Julia was many things. She was obnoxiously friendly, extremely vain, looked like a Barbie doll, and was the worst driver I had ever encountered. This last one I realized as soon as I got in the car with her, which I immediately regretted doing once she started the engine.

"Julia! That was a stop sign you just missed!" I exclaimed, looking back at the red sign that she had crossed because she wasn't paying attention. Someone at the intersection had honked at her repeatedly and I was almost sure they had cursed her out.

"Oops! I forgot to turn my lights on! I always forget that," Julia said, giggling as if this was no big deal. I sat back and clutched the door handle for dear life. What had I gotten myself into?

Julia looked over at me and chuckled.

"Why are you getting so nervous? We're almost there," she said.

"When did you get your license, Julia?" I asked her.

"When everyone else got theirs," she replied.

"Can I ask what your score was?" I asked. She tapped her finger on her chin.

"I can't remember, but I do remember that I barely passed. Like, by a point or two," she replied.

"Oh, sweet Jesus," I whispered under my breath, closing my eyes and praying to God for forgiveness for whatever sins I may have committed in the past. Surely this was punishment for my sins and mistakes. Why else would I be put through this torture?

"Oh, lookie! There's the restaraunt!" she exclaimed, turning sharply into the hotel parking lot, jerking me forward in my seat. She ran over the curb, making me bounce up and down and causing me to hit my head painfully against the window. "Oopsie daisy! My bad!" she cried, reaching out for me. I smacked her hand away and told her to keep her eyes on the road. She snickered and found a parking spot.

It took her a good five minutes to successfully get the car between the other two. And even when she did, she left about two feet of space between her side and the car next to her and about an inch of space for me to get out. I mumbled obscenities under my breath and tried to squeeze out of her car. I stumbled once I successfully made it out, grabbing a hold of the car next to me so I didn't tumble over.

"Are you all right?" Julia asked as I walked over to her.

"Yes, I'm fine," I growled, smoothing down the skirt of the summer dress she had forced me to buy. Her blue eyes glittered in amusement in the light from the lamps. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at her and turned my attention to the restaurant that was attached to the Renaissance Hotel. I felt my heart sink slightly when I realized where we were. It was the restaurant that Carter had taken me to on our first real date. It was the restaurant where Carter had first told me that he loved me.

"This place looks expensive," Arya said as she stepped out of Carter's beat-up 2004 Honda Civic.

"It just looks like it," he replied, shrugging as he slammed his car door shut. He came around to the passenger side, holding out his arm for her to take. She smiled at him and he grinned back.

"I think this place is actually expensive, Carter," she said.

"What does it matter?" he asked.

"Well, it's just that you didn't--" she began.

"I wanted to," he interjected.

"But you really didn't--" she continued.

"Arya," he stopped her once more, "we're here now and we have reservations, so I don't want to hear another word out of you unless it's you cracking a joke," he said. She frowned and he smirked, pecking her on the cheek.

They walked out of the brisk late September air and into the restaurant. Arya's cheeks warmed up immediately as she looked around her at the fancy setting. There were people everywhere, dressed up in nice cocktail dresses or business suits and sipping wine. Everyone's voices were hushed as they spoke and there was a sweet violin melody playing. Arya immediately felt self-conscious, feeling as if she was improperly dressed for the setting.

"You look beautiful," Carter whispered in her ear, as if knowing what she had been thinking. She forced a smile and they stepped forward to ask for their reservations.

"Carter Williams...right this way," the busser said. They followed him to their seats, which were by the tall tinted glass windows. The curtains had been pulled aside slightly to show a sliver of the view outside.

"We'll have someone with you in just a moment," the busser said. They smiled politely at him and he walked off.

"You know a place is fancy when they don't have ketchup bottles on the tables," she said to Carter. He chuckled, his amber brown eyes sparkling. The waiter, Charles, showed up after a few moments.

"Hello, my name is Charles and I will be your waiter for the evening," he said, his voice sounding as if he had a sneeze trapped in his nose and it wouldn't come out. Carter and Arya glanced at each other, fighting off laughter. "Can I start you off with some drinks?" Charles asked, completely unaware of their amusement.

"Just some water, please," Carter said, changing his voice to match that of Charles. Arya covered her mouth with her hand to keep from snickering.

"I'll bring that right out. Here are the menus for you to look at in the mean time," Charles said.

"Thanks, Charlie," Arya said.

"Charles," he corrected.

"Carlos," she replied. He glared at her and Carter laughed. Ignoring them, he walked away to get their drinks.

"You think you hurt his feelings?" Carter asked.

"If I did, then he needs to learn how to man up," she replied. Carter smirked.

Charles soon brought their drinks to them and they ordered their food. Once he had brought them their food, they continued chatting and critiquing the high-class restaurant.

"That lady over there keeps glaring at us," Arya whispered to Carter, pointing to a woman sitting at a table a few feet away from them.

"She's just jealous because you're so pretty," Carter replied with a shrug, making Arya blush.

"Shut up," she said.

"Why can't you take a compliment?" he asked.

"Because I don't like being singled out," she replied.

"You're going to be a terrible lawyer," he said. She rolled her eyes at him.

"If I ever become a lawyer," she said.

"You can do it; I know you can," he replied.

"How are you so sure?" she asked.

"Because you're so motivated," he answered. She smiled softly at him, feeling sad all of a sudden.

"You know, you're the only person I've ever told about my parents," she said. He smiled solemnly at her and then nodded his head.

"Want to go?" he asked. She nodded. He stood up to leave.

"We have to pay the bill first," she said.

"Do we?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Carter!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening. He chuckled, extracting a few twenties from his wallet and tossing them onto the table.

"Relax," he said. "Such a stickler for the law," he added, holding his hand out. She gave him an incredulous look and took his hand.

"What else can you expect from a future lawyer?" she asked.

"Corruption and greed," he answered nonchalantly. She nudged him in the side as they walked out the door and he laughed. He stopped her once they were outside, standing in front of the fancy little fountain by the entrance of the hotel.

"What?" she asked as he brought his hands up to her cheeks, brushing them softly with his thumbs.

"How long have we known each other for?" he asked.

"In what sense?" she asked.

"In general," he said.

"Ever since I moved here," she answered.

"And in the other sense?" he asked.

"About six months," she replied, wondering where he was going with this. "Why are you asking?"

"Would you get freaked out if I told you I loved you?" he asked her abruptly.

"Carter--" she breathed.

"Would you?" he repeated.

She pursed her lips, not knowing quite what to say. The storm of emotions going through her were strong. Here was this boy who had been in the background of her life for nearly twelve years and had increasingly become a significant part in the recent months. She had spent hours and hours with this boy and each minute and second that had passed by were moments that became memories. And although they had only recently started dating, they were much closer than any new couple ever was. And everything felt so right with him.

"No, I wouldn,t" she said finally. He smiled, letting out a breath she didn't know he was holding.

"Well, then, in that case, I love you, Arya Hansen. I have ever since you walked into Mrs. Henderson's first grade classroom nearly twelve years ago. And I don't know if I can ever stop," he said.

"Carter..." she whispered, not knowing how to respond.

"You don't have to say it back; not until you're ready. I just wanted you to know," he said. She nodded and then threw her arms around him. He hugged back and she took a deep breath, feeling secure in his arms, which was something she hadn't felt in a while.

I walked in behind Julie, feeling incredibly nervous. I didn't want to be here. I wanted to leave. I was uncomfortable and all of the memories that I had stored in the back of my mind, tucked away behind a thick veil of ignorance, came flooding back. I felt emotional and unstable and I knew that seeing Carter would only make it worse. And when I saw him, I proved myself right.

"Hey, babe!" Julie giggled, as we approached Carter where he was standing, looking handsome in a simple dress shirt and pants. He smiled at her softly as she pecked his lips. I coudln't help but feel a flutter of jealousy in the pit of my stomach as I watched them. But when his eyes landed on me, he immediately stiffened up, his honey brown eyes turning cold.

"Arya," Carter said.

"Hey," I said weakly. Julie glanced between the two of us, completely unaware of the history that had occurred in the restaurant we were standing in.

"Where are our seats?" she asked Carter, who was still staring at me. I averted my gaze, choosing to look at the bright red pumps that Julie had forced me to buy and noticing how incredibly pale my legs were in comparison to Julie's.

"By the windows," Carter replied. I felt my heart sink further when I saw that it was the same table that we had sat at six years ago.

After we were seated, our waiter came to give us our menus and take our drink orders. Instead of ordering water like I had last time, I ordered white wine. I was going to need some alcohol in my system to get through this dinner.

"So, Arya," Julie began as we waited for our waiter to come back with our drinks, "tell me about what you do for a living," she said. I swallowed, glancing at Carter who had been looking at me. As soon as our eyes met, he looked away, distracting himself by looking out the window at the street at the fountain outside. I wondered if he was thinking about that night so many years ago, too...

"I'm a paralegal at the Matthews and Newton lawfirm in Manhattan. I'm working full-time while I study for the LSAT. It's the only thing I need before I apply to law school," I answered.

"Wow, ambitious," Julie said, raising her eyebrows. "What law school?" she asked.

"Harvard Law," I answered mechanically. It had become second nature to me to explain my future career goals to people. I had been asked these same questions time and time again by countless people, whether strangers at a bar or fellow associates that I worked with.

The waiter came back with our wine and took our orders and then we continued with our conversation.

"Harvard Law. Wow," Julie said. "You must be so smart," she added.

"She was second in our class," Carter said, his voice stiff. His attention was now back to our conversation.

"No way!" Julie exclaimed.

"I worked really hard," I said, looking at Carter, who gazed back at me.

"Because she just had to get away from here," Carter added. I paled, feeling guilt creep up the back of my neck.

"What do you mean?" Julie asked, oblivious.

"Arya was never a small town girl. She was born and raised in the city. It's where she belonged," Carter said.

The waiter came back with our food and we thanked him. The tension, although Julie had no idea, was thick in the air. The atmosphere was completely different from the last time I had been here. So much had changed. And it was all my fault.

"You weren't born here in Saranac?" Julie asked. I shook my head.

"No, I didn't," I said.

"They say city people are cold and heartless. Is that true, Arya?" Carter asked, his brown eyes burning with hatred for me. I dropped my fork and stood up, feeling hurt and angry. Yes, he had every right to be angry at me. But why was he suddenly being so immature about it?

"Are you all right?" Julie asked.

"I have to go," I managed to croak out.

"Wait! Arya!" she called out, glancing at Carter, whose brows were furrowed; he seemed to be having a glaring contest with the table. "How are you going to get back home?" she asked.

"I'll walk," I said, knowing full well that taxis were a rarity in Saranac.

"No-" she began saying, but I had already begun to walk away. I could hear her hissing at Carter, silently telling him off for saying whatever it was that set me off.

I walked quickly and briskly out of the restaurant and into the chilly fall air. I tried to steady my breathing so that I wouldn't cry. I couldn't. Not out here; not in front of the whole world to see. I continued walking until I stood next to the fountain where I had stood with Carter six years ago, listening to him confess his love for me. I had never said it back to him; not even afterwards. I never told him I loved him, even though I had. And as I stood out there alone, watching the water fall into the luminescent ceramic fountain, I realized that I still did.

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A/N: I honestly shouldn't take such long breaks in writing these chapters. I wrote half of this chapter about a month ago and I just came back to it and I had no idea where I was going with it. So I added the flashback and some more drama.

Can you feel the tension slowly building up? Do you think Julie's at all suspicious of the drama between Arya and Carter?

Leave me a comment below! I can't promise when I'll update next, but I have some really good ideas for this story, so stay tuned!

Comment and vote!

XOXO

P.S. I'm spelling it "Arya" now instead of "Aria". And I'm using Andrew Garfield as Carter. I thought he would fit best.