OKAY, SO MAYBE agreeing to study for an algebra test with Aimee right before my first date with Noah might not have been the brightest idea.

I hadn't been able to sit still all day. The morning hadn't been bad, but I started jittering come lunch time, when I was forced to sit through the hour with Tyler the Cheater sitting across from me at our table. Throughout the afternoon I only got worse. Like a kid counting down their trip to Disneyland, I couldn't wait for the day to be over.

After a thankfully short practice, I made my way to Aimee and Meghan's house to study. Well, they were studying. I was in another world.

"Hello. Earth to Scarlett. Are you in there?"

I gave my head a sharp shake as Aimee waved a manicured hand in front of my face to get my attention. "Huh?"

"Did you figure out the answer to question seventeen yet?" She asked, fixing me with a raised eyebrow. "You looked about three seconds away from drooling on your text book."

"Oh," I blinked, coming back down to earth. "It's, uh, sixty-three. Sorry. It's just really boring. And I didn't sleep too hot last night."

A look of concern crossed her features. "You okay? You aren't fighting with your parents again, are you?"

This was why I hated lying. "No, no," I shook my head. "Just stressed about the whole dance competition, solo thing."

There. Not a lie. I had been stressing about that since Aurora had announced it a while twenty-four hours ago.

"You'll do great," Meghan chirped, shooting me a megawatt smile. "We'll all be there to cheer you on!"

When Aimee nodded her agreement and went back to deciphering the cryptic algebra text, I shot Meghan an appreciative smile.

I had told Meghan that morning about Noah officially asking me out. I could tell she was still unsure about things between us, but I took it more as concern for me rather than the anger she'd originally had. She had even offered to help get me get ready, but I didn't want to impose on her or make her uncomfortable, so I refused.

Besides, Sienna had called me the night before and gone on a squealing tangent when Noah let it slip to her after their family dinner. As soon as she settled down she'd been more than happy to offer her services as my personal stylist and I'd happily obliged.

I did my best after that, paying my full attention to studying. Or at least to the next ten minutes we spent studying before Aimee said "fuck it" and we started watching Gossip Girl instead.

We were halfway through the episode, watching that poncy Chuck guy stare at Blair like an idiot while she's trying to get him to tell her he loves her, when my phone buzzed beside me on the bed.

Tearing my eyes away from the melodramatic moment on screen, I looked down and opened a text from Sienna.

My brow furrowed as I typed out a quick response.

A quick look at the time on my phone told me that Sienna was in fact right.

Dammit, Scarlett. That's what you get for watching trashy television.

Rolling my eyes at her theatrics, I quickly shoved my phone into the back pocket and begun tossing my textbook and papers into my bag.

"What's got you rushing out of here so quick?" Aimee asked, pausing her television.

I opened my mouth to answer, blinked, and snapped it shut. Had I actually just been about to tell Aimee the truth?

Well, Aimee, your ex-boyfriend's sister just texted me and informed me I was supposed to be home twenty minutes ago to get ready for my first date with said aforementioned ex-boyfriend. So see you!

Because that would go over so easily.

Shaking my head quickly, I scrambled for a lie. "Mum texted me. Dad came back early from work, so they want to have a family dinner."

Another lie, another step away from the chance of forgiveness.

Despite my inner turmoil, Aimee smiled brightly. "Go! Enjoy your family time!"

I shot her and Meghan a relieved smile as I made my escape and bounced down the stairs to the front door, careful to not trip and break something while I typed on my phone.

Despite my excitement for the night ahead, I couldn't suppress the sinking feeling of betrayal that stomped at my heart. But regardless of me telling myself I hated lying to my best friend, I kept doing it. I told myself each lie would be the last, that next time I would suck it up and tell the truth. But the lies were just so much easier than the alternative.

You can't have the best of both worlds.

The voice in my head wasn't wrong. The longer I kept insisting to myself that I could have both, the sooner they were both likely to implode. I knew that. But much like the voice, my anxiety personified, I ignored it.

Desperate for a distraction, I pulled my persistently vibrating phone from my pocket. Simultaneously, while getting into my car, I read my latest messages for Sienna and burst into a fit of laughter. 

With any luck, Isobel would realize Sienna  wasn't a crazy serial killer and wouldn't call the police on her. Not that crazy wasn't an accurate descriptor, but I digress.

With another quiet laugh to myself I punched out a response and tossed my phone on the passenger seat as I pulled out of the circular driveway.

"If you burn me with that, Sienna, I swear to God I will kill you in your sleep."

I watched in the vanity mirror as Sienna rolled her eyes and proceeded to wrap a lock of my hair around the wide barrel of a curling wand. "I can see why my brother fancies you. You might just be as mental as he is."

I fixed her with a toothy grin as she continued working her magic on my hair.

Sienna had come baring an overflowing make-up bag and all of the hair products one might find in a professional salon. Apparently, she had no faith in my ability to be a teenage girl.

She was not wrong.

As she continued to curl my hair into soft waves, I continued to prod her about what her brother had in store for me. While I had asked Noah repeatedly, he shut me down each time, telling me it was a surprise. When he didn't even cave when I resorted idle threats of bodily harm, I gave up.

"For the millionth time, he didn't tell me anything," she said, giving me a knowing look in the mirror.

Of course he didn't tell her, he knew she'd hardly keep it to herself for ten minutes. But I was certain he had given her something to work with. "Come on, Sienna," I pleaded. "He had to of told you something. Anything. Please. I hate surprises."

Letting the final wave fall against my shoulder, she set down the wand on the vanity and heaved a sigh. "All I know is he told me to make certain you dressed warm. Now be that because it's going to be cold, or he realizes you ought to freeze your skinny ass of no matter where you are, not sure."

My eyes narrowed into slits as she shot me a smug grin. "Right, you still don't believe me, do you?"

"Absolutely not."

With a huff, she reached into her bag. "You're a right stubborn one, aren't you?" She produced a cellphone in one hand and handed it to me. "Ask him yourself."

With a sly grin I took her phone from her outstretched hand. While I had no intention of reading her last conversation with her brother, I couldn't resist when it popped up.

I let out a peel of laughter, my ribs aching. "Petal Dick?" I asked her once I had calmed down enough to inhale.

Sienna merely shrugged, rooting through her makeup bag. "It's fitting."

I stifled another laugh as I punched out a text message, doing my best to channel my inner British sass-queen.

A grin spread across my lips as I hit send, feeling very proud of myself.

Sienna leaned over my shoulder to take a peek at her phone before giving me an impressed look. "Not bad."

I shrugged nonchalantly as her phone buzzed with a reply. "I'm starting to think we're, like, the same person. Except, you know, your accent is a lot cooler."

Her warm laughter filled the air as I glanced down at the phone.

Ah, sibling love.

While I waited for a response, Sienna set out to work on my makeup. I had tried to tell her earlier that I could handle it myself, but she had only scoffed and asked me what brand of mascara I used. When I sputtered for an answer, she laughed.

And so here I sat, allowing Sienna Kennedy to decide what shade of eyeshadow would best match my outfit.

When her phone buzzed again in my hand, twice in succession, I waved her off.

A scowl crossed my lips as I looked down at those two little bubbles. A string of curses ran through my head, none of which my mother would deem very ladylike at all.

With that, I hit send and held out the phone for Sienna to take back. She obliged, taking the time to scroll through the messages with one hand while she balanced a brush and palate in the other. Laughing, she tossed the phone back in her bag and turned to me. "Well, at least you can say you tried."

Her gaze was met by a glare as I crossed my arms over my chest and huffed. "Your brother is incredibly irritating."

Sienna shrugged, a playful smile on her face. "But he's grown on you."

My face fell.

The acknowledgment of the fact Noah had grown from being a nuisance, to being someone I needed in my life should have given me butterflies. It should've made me realize how much I myself had grown in my life here in Connecticut. But it didn't.

Instead, a cold feeling of dread knotted in my stomach. He had grown on me. He'd worked his way into my life so much so, that there was a part of me that depended on him.

The only person I could ever depend on before was myself. That was how I survived. Letting someone in would give them the power and opportunity to hurt me.

You know he'll hurt you. It's what he does.

No. Noah had never hurt me. He cared about me. He never pushed me. He wouldn't hurt me. Would he?

Just like that, a tidal wave of doubts and insecurities pulled me under, sucking the air from my lungs as the weight of my anxiety squeezed at my chest. Clutching at my throat, I stammered out, "I--I c--can't do this."

Sienna's eyes lit up in alarm as she dropped whatever brush it was she was holding. "Scarlett? Scarlett, what's wrong?" She demanded, bending down to my level to meet my panicked gaze. "Talk to me."

Her voice sounded far away, as if we were on different sides of an underground tunnel. "I can't d--do this," I said, my breath coming in short, shaky pants. "I--I can't get h--hurt again."

Realization flashed in Sienna's eyes as she brought her hands up to take hold of my arms. "Scarlett? Scarlett, listen to me. Look at me and take a deep breath, okay?"

I did my best to meet her deep blue gaze and took a deep, gasping breath.

"Good. That was good, Scarlett," Sienna said, her voice level and calm. "Now take another deep breath, and maybe you can try and tell me what it is you can't do."

I did as she instructed, heaving another deep breath, pushing the anxiety away with everything I had in me. A small part of me felt like a fool, having a full-blown panic attack in front of Sienna. She didn't deserve to deal with this, she had no obligation to sit here and walk me through it. But she did, and that spoke volumes.

"This. This thing," I panted, licking my dry lips. "I let him in. I don't want to get hurt. I can't."

Sienna's gaze softened, her eyes reminding me of her brother's. "Listen, Scarlett. I get it. You've been hurt so much just the past, and you did not deserve any of that. But, Scarlett, you can't let that stop you from having what you do deserve. And what you deserve is to be happy. Let yourself be happy."

I swallowed a gulp of air, playing Sienna's words over in my head. With one hand I brushed away the tears brimming in my eyes. Slowly, I dipped my head in a nod.

A sigh of relief escaped Sienna, her eyes fluttering closed for a second before she opened them to look at me again. "Now, I'm not asking this with any bias. But does my lunatic of a brother make you happy, Scarlett?"

I hesitated for a moment before I nodded.

"Mind you, if he doesn't, feel free to tell me. I'll happily pummel his smarmy face in if he doesn't."

That got a tiny bubble of of laugh out of me, which seemed to be her intentions, given the smile she fixed me with.

"Good. There anything else you'd like to get off your chest while we're at it, then?"

I sniffled. "I know I sound like a broken record. And I'm so grateful you're here helping me, it's just... whenever I imagined a night like this, all my friends were here. I just wish they could be. Instead I'm lying," I said, fresh tears sliding down my cheeks. "And I hate it."

"You mostly mean Aimee, right?"

I nodded slowly.

Sienna was quiet for a minute before she spoke. It was obvious by the look in her eyes she was carefully considering what she would say next.

"Look, Scarlett. I'm going to be real with you here. I know you hate people treating you like you're fragile, so I'm not going to sugarcoat anything for you," she warned, fixing me with a steady gaze as she gauged my reaction. When I nodded my acknowledgment, she continued. "Scarlett if you're so bloody worried about what those girls, especially Aimee, think of you fancying  my brother, maybe what you ought to be considering is if they're truly your friends or not."

I blinked.

Of course Aimee was my friend. She was the first person to reach out to me on that fateful first day I attended Summer Grove. She showed me the ropes, helped me make other friends, helped me fit in. Aimee made my transition into the real world easier. She was my best friend.

And she deserved better than being lied to.

"Thank you for being honest with me, Sienna. It means a lot. But I know Aimee. She is my friend. And she did nothing to deserve me lying to her," I told her with a small smile. "I'm going to tell her all about it tomorrow."

"You sure?" Sienna asked, concern clouding her features.

I widened my smile a little bit more. "Yeah, I'm sure."

"What if she doesn't take it well? What then?"

My smile faltered for barely a second. "Then at least I know I've got a few friends who'll stick by me no matter what."

Sienna grinned then, pulling me into a squeezing hug. "Bloody right, you do."

I laughed then, gratitude warming my heart at the realization that Sienna had become such a good friend to me in such a short time. When we pulled apart, she shot me a knowing smile.

"Right then, let's get you ready for your surprise."

Sienna Kennedy was a miracle worker.

Half an hour later, I stood in front of my full length mirror, Sienna standing behind me with her chin on my shoulder.

"I'll say, if my muppet of a brother isn't floored when he sees you in a bit, I'm going to disown him," she smirked, admiring her job well done. 

Sienna had curled my hair into perfect beach waves that brushed just past my shoulders. She thankfully hadn't overdone it with my makeup, lightly powdering my face and lining my eyes softly with a brown kohl pencil and a light coat of mascara. She didn't even bother with lip gloss, instead handing me a pink-tinted Chapstick and letting me do it myself.

Surprisingly, she's made a decent outfit out of clothes from my closet. She managed to scrounge up a pair of boyfriend jeans I didn't know I owned, and paired them with a cream colored knit sweater and brown suede booties.

The outfit was a million times more casual than I had thought it would be, only heightening my curiosity. Where on earth could Noah be taking me that would allow me to dress down so much?

"You like?"

I was startled from my thoughts by Sienna's voice. By the look on her face, she was obviously looking for feedback on the her hard work.

"I love," I smiled, reaching up to squish her head in a hug.

Suddenly, the chime of the doorbell resonated through the the house, and I straightened, my eyes going wide.

Before I could open my mouth to freak out, Sienna was out of my bedroom door. I quickly followed, taking a second to grab an oversized army jacket out of my closet before I carefully made my way down the stairs. Lord knows if I hurried, I would likely land on my face.

The second my boots touched the bottom step, I heard Sienna's voice ring clear through the hallway.

"Now remember to wrap it up down there, petal. While I adore Scarlett more than chocolate, god help us all if you impregnate her. The world is not ready for your spawn."

I stopped in my tracks where I stood, peeking out from behind the corner to watch Noah's face turn white. "Sodding hell, Sienna, her parents are in the next bloody room!" Noah hissed, his eyes narrowing in a glare as he moved to cuff his sister upside the head.

I couldn't help the giggles that erupted from my lips, so much so that I doubled over, hands on my knees.

"Right you. Quit your snickering and get out here so I can watch my baby brother fall all over himself," Sienna called, blowing my cover.

Straightening up, I took a deep breath and rounded the corner.

There, standing in the front vestibule, was Noah, looking as good as ever in black jeans and a denim button-up that was just a few shades deeper than his eyes. Eyes that were on me from the second I walked around the corner.

His lips pulled up in an brilliant smile as his gaze raked over me slowly. "You look gorgeous, love," he beamed, his voice low.

I couldn't help the grin that spread over my face, or the blush that warmed my cheeks. I would be lying if I said his voice didn't have my stomach filling with butterflies at every word he spoke.

When I was close enough, he reached forward, hooked a finger through my belt loop and tugged me towards him until my hands found his chest and his lips found mine in a slow, sweet kiss. A kiss that was interrupted all too soon by a somebody clearing their throat from the other side of the room.

Quickly, I back away from Noah, turning to face my parents. "Uh, Mum, Dad, this is Noah," I stumbled, cheeks heating again in embarrassment.

While Mum found her warmest smile, greeting Noah kindly, Dad simply stared, his chin hitched higher than normal. Noah may have been taller than my father, but his face blanched under the intimidating gaze of William Grey.

"Daddy," I grumbled as he continued to stare. "Please."

Mum shot me a sympathetic smile as she gently smacked my father on the arm. "William, we spoke about this. This Noah boy seems like a lovely young man. Now, you'd hate to frighten him away and make your daughter upset, would you not?"

My father's gaze softened as he looked down at his wife. "That's hardly fair, Lottie. Every father should have the opportunity to intimidate their daughter's first boyfriend."

"Daddy," I whined, squeezing my eyes shut in frustration.

"Oh, alright, darling," he sighed, turning a slightly less intimidating look on Noah. "What's your name again, boy?"

For all intentions, Noah's voice was surprisingly calm. "Noah Kennedy, sir."

"Your father?"

Sienna quietly snickered to herself, enjoying watching her brother sweat under my father's stern gaze.

"Joseph Kennedy, sir."

My father nodded, the slight relaxing of his shoulders telling me he was impressed by the fact Noah hadn't made a break for the door yet. "He's a good business man. Tell him hello for me, would you?"

"Absolutely, sir," Noah grinned, sighing in relief.

Dad gave him a friendly smile. "Go along now, you two," he said, turning to Sienna. "Lovely to meet you too, Sienna. Be sure to come around again, we'd love to have you."

Sienna grinned smugly. "Absolutely, Bill. Pleasure to meet the both of you."

Noah shot her a glare, clearly unimpressed with his older sister making a better impression on my parents than himself. The tiny interaction brought a smile to my face.

I sashayed over to Mum to give her a hug, and placed a kiss on Dad's cheek before taking Noah's outstretched hand and heading for the door.

Just as Noah's other hand reached for the doorknob, my father cleared his throat again, causing Noah to wince.

We turned back to find my father grinning. "Have her home by eleven-thirty now, okay son?"

Noah heaved another deep sigh of relief before nodding. "You can count on it, sir."

With a smile and a wave, my parents ushered us out the door and we made our way to Noah's waiting Escalade. When we made it to the SUV, Noah opened the passenger door for me and offered me his hand to help me up into the vehicle.

Before closing the door he fixed me with a heart-stopping smile. "Ready for your first date, love?"

Hello all you gorgeous readers! Another update, another sappy author's note.

Today, I'd like to give a special shoutout to my girl episodetay who was kind enough to come up with the text messages between Sienna and Noah. I don't know about y'all, but I was crying when she first sent it to me. Pure gold, that one. If you haven't checked out her stories, "Never Met A Girl Like Her" & "Marley Meets Josh", I don't know where you've been, but go check them out right now!
Now, it's that time again when I bid you farewell and offer you a gif to compensate for the time you've just sacrificed reading this long-ass note.
But first, a question... well two:
Are you looking forward to Nolett's big first date? And what do you think he has in store for our little Scarlett?
Drop a vote and leave me a comment telling me what y'all think.
Until next time...

🖤🖤🖤