Rachel's POV

Time flies. Before I know it, I'm sitting in the passenger seat once again, the radio playing softly and no one talking. I would say tonight was fun. It felt good to just get out of my house. I turn to look at Asher driving back to the parking lot beside the crystal clear river. I'm a bit tipsy, but I'm nowhere near Blake and his girlfriend, whose name I still don't know. I turn around to see how they're doing, and they're both passed out with their heads lolled against the window.

A few minutes go by, and Asher turns to me. He softly smiles, then turns back to the road before murmuring.

"So, I had fun tonight. How 'bout you?"

"Yeah. It was fun, thanks for inviting me." I respond.

"No problem. You looked like you need to have some fun." He grins sheepishly.

"Yeah. I don't really get out much."

He nods, saying nothing more for a few more minutes. I glance over at him; he looks deep in thought. Or maybe he's thinking really hard. I stare longer than I mean to, the thing is he's just so stunning. So divine. He looks so perfect, like a piece of art.

He catches me staring, and looks at me with confusion.

"You okay?" she asks.

"Yeah, just thinking. I'm all right." I throw a reassuring smile his way.

"Yeah, I was just thinking as well."

I wait for him to continue, but he says nothing. So I nudge him on.

"Yeah?" I say cautiously.

"Well, seeing as though the two in the back are passed out cold... And well, I wouldn't want to wake them, not to mention they have been drinking..."

"Yeah." I know there is more to what he is about to say.

"Well, um... Maybe we could all go to your house tonight?"

I sit there and contemplate his question. Is that a good idea? Letting three complete strangers into my home?

"Yeah, I suppose that would be okay." I say without hesitation. I hope I've just blindly made the right choice and don't end up murdered in my sleep tonight.

My heart is pounding. My throat feels as if something is caught in it. I've honestly haven't had anyone over to my house in quiet a long time. I don't worry about the looks of my house because I know it's clean. Just the thought of this remarkable creature in my house gets me a bit worked up. What might happen? Hopefully, it will lead to a change, unfortunately as much as I hate it, maybe a real difference in my life wouldn't be so bad.

"Okay, cool." he responds softly.

We talk a bit more as I direct him to my house, nothing too exciting is said, just a mindless conversation. The roads are calm. Not too many people are out around this time. They all are probably asleep, dreaming of their loved ones or their deepest wishes, all cozy and warm, snuggled up to their loved ones.

As we reach the driveway of my house, I turn to look at Asher. I observe him. His gaze is fixed in front of him. He puts the car in park and then turns it off. She sputters and quiets down. The moon is so full, bright enough to light up the sky, making it seem as though it's not nighttime. I don't remember it being that bright earlier while I was swimming in the river. I glance at the dash clock. 2:30 a.m.

I reach for my door handle and pull it open. Asher's head swiftly turns my way.

"This is your house?" he says in disbelief.

"Yep." Popping the 'P'.

"Wow, okay," he says. His eyes look almost black.

I'm not sure what that's about. I've never seen eyes that were so strange. Strange, but also memorizing. And I swear they change colors, but then again, what do I know. I could just simply be going crazy. Or maybe I'm drunker than I think.

I step out of my car and close the door behind me. Asher throws me the keys and turns for the rear car door. He slowly opens it, leans down and wakes Blake up softly.

"Dude! Where the hell are we!?" Blake says, wide-eyed.

"Wake Brittany up, we're at Rachel's." he responds.

I turn and walk up the sidewalk to the front door. So that's her name, Brittany. I can hear her talking as I strut closer to the house.

"Dude, this house is huge." she states.

I open the door and turn on the chandelier in the front room. It lights up my stairs and the white and gray marble flooring. I slip off my flip flops and slide them to the side. My feet are killing me. It feels like I've walked all day.

I walk to the kitchen, grab a bottle of Pure sweet tea and sit down at the kitchen table. Not only are my feet killing me, but my throat and mouth are bone dry. I'm parched. As I gulp down my tea, they close the front door.

"Wow!" Brittany exclaims.

"Nice house, right?" Blake responds.

"Where did she go? We will never find her in this place." Brittany announces.

I walk back towards them.

"Just got something to drink." I explain, holding the bottle up in my right hand and showing it off like it's a medal.

"Make yourselves at home. I'm going to go take a bubble bath." I pause. "There are plenty of rooms, two have master baths, too. Help yourself to whatever one you want." I smile at them.

"Okay, thanks girl!" Brittany says, way too excited.

Asher stares at me. I approach him, trying to get around him to go up the staircase, but he blocks me, and I slam into him. As our bodies connect, my breath hitches and my eyes suddenly close, leave me with the only sense left, touch. He's like a rock, his muscles hard against me. I look up at him, and he looks down at me with such compassion. He smiles slightly showing off the cutest pair of dimples I've ever seen.

He cups my cheek and wipes away what must be an eyelash off it with his thumb. His hands are soft and gentle. I stand there, watching him. His breathing deepens, but he slowly moves away from me. I look at him for a few seconds, trying to regain my grip. I feel as though I'm floating on cloud 9. Can I come back to reality? Finally, I glide forward and make my way up the stairs.

Asher's POV

My heart is pounding out of my chest, and my head is ringing. This is so unreal. I've never seen a house so big. So expensive. I feel like an ant on a sidewalk. So small. I don't know why I didn't move out of her way, but feeling her so close makes me feel a little better in this huge house. Maybe less alone, too. Does that even make sense?

She climbs the stairs, and I watch her. It's one of those horseshoe staircases, you would see in those movies with a beautiful girl, she's in a gorgeous dress and heels walking down one side as she makes her grand entrance.

She gets about half up the stairs and slowly turns around.

"If you need anything... my room is at the end of the hall." She says cautiously.

She continues up the stairs, and I watch till she disappears down the hallway.

"Dude, come here!" Blake yells moments later.

I follow his voice, and it leads me into the living room. A black leather sectional couch sits in the corner of the room with wooden side tables on each end. The wooden floor is polished wood, and there is a plush gray rug in the center of the room.

"Look at this TV!"

"It's really nice." Brittany chimes in.

"Wow, yeah it's huge!" I respond.

Wonder how she afforded this. And her car. Parents' money, maybe?

"Dude, I must say; and, babe, don't go all nuts on me - but she's a babe."

"Think you've found yourself a keeper." He urges.

"No argument here! I'd bang her." Brittany chimes in.

I laugh at them both.

"She's pretty cool." I admit.

I take a seat on the leather couch. What am I doing? I don't know this girl. No way she could even be interested in me. I mean, look at this house. She could have anyone her heart desires. A beautiful girl with a sexy car and huge fucking house. This has to be a dream. Girls like her just don't exist. Not in a tiny town, a town where everyone knows everyone. But then again, how do I not know about her?

"Dude, what are you doing sitting here? Go after her!" Blake encourages.

Would it be wrong of me to go up there while she's taking a bath? Would she enjoy my company or be weirded out? I don't know if I should even get involved with her. What if she gets scared of me when she finds out? When she discovers just who I am... will she even stay? Is it worth my time? Can I really be happy?. A wise man once said: "You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it."

I never had a chance to take those words of wisdom and actually act upon them. I come back to reality and push all my negative thoughts to the back of my mind. This is now. I might regret not doing something, right? I'm going to give this a shot. What's the worst that can happen?

I stand up, walk out of the living room and make my way up the stairs towards Rachel's room. It's now or never. Out of all the things that have happened to me, no way I'm going to let a girl scare me.

"If you need anything... my rooms at the end of the hall."

I turn the crystal doorknob and quietly make my way into her room. 

Another chapter finished!! :) What do you think?! Comments are welcome!! Vote if you like!! :)