I don't own ANYTHING you may recognize in this story.


~Ally~

Have you ever gotten courage to do something, feeling confident and on top of the world, only to be brought down?

I despise that feeling.

That's why today, when I finally gathered courage to ask Dallas out on a date, the result came out as a shock to me.

-Flashback-

"Trish, I think I'm ready to do this." I stated.

"Okay then! He's right there, you can do this Ally! All you have to do is go up, ask him on a date, then wait for his answer."

I nodded, then started walking over to the cell phone accessory cart. With every step, my confidence wore thinner, and the nerves started kicking in. I turned and started walking back over to Trish.

"I can't do it Trish. What if he says no? I'll be embarrassed!" I nervously starting chewing my hair. Trish slapped my hand, making the strands in my mouth fall.

"Ally, you have gotta get over yourself. If he says no, it's his loss." She shrugged and stuffed a handful of fries in her face.

Greaty great great. I was going to ask my crush on a date while (one of) my best friends is stuffing her face with fries.

I gazed at Dallas, hesitant to approach him. I looked around to see the mall was swarmed with people getting to places. After a while, everything cleared and not many people were in sight. I decided then to suck it up and ask Dallas. I mean, I never know unless I try right?

I slowly shuffled my feet and reached the cell phone accessory cart. Dallas wasn't really doing anything, business was slow today. I took a few deep breaths and tried hard to fight my hair chewing instinct.

"Heyyyy Dallas!" I said nervously.

"Hey Ally!" He greeted.

"So... I was wondering whether...you watched the new Zaliens movie?" Okay, so I freaked out.

"Oh yeah, it was pretty cool!"

"Umm so...Dallas...I was wondering whether you would like to go for a movie with me on Friday..." I rambled quickly and braced myself for the response.

"I'd like to-"

"Really?" I exclaim.

"-but I can't."

"Oh. Okay then. Sorry for bothering you."

"Don't take it the wrong way! I mean, you're smart and...and beautiful and a bunch of other things. I just can't say yes. I'm sorry."

With tears threatening to rush down my face, I bolted.

...

...

I sat with my back against the door of the practice room, trying to figure out what Dallas had meant. He thinks I'm pretty and smart. He complimented me. Yet he said no to the date?

A confusing situation really.

I don't know how long I sat there trying to figure things out. It just made no sense to me. Plus, he said he wanted to go on the date, but he couldn't?

Was it something I said?

The scariest part is, I should care a bit more. But I don't. I'm more curious as to his reason for not going on the date with me. I can't say that I've been crying, because surprisingly I haven't! Just me staring at a blank space on the wall.

Suddenly, there was a sharp knock on the door, and the muffled sound of a certain blonde's voice. A smile immediately graced my face.

"Can I come in?" Austin asked.

I immediately opened the door. He came in, and sat on the piano bench. Austin played a few random notes. He always did that when he was bored. It was cute.

Wait, what?

"So..." he began, uncertainty laced in his voice. "I heard about the Dallas thing."

"Oh. That." I said, in a bored voice.

"You don't sound heartbroken, Ally. What's up?"

"I...I don't know." I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip. "All this time, I thought I really liked Dallas, and now I don't even care about him. The strange thing is, I don't even feel the slightest bit depressed. Embarrassed, yes. But not sad at all."

"Oh-"

"But there's one thing that bothers me," I chided, cutting him off. "He said that he wanted to go out with me, but he couldn't. I need to know what he meant by that. Does he think I'm way out of his league? Am I too much of a dork?" Austin started chuckling, and I furrowed my brows in confusion.

"Ally, I will personally go and ask Dallas what he was thinking. He better have a hell of a reason saying no to you. You are the most amazing girl I have ever met."

He turned around, shutting the door after him.

The last line repeated in my head like a broken record. I couldn't help but feel my heart race in erratic beats.

Then I came to a realization.

...

...

~Austin~

To say that I was angry that Dallas rejected Ally would be a lie. I was relieved when I heard Ally wouldn't be going on a date with him. I was angry, however, because of the lame response Dallas gave to Ally.

I wish Ally would go for other people. Particularly people that are -I don't know-blonder? Taller? Named after a city in Texas, but this time it starts with an A?

Okay, okay. So I like Ally in a romantic way.

I just can't help it. She's beautiful. And while I throughly enjoy our extended hugs, I want to be able to call her mine. To have everybody else know she is mine. To have the satisfaction of knowing she wants to be with me.

Wait, why was I in the food court again?

Right, Dallas. We need a little man-to-man talk.

He's getting out lucky if there isn't at least one scratch on his face after I'm done with him. And he must have one hell of a reason.

Dallas noticed me approaching and greeted me.

"What up Austin?" he greeted, with a slight upturn of his head.

"Bro, I need to talk to you for a minute. In private," I claimed, as seriously and straight faced as I could.

He looked anxious, he probably knew this was about Ally. He tried to shake it off like it was no big deal. He told one of the other employers to look after the cart while he was gone. We took a seat in the food court, one that was secluded from the rest.

"Why'd you reject her?" I asked, impatiently.

"I..I..." Dallas started.

"You left her with an explanation that wasn't clear. She thinks you rejected her because she is too much of a dork for you. She thinks that you think she is way out of your league."

Beats of silence.

"Look. Austin I-I really like Ally. I do. But I've seen the way you look at her. You look at her like she's your everything. I don't want to be that one guy. You know, the villain in a books that keeps two people from being together. I don't want to be a villain. Plus, I'm just not ready for a serious relationship after my last one."

With that, he got up and pushed his chair in.

"And Austin," he added, "whether Ally has realized it or not, she really likes you. You can see it in her smile."

With that, he left.

I stared at the empty spot Dallas was just sitting in, trying to register what he just said. He knows I like Ally. He thinks Ally likes me back. Does she actually?

I have to find out.

...

...

~Ally~

I realized why I wasn't devastated after asking Dallas out.

All this time, I've been comparing him to Austin. How if he does something, Austin would be able to do it better. I've never actually realized it. If Dallas has nice hair, Austin has better hair. Dallas says liberry, but Austin says library.

I think I may like Austin.

What that last thought, the door suddenly bursted open, revealing a tired out Austin. He looked like he ran all the way to Sonic Boom. I bet Dallas can't run as fast as Austin.

Oh my goodness, I did it again!

He shut the door, and flopped down on the couch. There was nothing but silence for a while.

"So, what did Dallas say?" I asked, curious of his response.

"Are you sure you wanna know?" he questioned, looking directly into my eyes. They seemed like they were probing me, looking for answers. Why? I don't know.

"Yeah. I wanna know." Austin inaudibly gulped before continuing, hesitant to speak.

"He...he said that he thinks I like you." He looked at me, then averted his eyes to the ceiling. My cheeks started to warm up, and I'm pretty sure Austin noticed the redness that would undoubtedly be there. His mouth started to move again.

"He also thinks that you like me too."

Bam! Just like that, I felt like a deer caught in headlights.

"Austin, do you like me? Is it true?" I asked, with a soft voice that wouldn't have been heard if we weren't in the peacefulness of the practise room.

His mouth moved open and open. Austin kept doing that, him looking like a fish.

"He said he wasn't ready for a relationship after his last one," Austin offered, trying to escape the question. He nervously scratched the back of his head. His face was contorted in a sheepish expression. My blood boiled and I lashed out.

"Don't try to avoid the question," I said in an angry tone. I took quick steps until I was inches away from his face. I tried pulling off the best glare I could give. Austin looked amused and nervous at the same time. He stared at me, unmoving, not giving me an answer. I turned around and pinched the bridge of my nose.

Suddenly, a hand closed around my wrist and spun me around. Austin pulled me towards him. Our foreheads were touching. My heart fluttered at the close proximity. He wrapped his arms around my waist, and I did not hesitate to bring my arms around his neck.

Suddenly his lips were on mine.

His hands moved from my waist to my face. They cupped my face, his thumbs stroking my cheek softly. I felt like he poured his heart out to me in that one kiss. It was gentle and soft, and just made my heart melt. We pulled away for air. Once again, his forehead rested on mine, and we were in the same position we were in before.

"Does that answer your question?" he hoarsely asked. I nodded against his forehead and gave a small chuckle. I leaned on my tip toes for another kiss. I didn't notice the door open, and neither did Austin.

"OH MY GOD!" the person said. We broke from the kiss to find Trish standing there with Dez. Oops. I guess I forgot about the Team Austin meeting we were supposed to have here.

"Fi-nal-ly! You guys are together now! You don't know how LONG I've been waiting for this." Trish said. Dez nodded, as if agreeing with her.

"Well," Austin muttered. "I was about to ask her if she wanted to be my girlfriend, but you guys came in."

I just leaned into his side while he wrapped his arm around my shoulder. I whispered a quiet "yes", and he pressed his lips to my temple.

A few years later, when he came to me with a diamond ring, I did the same thing.

...

...

Yay! I've written my second one shot ever now.

Anyway, I love reading your feedback. So comment what you liked and what you didn't like.

Stay Awesome,

ClearSkies-L