Ellen POV
Duff suddenly put his arm around me without realizing it and walked me over to Axl and his parents. I saw Axl's gaze, who didn't like seeing me walking with Duff.
"Happy birthday, Axl Smith. I hope you no longer ride your bike brutally in front of my business place," Duff said. He extended his hand to Axl, but Axl kept his eyes focused on Duff's arm around me.
"It looks like Newbie is uncomfortable being embraced by you, Duff," Axl said. I was scared by the way he looked. I hurriedly dismissed Duff's hand politely.
I smiled at Axl's parents. Joy approached me and hugged me. "Thank you for coming. I thought you weren't coming."
"Actually, I just returned from New York," I replied. "I came straight here when I got to Denver."
"New York?" Mr. Smith was surprised. "You're that
