THE PLAY HAS ENDED. People rise to their seats and start to leave the auditorium.

Y/N, now out of his costume and in his usual tee and jeans, stands around and sees his mother approaching. She has a big smile on her face.

"Honey, I couldn't believe it. What a transformation."

Y/N smiles back. Anna hugs him, and he chuckles.

"Thank you." He thanks a bit embarrassingly. He parts. "But please stop."

She chuckles and rubs his arm. "Don't be home too late."

"Okay."

Mrs. L/N walks away. Y/N turns and sees Hailee and her father making their way out of the building. The girl is chatting with Mrs. Rosen.

Y/N keeps looking at her. Hailee's hair is back in her usual straight-down style, and she wears a regular tee. She wears no make-up. Hailee is Hailee again and not the angel that sang to everyone during the play.

But to Y/N, well...she will always be that angel.

As the boy stares, Reverend Henry gives him a warning look as he follows her out. This doesn't phase Y/N, but before he can make his move towards her, Danny gets in his way.

"Interesting rewrite you did out there tonight, bro." He tells him.

Damn. The reverend and Hailee are getting away. Y/N swallows and impatiently replies.

"Look, I did my best."

"And uh, your acting didn't suck too bad, either."

Y/N nods. Danny pats his arm and smirks.

"Gotta go. Take it easy, man."

"Okay."

Danny leaves. Y/N takes a step forward, but Mrs. Rosen walks in front of the boy to congratulate him.

"Y/N, you were marvelous." She says with a smile.

"Thank you."

He says so quickly and immediately leaves. Mrs. Rosen stands there, looking very pleased with how everything turned out.

Y/N feels relief now and is on his way to catch up with Hailee. He joins the crowd exiting the building, but she's nowhere in sight.

"Y/N?"

Y/N hears his name and turns around. His expression immediately falters upon seeing who it is. He rolls his eyes.

"Fine performance, son." His dad, David L/N, says with a smile.

"What are you doin' here?" Y/N shoots back.

"Your mom told me about it. I thought we might get something to eat after the show."

"I'm not hungry."

The teenager starts to leave. His dad calls out.

"Y/N, don't walk away."

"You taught me how." Y/N retorts as he keeps walking.

Y/N leaves. David stands there amidst the crowd and sighs.

• • •

Y/N ENTERS THE school library, his backpack slung over his shoulder. He looks around, hoping to find Hailee in the room.

Nearby, Krystal and Laura are sitting at one of the tables studying. Krystal gets distracted by Y/N and watches him as he scans the library.

"Looks who's here." Laura whispers and turns to Y/N as well.

Y/N is still searching the library. Laura continues to whisper sharply to her friend.

"Don't look at him. You don't want to stare too much."

Y/N starts to leave through the other exit, passing by their table. Krystal glances at him as he does.

"I guess he doesn't want to sit with us." Laura remarks.

It's lunchtime. In the cafeteria, Hailee sits alone but isn't eating her food. She is reading instead.

Y/N enters the cafeteria and spots her, inviting himself to her table. He sits down, garnering her attention, to which she glances at him before returning to her book.

"People can see." She says matter-of-factly.

"And that would ruin your reputation how?" He replies, then looks at the book. "What's that?"

She holds it up and shows him the title. It is To Kill A Mockingbird. Hailee speaks as she keeps her eyes on the pages.

"I'm reading all the books on Mr. Parker's list of contemporary American authors."

"And how many books are there?" He asks.

"A hundred. But then there's his British list and his European list."

The boy nods. There is a beat before he speaks again.

"So, is this all on your list? To read all these books?"

Hailee ignores him and picks up her apple juice box, slurping loudly. Y/N lets out a sigh.

"Hails, I'm trying here, okay? Maybe..." He speaks gently. "Maybe I miss spending time with you."

She doesn't say anything and continues reading her book.

"Maybe you inspire me." He adds.

Hailee finally looks up and scoffs, shutting her book. "Sounds like bull."

"Which part?"

"All of it."

"Well, it's not."

"Prove it." She snaps back coldly.

Hailee stands up, taking her book and backpack with her as she hurries out of the cafeteria. Y/N sighs, waits a moment, then gets up to go after her.

Hailee walks out of the building, rushing down the school steps as fast as she can. Y/N is not far behind her and calls out.

"Hailee!"

She keeps speedwalking. Some students and a couple of teachers pass by and look on as the boy continues to shout.

"Hailee!"

"You don't know the first thing about being someone's friend." She exclaims back, still speedwalking ahead.

He finally reaches her and walks beside her.

"I don't wanna just be your friend." Y/N says.

"You don't know what you want."

"Well, neither do you, okay? Maybe you're just too scared that someone might actually wanna be with you."

She finally stops and turns to face him, looking up at the young man.

"And why would that scare me?" She shoots back.

"Because then you wouldn't be able to hide behind your books or your frickin' telescope or your faith."

Hailee wheels around to resume walking. Y/N quickly acts.

"No. No."

Y/N grabs her arm, spinning her back so she can face him.

"You know the real reason why you're scared...is because you wanna be with me, too."

Hailee gives him a look, suggesting that he is indeed...right. Like Y/N, something sparked between them during their performance in last night's play. Still...she wasn't really sure what to feel.

Without answering him, she turns and heads for her car. Y/N throws his hands in the air in defeat and watches her walk away, dejected.

Y/N is back at home in his garage fixing up his motorcycle. Andres is with him, who sits by the stereo and connects his phone to it.

One Dance by Drake starts to play from the stereo loudly. Andres begins to bob his head.

"Woo! We gonna get this party up in here jumpin' real right. Come on."

Grips on your waist
Front way, back way
You know that I don't play
Streets not safe
But I never run away
Even when I'm away

Y/N shoots Andres a dirty look and returns to working on his bike. Andres dances in a goofy manner.

"Can we turn down Drizzy just a notch, all right?" Y/N asks. "Some of us are actually trying to work."

"You really know how to bust a compa's groove up in here, man."

That's why I need a one dance
Got a Hennessy in my hand
One more time 'fore I go
Higher powers taking a hold on me

Y/N chuckles.

"It's all good 'cause you know what?" Andres asks. "We gonna get Club Y/N and Club Andres really jumpin' up in here. What do we got here?"

Andres grabs Y/N's phone from the table and connects it to the stereo. He goes to his Spotify app and unthinkingly plays his recently added songs.

Immediately, Elastic Heart by Sia begins to play. It catches Andrea off guard.

"Oh, ye—ohhh. Whoa. Okay, okay."

And another one bites the dust
Oh, why can I not conquer love?
And I might've thought that we were one
Wanted to fight this war without weapons

Andres grabs his Pepsi and sits down beside the stereo. He rubs his chin.

"You're not feelin' Drizzy, but um, what the hell is this, man?"

He takes a sip of his soda. Y/N glances at him before going back to his bike.

"Hailee told me about her." He says matter-a-factedly. "Sia."

It is true. During their couple of times going over their lines a month ago, Hailee showed him some Sia tracks. He had never really heard of her before and honestly enjoyed them.

I've got thick skin and an elastic heart
But your blade it might be too sharp
I'm like a rubber band until you pull too hard
I may snap and I move fast
But you won't see me fall apart

"Mm. Now she's got you listening to her type of music." Andres replies.

"Okay, her type?"

"Yeah, uh, her..." He sets the Pepsi down and stands up. "Bible huggin', stale clothes wearin', if-you're-lonely-come-listen-to-this type of music."

"She's not like that." He retorts.

"Well, uh, you know you got, uh, Krystal thinkin' that little lip action between you and Hailee was kinda real."

Andres expects Y/N to reply or deny it, but the boy doesn't say anything. Andres sighs.

"What's with you, man?" He asks Y/N. "It's like you don't even have time for your real friends anymore."

"I dunno, bro. I'm just over it." Y/N responds, still working on the bike. "I'm sick and tired of doing the same old shit all the time."

"This girl's changed you, and you don't even know it, man."

Y/N laughs. "All right, let me guess. Krystal say that, too?"

"No."

Y/N looks at his best friend. Andres is more serious than he usually is.

"I did." He adds.

Y/N doesn't respond. He looks down momentarily before going back to his repairs.

Late in the evening, Hailee sits on her porch swing, reading. Y/N walks up her steps carrying a bag. She looks up and is surprised to see him.

"You."

He stands in front of her. "Me."

Y/N extends the bag for her to take. Hailee looks at it curiously.

"What is it?" She asks.

"I got you somethin'."

He holds the bag out once more. She finally accepts this time and takes it.

"Thank you."

There is a moment of silence. Y/N puts his hands in his pockets and nods.

"Well, I'll see you at school."

Hailee nods back. "'Kay."

Y/N goes as Hailee opens the bag, smiling. Reverend Henry steps onto the porch and sees the boy.

"Mr. L/N."

"Later, Reverend."

Y/N leaves the porch. Hailee takes out the gift from the bag, which is a brand-new rose-pink sweater. She laughs quietly, pleased, and admires her present from the boy.

Reverend Henry makes his way over to her, sitting down on the porch swing. He looks over, seeing Y/N getting onto his bike and riding off. He turns to the gift on his daughter's lap and eyes it disapprovingly.

"Hailee. Boys like that..."

He points forward, hesitating a bit. Hailee looks at her father, waiting for him to continue.

"...they have expectations. You know the rules around here are not gonna change."

She nods, replying sweetly. "Fine."

"Now, you might not care what I say or think, but you should care about God's opinion."

She smiles.

"I think...He wants me to be happy."

There is a pause. Hailee glances at the gift and then turns to her father again.

"Dad, it's just a sweater. I'm gonna go make us some dinner, okay?"

She kisses him on the cheek and gets up, leaving the man on the porch. Reverend Henry sighs and shakes his head.

Y/N is at home in his kitchen. He and his mom are making dinner together, which the teenager offered to help with.

He lifts the lid off a boiling pot on the stove, stirring the pasta. Anna is sitting on the island behind him, grating some cheese.

"Well, I talked to your dad today." She begins. "He says he saw you at the play...for about ten seconds."

Y/N continues to stir and adds some salt to the pasta.

"Yeah. Sending a check once a month doesn't exactly make him your father."

He replaces the lid and puts the salt shaker back. Anna looks down.

"Y/N, there are a lot of reasons..."

"He left us, mom." He shot back.

David had left Y/N and his mom back when the boy was twelve. The man is a sports agent and travels a lot, which strained the marriage between him and Anna and the relationship with Y/N. He ended up remarrying with a doctor and moving to Thousand Oaks.

There was a beat. Anna continued to shred the cheese.

"You need to forgive him, too." She says.

Y/N hears this. He faces forward in silence, considering the notion.

• • •

KRYSTAL AND ANDRES walk down the school hallway. She hands the Latino her tablet, showing her a couple of photos she took from the school play.

At that moment, Casey approaches them from behind. He joins the two and checks out the pictures as well.

"Hailee Steinfeld!" Andres reacts, eying the pictures. "Que linda! Look at her. She was lookin' hot in that play."

Andres scrolls and shows Casey some of them, too. He nods and grins.

"She does not look hot." Krystal says.

Casey disagrees.

"She looked hot in—Yeah, I would have to say..." He mumbled a bit. "She looked hot."

Andres taps his arm. "Ah. Milkman?"

"What?"

"You into white girls?"

Casey snickers. "They're up there."

"Wait, wait." She stops them.

"What?" Andres asks.

A sly grin forms on her face.

"Oh, I have the best idea."

Later, outside by the steps, Laura laughs as she looks at her phone. She taps on it a bit, sharing the photo she just received from Krystal. Casey is with her and also chuckles.

Matthew joins them. Laura kisses him and shows the photo to him. He snickers and takes the phone to get a better look at it.

"This is fire."

Laura smirks. "Wait until everyone gets a look at it."

In the halls, Hailee comes around a corner, walking alone. Krystal, by a water fountain, sees her and makes her move.

"Hailee."

She turns, somewhat surprised to see the popular volleyball girl.

"Hi." Krystal adds with a smile.

Hailee smiles back. "Hi."

The two walk together. Krystal speaks.

"Listen, I just want you to know. But there's no hard feelings. Y/N and I are way over."

"I—I really don't know what you're talking about," Hailee replies, biting her lip and looking the other way.

"Hailee."

She once again looks at Krystal.

"You'd be so beautiful...if you knew how to do your make-up."

Hailee isn't sure how to respond to that. Krystal sighs, and she smiles again.

"Come on." She grabs Hailee's hands and leads her towards the cafeteria. "Eat lunch with me."

"Okay."

The two enter the cafeteria hand in hand.

"You want a gum?" She asks Hailee.

"No thanks."

"'Kay."

Krystal causally strolls over to a table, picking up the tablet that is already there. Hailee is suddenly aware of all the people laughing as they look at their devices.

"Wow..." Krystal says.

Hailee looks down at the girl's tablet that is in her hands. Krystal looks at her.

"Is that you?"

She sees what it is. It is an edited photo of Hailee's face pasted on the body of a half-naked Playboy model.

The caption reads: VIRGIN MARY?

"Nice bod." Krystal says with a smirk, also eyeing the girl viciously.

Hailee takes the picture in and looks around at everyone in the room, realizing they're all laughing at her. This includes Casey, Laura, and Matthew. Andres is at another table laughing with another buddy of his.

They and everyone else in the room had all been airdropped the photo and saw the work the cool kids had done. She breathes noisily, almost hyperventilating, as her eyes tear up.

After a moment, not able to take any more humiliation, she turns to bolt out of there and crashes right into Y/N, who catches her in his arms.

"Whoa." He says softly.

The teenager holds onto her as she shuts her eyes and buries her head into his shoulder. He exhales a shaky breath.

"Look. This is about me, okay?"

Hailee opens her eyes to look up at him.

"This is not you." He reassures her and puts his bag down. "Stay here."

Hailee watches him walk away from her, tears still in her eyes. Y/N angrily snatches the tablet from Krystal's hands and slams it back down onto the table before making his way to Matthew.

"Hey, man." He greets Y/N, holding up his phone and showing him the edited photo.

"God, no wonder you've been keepin' her locked up, man. This—I had no idea that this was underneath all that."

Matthew laughs. Y/N bites the inside of his cheek and nods before shoving him roughly, completely pissed off. Matthew reacts by pushing him back.

"Matt, stop it." Laura calls out.

He wheels around to face his girlfriend, an irate expression on his face.

"You stay out of this!" Matthew turns back to Y/N. "This is—"

Y/N doesn't let him finish, punching him in the face and looking at him in a loathing manner.

Everyone looks on at the scene. Laura tries to comfort Matthew, but he's not finished fighting yet. Andres's buddy gets up to try and break the two of them up, but Matthew pushes him away.

"We're through." Matthew tells Y/N with a glare.

Y/N nods. "That's great."

"We are through."

Y/N turns away from him and walks back to Hailee. Matthew keeps shouting.

"We are through forever!"

Y/N's angered expression changes to concern as he rejoins Hailee. Nearby, Krystal looks at them unhappily and is filled with jealousy.

Y/N cups Hailee's face and speaks to her gently.

"Are you okay?"

She nods. Matthew continues to yell, but Y/N pays him no mind.

"You made a mistake, Y/N!"

Y/N's attention is focused on Hailee only. His shouts are basically brushed aside.

"Are you sure?" Y/N asks her. "Let's get the hell outta here."

Y/N picks up his bag, and they leave. Matthew is still outraged and keeps shouting. Andres gets up to hold him back.

"Hey!" Matthew calls out and points. "You're a bitch! You hear me?!"

Y/N leads Hailee outside. They walk down the steps, his arms around her. She feels miserable, and her face is tear-stained. Y/N looks at her tenderly.

"Baby, baby, I'm sorry, okay?" He says softly. "They're animals, all right?"

Hailee shuts her eyes tightly. Y/N runs a hand through her hair.

"You want me to take you home?" He asks, to which she nods.

"Okay. Let's get outta here."

Y/N and Hailee are in the Camry parked in front of Hailee's house. They'd been sitting there for a couple of minutes as Hailee relaxed a bit.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He asks her.

"Mmhmm." She nods. "I'm fine. But thank you for everything."

His response is softer than usual. "Oh, you're welcome."

Hailee turns to open the car door. Y/N quickly speaks.

"Hey."

She turns back to him.

"Um. I—I wanna ask you something."

Hailee nods. "Okay."

The girl waits patiently. There is a moment before the boy finally musters up the courage to say what he wants.

"Will you go out with me on Saturday night?"

His question comes out with a hopeful tone, and he gingerly smiles. Hailee is surprised by the request and looks down.

"Um. I'm sorry. I...can't go."

He is crestfallen. Y/N glances at the steering wheel and drums his fingers on it.

"Oh. Um. You have somethin' else going on or—?"

Hailee shakes her head. "No. No. It's not that."

"Then what is it?"

She sighs and looks at him.

"I'm not allowed to date." Hailee replies sadly.

Y/N frowns.

"Oh..."

Reverend Henry is alone in his church, standing at the podium reading some passages.

"Do not be deceived. God is not mocked." He clears his throat and quietly tries again. "Mocked."

He underlines the word with his pencil. At the same time, the church door opens. He doesn't hear and continues.

"For whatever a man sows that he will also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap—"

The reverend stops upon his eyes suddenly fixating on the young man before him. Henry picks up his cup of water and is about to take a sip.

"Can I help you?" He asks Y/N.

"Uh, yes, sir." He responds rather shakily. "I'd like to ask your daughter to dinner on Saturday night."

"That's not possible." He replies quickly and drinks his water.

"Well, with all due respect, sir..." Y/N says. "I ask you to reconsider."

Reverend Henry looks up from his book.

"With all due respect, Mr. L/N, I've made my decision."

Y/N looks at him, unmoving. Still, the older man's mind hasn't changed.

"You can, uh, exit the way you entered." He adds and returns to his passage.

Y/N waits a moment. He wrings his hands a bit and swallows.

"Listen, I'm sorry I haven't treated Hailee the way I should've. She deserves more than that. I am just asking you for the same thing that you teach us every day in church."

Reverend Henry finally looks up again. Y/N continues.

"And that's faith."

The man begins to tap his pencil loudly on the podium, pondering the boy's words. He sighs.

• • •

IT WAS SATURDAY EVENING. Y/N and Hailee arrive at the restaurant, which is a pretty high-end venue in Granada Hills. Y/N wears a blue button-down shirt and beige pants, while Hailee wears her purple shirt and plaid skirt. She also has on the pink sweater Y/N gifted her.

They walk hand in hand to a table outside, overlooking the hills and city and passing other couples and people on their way. A small band nearby plays music for the patrons.

"I can't believe you asked my father's permission," Hailee says with a smile.

"It was no big deal." He chuckles. "He was cool about it anyway."

They reach their table, where he pulls out a chair for Hailee. She thanks him.

"Thank you."

He circles over to his side and sits down. A waiter is already there and hands the girl a menu.

"This is for you."

"Thank you very much."

Y/N takes his menu from the waiter and mumbles a thanks as well.

"Would you like to start off with something to drink?" The waiter asks.

She scoots herself closer to the table. "Sweet tea, please."

"Make that two." Y/N adds with a smile.

"Right away." The waiter says and leaves.

Y/N looks up at Hailee as she looks down. She then looks up at the same exact moment he looks down. Finally, their eyes meet, and the young man smirks.

"Um. This restaurant's really nice." Hailee says. "Are you sure this is okay?"

"Don't even worry about it." He reassures her, folding his hands on the table. "Okay?"

Hailee nods. "Okay."

"Choose whatever you want."

They both smile. Hailee looks down at her menu.

"So..." Y/N glances at his menu too. "What'll it be? Me...well, I'm feeling this breakfast burger."

She looks at him. Y/N looks back and snickers.

"Hey, sometimes I feel like having something with eggs and hash browns for dinner. Does that make me weird?"

She chuckles. "No, not at all. Sometimes...I feel the same."

"Really?"

"Scrambled eggs and pancakes in the evening? Sign me up."

The two share a laugh. Y/N smiles. They surely were going to get along just fine.

Hailee is just finishing off her dessert, which is banana cream pie. Y/N's barely touched his pie and has only eaten some of it. The waiter comes back.

"Is everything okay?"

"Mmm. Mmhmm." She nods as she chews. "Thank you very much."

The waiter picks up her plate. Y/N, who is staring at Hailee, finally turns to the waiter.

"Y—Yeah, me too. Thanks."

He picks up the boy's plate, too, and leaves. Y/N exhales slowly as Hailee focuses on the dancing couples nearby.

Y/N follows her gaze and then looks back at Hailee worriedly. He knows exactly what is coming.

"Would you like to dance?" She asks him.

"Uh, sorry." He says with a stammer. "I don't dance."

"Me neither. I mean, not usually in front of anybody."

"Well, no. I mean, I—I don't—" Y/N shakes his head. "At all. I c—as in, I can't."

He tries to cancel out his embarrassing honesty with a smile. Hailee found his bumbling reaction very cute.

"Everybody can dance." She smiles. "Come on, you can't be that bad."

Y/N looks at her, not sure how to respond. She gives him puppy dog eyes.

"Please? For me? Come on."

Ultimately, Y/N caves. Hailee smiles and gets up from her seat, grabbing Y/N's hand and taking him out of his seat.

The two walk up to the dance podium, holding hands. They awkwardly take a moment to get situated near the few other pairs of dancing couples. Y/N places a hand on Hailee's waist, she latches onto his arm, and then places her other hand in his. He is a bit hesitant on where to touch her.

"Hey, I don't bite..." She says. "Maybe."

He chuckles. "Ha. That's funny."

They move slightly, but Y/N accidentally steps on the girl's foot.

"Oof." She reacts.

"Sorry." He apologizes. "I told you I was bad at this."

He inhales and exhales loudly. She looks back at him with a soft smile.

"But in all fairness, you did warn me, right?"

"That's right."

Hailee laughs. They continue to move to the music.

"So, um, what's number one on your list?" He abruptly asks.

She shakes her head in a nuh-uh, not telling manner and simply smiles back. Y/N lightly chuckles.

"Okay, um, number one on my list is getting out of Granada Hills. Well...the Valley." He admits. "Valley of San Fernando."

"Mmm. I don't think getting out is gonna be a problem. It's more like figuring out what you're gonna do when you get somewhere."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...you can do anything."

Y/N takes in her words. No one had ever told that to him before, or at least not in a very long time. He's had dreams before. He has dreams now. But recently, the jaded teen just never had the drive to pursue them.

"Really?" He asks her softly. "Anything?"

She nods. "Anything."

The music continues to play as they both gaze at each other, barely moving but still in their dance pose underneath the star-studded night sky.

Y/N drives the Camry down the barren road. Hailee sits in the passenger's seat. They've been on the move for quite a while now.

"Where are we going?" She asks.

"Just hold on." He answers. "You'll see."

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

I love to see you shine in the night
Like the diamond you are

Soon, the car stops by the side of the road. Y/N goes around the front of the vehicle to meet up with Hailee, who is emerging from the passenger side.

"Come on, come on, come on. Let's go."

He shuts her door, takes her hand, and starts running.

"What are we doing?" She asks.

"Running!"

He stops in the middle of the street.

I'm good on the side, it's alright
Just hold me in the dark

"Okay, okay. Uh, stand there."

Hailee looks down. "All right."

"Okay, one foot there."

He points to the left side of a chalky line on the road. She nods.

No one's gotta know what we do
Hit me up when you're bored

"Okay."

"And one foot here."

"Okay."

"There you go."

Hailee sighs happily and shakes her head. She smiles.

"You're acting so crazy." She says. "What's going on?"

'Cause I live down the street, so we meet
When you need it, it's yours

"Okay, right now, you're straddling the state line." He replies.

"Okay...?"

Y/N motions to a sign behind him that says Welcome to Nevada.

"You're in two places at once."

That was one of the things on the girl's list. It just dawns on her what he's done, and she is surprised. The two start grinning like fools. Very cute fools.

All I hear is...

Hailee laughs and hugs him. Y/N picks her up and spins her around in the middle of the road, the moon above and the headlights from their car lighting their surroundings.

Nothing feels better than this
Nothing feels better
Nothing feels better than this
Nothing feels better, oh, nah
We don't gotta hide
This is what you like, I admit
Nothing feels better than this

Y/N and Hailee sit in the car parked (rather crookedly between spaces) by the Santa Monica Pier. The lights from the attractions illuminate the lot that they are in. Better by Khalid continues to play on the radio.

You say we're just friends, but I swear
When nobody's around

"Okay..." Y/N begins.

Y/N has three sheets of temporary tattoos. Getting a tattoo is one of the things on Hailee's list. She looks over them.

"Butterfly, rosebud, or star?" He asks.

Hailee shakes her head and smiles at him.

"You choose."

You keep my hand around your neck, we connect
Are you feeling it now?

Y/N holds up his choice and smiles.

"A star."

"Mmkay." She replies with a nod.

'Cause I am

The two laugh quietly. He puts the other two down and holds one.

"So...where do you want it?" He asks.

"Mmm..." She looks around and settles on her shoulder. "Right here."

Hailee pulls down her shirt slightly so that her shoulder is exposed, then pulls her hair back. Y/N watches her quietly, his eyes going back and forth from her bare shoulder to her eyes. She points at the spot on her shoulder where she wants Y/N to put the tattoo.

I got so high the other night, I swear to God
Felt my feet lift the ground

"Okay." He says rather quietly, his mouth now a bit dry.

Y/N peels the cellophane of the temporary tattoo off. Hailee smiles.

Ooh, yeah

He begins applying the tattoo to her shoulder with a damp napkin. She observes him and his work quietly.

Your back against the wall, this is all you've been talkin' about

Y/N looks up at her and smiles.

In my ears

He peels back the tattoo to reveal a tiny black star now on Hailee's shoulder. Both admire his work. The song from the radio seems to kick up amidst the silence.

Nothing feels better than this

Y/N and Hailee smile at each other. Y/N then leans in close to blow softly on her shoulder, drying it a bit quicker.

Nothing feels better
Nothing feels better than this

He places his hand over her shoulder and slowly moves his fingers gently across her skin. It brings shivers down the girl's spine as she watches him.

Nothing feels better, oh, nah
We don't gotta hide

Y/N looks up at Hailee again with a tender and treasuring look. Hailee gazes back at him.

This is what you like, I admit
Nothing feels better than this

Y/N and Hailee stroll the docks of the pier as they hold hands. It is relatively quiet, and the venue isn't as crowded. It is just them and a few other people.

"How can you see places like this and have moments like this and not believe?" Hailee asks, looking over the railing at the ocean and the moon.

"You're lucky to be so sure." He replies.

She steps a few paces ahead of him, and he drops her hand. Hailee continues.

"It's like the wind. I can't see it, but I feel it."

"What do you feel?"

She smiles. "I feel wonder and beauty."

Y/N observes her contemplatively. He lets her keep going.

"Joy. Love. I mean, it's—" She turns to face him. "It's the center of everything."

They pause. Y/N stands about a foot away from her and just stares at the girl in silence.

"I might kiss you." He finally says softly.

Hailee gives him an unsure look and is a bit doe-eyed. "I might be bad at it."

He smiles. "That's not possible."

Y/N leans in to kiss her softly, his hand on her cheek. When they part, Hailee averts her eyes. Y/N looks down.

"Hailee?" He whispers.

She looks up. Y/N gazes back at her and says the three words that have been on his mind the entire night.

"I love you."

Hailee doesn't say anything, looking at him startled. After a moment of no response, Y/N bites his bottom lip.

"Now would be the time to say something." He adds with a gentle chuckle.

Hailee still has a stunned look on her face. She replies softly.

"I told you not to fall in love with me."

Y/N looks at her a bit disappointed but leans in to kiss her again anyway.

Hailee reciprocates, parting after a few seconds where they then gaze at each other.

For reasons kept close to her chest, she was not ready to say the words back. Still, Y/N is completely fine with it. He isn't going to rush things or force her to say them back. All that matters is that he mustered up the courage to say it to her. To let her know how he feels about her.

The young man kisses her forehead softly. The two stand by the edge of the pier where only the sounds of the crashing waves can be heard.