A/N: bruh...I hate Author's Notes at the beginnings of chapters, but I have to do this, I'M SO SORRY!!

Anyways, so Unspokenafterthought and I are still working on the commentary for the first chapter, and I had a plan to publish that the same time I publish the revised/edited version of WTBBSILY, however our schedules have been hectic. So, for now, I decided to just republish this chapter already and work on the commentary for it. I'm hoping to have that up soon, so yeah! I'm excited!

P.S. the revised version is up now~ check out my profile!

Love,
DG❤

Chapter Two:

Library Fantasies

"It's so amazing when someone comes to your life and you expect nothing out of it but suddenly, there in front of you is everything you ever needed."

Maya Granger

Send:
To: Ashy Washy

Your bad boy buddy got me suspended, and has kidnapped me!

*

From: Ashy Washy

Lol! Humor him! He really seems to like you.

I scoffed at my best friend's lack of concern for my well being before stuffing my phone back into my bag, not bothering to reply. I looked out the open window of Ryder's truck, my arms crossed over my chest as I watched the houses, buildings, and vehicles we passed by.

"Let's play Twenty Questions!" Ryder suddenly suggested.

"Why?" I turned to him, raising a brow.

"So that we could get to know one another, and you can fall in love with me." He shrugged nonchalantly.

I rolled my eyes. "I'm all in for getting to know you, but falling in love with you? I'll pass."

He grinned. "You never know. Anyhow, I'll go first. Favorite color?"

"Why is this always the first?" I asked, before continuing, "Don't answer, that was rhetorical." I paused. "I have a few; neon green, fuschia pink, baby blue, and purple. Do you have OCD?"

"Just a bit," he shrugged. "Though it leans more towards I don't like messiness."

"That explains the clean truck interior," I replied. I took notice of the detail when we were stopped at the gas station. I was very surprised, I guess I was expecting it to be littered with crumpled wrappers, beer bottles, and smell like cigarettes. However, I was wrong with all of the above. His car smelled like apple, and leather - something I noticed a few minutes after sitting in the truck.

"Favorite food?"

"Spaghetti! You?"

"Grilled steak. Mmm-mmm!" He licked his lips-a motion I got caught watching. He grinned that grin again and I felt the heat rise in my cheeks for what seemed like the hundredth time since meeting Ryder O'Connel, then he asked, "Have you ever been in a relationship?"

I looked away. "No. What's your favorite color?"

"You've never been in a relationship?" He looked to me as he stopped at a red light. "Black."

"You have a problem with that?" I looked back at him, tilting my chin up. "Plus, black is so over-used by you bad-boys."

A breath-taking smile brightened his face before he turned back to the road just as the light turned green. "I have no problem, what-so-ever. And black is cool, that's why it's over-used. Are you allergic to anything?"

"Whole milk. How is black cool? It's black! Favorite sport?"

"It's a cool color because it goes well with everything else. Swimming. Favorite band?"

"One Republic. You?"

"Maroon 5. Do you know how many questions we've asked so far? Your favorite sport?"

"No, I don't. Volleyball. Favorite animal?"

"You're a nerd, how can you not know? Wolves. Ideal vacation spot?"

"Don't stereotype me, just because I'm a self-proclaimed nerd doesn't mean I keep track of things like these. I'm not a human calculator. Myrtle Beach. Birthday?"

"Now you know how it feels. July sixth. You?"

"You did that on purpose, didn't you? December seven. What are you gonna do after high school?"

"Maybe. I'll probably just wing-it, take up that modeling job back in L.A."

"Modeling?" I looked at him in surprise.

He nodded. "Yeah. When I got expelled from school, my dad and I traveled over to L.A. While we were there, I was hired to be a model for this up-and-rising, fashionist-slash-photographer. The pictures caught the attention of some big magazine company and they're asking me to work for them as soon as I graduate. Apparently, I'm a natural model." He sent a cocky smirk my way, before looking back to the road. "What about you? What are you gonna do after high school?"

"Wow...that's pretty cool." I was still reeling from everything Ryder said. So he's actually a rising star? I have no doubt he'll reach the top when he'll start working as a full-time model. My insides churned when I realized what he asked me. For a moment I didn't know what to say, so I decided to answer truthfully. I took a deep breath, and slowly let it out. "Honestly...I don't know."

I expected him to turn to me in shock, then pull over and ask me how come I don't know, but he didn't. Instead, he nodded as if perfectly understanding my situation. "I know how that feels. I still feel like that at times."

"Really?"

He nodded. "Yeah. It's like, one moment your future is so clear, right there in front of you, then...it suddenly becomes foggy, dark even, and I wonder, Do I really want to do this? ya' know?"

Shocked, and in a bit of awe, I slowly nodded. "Yeah...I know..."

He turned his head to me, dark eyes meeting mine once more, then he smiled. A small, warm, comforting smile that I won't mind looking at all day. Unfortunately, he had to look away and focus on driving, snapping me out of my dreamy state.

A comfortable silence enveloped us, and only the sound of Hey Daydreamer was heard in the truck-it has been on repeat, but neither of us complained-until we reached the library.

***

"Told you I can sneak them in," Ryder said triumphantly, just above a whisper as we walked down the isles of books. True to his words at the gas station, Ryder was able to sneak in the snacks we bought by stuffing them into his baggy hoodie that he had in the back seat of his truck, that he now wore. The only problem was he made a lot of crunching noise whenever he took a step.

The librarian only gave us a weird look, before going back to whatever she was doing.

"And I remember saying, I have no doubt you'll be able to." I took out a sci-fi book that looked interesting. I read the synopsis, before putting it back.

"What genre do you prefer?" Ryder asked, looking at a book as well.

"Sci-fi, mostly...sometimes mystery." Another book went back to the shelf.

"Then you'll like this."

He placed a book on top of my head, and I took it down. Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 was the title. I gave Ryder a raised-brow look, and he motioned for me to read the back. I did, and it was mighty interesting. "I'll give it a shot," I said, placing it in the crook of my arm then continued looking.

"How many pets have you had?"

I turned to Ryder to find him leaning against the bookshelf, flipping through a paper-back with mild interest. "Why do you want to know?" I asked, turning back to scanning titles.

"We didn't get to finish our Twenty Questions." He replied, shrugging.

"None. Is it true that you made Miss Asters rage quit?" I took down a book and placed it on top of Michael Vey.

"You need a dog." Ryder took a book as well. "Yes, it's true. Have you ever tried beer?"

"I had a sip once. Why did you do it? I mean...from what I gathered, she was strict but not a bad teacher."

His nose wrinkled in distaste. "Be glad I made her rage quit. Her fashion sense was...eccentric, for lack of a better word. It's not my problem she can't take constructive criticism. Any siblings?"

"Constructive criticism, huh?" I let out a small chuckle. "Wow. A younger brother. You?"

"An older sister. Have you taken any big risks in life?"

"What type of risks?"

"I dunno..." he shrugged again, "Colored your hair a bright color? Tried smoking? Drag racing? Sneaking out? Trusted a complete stranger?"

"The last one."

"You trusted a complete stranger?!"

I quickly slapped a hand over his mouth just as the librarian's iconic shhh, reached our ears. I glared at Ryder, and he just rolled his eyes. I took my hand away then answered, "Yes. You."

He snorted. "I'm hardly a stranger now...but...you trust me, huh?"

"Of course," I shrugged. "I mean, aside from the fact that you forced me into your truck and pretty much kidnapped me, you haven't done anything to make me distrust you, yet. Plus, Ashton seems to trust you."

"You need a life."

"I have a life," I pouted, feeling slightly offended.

"Yeah right. Let me guess, your life consists of studying, Netflix, Pinterest, and Nutella, all in that order."

"How do you know?"

"Ashton told me few things about you."

"I'm going to kill him," I grumbled under my breath.

Ryder suddenly snapped his fingers. "I have an idea!"

"I have a feeling it involves me..." I watched him suspiciously, as he smiled.

"I'm gonna make your life interesting."

"No thank you," I quickly said, shaking my head. "I have Sherlock doing that for me."

"I mean really, really interesting." He spoke slowly as if talking to a child, and I rolled my eyes in reply. "If you keep doing that, your eyes will get stuck looking up."

Just to mess with him, I rolled my eyes again but couldn't stop the small smirk on my lips.

"I'm serious about making your life interesting though, Maya." He swung an arm across my shoulder and began walking. "And then, you'll thank me and fall in love with me."

"In your dreams, O'Connel." I ducked from under his arm to look at a book we almost passed by.

He leaned on the shelf again, right in front of me with a smirk. "Oh, you'll be doing more than falling for me in my dreams." He wiggled his brows suggestively, making me frown at him.

"No comment," I told him, making sure I looked disgusted.

"Once we're a couple, we should try making out in a library."

"Could you stop?"

"Nope."

I shook my head in defeat before placing another book in the growing pile I had in my arms. We started making our way to the most secluded table we could find so we won't get caught with our snacks and sat down. I watched as Ryder slowly unzipped his hoodie, slowly taking out our snacks one by one. He smiled cheekily once he got everything out, then opened a bag of chips while I rummaged through my bag for my history book, notebook, and pen.

"I thought we're here to read?" Ryder questioned, obviously confused by my actions.

"I'm here to study," I answered, already taking notes.

"What about the books you got?"

"I'm gonna check them out."

"Boo."

"Nerd, remember?"

"Yeah...a nerd I don't mind fantasizing about." I could hear the smirk in his voice and decided not to answer, though a part of my brain was really curious as to what he was fantasizing about. The perverted part of my brain, that is. So, needless to say, I didn't get much studying done thanks to you-know-who.

***

To: Mother Dearest

Mom, I got a three-day suspension for punching a boy at school...

*

From: Mother Dearest

Oooh!!! Honey, I am sooooooo proud to call you my daughter! But three days? You couldn't have made it a week? Who did you punch! Oooh! Give me all the details later! Gotta go! Love you, sweetie!

I banged my head against the truck's dashboard, one hand clutching my phone. "Why...why is my mother not normal?"

"What happened?" Ryder asked as I sat back up.

"My mom is proud of me for punching you, and getting suspended," I answered him dryly.

"Nice! I like her!" He grinned, but at my glare, he wiped it off his face, trying to look completely serious-which he was really failing at. The local radio station filled the silence between us, the DJ taking requests from callers. Suddenly, Sugar by Maroon 5 started playing and Ryder turned up the volume and started singing along.

Again, I was struck with awe by his voice. I couldn't keep the small smile off my face as I watched him, swaying his head side-to-side as he drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. The chorus came just as we stopped at a red light, and Ryder turned to look at me, still singing, then shouted over the radio, "C'mon, Maya! Sing with me!"

I shook my head, "I don't know the lyrics that well!"

"There's this thing called 'mouthing the words,' ever heard of it?"

Biting the inside of my cheek to try and stop myself from smiling like a fool, I looked out the window, but Ryder sang louder, leaning in close to my ear. His breath fanned my cheek, and neck, sending shivers down my spine. I just didn't know whether they were good or bad. Suddenly, the car behind us started honking their horn, making Ryder and I jump in our seats. I looked up to the light and found it had already turned green. Ryder cursed under his breath, before switching the gears of the truck, and started moving - then continued singing.

He gave me a quick glance. "C'mon, Maya! Sing!"

Unable to take it any longer, I did, at the top of my lungs, with Ryder O'Connel; the guy who got me suspended for three days, the guy who practically kidnapped me, the guy whom I'm supposed to be furious with. However, at that moment nothing mattered. I felt...weird. I know I shouldn't be hanging out with him, mainly because he's obviously bad news, but the thought of not being around him made me feel sad - unbearably sad.

***

"Thanks for the ride," I said, as I hoped out of Ryder's truck. I turned around to face him, hitching my bag higher on my shoulder. He was already watching me from his seat behind the steering wheel. I smiled, then continued, "I honestly had fun today."

He grinned. "So, can I expect you to fall for me anytime soon?"

"Whatever, O'Connel," I rolled my eyes at him with half smile, shaking my head in disbelief. Leave it up to Ryder. "See ya at school." Without waiting for his answer, I closed the passenger door and trudged up the path to my house's front door.

I took out my keys, knowing that neither mom, dad, or Nick-my younger brother-are home yet, unlocked the door, then waved one last time at Ryder, who was still parked in our driveway, before going in. Once the door was closed behind me, I heard him back out, then drive off and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.

Silence greeted me as I walked up to my room, lazily letting my fingers slide against the walls-an unexplainable habit of mine. When I entered my navy-blue, neon-green room, I instantly let my bag fall to the cream colored carpet and flopped belly first unto my plaid patterned bed.

I pulled one of my many pillows from the neat stack I had set them in before leaving for school earlier that morning, and hugged it to my chest, rolling unto my side as I thought of what had happened to me in the last ten hours of my life.

This caused me to let out a loud sigh.

To sum it all up, I have managed to catch the attention of West Brighton High's own Mr. Bad Boy, and now my life will never be the same. I could just feel it. I closed my eyes, suddenly feeling exhausted, and allowed sleep to take over.

Even though it was only around four-thirty in the afternoon.

***

That evening, I tapped the end of my pencil against my lower lip as my brows drew together in concentration, and my eyes stared at the mock exam I downloaded from the internet, through the hipster-style glasses that rested on the bridge of my nose.

Dinner that night was rather rowdy, with mom squealing at how her daughter is, and I quote, "finally normal," dad roaring with outrage at how, and I quote, "uncivilized" his daughter is, and with Nick cheering at the PSP in his hands. I couldn't even properly describe how dinner was. Thankfully, mom forgot to ask who the guy I punched was, and why, and convinced dad not to ground me since I was obviously, "finally becoming normal."

So, after washing the dishes, taking a bath, changing into my favorite PJ's, and taking out my contact lenses, I got online, downloaded a test, and ended up glued to my desk seat, contemplating over a problem on the piece of paper I printed out just for fun.

Yipee!

I had my ear buds on, blasting (you probably guessed it) Hey Daydreamer, and was about to answer the problem, when I felt a hand on my shoulder, making me yelp, jump, and twist, ultimately leading to landing on my back, staring up at my room's ceiling. That is until he came into view.

Grinning.

I blinked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

Still there, looking down at me, amusement gleaming in those midnight black orbs.

I gasped, then quickly scrambled to my feet. "What are you doing here, Ryder?" I hissed, looking to my door and was relieved to find it closed. I turned back to him and glared. "How did you even get in here?"

"Your window was open," he replied, shrugging as I turned to one of my bedroom windows to find it indeed open. "So, I invited myself in. Though I did try the cliché thing of throwing pebbles, but you didn't answer."

I huffed, bending down to pick up my phone and earbuds that fell to the floor when I did. "Don't you have some party to attend, or maybe a booty call to answer?" I asked him, as he looked around my room. I took that time to study him.

He had changed from his clothes that afternoon, into some blue jeans, a tight-fitting V-neck, topped with an unbuttoned flannel shirt. His hair looked like it was once combed back, but had run his hands through it one too many times-but it didn't do anything to ruin his good looks. If anything, it made him look more...sexier.

"If your done checking me out, can I answer your question?"

My eyes snapped back up to his face that was plastered with an amused smirk. I fought the blush that was crawling up my neck, and scoffed, "As if! You just look different from this afternoon...so..." I trailed off, the walls suddenly becoming interesting.

"Right," I could see him roll his eyes, before he invited himself unto my bed, sitting on it. "I was at a party, but it got boring. As for booty calls...I never had any."

I gave him a doubtful look, to which he simply shrugged in reply, obviously not really caring what I thought. "By the way, I'm digging the hipster glasses. Very cool."

"I need these to see," I grumbled, taking my seat back at my desk and started answering the question on the mock test.

"But you weren't wearing them earlier." He pointed out.

"I was wearing contacts."

"Ah, that explains." I looked at him from the side of my eye and found him slightly bouncing on my bed. "Ashton says hi."

"Speaking of Ashton," I pushed my glasses up the bridge of my nose, then turned around to fully face him. "You said Ashton told you a few things about me. But why didn't you know my name?"

"He never really put a name to you." He explained, "So when I saw you two together, I figured you must be the, and I quote, 'Amazing best girl-friend I could ever ask for,' since he's not much of a walking-some-random-chick-down-the-hall type of guy."

I smiled and shook my head. That sounded so much like Ashton.

"You know for a second there, I thought that maybe he replaced me with you, but then I remembered, no one could compete with this." He gestured to his body, reminding me of Ashton.

"So that's why you two are friends," I chuckled and turned back to my mock test.

"What are you working on anyways?" He walked over to me, and leaned over my shoulder, making me swallow at his sudden nearness. I could feel his body heat on my back, and his scent teased my nose. A mixture of peppermint, and spice. Gosh, that sounded so creepy!

"A mock test," I answered as calmly as I can. The last thing I need is him finding out how much he affects me.

"A mock test?" His voice dripped with disbelief, as his breath fanned my face once again, the smell of orange and mint mixing in with his scent that still wafted around me. "Who does that?"

He stood up straight and sat back on my bed, and I barely managed to keep the breath I was holding in. I quickly composed myself, starting with giving him another eye roll. "I'm a nerd. Or did you forget?"

"No, I didn't." He grinned, then stretched out on my bed. "You're the nerd I fell for."

"There you go again with the falling in love at first sight and, blah!" I threw my hands up in the air then turned my seat around to face him again. "Why do you keep saying that?"

"You don't believe in love?" He asked.

"No. I believe in love, I just don't believe in love at first sight." I explained. "I believe that in order to fall in love, you have got to know the person well enough. You can't tell that you love someone just by simply looking at them."

"Well, that's the thing, Maya." Ryder sat back up and leaned forward. "Some people can look into your eyes and just be able to tell. When I looked into yours, I knew. I didn't just look at you, I saw you."

I stared into his eyes, mesmerized by their color; by the sincerity in them. "You still don't know me..." I replied softly.

Ryder gave a half smile. "There's always Ashton."

"I still don't know you."

There was silence after that as Ryder searched my face, then he nodded. "So that's what you're afraid of..." he said, barely above a whisper, that I almost didn't hear him.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, confused by his words.

Instead of answering, he grinned again. "Well, we can fix that." He stood up.

"Fix what?" I stood up as well, and Ryder placed his hands on my shoulder, still grinning at me. "Alright, Ryder, you're freaking me out."

"We have three days of suspension-"

"Thanks for reminding me," I muttered under my breath, rolling my eyes.

"-let's take this time to get to know each other. Like, really well. And then if you still don't feel the connection between us after that, well..." he paused. "I still won't give up."

"Or I could just ask Ashton about you," I suggested half-joking. "He really likes to talk about you."

"Something tells me he won't really tell you about my redeeming qualities," Ryder replied, scrunching his nose, which made him look really cute, actually.

I sighed, "And something is telling me, I really have no say in this."

"Well, I did say I'd make your life interesting." He shrugged, then kissed my nose, an action that completely caught me off guard and made me freeze.

My mouth dropped open as he sent me a cheeky smirk, moving away from me over to the window he used to enter my room. He started getting out, one leg already hanging out the window frame, when he said, "Oh, and one more thing." He looked at me over his shoulder. "I love you, nerd."

Then he was gone, leaving me in my room in a flurry of emotions.