Bad Start

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"Who are you?" Parker Rooney questions as an unfamiliar face walks into the Fighting Dragons dojo.

It's a girl, which is strange, as all the current members of the dojo are—now were—boys. Her brown hair is pulled up into a messy bun, and she's accessorized with a white ribbon. She's wearing a white robe, like the others, and her belt is blue.

He scrutinizes her as she walks up to him, the brightest smile on her face.

No.

No way she's the same rank as me, Parker thinks.

"Hi!" the girl exclaims cheerily, extending a hand toward Parker. "I'm Palis Dawson."

Parker looks directly into the girl's shining brown eyes for only a moment before his gaze drops to her hand. He scoffs, rolls his eyes, and walks away.

Palis looks down at her extended hand before dropping it to her side.

"Okay," Palis says, biting her lip. She examines the dojo for a moment, taking a good look at the scenery and all the faces around her. It's definitely different from her other dojo—the most noticeable change to her is the lack of girls.

She's the only one.

A dark-skinned boy, who's also a blue belt, steps up to Palis and extends his hand.

"Hi. I'm Reggie."

"Palis." She says, going to shake his hand.

"So I heard. Hey, uhm, don't mind Parker. He doesn't really like new people. He'll warm up to you."

Palis nods, not really worried about it.

"So, uh, where did you come from?" Reggie asks.

"Oh, I was born in Milwaukee, we moved up here when I was four."

"No!" Reggies laughs, gesturing to her belt. "You're a blue belt, so which dojo did you come from?"

"Oh! I, uh, came from Projection Dojo, down in Milwaukee."

"Milwaukee, eh?" Reggie says, quirking an eyebrow. "How is it?"

"It's good. It's nice. Part of a community center. I went there originally because it was closer to my parents' work place, but when they relocated, they thought it best to relocate me."

"Oh," Reggie hums. "So, what kind of food do you like?"

"I like spaghetti. My dad makes the best spaghetti."

"My mom makes pretty good pasta." Reggie comments, flashing Palis a flirtatious smirk. "You should try it sometime."

"Yeah, that'd be—"

"Reggie!" Parker calls. "Come here! Come look at this."

Reggie gives Palis a sorrowful look before turning around and jogging toward his friend.

Palis sighs and goes to find a bench to sit on. She crosses her legs on the bench and places her elbows on her knees and her chin in her palms. She pouts. Her gaze goes to the group of boys—Parker, Reggie, a small ginger, and a couple others. They were all huddled in a circle, laughing at something on Parker's phone.

Her heart skips a beat and then falls down to the pit of her stomach.

Okay, she tells herself. One guy doesn't like you—the guy who's a possible friend choice is friends with the one who hates you.

She walks over to a bench, plopping down on it and folding her hands in her lap.

"I can do this," she whispers to herself. "I can do this."

A/N: My computer broke however many months ago, and I was supposed to get a new one for my graduation gift, but my aunt thought it'd be best to wait until it was closer to move-in day, so . . . I'm working on docs and uploading it on the library's computer.

But a lot of people who read my "Never Been So Scared" fanfic thought it'd be cool if I wrote a series of one-shots about Palis and Parker, so here it is! Parker and Palis' love story. How two teens went from hating each other to becoming each other's world.