Justin

    "You definitely stepped up tonight, son."

  I glanced over at Dad with a grin. "Thanks, Dad."

   Dad returned the smile, his arms crossed over his chest. That was nice, coming from Dad. Any compliment from my father was one that definitely had to go down in the books. 

  The rest of the occupants of the car that was taking us back to the vacation house in Ouray were quiet. If anyone was speaking, their voices were quiet and in an undertone. 

   Nick's head was lolled back against his seat and Maggie was slumped against his shoulder, fast asleep. Mom, Patricia, and Jeanine were all giggling under their breath, no doubt exchanging stories of what they thought about the wedding we'd just left. 

   Laila, on the other hand, was passed out against my shoulder, fast asleep, her small hand curled around my own. I was listening to the sounds of her slow, even breathing, and I felt a little more relaxed and content than I had in a long while. 

  The only downside to the rather pleasant feeling of Laila's soft, wavy hair tickling my cheek, or her fingers threaded through mine? 

   My arm was seriously started to friggin' hurt.

It's not like I wanted to shove her off or anything. On the contrary, I much preferred her there.

  I glanced shiftily over at Jeanine, wondering if she was in a good mood or not. She seemed happy enough, still giggling away with my mother and Praticia. The last thing I wanted to do was enrage Jeanine enough to have her keep true to her word and kick me in the shin. 

   I silently deliberated whether or not I should just man up and rest my arm across Laila's waist, where I wouldn't be unnecessarily uncomfortable. My arm hovered over her waist while I gnawed on my lip, wondering what the hell I should do. 

   Finally, I just settled for laying my arm over her waist, holding my breath. 

She sighed under her breath and I thought for a moment that I'd woken her up, but instead she just nuzzled her head against my shoulder, still fast asleep. 

   Well, that was one gargantuan task that was finally done and over with.

  I'd just been beginning to drift off to sleep on my own when the car came to a smooth halt outside the vacation house. Somehow I managed to unbuckle myself and Laila without waking her up as everyone else clambered out of the car around us. 

  I wondered if I should just wake Laila up, but when she clutched herself closer to me in her sleep, I figured I'd rather not face her wrath. So instead I deftly moved her over my lap, wrapping my arms tightly around her before somehow managing to slide out of the car myself. 

  Quickening my pace, I caught up to everyone else as they walked up the porch steps and filed in through the front door. I made straight through the kitchen, for the stairs, with the intention of taking Laila up to her bedroom, but a quiet voice called me back.

  I glanced over my shoulder at Jeanine. "Yeah?"

Jeanine stepped forward towards me, away from the rest of our chattering group. 

  "Be careful with her, will you?" 

I dragged my eyes down towards Laila's sleeping frame, watching her full lips twisting into a cute pout.

  "I will, Jeanine," I promised Laila's mother with a small smile before continuing my way up the stairs.

 Honestly, I couldn't imagine a more stupid thing to do than to hurt Laila.

Emma had somehow managed to beat me up the stairs, I noticed, as I propped open their bedroom door with a foot. She was already curled up on the bed she shared with Laila, her shoes tossed across the room, fast asleep. 

   I gently laid Laila on the bed, away from Emma, and carefully slid off her sandals, placing them down on the floor beside the nightstand. I hesitated leaving, taking a deep breath, before I turned back and pressed my lips against Laila's for a moment before I quickly left the room, shutting the door behind me. 

  I wandered back towards mine and Nick's room in a bit of a daze and had to resist the urge to slam the door shut behind me. Nick was already stretched out across his bed with his arms behind his head, staring up at the ceiling with glassy eyes.

   Kicking off my shoes, I flopped down onto my bed without bothering to change, burying my face into a pillow. As unmanlishly as it was and a bit stupid, I couldn't keep back a giggle.

   "What's with you, man?" Nick demanded from his side of the room.

 I smiled into my pillow.

     "Best. Day. Ever."

 It was well after eleven in the morning when I finally managed to drag myself out of  bed.  After I yanked on a pair of jeans and a button down shirt, I made my way down the stairs for breakfast. I stopped short on the staircase when I heard the sounds of someone singing, belting out the words with feeling. And I had to admit that whoever was singing definitely could sing.

  I peeked around the corner and saw Laila Hayes herself doing this dance routine while singing, a spatula in her hand, dressed in her trademark Batman pajamas. 

   The song she was singing sounded like it would've been extremely popular in the 50s, but she made it work, since this was the 21st century, after all. 

   I hated to interrupt her, since she obviously thought that she was alone and she sung like an angel, but my grumbling stomach thoroughly disagreed with this. 

  "Sweetheart, what are you doing?"

Laila froze, banging into a kitchen counter, whipping around to see me standing in the kitchen doorway with a widening grin on my face. Her face instantly flooded with color and it looked like she wanted to sink right through the floor, but she started laughing nervously. 

  "Uhm? Nothing?" she said breathlessly, adverting her eyes.

I gave her a look, heading towards the fridge. "It didn't look like you were doing nothing."

  She turned the color of a lobster, if that was possible. 

I rummaged around in the fridge and came up with an orange that I started to peel. 

  "You sing pretty good, sweetheart," I told her as I bit into an orange slice. 

"Thanks," Laila muttered, dropping the spatula on the counter.

   "Why didn't you mention you sing?" I asked her curiously.

"Why didn't you mention that you sing?" Laila fired back pointedly.

  I shrugged a shoulder, eating another orange slice. "Because, I don't sing very well."

She threw back her head and burst out laughing, clutching at the kitchen counter for support. 

  "You've got to be joking, Richards!" she sighed, a hand at her forehead. 

I leaned back against the fridge and gave her a look. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

  "Your singing totally trumps mine."

It was my turn to burst out laughing. "Yeah, that's not true."

  "That's debatable," she disgareed with a huff.

I popped the last of my orange slices in my mouth and dumped the peel into the sink before turning to Laila with a determined look on my face.

  "So," I said, eyebrows raised. "What're we doing today, sweetheart?"

Laila frowned. "I don't know?"

  I thought about that for a moment. "Let's spend the day together. Just you and me."

"Just you and me?" she repeated with a high pitched voice, her eyes widening.

 I smirked. "Yeah. Me and you."

 "What about Nick and everyone else?" Laila demanded a second later.

"The Petrolases have gone off to Montrose for the day," I answered. "To visit family."

  Laila didn't say anything. Her eyes were downcast again, staring at a spot intently on the wooden floor. 

  I had a feeling I knew what this was about.

"Laila?" 

  No response.

I took a step towards her and she quickly looked up with a squeak. I leaned towards her, my hands on either side of her on the counter, my smirk widening.

  "Are you afraid to be alone with me, sweetheart?" I asked her tauntingly.

"N-No," Laila stammered out, her eyes traveling over my face.

  "I don't believe that."

"You...you should."

  My smirk widened and I planted a kiss on her lips before leaning back.

"Go get dressed," I told her with a look.

  The snarky, no-attitude Laila was instantly back as she went hands on hips and gave me a withering look, eyebrows raised.

   "Excuse me?" 

"You heard me," I grinned crookedly. "Go get dressed." 

Laila shoved me back away from her with an eye roll before she left the kitchen, sprinting up the stairs.

 I leaned back against the kitchen counter with my arms crossed, hoping that Laila wasn't going to take too long getting dressed. God only knew how long it took girls to get ready, right?

  I was rummaging around in the fridge again when I heard pounding footsteps racing into the kitchen. Then Emma was slamming the fridge door shut before she started shaking a brand spanking new black digital camera around in my face.

  "Who gave you that?" I asked, gesturing towards the camera.

"Uncle James and Aunt Carol," Emma chirped with a bright smile. "It's an early birthday present."

  "But your birthday's not until October," I said. 

And what the hell was an eight year old going to do with a digital camera?

  "So?" Emma huffed. "When do you think the next time we're going to see them is, anyways?"

Well, she did have a point there.

  "Soooo...." my little sister drawled, rocking back onto her heels. "What are we doing today?"

"We are not doing anything," I corrected her with an eye roll.

  Her lip jutted out in full pout mode and she crossed her arms over her chest moodily. "And why not?"

  I sighed heavily, running a hand through my hair. "Laila and I are spending the day together."

She opened her mouth to say something else, but I cut her off with a look. "That does not include you."

  "What? Why?" she cried loudly.

I didn't answer. Just kept munching on a granola bar I'd found on the counter.

  "You're taking her to the falls, aren't you?" Emma asked slyly a minute later.

I gave her a raised eyebrow look. "And what makes you say that?"

  "You've got it written all over your face, big brother," she replied snarkily. 

 "Oh, really?"

   "....Can I go with you?"

 "No."

   "Please?"

"God, Emma! Can't my girl and I spend a day together without anybody bothering us?"

   I realized what I'd said too late, after the words were already out of my mouth and Emma was giving me a shit eating grin. 

   Crap. 

"MOM! JUSTIN JUST CALLED LAILA HIS GIRL!" 

   I slapped a hand to my face and slumped against the counter while I heard the scuttering of feet and then both Mom and Jeanine were barging their way into the kitchen. From the sitting room, I could hear Dad's booming laughter.

   "Excuse me?" Jeanine said, eyes wide. "What did you say about my daughter?"

"Slip of the tongue, Jeanine," I said quickly, trying to save my ass.

   I doubted that was going to work.

"Yeah, it better be!" she huffed in response, giving me a look.

   "Don't worry, Jeanine," Mom said consolingly. "My boy knows how to treat a lady, even if he is a bit immature."

   I rolled my eyes at my mother. "Thanks, Mom."

"Oh, and Justin? Take your sister to the falls with you."

   Great. Just great.

"I'll be waiting outside!" Emma chirped before she was sprinting out the front door.

   Then Mom and Jeanine left the kitchen, back to the sitting room, and I was alone again.

  "Well, that was certainly interesting, wasn't it?"

 I jerked in surprise and glanced over my shoulder to see Laila leaning up against the doorjamb, arms crossed, looking a bit satisified. 

  "Insanely funny," I quipped, annoyed.

"That's what I thought." 

   "You ready to go now or what?"

She rolled her eyes as she passed me, leaving the kitchen, and I followed after her, resisting the urge to stick my tongue out at her retreating form.

   "So where are we going?" Laila asked I shut the front door behind us.

"You'll see," I smirked.

   We made our way down the front porch with the intentions of heading towards the falls, but we were stopped by a loud shriek.

   "My first picture!" Emma crooned before she sprinted over to us and shoved the camera under our noses.

   It was a picture of a fat, grimy looking slug.

I made a face and nudged the camera away. "That's disgusting."

  "I've decided to name him Paul," my little sister giggled. "Isn't he cute?"

"Definitely gives your brother a run for his money."

   I cut my eyes to Laila and she smiled sweetly back at me.

"Shall we go now?" Emma chirped before gesturing grandly towards the driveway.

   We walked in silence down the driveway while Emma skipped ahead of us, humming some ridiculous song under her breath. 

   "So," Laila said, brushing back a strand of her hair. 

  "So."

   "Will you tell me where we're going now?"

 "Ha ha. No."

    She made a face, her eyes cast upwards towards the graying sky. "I see."

"He's taking us to the Falls!" Emma shouted back towards us.

   "Thanks, Emma!" I called to her, disgruntled.

She waved energetically back.

   "The Falls?" Laila said, glancing up at me. 

"You'll see," was all I told her again.

    We took a back road through Ouray, not directly in Main Street, heading towards the Falls. The walk wasn't too bad, and there was a slight breeze blowing through the streets, which wasn't too unpleasant.

   "This is nice," Laila sighed contentedly as we walked.

I was thankful then that Emma was off and skipping uphead of us so we weren't going to be overheard.

  "Ouray?" I asked.

"No," she shook her head. "The fact that we're not jumping at each other's throats."

  I chuckled, giving her a crooked grin. "You could say that."

Literally. The fact that we weren't fighting or trying to pull ridiculous pranks on each other was certainly a miracle.

  She gave a small smile up in my direction before fixing her attention forward again.

Without thinking, I reached out and brushed my fingers against hers. She caught on, lacing her fingers through mine. 

  Well, the unimaginable had happened.

Laila Hayes and I were holding hands.

    Ten minutes might've passed before we were walking up a sloping dirt hill.  A battered looking brown sign off to the side notifyed visitors that we were now approaching the Falls. As we passed by the small visitors shop, I dropped a few dollars down as a donation on the register counter before we were walking up yet another trail. 

  "I don't see any Falls," Laila said as we walked over thick foliage.

"Just wait!" Emma squeaked before she quickened her pace into a skip.

   "She's right," I admitted. "Just wait."

The trail twisted around a bend covered in thick trees before we hit a metal bridge. The sounds of the rushing falls could be heard even at our distance, even though they were barely in sight yet. The closer we walked across the metal bridge to the Falls, I could feel splashes of water hitting my face.

  As we walked across a twisted bend by a rocky overhang of a mountain, the Falls came into sight, rushing down the mountain side, splashing down on the rocks that were cropped together at the base of the river. The air smelt like rich, fresh water and greenery and made me feel relaxed.

  "Wow!" Laila gasped, rushing forward to lean across the bridge's metal railing. 

She didn't even care that she was getting splashed in the face, she was that enthralled.

  "Like it?" I asked with a smirk, leaning against the railing beside her.

"Like it? I love it!" she laughed, a hand at her face. "I've never even seen Falls like this before."

  "Pretty nice, isn't it?" 

She grinned up at me with this dazzling look in her sea-blue eyes that rendered me speechless for a moment.

 "Yeah," Laila agreed. "This is nice."

"I try," I grinned in response.

   We stood there in silence for a while, both of us watching the cascading Falls, lost in our own thoughts, while Emma sprinted around us, snapping pictures as fast as she could. 

  "Oh! Look at that!" Laila abruptly shouted, pointing a finger.

I followed her pointing finger and saw a damp looking sign tacked to the mountain side that read: 

              Some say that if you toss a few coins at the base of the Falls,

               A few of your wishes may just come true. 

"You want a penny?" I asked her with a twisted smirk.

 Laila looked as if she was about to thoroughly protest but then she gave me a sheepish sort of look.

  "Okay, yeah, a penny would be nice."

  "My pleasure. But you owe me."

   She promptly rolled her eyes while I smirked.

I rummaged a hand around in my pocket before I came up with the tiny little coin and then handed it over to Laila. 

  She closed the penny in her fist like it was a treasure, her eyes squeezed shut, before she tossed the penny over the metal railing. It hit the side of the mountain before it disappaered from sight. 

  "Did you make a wish?" I said with a smile.

"Yes," she answered, her cheeks pink. 

  "And what was it?"

 She gasped. "I can't tell you that! Then it won't come true!"

  I made an exasperated face, sighing heavily. "You really believe that?"

"Hey! It's - "

  "Guess what one of the tour guides just told me!" Emma shouted loudly, sprinting over to interrupt the both of us.

   "What?" Laila and I asked in unison.

"He said that if you kiss somebody underneath the Falls, then you'll have a long, successful relationship." Emma said pointedly, eyebrows raised. 

  "That sounds so cheesy," I blurted, the same time that Laila demanded, "Really?"

  I whipped my head back around to stare at Laila, who was watching me with the same wide-eyed expression. 

 Was she expecting me to kiss her?

 God, I wanted to kiss her.

But what if she didn't want me to? What if she ended up slapping me? What if - ?

  "Are you gonna kiss me or not, Richards?"

I blinked in shock, taking in sight of Laila's small smile and the expectant look on her face, and then grinned, lowering my head to press my lips against hers. 

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  OHEMGEE!! Thank you so much for all of the comments and the votes and all of the new fans!! It's so amazing, and I thank you so much for it!!! It's honestly what keeps me going and it's sooooo awesome!!!

   Unfortunately, I start school in a few weeks. That sucks. Booooo. I hate school sometimes, 'cause it sucks. 

  Anyywayysss, what do you guys think?

Any comments, rates or votes or anything are greatly appreciated!! 

    Peace!! :D