Thank you for beta'ing, xxdare2dreamxx1! Happy Haleb day, 11/05!
They're talking smack about her again.
They're saying she's fat, she's ugly, she's this and that...and Caleb can't take it anymore.
Even though Alison had given the girl a nasty nickname, Hefty Hanna, Caleb still thinks Hanna is beautiful. Everyone in their seventh grade class is of all different shapes and sizes, some are growing into their bodies, and others are already finished. Hanna's one of those girls who's trying to find herself...she doesn't really know where she fits in. She's Caleb's best friend, but he has a crush on her. She thinks nobody will ever like her enough to want to make her their princess, but she's wrong. Caleb wants to be her knight in shining armor. She keeps calling herself fat, but when he sees her in a mirror, all he can see is his future wife. He's only twelve, but a boy can dream.
Hanna likes Sean, though, she's always asking Alison for help. Right now, Sean is laughing with Noel about how pathetic Hanna is, and how Sean would only date Hanna when she becomes as skinny and as hot as Alison. They're betting-Noel doesn't think Alison can change Hanna, but Sean is convinced that Alison can do anything if she puts her mind to it. They don't know that Caleb can hear them. They're all in the bathroom, and Caleb stays quiet. He's waiting for the perfect moment to butt in on their conversation.
"She loves you so much that she's puking her guts out for you!" Noel says through a guffaw.
"Dude, that's gross," Sean groans.
That's when Caleb goes berserk. Hanna has told him before about Alison's helping her look better, and now he knows what she means by that. She would eat a lot and then have to use the bathroom.
Caleb kicks open the stall door and it bangs so loud that the boys turn around. He's raging mad. "Were you just talking about Hanna Marin?"
"Uh...yeah, so?" Sean asks stupidly.
"I'm going to tell her not to waste her time with an asshole like you!"
"Hey, Sean doesn't like swearing," Noel tells Caleb.
"Well, Caleb doesn't like people badmouthing his best friend! In fact, he hates it! You call yourselves good Christian boys? That's the exact opposite of what you are!" Caleb swings his fist at both the guys, and storms out of the bathroom.
...
Hanna and her friends are having a sleepover in Spencer's barn. They're sitting on their sleeping bags and just talking the hours away while snacking on junk food.
"Why don't you call Sean?" Alison suggests to Hanna. "You and Aria could go on a double date with him and Noel. I'll set it up!"
"Um...you know how shy I am, Ali!" Hanna complains.
"Yeah, what if they don't love us back?" Aria worries. She twirls her pink hair around her finger.
"Oh, girls! You obviously haven't learned the art of flirting!"
"If they don't want to, don't pressure them," Spencer says to Alison.
Emily remains quiet, but she blushes when Alison touches her bare thigh. Hanna hates it when Alison leads Emily on like that. It's not nice. Emily is dating Ben, but she seems to like Alison as more than a friend.
"My phone's ringing...it's Caleb," Hanna says.
"Ignore that loser!" Alison commands. She dials her own phone and takes Hanna's phone out of her hands. "Oh, hi, Sean! Yeah...she's here."
Hanna's eyes widen. "No!"
"Yes!" Alison throws her the phone and Hanna catches it. She puts it to her ear.
"Hanna...is that you?"
"Yes," she mumbles. Her heart is beating much too fast, and she feels faint.
"Why did you call me from Ali's phone?"
"I...I don't know...she called you. She...I...wanted us to talk."
"What do you want to talk about?"
"Just...anything...I guess...um..." Hanna sets the phone in her lap. "I don't know what to say anymore!" she panics. "I'm speechless!"
"Don't you just wish your brain was as full as your stomach?" Alison asks rhetorically, and Hanna's self-esteem plummets to the ground. The other girls are glaring at Alison. "What? She never can think of anything to say."
Hanna closes Alison's phone as tears come to her eyes. "I talk to Caleb all the time," she says brokenly. "I always have something to say to you girls. Why is that?"
"My mom says friends are easier to talk to than people you like-like," Aria answers. "It's because you're not worried about impressing them."
"I'm your friend, and none of you guys start conversations with me. You're not in love with me, are you?" Alison asks.
"You're the queen bee of our group," Spencer comments snidely. "We feel like we have to make you think good things about us."
"Well, yeah," Alison coos and tries to pet Spencer's head, but the brunette jerks away.
Hanna has always admired Spencer, aside from Alison, because Spencer is always the one to stand up to Alison. Suddenly, someone knocks on the barn's door.
"Who could that be?" Emily asks herself.
"I'll check," Aria volunteers before Alison can open her mouth. She picks up a flashlight and twists the door handle. "Hi, Caleb..."
"Oh, it's the biggest mistake of Hanna's life," Alison mutters, and Hanna growls internally. She's getting really sick of Alison's shit, and it hasn't even been fifteen minutes.
"Hey, thought I'd find you girls here. Do you mind if I pull Hanna out for a sec?" She smiles at the sound of his voice, and then she wonders why he's here.
"Not at all."
Hanna stands up and walks toward Aria and Caleb. Aria takes her place beside Emily and Spencer.
Caleb pulls Hanna in for a hug and closes the door behind them. They're enveloped in darkness, until Caleb turns his phone on. It's cold because she's only got her thin flannel jammies on. She zips up her sweatshirt, and he keeps his arm around her. They walk until they reach their favorite swing set. No words are said between the two of them, and Caleb is panting hard. Hanna wants to let him catch his breath.
He gently pulls on her braid, and she giggles, because she knows he's teasing her. "So...how are you this evening?"
"It's not exactly evening. It's gotta be around midnight. Your foster parents must be getting worried sick about you."
"Nah, they don't care, as long as I come home in one piece. Back to my question..."
"I'm fine. You?"
"I feel like telling the truth, Han. It's just...it's really hard to say this...I would not pine after Sean if I were you."
She's so confused. "What?"
"I was at the Grille, grabbing a bite to eat, you know, and then I had to use the restroom. Sean and Noel were in there, talking...and...they were talking about some rumor...that you're...bulimic. They were also making the rudest comments...listen, Sean doesn't like you...he only wants you when Alison is finished with you."
Hanna freezes. She doesn't want to believe him, but at the same time, she's not all that surprised. "That'll never happen...at least not until I'm done with fat camp. I knew I wasn't attractive. Nobody will want me...because the rumor you heard is true. I stick a toothbrush down my throat to gag myself...Alison taught me how." Then, she starts crying because she's so heartbroken. "Only Alison was supposed to know! Now, they'll spread it around the entire school!" she screams into her hands. Her whole body is shaking, and she's shocked that Caleb is hugging her, and he's not letting her go. "How can your arms fit all the way around me? They must be really long," she says through her sobs.
"No, you're just not fat at all, Hanna...I don't know what Alison's smoking these days, but I think she's full of baloney."
"Well, I am losing weight. It's working!"
"You can't make yourself throw up anymore. Please, don't do that," he begs her. "It's dangerous."
"I know...but how else can I drop pounds?" She rests her face in his chest, and she can feel it rise up and down as he breathes. Her tears are getting his shirt wet, but he doesn't seem to mind.
"For the record, I don't think you need to...as you grow taller, the baby weight just goes away."
"I'm not a baby anymore!" Hanna snaps.
"I know...but it's a natural thing. We both haven't gone through our growth spurts yet, that's all. You've got to be the thinnest person at that fat camp, because as they say in that song Hey Mickey, you're so fine you blow my mind!"
Hanna laughs. "Really? That's a song about a guy."
"Okay, then, when Akon sings about a girl that thinks she's so fine, and he must believe her cuz he's losing his mind...well, that's what I think when I look at you."
Hanna's cheeks heat up and she grins. "That's sweet of you, Caleb. You do know how to make a girl feel pretty. It's just too bad that I'm not comfortable in my own skin. Save that smooth talk for one of your girlfriends in high school."
"No, I meant every word I said. I really do think you're the best girl I've ever met. I've always been...kind of...in love with you. Don't you feel like we can be ourselves with each other?"
"Yeah, that's because we're like brother and sister...whoa, rewind! You're in love with me?"
"I blurted that out...I'm sorry...it's a fact though, I like you a lot. Your eyes are like, an endless pool of blue, and your long blonde hair is so beautiful."
"Thank you. How do we do this...dating thing?"
"We could start by holding hands." Caleb slips his fingers through Hanna's, their palms touch and her heart flutters. She loves cuddling and snuggling with him now that it has gotten to be more affectionate and less friendly. It's just them and the stars above them.
"Okay...now what? Could this count as our first date?"
"I suppose, and we've already gotten to know each other really well. Have you ever been kissed before?"
"No, have you?"
"No...I guess we would be each other's first kiss."
"Um," Hanna begins nervously, "I'll just...lean back in your arms and like, tilt my head up to..."
Caleb leans down and she can feel his warm breath on her face. She closes her eyes when their lips meet.
Once they pull away, the most wonderful feeling makes itself known in Hanna's body. She's positive she's glowing, and she's floating, too.
"That was..." he starts and then trails off.
"Amazing?"
"Yeah, it was like a dream come true...like how I'd forever imagined our first kiss would be."
"You've...fantasized about this moment?"
"Oh, yeah...there was...more," he says with an awkward chuckle. "We may be too young for that."
"You know, Caleb, we're almost teenagers. Wanna try making out? I've always wanted to do that with a guy, ever since my mom let me watch PG-13 rated movies."
"What's that?"
"It's...I can show you better than I can tell you," Hanna says quickly, and pulls his head down. She molds her mouth with his and kisses him. She slides her tongue through his lips and their tongues play with each other. They continue their makeout session until they're both gasping for air.
"Wow," he whispers.
"Yeah...wow," she echoes. She bites her lip and chews on it. "So...they're not even looking for me. I was afraid they'd think I'd gotten kidnapped."
"They know I'm not a bad guy. I may be a loser in Alison's opinion, but who cares what she thinks?"
"Thanks for taking my mind off her," she says through the silence. "Should I call you my handsome, sexy boyfriend now?"
"Yes, only if I'm allowed to refer to you as my hot and adorable girlfriend."
"You are."
"Hanna?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you, princess."
"Caleb?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you too."