Noah texted me at 6 o'clock on the dot letting me know that he was coming to pick me up, but he didn't tell me where he was taking me. I'm not going to lie, I was impressed by his punctuality. And the fact that he got dressed up. His short waves are slicked back, and he's wearing washed-out jeans with a slim, long-sleeve Henley shirt.

I told my brothers that Cassie and I were going for dinner, so I had her pick me up and then bring me back to her house so that Noah could get me from there.

I know, it's confusing as hell. The pit in my stomach that I feel from lying to my brothers just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and I know that sooner or later I'm going to have to tell them the truth — whatever the truth is. For right now, though, I choose later. I don't know what my status is with Noah, but I know that I like him — a lot. He says that he likes me, too, and I want to believe him, but I'm going to need him to prove it after what happened between him and that girl at Justin's.

"I can't believe you haven't asked me where we're going yet," Noah says as we drive down a dark, empty street. He moves his eyes from the road and onto me for just a second. "You know what? It's a surprise, anyways."

Noah keeps one hand on the wheel as he lays the other on the center console. I'm tempted to place my hand over his, but I resist my urge. When I'm around Noah, I have this tendency to move quicker than I normally would in relationships.

"Why does something tell me that your idea of a surprise isn't a conventional one?" I confess, and he smirks, showcasing those gorgeous dimples.

"You can trust me, Fee. I promise."

"Can I though? Trust you," I ask him, but he doesn't answer. And instead, we just look at each other.

I spend the rest of the drive thinking back to just a few weeks ago. It's crazy how Noah and I went from practically hating each other to...well, this.

I'm ripped from my thoughts as soon as we turn into a parking lot. The neon sign on the brick building before us reads "Charleston Lanes".

"Bowling?" I ask. "That's your surprise?"

"Yup. What do you think?" Let's just say the last time I went bowling I averaged a 48 — with bumpers.

"Fun!" I say as convincingly as possible. It's not that I'm not excited, I just wasn't expecting this. To be honest, I was anticipating something more...romantic. Maybe a nice stroll on the boardwalk; some ice cream to follow. But, I really am excited. I'd go anywhere with Noah. In fact, I love that being with him forces me to do things that are either outside my comfort zone or something that I wouldn't normally think of doing.

"It's going to be fun. This is our first official date, so there's no way in hell that I'm letting tonight go to waste," he says, and my cheeks flush. "In fact, let's make a deal right here, right now, before we get out of this car. If I win — and I will win — it's your turn to show me a side of you that I've never seen before; tell me something that I don't know. But if you win, you get to ask me anything you want." Noah lends out his hand. "Deal?"

Ask Noah anything I want? That sounds like a dream.

I consider his proposal before agreeing. "Deal."

We walk inside the bowling alley and the entire room is dark. The only lights come from the glow-in-the-dark lanes that transmit neon colors. In the background, music beats from the local DJ that's bumping his fist in the air, and there's also a bar that's crowded with people who are chomping on nachos, fries, and beer.

We check in at the front desk, where the lady hands us a pair of bowling shoes and directs us to Lane 2.

"I should warn you," Noah says as he punches our names into the system, "I never lose." I'd like to warn him that I never win. Can someone please tell me what I was thinking when I agreed to this deal in the first place?

"Okay, you're up," he says once he's done.

I lace up my shoes and proceed for the machine that's spitting out colored bowling bowls. I opt for the yellow one and walk towards the lane. I drop the ball and a loud thump echoes the room, making the lady at the lane next to us jump.

"Please tell me you did not just throw a 20-pound ball down a wooden lane," Noah laughs.

"I didn't just throw a 20-pound ball down a wooden lane," I smile innocently and say. Noah's laughing so hard, that it makes almost destroying the floor worth it. "Hey, I never said I was any good at this!"

"Yeah, I figured once I saw the ball go into the gutter the second that it hit the floor," he teases. "Okay," he claps his hands together, "you get a chance to redeem yourself. Here, let me help you." He walks up from behind me and steadies one hand on the left side of my waist and the other on my right arm. He guides my right arm back and then moves it gently towards the pins. "Now, release," he whispers in my ear, tickling my skin.

We both watch as the ball flies down the shiny lane and knocks down 7 pins. "Nice!" he exclaims, holding his palms up for a high-five.

"Beat that!"

He blows on his hands, rubs them together, and then picks up a green ball from the machine, locking his fingers into the holes. "Fun fact," he says as he holds it up, "green is my favorite color."

He firmly holds the bowling ball back as his biceps come through his shirt. I love how good he looks even when he's dressed super casually. I'm starting to think that washed-out jeans are his thing.

Noah gets a strike on his first try, and I'm not surprised. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

The rest of the game pretty much looks like that —Noah getting strikes, me getting death stares from the lady next to us. In the end, Noah wins, which means I'm the one who has to forfeit a secret later on.

Fan. Tastic.

"What do you say we head out of here soon?" Noah asks.

"That's it? One game and you're ready to leave?"

"Hell yeah. I just won."

"Fine, we can leave. But only because I'm not a sore loser."

"That's the spirit," he says. "Gimme your shoes, I'll return them for us."

I slip off my shoes and hand them to Noah, but before he has a chance to walk away, the night takes a turn of events when Cecilia appears out of nowhere. Like, for real, out of nowhere. I'm starting to think the girl has psychic powers or something. She's with two other guys who I've never seen before and that girl Samantha.

Cecilia reminds me of Regina George from Mean Girls. She's got the long, blonde hair, skimpy body, obsession with miniskirts. I don't know if she and Noah were ever serious, but what I do know from Cassie is that Cecilia's always been in love with Noah. The only reason Justin and his crew tolerate her is because her family runs in the same circle as theirs.

And Samantha, well, let me put it this way — she's like the Gretchen Wieners to Cecilia's Regina George. She lives in Cecilia's shadow and basically follows her every move. I kind of feel bad for her; she always looks miserable.

"Well, well, well, look who it is," Cecilia says as she blocks Noah in. "Leaving so soon?"

"What are you doing here, Cecilia?" Noah sucks his cheeks in and looks to the side.

"It's a bowling alley, Noah, what do you think I'm doing here?"

He tries to move past her, but she blocks him in again, this time wrapping her hands around his biceps, causing my blood to boil. Is she just going to pretend like I'm not standing right here?

"Hi, Sophia," she finally turns her head and says disingenuously.

"Don't talk to her," Noah orders, looking Cecilia straight in the eye.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she says in a sardonic tone, pressing her palm to her chest. "I didn't know I needed permission to speak to your precious girlfriend."

"Yeah, well, now you know. So, what can I do for you?" I'm happy when Noah doesn't correct Cecilia when she refers to me as his 'girlfriend'.

"Well, we just came over here to see if you guys might be interested in another game — you know, us against you."

"I don't think so," Noah says, trying to push past her for a second time.

"Oh, c'mon, Noah. What's one measly game? Unless, of course, you're afraid that your girl can't handle us."

I can't see Noah's reaction, but from the tenseness in his back, I can tell that it's not good.

"She can handle way more than the pathetic shit you throw her way, that's for sure," he asserts. "C'mon, Fee." He reaches for my hand and leads the way, pushing Cecilia to the side with his shoulder.