⠀⠀Alec avoids Kalani all day. He doesn't know what to say to her or if she wants him to say anything at all. Is she mad at him for kissing her? Did she not want him to? Did he just ruin the friendship he worked so hard to get back? He doesn't know, and he's too scared to find out.

⠀⠀When he sees her in the parking lot after school, however, he decides it's time. If she's mad at him, he might as well find out now rather than wait and be afraid for any longer.

⠀⠀She sees him as he approaches, and a nervous smile plays on her lips. "Hi."

⠀⠀"Look, I'm so sorry about yesterday. I shouldn't have done that." He continues to ramble a long, incoherent apology that Kalani doesn't need to hear or want to hear. She just smiles as he goes on and on and on, giggling a little bit.

⠀⠀Linking her hands together behind his neck, she says, "Alec, please stop talking."

⠀⠀Kalani gets up on her tip toes to make herself as tall as possible and pulls him down the rest of the height difference in order to press her lips against his. It takes a moment for him to react, and then he wraps his arms around her waist.

⠀⠀The kiss lasts much longer than Kalani had intended on, but she can't make herself pull away. As cliché as it seems to her, it just feels right kissing him.

⠀⠀When they finally break apart, they're both smiling.

⠀⠀"You don't have to apologize, you dork," she says.

⠀⠀"I thought you were upset," he admits. "You did kind of run away."

⠀⠀Biting down on her lip, she removes her hands from his neck, and he takes this as a sign to take his off of her back.

⠀⠀"You just caught me off guard." She runs her fingers through her hair, looking down at her Converse. "I thought back to what happened in Arizona, and I freaked out."

⠀⠀"Oh my... I'm so sorry," he says.

⠀⠀She looks back up at him and smiles. "Didn't I tell you not to apologize?"

⠀⠀"Yes, but—"

⠀⠀Kalani shakes her head at him, cutting him off before he can ramble on once again by pressing her lips against his.