Story concept: One epic weekend. Rose and Dimitri meet at a party. Dimitri is a senior in high school completely in love with Tasha Ozera, a woman who has never noticed him as more than a friend. Despite this he has a clear picture of his Future and what he wants and how to get it. Rose is a junior in high school and knows nothing about what she wants for her future, also dating 25-year-old Jesse Zeklos who is a bit out there and very outspoken. What happens when these two lives collide and end up having the best weekend of their lives.

Chapter 1

DPOV

The party was raging. People were dancing, playing pool, making a pool of vomit and hooking up. Everyone was having a laugh and just having fun. Except me. Me, I was outside in a dark alley trying to figure out what I can say to a girl to make her love me. Although this girl wasn't any ordinary girl, this was Tasha Ozera. We had been friends for years but what she didn't know and what I hope to tell her is that I love her.

The problem was I didn't have any confidence to do so. Every week Tasha tells me of a new boy she is interested in. That's why I'm out here, trying to get some sort of confidence to approach the situation. Man, I sound like a wimp. Suck it up, Belikov!

"It's the way that you… the way that you shit come on Dimitri what is it" I rub my eyes in frustration, "it's they way that you-"

"Who are you talking to,?" A voice said scaring the hell out of me. I turned around a saw this 5"3 brunette that looked a little scared.

"Oh, Jesus" I exclaimed "You scare the crap out of me" placing my hands in my pockets trying not to look awkward.

"Sorry," she said with a cute little smirk on her face.

"No, no it's alright, I just uh, I thought I was alone" Facing away from her.

"So you were talking to no one?" she said with a curious gaze upon her delicate face.

"No?"

"You got St Basils?" she said changing the subject.

"Yeah, St Anna's?" I asked

"Vladimir's," she said, "do you know who party this is is?

"no, no not a clue," I said "what about you."

"No I don't know I got dragged by some friends, not even friends really just some girls I know. I think they may be whores or at least whoreish" she said

"Yeah the guys I hang out with, it's like we just drive all night calling around looking for a party. Any party really. Then we will finally find one, we'll get here, and won't knows anybody so we just stand around and eventually leave looking for some other party..." I said just realising how sad and stupid those sentences were.

"That's silly, why do you do it?"

"well what else you gonna do, right" as another couple comes out of the party. Obviously going somewhere to hook up. "Why did you come out tonight?" I asked her

"I don't know. A laugh. Maybe" Rose put her hands up in a stop motion "But I'm not looking for a boyfriend. I got someone. I mean kinda. I have a dude."

"Who"

"Why"

"Maybe I know him."

"You don't. He's older" two wasted girls fled the party. I'm not even sure they knew where they were going. "so, why aren't you in there right now. You know putting some moves on some waiver sophomore with low self-esteem?" Rose inquired

"I know, I know, just kinda have this one girl in mind that I'm interested in," I said trying to deflect the questions. It didn't seem to work.

"Oh, Whats her name?" Rose asked.

"Tasha," I said. Her eyes lit up with recognition.

"Tasha Conta" she tried to think that was the Tasha I was referring to.

"Ozera," I said.

She shrugged with no recognition of the name, she sat down leaning against the wall. "so, Whats your name?" she asked.

"Dimitri," I said, not even realising I hadn't even introduced myself.

"Dimitri, I'm Rose," She said with a cute, polite smile.

"Rosie," I said.

"Rose!" she exclaimed, apparently annoyed I got her name wrong, possibly because many people get it wrong.

"Rose," I said slightly moving backwards.

"Yeah" she responded.

"You go to St Vladimir's. Senior?" I asked just trying to understand more about this woman in front of me.

"Junior," she said, I was surprised she seems so mature.

"Right, no of course you are."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she said with a slight tinge of anger covering her face, "am I not like mature enough for you."

"No of course not" shit wrong use of words "I mean of course you are, it's just, uh you don't have that look in your eyes. You know?"

"Not sure I do."

"you know, that desperate, that demented look like 'woo I'm a senior and I'm graduating in less than a month and my days of high school drunken parties are almost over," I said

"You have that look," she said.

"right," I said motioning to my face.

"So this girl Tasha, she doesn't like you back?" Rose ask sitting down on the ground, she was now looking up at me and looking even shorter than before.

"She likes me... platonically. As a friend."

"Oh, I know what platonically means. I'm a junior, not a moron." She said with a bored and annoyed voice.

"I'm sorry," I said sincerely.

"It's cool Dimitri" is how she decided to respond.

She started to dig through her bag, "So have you tried? Like actually tried."

"I think she's gonna hook up with Adrian Ivashkov tonight."

"Ooh, my friend hooked up with Adrian Ivashkov once..."

"there you go!"

"He is ripped!"

"What are you... what are you doing to me?"

"I'm sorry I'm just saying if she's gonna hook up with Adrian Ivashkov, I won't get my hopes up!"

"Trust me there not... up," I said, frustrated with this conversation. "that's why I am out here."

Mockingly she said, "cause you're hiding."

"I'm not hiding," I said frustrated, even though I probably was hiding.

"Fleeing" she tried

"no" I yelled, "fleeing?"

"Yeah," she seemed as if she were trying to help, but she just keeps making me feel worse. Who was this woman?

"I just had to get out of there. I couldn't exactly watch the girl that I'm in love with flirt with the best-looking guy ever. It's torcher."

"Want some gum," She asked like that would calm me down.

"No thanks," I rubbed the back of my neck and reconsidered. "Actually yes please," our hands touched when Rose gave me the gum and instantly I felt a flow of electric shocks running through my hand. I looked down at here, and Rose was staring at me with a surprised expression, I guess Rose felt it too.

In a hurry, she rose to her feet and said, "I should get back inside before those whores leave without me," and just like that she was turning away to leave.

"Actually, wait do you think there is something I can tell to make this girl fall in love with me."

"What did you have in mind," She said with an intrigued expression.

"Here," I said grabbing out the battered and wrinkled paper which had my speech on it out from my pocket, "Natasha… Tasha, lately I've felt like there is so much noise. You know, uh, so much static. All these voices competing for attention. Teachers, parents, magazines. What's in, what's out, who's cool, who's not cool enough. And it's like all this shit just gets so loud I feel like I can't even hear myself think. You know, I just wanna get in my car and drive, but then I see you. I see you across the hall, leaning against your locker in that jacket that you love so much, and, uh, the way you tuck your hair back behind your ears. And you see me, and you smile. You just smile, and it's like all that noise fades away. You, know? And the only thing I can hear is the sound of your voice when you call out my name."

"Hmm," she hummed like she didn't know what to say and that's when I realised how embarrassing what I said was.

"Oh, no. Oh, my… Oh, my God, I'm literally too embarrassed to even live. I can't believe I just said that. Out loud. I mean, Even to you. I can't even think I was gonna say that to her. I was" I was mortified can't believe I was planning on saying that. I staggered and sat down on the ground where Rose was before.

"Okay. It's not that so much as Tasha doesn't... She doesn't really care about that shit, you know, the noise and the magazines. And she definitely doesn't wanna hear how beautiful you think she is when she tucks her hair behind her ears." She said I guess she was trying to help me out but It wasn't helping, "I mean, I doubt she really wants to hear anything. All she wants to feel is a little less freaked out than she already does, which, you know, is probably very. So she intends to be with a guy who seems less scared than she is, and if you can be that guy, then perfect. But if you can't... then you're not gonna be her dude," She said explaining it and it actually made sense.

"I'm never gonna be her dude, am I?" I realised, and I hated it, that I couldn't be that guy.

"Not with that attitude, my friend, no. And you're a senior, so I'm pretty sure that ship has sailed. Maybe in college, you can reinvent yourself as a doer, not a talker," Rose said trying to make me feel better.

"Maybe," I didn't have much hope for that possibility. A guy then came skating down the alleyway making us move back to more against the wall.

"Well, you should probably get back, huh? Or, you know, if you're worried your friends are gonna leave..." I started to say about to make her an offer.

"You asked for my opinion," Rose seemed to hurt. I think she thought I meant I wanted her to leave.

"No, I was just gonna say you could catch a ride home with me," I propositioned her.

"Oh. Well, um... Yeah, those whores won't leave without me. They're all probably hooking up with somebody. I would have to go and unhook them, and I don't feel like doing that, so…" she started to sit right down beside me.

"Then don't."

"All right. I won't."

"Great"

"Okay," silence was brought to us, not an awkward silence but like a sweet silence, we could hear music in the background. Rose was swaying a bit to it.

"This song is amazing."

"Yeah, this song is amazing," I said staring at her.

"Amazing," she whispered.

"Wanna dance with me? I don't know, I... Do you wanna...? Ahem. Do you wanna dance with me?" I said unsure, she didn't seem open to the idea.

"Hmm, no.

"What?" I was so confused and a little hurt

"Well, I- Mm-mm. Just—" She said looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Oh Man, way to build up my confidence. You did- Well, I- Which was lacking. It was lacking. And you even pointed it out." I said a bit taken back by what just happened.

"Look, it's just I don't dance publicly. And I don't do- I don't do PDA either. Those couples, they make me nauseous. It's like, "Really, guys? You're gonna make out in the fricking mall in front of everybody?" Ugh." Rose really didn't like affection displays it seemed.

"Okay, well, first of all, we're all alone here, you know. Second of all, I mean, I was just talking about one dance, you know," I said trying to convince Rose and all of the sudden Rose stood up and starting walking, I thought Rose was leaving.

"Well?" Rose said holding out her hand and I quickly got up and joined her. We slowly started swaying, and Rose kept talking, "I can't believe I'm doing this. It's just like the cheesiest thing ever. All we need now is for it to be raining, and, like... I mean, it's just so tired, right? And completely…" She just kept going on and on.

"Would you deal with it?" I said effectively shutting her up. We started swaying in sync, and it was incredible I hoped that nothing would ruin this moment.

"Your balls are vibrating," well that ruined the moment.

"Uh...

"Uh..."

I reached into my pocket and got out mu phone I saw I had a text from Ivan telling me that the cops were here, "Um... Uh... Huh."

"What? What?" Rose asked.

"Oh, it's just the cops are here," I may have said that way to casually

Suddenly people started running out, couple os dudes and two half naked girls were first, one of the dudes started speaking to me, "Get out of here! Get out of here! Cops!"

"Where's your car?" Rose asked.

"Oh, I didn't drive. The Englishman did," I said.

"What?" Rose said confused.

"My little English friend," I said further explaining.

"Who?" Rose said still confused.

"They're taking everybody's name, they're handcuffing people. It's every man for himself. Let's go. What's wrong with you assholes? Let's go," A guy I knew from High School started shouting at us.

Rose and I immediately started running out of the alleyway.