Amanda

I watched as Jack's fist connected with Noah's jaw. My mouth was opened into a silent scream as I stared at them throwing punches and kicks every which way. Before I could process anything, I was on my feet and in front of them.

"Stop them!" I shouted. Even though I got into a fight like this myself a few months ago, I hated seeing others fight. A teacher appeared out of nowhere and separated them, he grabbed their shoulders and dragged them out of the cafeteria.

Totally clueless, I went through the rest of the rainy day wondering about why they fought, what happened to them and why was everyone staring at me. The last class of the day was History. I sat down next to Noah and didn't even glance his way. As the class was coming to an end, he leaned in and placed his lips only a few inches from my right ear, making me shiver involuntarily.

"Mandy," he whispered. I ignored him, "Mandy." I ignored him again.

"Mandy," he continued, "Mandy."

"What?" I snapped and turned to look at him. He had a forming bruise on his jawline and right eye.

"I have to te-" he was interrupted by the bell. We all stood up quickly and left the classroom. Noah chased after me, shouting my name as he explained how he needed to tell me something. I ignored him because I was not in the mood to talk with anyone.

That's when I saw them.

I stopped dead in my tracks, making Noah crash against my unmoving body. He started to say something I didn't understand until he saw them too.

Aubrey leaning against her locker, her blond hair tied into a tight ponytail, her cheerleader uniform on her body and her pom-poms in her hand. Her blue eyes were closed as her lips were pressed against Jack's. His arms were on either side of her, his messy blond hair sticking upwards. His grey hoodie was zipped all the way and his sleeves rolled up. His jeans were a faded blue compared to the bright blue from Aubrey's cheerleading uniform.

The air was knocked out of my lungs, I couldn't see straight. I stumbled, but Noah caught me before I fell to the floor. I looked at him and back at Jack. This couldn't be happening again, not after last time. As I pictured Sam with Amelia in my head, I recomposed myself and all I had was a blurry vision as I walked over to my boyfriend.

As soon as they stopped kissing, I arrived and pushed Jack away from Aubrey, who had a triumphant smile on her full makeup face.

"How could you?" I asked him, "How could you? After everything I told you, you cheat on me? And right in front of my eyes?" I took a deep breath. "That's way too low, Jack."

"What are you even talking about?" he asked, "You cheated on me too, with him!" He pointed at Noah. "Don't pretend this didn't happen." He held up his phone and I gasped. The picture on the screen was Noah and me leaving the frat party on Saturday.

"I can explain," I stated, "It's not what you think it is!" I paused. "I was drunk and-"

"You made a mistake, right?" he interrupted me, "Is that what you are going to say?"

"What? No!" I replied, "Let me explain, Jack."

"I don't need an explanation," he said, "It's pretty clear to me, you deserve each other anyway." He glanced at Noah then back at me. "I should have known something was going on between you two."

"What are you trying to say?" I asked, knowing the truth but refusing to admit it.

"I'm sorry, Amanda," he practically whispered, "But we're over." The words hit me like a truck. My heart broke into two pieces that fell to the ground slowly and torturingly. I watched as if bewildered, as Jack stomped over them unconsciously. The pieces scattered away, leaving me with nothing but myself. This was the third time someone broke my heart. My brother was the first one to break it, but he was starting to pick up the pieces carefully. Sam came next, and because of him and Amelia, I tried to make myself promise to never date again. And me, being a complete and utter fool, I thought it wouldn't happen again. But it fucking did.

I looked around me, my vision blurred once again. I watched Noah's face turn into a worried frown. His mouth parted and he spoke, but everything was inaudible. His blue eyes searched mine for an answer that never came. I knew I was crying, but I was so numb that I didn't feel the tears until I was running out the school's door.

I ran and ran. A weird sense of déjà vu went through me as my mind recalled the time when I was running from Noah after my father had hurt me. I don't know why, but the park where I had watched Noah play with his little sister drew me towards it.

As soon as I got there, I sat down on one of the rusted swings and placed my elbows on top of my knees as a light rain started to fall. My face was in my hands when I finally let myself cry, my tears mixing with the water from the sky. I sobbed my heart out and let my emotions run free. Then the blaming began.

It was my fault for leaving the party with Noah. It was Jack's fault for not trusting me. It was my fault for being near Noah when I knew what could happen. It was Jack's fault for not trusting his best friend. It was my fault for being so naive. It was Jack's fault for not looking deeper into it by asking me before assuming. It was my fault for having unwilling feelings towards Noah. It was my fault for almost letting Noah kiss me. It was my fault for not telling Jack the truth before someone else did. It was my fault for not being honest to everyone.

It was my fault.

All of a sudden, I heard heavy footsteps behind me. I sighed and rubbed the back of my hands against my eyes furiously. I sniffed and ran a hand through my hair before speaking. The rain was like a shower, heavy and constant.

"What do you want, Noah?"

"How did you know it was me?" he asked back as I turned around to face him. His black hair was dripping small drops of water. He ran a hand through it and sent water flying everywhere. His leather jacket was zipped open, letting the white shirt underneath get soaked. His black sneakers were bathed in mud as he stepped closer to me.

"I just did." I felt the rain fall onto my shoulders, I closed my eyes for a second, enjoying the feeling and because of my irritation. "I want to be alone right now, so can you leave?"

"No." I rolled my eyes at him.

"What do you want from me, Noah?" I asked, my anger rising, "Do you want me to talk about it with you? Fine, I will!" I paused and took a deep breath. "I blame myself, okay? It was my fault for being stupid. I knew something like this could happen, but I didn't care, I kept on hanging out with you." I sighed in frustration and looked into his blue eyes. "Please don't say it's not true, we both knew what could happen."

"I know," he simply replied.

"I made a mistake," I stated, "I shouldn't have gone home with you." I paused before explaining. "I'm not blaming you. It's my fault for getting so drunk."

"It's my fault too, Mandy," he said, "Don't hold the responsibility just over yourself." He took a step closer to me. The rain kept on falling hard, rattling against our bodies, turning the dirt into mud and hiding my tears. "We are both guilty, for something that didn't happen." I stared at a random spot behind him, not really allowing myself to look at him. Noah placed his hand under my chin and, with his thumb and forefinger, tilted my head upwards and made me look into his stunning blue eyes.

My five senses were aware of every single detail surrounding me. I could smell the mud under my feet, I could listen to the rain and our synced breathing, I could taste the salty tears falling into my open mouth through my parted lips. I could feel Noah's old leather jacket as my calloused hands grabbed ahold of it, feeling the black fabric beneath my fingers.

In that exact moment, I felt everything: the water soaking my brown hair, the tears streaming down my face, his intense stare. Everything. The passion and desire burning in his heavy breathing, the feelings that were dedicated to him stirring inside me, my body aching for his touch. I watched his eyes flicker between my own eyes and my lips. I felt the way he looked at me carefully, the way he observed my every blink.

Noah leaned in closer, our lips just inches apart. He snatched a glance at my eyes as if asking for permission. I fluttered my eyes closed in response. As I felt him lean in closer, I trailed my hands up to the neck of his leather jacket as he cupped my face with his right hand. The few seconds before his lips met mine were pure torture. When they did, I was floating, tasting my salty tears and his minty breath in the intersection of our lips.

From the moment our mouths met, I knew I would never forget this moment. The rain pouring down our bodies as we shared our first kiss with each other, the way he made me forget about the world, how he didn't let me just blame myself. This guy, this rude looking former drug dealer, was unforgettable. And that was something I knew from the very moment I had laid my eyes on him.