Thank you, localweirdo_ree , for reading my book. You were the first one to vote on the last chapter, so there you go, a chapter dedicated to you. I hope you'll find this book interesting and entertaining as I keep on traveling through the world of writing.

Song of the chapter : Call It What You Want by Taylor Swift

The next month passed with Brian irritating me for the silliest of reasons. Well, who am I kidding? Of course, he did that because that's what people do!

Most of them were so silly that I couldn't even get mad at him for it. One day, he asked me if he could go to the bathroom in the middle of the class, but then I got punished for not being quiet in class. Yes. And, yesterday he asked me to spell 'hypothermia' in A.P. biology class. He was an idiot, no doubts. It had been going pretty bad for me.

Not everything about those days was bad, though. I got rides to school and back every day. He even waited outside the restaurant to pick me up after work. I realized, this boy wasn't that much of a jerk.

As days passed, whenever he'd say that it had gotten late and he needed to leave, I'd always wish that he'd stay a little longer. No matter how much I got mad at his silly and idiotic actions, I always loved his company.

I wasn't supposed to feel like this about him. But I was feeling them. And there was nothing stopping my heart. Then again, I wasn't doing much justice to my brain. But was my brain really an important judge in these times?

I was almost convinced the other day that I was starting to like him. You know, 'like' like him. I later realized how ridiculous that would've been. I had dated a few boys in the past, and the connection between me and my former dates was nothing like the 'thing' that I and Brian had. Somehow, I knew the thing between us was not actual friendship. It was a sparkly feeling. But that feeling didn't give off a dating-vibe either.

Whatever that weird feeling was, I knew that it was very new for me. Soon, I couldn't figure out how to act around him. Most of the time I'd act like he was my long-lost pal or something. Sometimes, I would come off a little shy.

Weeks passed and I found myself becoming free around him. I realized that I hadn't ever been that free around anyone. We would talk, and I wouldn't always tell him to shut up. He would often joke around me and I would come up with some sarcastic comments to throw back at him. I had even started to smile a teensy bit in front of him, something I never thought that I'd be able to do with a guy I met 'a month ago'.

Even though I'd smile a teensy bit, I still didn't trust him enough to exactly smile widely or laugh in front of him. Who knows what might happen? Maybe he'd try to get inside my life and then shatter me all over again as my former date had done once? It's always good to have a safe distance from people. But trust me, the way I sometimes laughed at his jokes was... a new me.

My life had completely turned around in a month because of a freakishly cute boy.

***

"So," Brian started, "we have this family tradition-like thing. We all tell each other about everything that happened with us on the day while having dinner."

It was 4 pm on a Friday afternoon and he was giving me a ride back home from school.

"Okay..." I trailed off.

"Yeah, so, my parents know all about you."

"Yeah? What do they know about me? What did you tell them?"

"Well, I told them that your name is Ashley Carter, you're a moody ass--"

"Excuse me?"

"Just kidding. I didn't tell them that. I told them that you're my new friend and you're tutoring me because I'm still trailing behind the class."

"Yeah, that's better, even though I'm not your friend."

"You're my sort-of-friend," he offered me a smile. His devilish dimples revealing smile.

"Yeah, you can say that. So, why are you even telling me this?" I asked.

"Well, my parents always meet my friends and try to get to know them. My mom had invited my other friends, that is my band-mates, last weekend and now she has invited you for dinner at our house. You okay with that?"

"Yeah, of course. No matter how much I hate you, obviously, I think it's best to respect the desires of elderly people. Besides, they wanna meet me to make sure that I'm a good person and that I don't have a bad influence on you."

"Right. That's a lot of information to know since you haven't even met them..."

"Don't be a dork now. It's obvious. So, when am I visiting your family? This weekend? Or is it on the next week?"

"This week."

"Which day?"

"Today."

"What?" I was taken aback.

"Right now, actually. Mom told me to bring you home right after school so that you can tutor me there and have time for a little chit-chat with my her. Yeah, she loves to talk!"

"WHAT?! Are you kidding me?! You're telling me that now?! DRIVE FASTER!" my voice boomed through the tiny space of the car and he squeaked in fright.

"Wha- Oh God!" he exhaled to get over his sudden shock, "What the hell is wrong?"

"Okay, look. I may seem very nerdy and I may seem like a person who loves comfy clothes no matter what the occasion is, but trust me, I need to dress up to attend a dinner invitation! Do you have any idea how long it takes for a female to dress up and try to look like she hasn't been sleeping for the last two days?!"

"Why were you not sleeping for the last two days?"

"That's not—It's a way of saying that I don't look good. DRIVE FASTER!" I reminded him.

"I am driving faster! Look, you don't need to dress up for a dinner at your friend's house. It's not like it's a formal occasion or something," he said.

"Oh, please!" I said.

"Ro is a lot like you. I bet you're gonna love her," he softly chucked.

"Who?" I asked.

He was about to answer my question when the ringtone of his phone went off.

"Hey, no talking over the phone while driving!" I warned him.

"Relax, I'm a pro!" he said, "And it's my mom. I'm not allowed to dodge her calls."

"Hey, Mom," he started talking into the phone.

Now you would expect me to not understand what they were talking about just by listening to one side of the conversation. Oh, but trust me, one side was more than enough for me. And, I'm pretty sure you'll understand too. This is how it went:

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = Oh yeah, I told her about tonight's dinner. We're on our way to her apartment.

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = Yeah, we should be but she needs to get dressed.

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = What? No, Mom! (Chuckle) I meant she wanted to dress up a bit for the occasion.

I totally understood what her mom said, and I thought to myself, does she think I'm a naked slut in her son's car?

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = Yeah, tell me about it! Ro's always putting on make-up and dressing up for no valid reason.

Who is this 'Ro'? Is she his girlfriend? A 'just-a-flick' girlfriend?

Should I even care about that?

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = Not too long, I'm sure.

Mrs. Adler = ...

Brian = Okay, bye now.

"And we're here," he said as put his phone down, and drove into the parking lot.

***

"How much longer?" he asked from my bedroom.

"Almost done."

He was waiting for me for about half an hour as I was getting ready. He was getting really edgy by the second... why are guys so impatient?

Okay, so maybe I was taking some time to put on some make-up but that was because I couldn't put the mascara on nicely. I wished I had practiced it before...

I opened the bathroom door and entered the bedroom. "How do I look?" I asked him.

He coughed out a laugh and said, "That's how you put mascara?"

"Hey! I'm not good at putting on mascara, okay?!" I said as I acted to be frustrated. But I wasn't a good actress, and that laugh hiding inside came out.

"Give me a sec, I'll just remove it," I said.

"You don't have to, I can fix it."

"Really? I thought boys suck at it."

"Not me."

"So, you're not a boy?" I asked playfully.

He rolled his eyes and dragged me to the bathroom to help me.

"Alright, close your eyes."

I did as he said. A second later I found myself feeling... I didn't know if there was even a word to describe that feeling.

I felt him coming closer to me and my heart had started to beat faster. He cupped my cheek and started applying mascara to my eyes. I had this tingly feeling in my stomach and I couldn't get enough of his soft hand touching me.

What would it feel like to hug him?

"Okay, let's see... open your eyes," he mumbled.

I opened my eyes and saw his divine blue eyes diving into mine.

QOTD (For readers): Do you think it's cruel for writers to give a cliff-hanger?

QOTD (For writers): Do you like to give cliff-hangers?

Fun Fact:

I love blue eyes!!! This is why I decided to give Brian blue eyes. <3