Author's Note: Just a short little oneshot I threw together. Hope you like it! By the way, I wasn't exactly sure how old Eddie was, so I just gave him an age.

Disclaimer: I don't own American Girl or any of the characters in this story!

First Kiss

"Get away from me, Eddie Ryland!" cried ten-year-old Samantha Parkington, visibly

furious with the pesky, red-headed twelve-year-old. He'd been chasing her around all day and, while she had played along and been good-natured about it for some time, she was really growing tired of his childish antics.

"Oh, stop whining, Samantha!" Eddie yelled back, choosing that moment to send a shower of small stones at her. She blocked the blows with her hands and glared at him angrily. Grandmary was not going to be happy with her. At the moment, Samantha didn't come close to looking like a properly brought up young woman. On the contrary, her grandmother would say she looked quite barbaric. Her thick brown hair was knotted and messy, as her bow had been abandoned hours ago. Her yellow gingham dress was covered in grass stains due to her several nosedives into the ground while trying to avoid Eddie. Finally, her brand new black boots already had a scuff in them.

"I mean it, Eddie! I've played your foolish games for long enough! I want to go home now!" Samantha was tempted to stamp her foot and really begin an all-out tantrum, but she didn't want to disappoint Grandmary any more than she probably already had with her appearance. Eddie began inching closer and closer to his young neighbor. It was only when he was about three feet away from her that Samantha realized what was in his hands—live worms! He wouldn't really throw them at her. Would he?!

"Eddie, stop!" Samantha was close to tears, but she refused to let it show. "Go away! Leave me alone!" As she was saying all that, she was ever so slowly backing away from him. She suddenly wanted to laugh at herself when she realized, however, how silly it was to be afraid of Eddie Ryland. So, instead of being scared, she went back to being ferociously angry. "Edward Ryland, if you don't leave me alone right now, I'll tell your mother— " She stopped immediately when she realized that it was an empty threat. For the first time ever, Samantha didn't have anything on Eddie that she could blackmail him with!

"Umm......"

Eddie began laughing hard. "Stupid Samantha! You don't have anything to tell my mother, do you?" With a smug grin, he began edging closer to her once again.

"Eddie Ryland, you— " Samantha was cut off again as she slid on some wet grass and landed right on her bottom. She jumped up, quickly noticing that she had landed in a pile of mud. The sticky, brown substance was all over the back of her dress, as well as her hands, stockings, and shoes.

Eddie pointed at Samantha and laughed even harder, this time doubling over, quite enjoying his neighbor's misfortunes. Samantha's anger came to a boiling point and, before she knew what she was doing, a huge mud-pie had landed itself right in Eddie's face.

"I hope you're happy! Grandmary is going to be absolutely furious with me, and it's all your fault! I hate you, Eddie Ryland!" With that, she shoved him to the ground and ran back to her house, freely allowing the tears to stream down her face.

Well, Samantha had been right. Grandmary had been steaming when she first saw her granddaughter's, disheveled let's call it, appearance. The young girl had gotten quite a scolding on the importance of acting like a lady, but all in all, it wasn't nearly as bad as she had thought it was going to be. After Grandmary's scolding, she took a nice, hot bath and redressed herself in a blue and white window pane check dress, with a matching bow and a ruffly pinafore. After getting special permission from her grandmother, something she would have to do for the next week as a consequence to her behavior, Samantha went into her backyard with the copy of The Wizard of Oz that her Aunt Cornelia had bought her, fully intending to read it peacefully until she caught sight of a tiny, folded piece of paper, partially stuck under a large flower pot.

Her burning curiosity getting the better of her, she immediately put the book down and, as gracefully as she could, raced to open the note. In small, scribbled letters, it read: Meet me in the Tunnel at 4 o' clock.

It must be from Nellie! Samantha thought excitedly. Nellie was her best friend, despite the fact that she was a servant girl who worked at the Rylands'. No one would understand better than her just what an infuriating little brat Eddie was. Nellie was, in fact, the only person that Samantha could vent to about her battles with the boy. Gosh, do I have a lot to tell her! She ran inside to check the time. Rats! It's only three! Samantha impatiently read her book until she heard Grandmary's great Grandfather Clock chime, signaling that it was four o' clock. She jumped up, straightened out her dress, and made her way over to the Tunnel, a great little space in the lilac hedge between her's and the Rylands' houses where she and Nellie often met when her friend wasn't working.

Samantha smiled and entered the Tunnel, only to turn around and prepare to walk right back out. It wasn't Nellie in the hedge at all. It was Eddie Ryland! She turned back, however, becoming extremely possessive. "You little snake! What are you doing in here?! You have no right to be in the Tunnel!"

Eddie shrugged, "Actually I do. The lilac hedge is just as much mine as it is yours, Samantha Parkington!" He then smiled at her obnoxiously. As unladylike as it may have seemed, Samantha wanted nothing more than to just slap him in the face. With an angry huff she turned to leave, only to feel Eddie's surprisingly strong grip on her arm.

"Wait, Samantha! I'm sorry. Really. I didn't ask you to meet me just so I could act like a jerk." He sounded truly sincere, which threw Samantha for a moment. She quickly regained her composure, however. Looking at him with a look that was neither friendly nor cold, she sat down beside him.

"Well, I suppose we could talk like civilized individuals....for a moment."

He let out a relieved sigh and smiled. Really smiled. His smile is kind of nice when he's not being so mean, Samantha thought and then mentally kicked herself. This was Eddie Ryland she was talking about!

Apparently their time in the Tunnel would be full of surprises. Eddie next shocked Samantha by pulling out a beautiful daisy! Samantha really did love daisies.

"Oh, Eddie! It's beautiful! Really. Thank you," she said shyly, accepting the flower. She was immediately suspicious. "What is it for?" she asked carefully.

Eddie blushed furiously. "Well," he mumbled, "I felt really bad about before when I made you fall into the mud. I never meant to get you into trouble with your grandmother, and I wanted to make it up to you."

For one of the first times in her young life, Samantha Parkington was utterly speechless. This was not the Eddie Ryland she knew! The Eddie she had grown up with had never cared about what mess he got her into or the trouble she got in with Grandmary. And he certainly never brought her flowers to make her feel better!

After a moment of absolute silence, Samantha finally managed to say, "That was very sweet of you, Eddie. Thank you very, very much." She then sniffed the pretty little daisy and couldn't help but giggle when the pollen got up her nose. Eddie laughed too, but this time he wasn't laughing at her; he was laughing with her.

"So you forgive me for today then?" he asked, his eyes honestly pleading with her.

"Yes, Eddie, yes. I forgive you," she replied with a bright smile.

"Oh, gee, thank you, Samantha!" Then came the biggest surprise of all. In his excitement at Samantha's forgiveness, Eddie grabbed her in a hug and, when they separated, greeted her lips with his own. Both of them lingered for a precious moment before breaking apart, each staring wide-eyed at the other. Samantha turned bright red, while Eddie stammered helplessly. Each quickly turned and ran out of the lilac hedge toward their respective homes. They simultaneously looked back at one another.

Samantha, still holding her daisy, smiled ever so slightly and said softly, "I'm gonna get you, Eddie Ryland."

Eddie stared in wonder at her with a goofy grin plastered on his face and shot back, "I'll be counting on it."

The End

Author's Note: Well, that's it! Please review! Any criticism is accepted! I was thinking about writing another Samantha/Eddie fic, only this time with them older. Do you think I should? And on a side note, was anyone else as horrified as I was when they found out they were putting Samantha in the American Girl Archives?! But, I digress. Hope you liked the story! Please comment!