(Nate's POV)
You know those people that no matter what they do, good or bad, they always seem to get everything they want in the end?
And you know those people that no matter what they do, they never get what they want?
Well, Shane was always the guy who got everything and anything he wanted. I never did.
But that was my life since first meeting Shane Gray at Camp Rock four years ago. And things never seemed to change much. I did what I did best, write and play music, pretending nothing bothered me and being invisible, while Shane did what he did best, act like an egotistic jerk while still getting loads of attention and adoring fans.
Soon his attitude was hurting the band and that was something I could not turn the other cheek to. So last year Jason and I, well it was me really since Jason was, well, Jason, sent Shane back to Camp Rock hoping he'd get his act together.
And that's where we met, her.
Mitchie Torres. God, even her name sent my stomach into back flips.
I didn't techniquely meet her until after Jason and I came to play at the Beach Jam and judge the Final Jam. But God, do I remember when I did. I remember the moment my eyes met the sight of her.
I was taking my place to Shane's right, as always, making last minute adjustments to my guitar as Shane introduced us to the camp. I moved my hair out of my eyes when they fell on her smiling form in the crowd. And it was like no one else existed, all I saw was her.
I remembered wondering who the mystery beaming, giggly girl in the purple blouse was. Then I noticed her shiny eyes were directed at Shane, his eyes directed to her. And my stomach fell, my heart feeling like it just got run over by a monster truck.
Of course, she belonged to Shane.
Just like everything always did.
I witnessed wordlessly the exchange that went on between Shane and the brown-haired beauty after the concert. Shane more furious then I'd ever seen him. But what really got me was the emotion in her eyes. Hurt, pain, remorse. It was such a depressing thing to witness.
I suppose I could have felt sorry for Shane, but I didn't. So she lied to fit in. What was the big deal? Doesn't everyone lie? Why couldn't Shane just be more understanding? Course, then he wouldn't be Shane. My heart went out to her. The girl I didn't even know the name of yet.
Shane continued to avoid the subject of the mystery girl and I didn't push it. Yep, never push Shane into talking about stuff he doesn't want to talk about it is pretty much rule number one in the 'being friends with Shane Gray" handbook, I should know I wrote it.
After tiring of Shane's sulking and Jason's bizarre ramblings over birdhouses, I left the cabin and took a walk by the lake. Unlike Shane, I missed this place. Camp Rock was where it all began, it was special, sacred. At least to me it was.
A cool breeze rushed over me and I stuffed my hands into my jacket's pockets in response to the sudden chill. Then I heard it.
Quiet sniffles. Hushed sobs. Someone was crying nearby.
Abandoning any logical thoughts, I followed the sounds til they brought me to the dock. And, ultimately, to her.
There she was. I knew it was her, even with her back to me I knew it was her. Just by the feeling I got being that close to her.
She was crying. I had felt my heart jerk at the pitiful sound.
Approaching her cautiously, as not to alarm her, I got as close a foot away from the edge of the dock, where she was sitting, before she became aware of my presence.
She turned around towards me, her eyes finally meeting mine for the first time. If I could compare her eyes to anything, it'd have to be the most beautiful, bittersweet song even composed to even come close to how gorgeous they were.
I nearly lost all manners of speaking as I stared into them, but I regained my voice back quickly.
"Hey." My voice a little raspy from singing earlier that day.
"Hey." Came her just as quiet reply, her voice slightly breaking from the tears still running down her cheeks.
"I'm Nate. I never got to introduce myself yesterday." Was it really just yesterday that I laid eyes on this ethereal, angelic creature before me?
"I know who you are, um, I mean, it's nice to meet you Nate. I'm Mitchie." She said nervously.
Michie. Yep, that name will haunt me for the rest of my life.
"Nice to meet you too Michie. Mind if I sit with you?" I felt so awkward, I was never good around girls, that was Shane's department of expertise, or at least he liked to think so.
She shook her head, and I took that as her saying she didn't mind. Remembering how to move again, I sat beside her on the edge. I looked down into the slightly murky water, noticing her bare feet submerged in it. The sun was setting, it was beautiful. It was romantic too, if only the girl I was already falling for hadn't already fallen for my jerk of a best friend.
"So," Clearing my throat slightly uncomfortably, "Are you okay?"
She turned towards me, I tried to remember how to breathe when her eyes appraised mine.
"I'm fine." She said flatly, unconvincingly.
"So if you're fine, then why were you crying?"
"Are you always this nosy with people you don't even know?"
"No usually." Only with you, I wanted to say. "Look, I know I don't know you and you don't know me, apart from being in Connect 3 with Shane," I saw her flinch at the sound of his name but ignored it, "But if you want to talk about what's bothering you, you can. You can trust me Mitchie."
God was I that pathetic to love saying her name? It rolled off my tongue smoothly as silk.
She sighed miserably as more tears filled her eyes, "I messed up. I messed up so bad and now I've lost everything. I just wanted to fit in and be popular and be noticed for once in my life. So I lied, a lot. I know I shouldn't have but I did. And now everyone hates me. Tess humiliated me in frotn of the entire camp. My friends won't talk to me. My mom thinks I'm ashamed of myself to lie about who I am. And Shane can't even look at me. I've ruined everything and I don't know what to do." Her breathing became erratic with each word she spoke and she was sobbing and trembling uncontrollable by the end of her speech. So I did the only thing I could think of at the time.
I scooted closer to her, til our knees were touching, wrapped my arms her and pulled her to my chest. I thought at first she'd pull away, but she didn't. Instead, she buried her wet face stained with tears into my chest and continued to cry. I rubbed her back slowly, up and down, hoping to comfort her. My head rested atop of hers as I tried to will the hurt she felt inside away.
I was falling so hard, so fast, I couldn't stop it. It just, happened. And before I even knew it myself, I was gone and I was hers.
I'm not sure how long I held her for. Could have been hours, or merely minutes. But I'll never forget them. Not even if I tried to. She was all around me now. Everything that I thought mattered didn't anymore. All that mattered was her and that moment wit her. She was what mattered to me now, her.
I knew she still wasn't mine. No mattered how hard I tried to pretend, she just wasn't. She was Shane's. And I knew once the sun rose the next day, she would be his again. Shane was in her heart, I knew that the moment I saw her. And though Shane didn't deserve her, she was in Shane's heart too. They would sing together and make their hearts one by the end of the week.
But I will always have that moment with Mitchie. My arms around her, her face against my chest, as I whispered words of comfort into her hair, my hand stroking the smooth, soft tendrils tenderly. The smell of roses and vanilla filling my senses as her warmth enveloped me. For that moment, however long it lasted, she was mine.
But she would never be mine. Because I wasn't the guy who got everything he wanted. And I never would be.
