up with you.”

    Kamron eagerly stands up, prompting Paul to do the same.  She then extends her hand to grab his wrist for the standard Dogwood wrist shake.  “Paul, you have been the best boyfriend that a girl could ask for, and I will always cherish the memories that we had.  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to find my real true love.  Bye!”  And with that, she quickly leaves Paul behind.

    As he stands there with his eyes closed, about to cry, he feels someone’s arms wrap around him, soon accompanied by words he never thought he’d hear coming from the voice saying them.

    “I love you more than anything in this world, including ‘my Elfie.’”  This is Kammy.  “I couldn’t resist testing you before we start this campaign.”

    “W-what kind of sick test was that, Kamron?”  Paul is now crying.  “Why would you do that to me?”

    “Because I told her to,” says Paul’s mom as she sneaks up from behind him.  “Perhaps she should have just stopped with the wrist shake, but you’ve proven that you are not like that adulterous father of yours.”

    Defeated, Paul lays his forehead against Kammy’s in absentminded fashion as he contemplates Mercy’s motives.  “I…so, this was just to see if I’m like my dad?  You’re both cruel.”

    Lovingly putting her hand on his shoulder, Mercy tells her son, “Paul, I was bitter, and I’m sorry.  Please don’t blame me for what your sister did.”

    “My huh?”

    Looking to the side with her head tilted in a way that lets you know she’s got some hard explaining to do, Mercy confesses, “Kammy isn’t your actual sister, but then again Jo isn’t exactly her grandmother either.”  Backing away from Paul, Mercy says, “There was a reason I never could bring myself to be a full-time System Guard.  I’ve always been too ashamed to tell you, Paul, but I think I need to with what’s going on.”

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