Fueled by Memories

"Will you marry me?"

Nate Swift felt his heart float all the way down to the pit of his stomach as he watched his band mate, his best friend, his go-to guy, get down on one knee and asked his one true love, the girl of his dreams, the one he wanted to marry, to marry him, made Nate want to throw up in his mouth. That should be him down on his knee, looking up at the beautiful girl, ready to claim as his own.

How much would Nate Swift give if he could be in his best friend's place?

Just about anything.

…..

Being in love sucked. It was a whirlwind of emotions that you can't even control, you just feel them. You know what sucked more? Being in love with a person that doesn't give a living shit about you. That's how it was with Nate and Mitchie. They were friends, just barely above acquaintances. But that didn't matter. From all the group dates Shane had forced upon Nate, he knew enough about Mitchie to write a novel about her.

Just look through his songbook, almost half of it is full of drabbles with 'Mitchie' written all over it. The funny thing was, all of those songs were what made Connect Three known. They were their greatest hits.

But, one night, it was just Nate and Mitchie. No Shane, no annoying Caitlyn, no nothing. Nothing could get in the way of this moment. Nate remembered the night vividly; as if it were a scene replaying over and over in his mind. She had asked him why he never smiled whenever the group was being photographed.

He had answered, "I only smile when I'm in a place where I want to be. In the spotlight with my best friends isn't exactly where I want to be."

She looked at him like he was some sort of alien, "You don't like being the center of attention? You don't like...being known?" Her shock made him laugh, of course he didn't like the spotlight. The spotlight was made for people like Shane Gray, the people that wanted it. If it were up to Nate. He'd rather be invisible then be recognized for the rest of his life. Of course, no one knew that. Besides her…since he has just told her.

He watched her closely that night, watching her dig through her purse for something- ah, a camera. Nate remembered how Mitchie grinned slyly at him, pushing the power button. "If I took a picture with you right now, would you smile?"

Nate's heart skipped a beat.

As if he was at a loss for words, he just nodded his head, his curls brushing across his forehead from the sudden wind. He now remembered that the two were taking a stroll down the creek sometime in late September.

This was only a month ago.

Mitchie giggled, wrapping her arm around his waist in a friendly manner, pointing the camera at the two of them. Nate's lips spilt, allowing his teeth to show as his hand came in contact with the material of her cardigan.

It was warm, just like her.

The camera flashed, and in an instant, Mitchie had detached herself from him. Nate frowned as he recalled this. He remembered how cold he felt once she had let go of him; how empty he felt. But, he also remembered the warmth that spread throughout his body when he saw Mitchie's face light up as she examined the picture the two had just taken. Looking up, a huge smile perched on her pink lips, he remembered her saying, "I love your smile, Nate."

Ever since that night, Nate had learned to smile more often when he was being photographed. All he had to do was think of her, and happiness would overtake his body instantly.

And Nate couldn't deny it, he loved that feeling.

Nate also remembered the night where he had discovered Mitchie's favorite color was red. Everyone else thought it was purple, but she had told him otherwise. It was right after she and Shane had had their first fight. Nate was honored that she had come to him, out of all the people(well, the only other choice was Caitlyn) she could have run to. She ran to him.

Nate remembered her tear-stained cheeks, how her sobs echoed throughout the hollow walls of his cabin at Camp Rock. It was a cold summer night, and the wind was picking up. She had just barged in without knocking, and began rambling about how much of a jerk Shane Gray was.

"I can't believe how insensitive he is! Does he not care about my feelings at all!?" Nate remembered her exclaiming through her sobs. He had sat down on the edge of the bed she had collapsed on, rubbing her back awkwardly. He was never really good with the whole 'boyfriend crisis thing', especially when the girl he was in love with was crying over her boyfriend, which was not Nate. He remembered her sobbing through her story about how Shane said that she was 'too clingy and too dedicated to the relationship when it was still in its early stages'. Nate had rolled his eyes. Typical Shane Gray, never caring about anyone else's feelings but his own.

"Mitchie," He had said finally, after moments of listening to her now calming sobs, "You can't let that stuff get to you. It was just Shane being careless. He really does like you."

And with that, Mitchie clung to him for the rest of the night, taking in his words. They stayed like that until the early morning, him holding her, her breathing irregular. They told each other pointless things, but the one thing Nate remembered most about their conversation, was when Mitchie had said, "My favorite color is red. I always say that my favorite color is purple, because everyone just assumes that it is." Nate thought it was weird, how she just went along with what everyone said about her favorite color. Maybe she really did just want to fit in after all.

The worst thing about that encounter is when Mitchie left, unnoticed by Nate because he was sleeping.

She ran right back into Shane's arms; the one who had caused her the pain.

That was what hurt Nate the most.

…..

Throughout Nate's recall, he seemed to had missed Mitchie declining Shane's offer, breaking up with him and then fleeing the room. He had no idea how to feel. Upset because his best friend just got rejected, or happy because now he may have a chance at the girl he had been chasing after since, what seemed like, the beginning of time?

Nate looked at Shane, who was currently hunched over in his seat, his thumb and index finger pinching the bridge of his nose. He was muttering something that Nate couldn't pick up, but whatever it was, Nate was sure that it was not pleasant. How could Shane just sit their pouting when the girl he claimed to love was outside, hurting and freezing her ass off?

Standing up, Nate blew out a breath of air, grabbing his jacket off of the back of his seat, "I guess I'll go check on her…" He mumbled, but no one heard him. They were all too busy comforting him. Stupid idiots. Mitchie was the one that obviously had something internally wrong with her. How could they not see that? Sure, Shane had gotten turned down, but that didn't mean that him and Tess would stop meeting up after Mitchie had gone home to sleep. It wouldn't stop them from sneaking around.

If only Mitchie knew that she just done herself a big favor.

…..

As Nate wandered aimlessly outside of the nice restaurant everyone was currently dining in, he recalled the time where he and Mitchie had shared their first kiss together. It was a mistake, that was for sure, and Mitchie made sure that Nate knew that.

It was hot, summer day at Camp Rock, and the time was around twelve noon. Sixteen year olds Mitchie and Nate were lying on the grass(Shane was off somewhere, probably with Tess the Vixen), soaking up the sun. Classes were cancelled due to the heat, and most of the campers had retreated to their cabins and air conditioners. But Nate and Mitchie decided to have a good time at the pier. Since camp was winding down, Nate had made sure that he and Mitchie had spent as much time together as possible, without Shane getting in the way.

"I wonder where Shane is."

Nate inwardly groaned as Mitchie spoke, rolling over and burying his face into the green grass. "For once, could we not talk about Shane, Mitchie? Please?" He pleaded, looking at her with big eyes. She only laughed and waved her hand carelessly at him, her eyes closed. "I'm just saying…I'm getting worried. We've been dating for almost a year now, shouldn't I trust him more than I do? I've been seeing Tess coming and going from his cabin every day…I'm getting suspicious."

Her worrying always made Nate grin to himself. She was going to get wrinkles by the time she was eighteen, he had thought. He had thought wrong, because today, at twenty three, she was wrinkle-free.

The heat that day had caused he two to move underneath a huge oak tree, Mitchie's head rested on Nate's shoulder. "Hey, Mitchie?" He had asked. She lifted her head to look at him in response, and in a second, their lips collided. It was Heaven on earth, Nate felt like he was floating on Cloud 9. She had responded, Nate remembered, for a second before pulling away. She then got up and left him without another word.

Nate remembered her leaving, but what he remembered most was his lips on hers. He wondered if the sparks would fly in October like they did that hot, June day.

He was one hundred percent positive that they would fly.

…..

When Nate had finally found Mitchie, the temperature had dropped about five degrees. There she was, in only her simple black dress, her arms bare. Tears were formed in her eyes, but they refused to fall down her rosy cheeks. Nate came up discreetly behind her, draping his jacket over her cold shoulders. She turned around in shock, smiling half-heartedly when she saw the owner of the jacket.

"Hey, Nate." She said in a small voice, clutching his jacket to her body closely.

"Why did you say no to him?"

The question was blunt, but it needed to be asked. Why had Mitchie Torres turned down to spending the rest of her life with the perfect Shane Gray? She was too blind to see that he was cheating on her with one of her so-called 'friends', so what else could have triggered the rejection? Mitchie shrugged her shoulders, looking out to the busy main street, watching the different cars pass by.

"I remember when I told you that my favorite color was red. I was so embarrassed, because everyone else said that my favorite color should be purple. I don't know why I told you that, after I just had a complete mental breakdown. But, I trusted you that night, Nate. And I still do trust you."

Nate didn't say anything, he was afraid to ruin the moment.

"I remember that night where I made you smile. I have that picture in my wallet, you know. And on my desk at work. I love that picture, I really do. It's my favorite," She whispered, and Nate could see her cold breath through the thick air. He smiled again, nodding in recognition of the memory. "And then you started smiling when you were photographed with Shane and Jason. I was so happy, because I knew that you were smiling because of me. You made me so happy that day, Nate. And you still make me happy."

Again, he didn't say anything; he was positive he would ruin the moment.

"I remember when we had our first kiss. Completely unexpected and unplanned, but in way, it was perfect. I could feel the fireworks and sparks fly off around me, like a corny movie," He could feel the smile in her voice, even if her back was facing him. "I knew it was wrong to kiss you when I was with Shane, but it felt right. That day, it felt right to kiss you. And if I kissed you again, it would still feel right."

So they kissed. And it definitely still felt right.

…….

Fin.

Well…I thought this was okay. I don't know what Nate's last name is in the movie, so I just put the first last name I could think of(I was listening to Taylor Swift…hence the last name). Well, review?

xoxo.