Believe Me

Chapter 1 New Year, New Beginnings

"So what do you think?" Nick asked Macy hesitantly as he revved up the engine of his car. He was really self-conscious since his girlfriend did not say much ever since they left Mikey's barber shop.

"Well, it's different alright," she replied as she continued to stare at him in awe. "It's like you're a totally different person, Nick. You look older."

"Is that a good thing?" Nick asked her a bit worriedly. He wanted to look different for the new school year but he did not want to look less attractive especially in his girlfriend's eyes.

"Yeah, it's a good thing," Macy said reassuringly as she ran her hand through his curless hair. "It's going to take me time to get used to but I do miss your curls."

"I know. I just wanted to have a new look," Nick said as he felt more relaxed after her response. "At least now I don't have to worry about my hair looking so big. It was hard to manage sometimes. And I don't know…I looked kind of childish before."

"Your curls did not make you look childish!" Macy replied honestly. "You looked fine and you still look fine. It's just weird not seeing you with more hair."

"You'll get used to it," Nick said as he gave her a peck on the cheek when they hit a red light. "Anyway, are you excited about senior year?"

"Of course! I'm going to be so busy this year," Macy said excitedly. "Being captain of the tennis team and part of the yearbook committee is going to keep me occupied for the whole year."

"But of course you're going to make time for your adoring and lovable boyfriend, right?" he teased her.

"Hmm…depends if I can recognize him," was Macy's witty remark.

"Haha. Very funny, Macy!"

"I'm just joking!" she laughed. "But we should do something together. Why don't we both try out for the senior play together? It'll be fun."

"Mace, you know how I feel about acting," Nick replied. "Remember when my brothers and I did the Three Musketeers? I was a nervous wreck. And I just know when I try out, Mrs. Snark is going to cast me as the lead just so she can sell more tickets."

"I guess you're right," Macy sighed sadly. "But I just want to try everything before we graduate. It's going to be so weird not having Stella, Joe, and Kevin around this year."

"Yeah I know," Nick agreed. "Joe and Kev left yesterday and it's so quiet in the house, like eerily quiet. It's funny how Frankie and I are the youngest but we're the quietest out of the four. My mom said she misses them but I secretly think she's enjoying every minute of the peace and quiet. My dad's already planning on changing part of Kevin's room into his new office space."

"What? Really? That sure is fast!" Macy said surprised and amused. "But I bet you miss them."

"Of course," Nick said. "But I expected this day to come. Now that the band is taking a break I can concentrate on sports and what colleges I should apply to."

He slowed down and parked his car in front of her house.

"Thanks for coming with me," Nick said before he planted a kiss on her lips.

"No problemo," Macy said happily. "I needed to get out for a bit. My mom's been hounding me with college applications. At least now I can have some time to myself. She and Liam went to do some last minute back to school shopping. So before they return home, I'm thinking of setting up a nice bubble bath. No one can interrupt me and it will be just perfect and relaxing-"

"Wait…so no one's at home?" he interrupted her.

His question alone was enough for Macy to pick up what he was implying.

"I don't know what time they'll be back, Nick. We don't want to risk it, especially now that you're in my mom's good side, remember?"

"You're right," he sighed as he slumped back in his seat. "So I'll pick you up at 8am tomorrow?"

"Yep," Macy said excitedly.

"And um…the paparazzi are not giving you a hard time anymore right?" he asked her worriedly. He was afraid that ever since they came out as a couple, she would be hounded relentlessly by the press.

"Nope. After my mom got a restraining order against them, none of them ever showed up again," she answered thankfully. Macy was grateful for that too because since they returned from tour, she would wake up early in the morning to find a reporter or two camping outside of her house just so that they could interview her about Nick. It was really annoying to the point that she could not leave her house for days without being pestered by nosy tabloid reporters.

"That's good. Just let me know if any of them returned."

"Okay, I will. Bye, Nick!" Macy said as she kissed him one last time before heading into her house.

It was the Sunday before their first day of senior year and Macy was excited but also sad that this would be her last year in Horace Mantis Academy. She had so many fond memories there. It was where she met her best friend, Stella Malone and the most amazing guy in the world, Nick Lucas. She really wanted to make her last year in high school special because who knows? This could be the last time she and Nick would attend school together. The daunting task of choosing colleges was already consuming both her and Nick. And Macy would never dare to ask Nick to go to the same college as her. She felt that would be selfish on her part. She did not want to be one of those girls that would want to always keep a close eye on her boyfriend. She thought that was really un-classy and clingy. Although Macy secretly hoped that Nick would suggest going to the same college as her, she was not going to force him to do it.

Leaving that aside, Macy decided that she wanted to be like Nick. Thus, she tried to change her appearance for the new school year. She looked at her reflection on her floor length mirror and was upset to find that she still looked like the same Macy Misa from freshmen year. Sigh. She wanted to look more mature just like how Nick looked more mature with his new haircut but Macy did not have the heart to cut her hair. She loved her medium length locks. The only time she had to cut it really short -like page-boy style short- was when she was five-years-old because she accidentally stuck gum on her hair. She remembered how miserable she felt because she was already a tomboy at heart so the short hair really made people believe she was actually a boy. Her mother would often joke back then that she had two sons instead of one. Nevertheless, Macy was determined to spice up her appearance in some way. But how? She had the whole night to think about it.

It was a beautiful Monday morning and Macy took this as a sign of how the it would be throughout the school year –perfect weather for a perfect year. She rushed down the stairs to find Nick having a morning chat with her mother.

"So did you narrow down any colleges, Nicholas?" Mrs. Misa asked Nick politely.

"There's a couple that I'm interested in but I really have my sights on Northwestern University," Nick said.

"That's a good school," her mother answered. "I've been telling Macy to start picking a college but I think she wants to pick one close to yours so you better pick one quickly and–

"OKAY, Mom, enough with that!" Macy interrupted her quickly with a nervous laugh. She did not want to make Nick think that she depended on him with all her decisions.

"Hey, Mace," Nick said as he got up from his seat and gave her a morning kiss. "It took you long enough."

"I was trying to look presentable for school," Macy retorted as she grabbed her bag. "You don't want your girlfriend to look like a bum, now do you?"

"You don't look like a bum. You look beautiful," he replied happily.

"Thanks," she beamed up at him. "Okay, Mom, we're heading out now! I'll see you later!"

"Bye! Enjoy your first day, you two!" her mother called out to them.

"Bye, Mrs. Misa!"

The two of them walked down the hallway to Macy's front door. She was talking excitedly to Nick about the different subjects they were going to take and all the different opportunities they could get involved in.

"And then if you don't want to do the senior play, I was thinking that maybe we can both be on the prom committee," Macy continued. "That way we can be part of the decision making process of how our final high school dance should be. I'm thinking of a night in Paris. Everyone will be styled elegantly and classy and—OW!"

Just at that moment, when Macy was about to step out her front door, Nick, who was behind her, grabbed her collar to stop her in her tracks.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR, NICK?" Macy asked him as she now rubbed her neck from the sudden impact.

"What is all this?" Nick said now referring to her appearance...well, specifically her chest area, which definitely looked like it grew magically overnight. "I knew something looked different."

"Well, it's not fair that you get to look mature," Macy pouted as she now crossed her arms over her chest because Nick was staring intently in that area. "I just wanted to look older too and I still had Gabby's push-up bra from tour so…

"Macy, Macy, Macy," Nick said as he did his best to refrain from laughing.

"Don't laugh," she glared at him.

"Okay I won't," Nick assured her. "It's just that you are so cute. You don't need to change your appearance."

"But you didn't need to change yours yet you did!"

"That's because I didn't want to manage my hair anymore. It really takes me forever to make sure my hair doesn't look too big and I always wanted shorter hair. You knew that."

"Well, you also know how I hate that my body didn't go through puberty for like four years! So I decided to help it get some growth because I hate when people still mistake me for a twelve-year-old," Macy argued. "I'm a senior now and I want to look like a senior. I want to feel good about myself, Nick."

"But, Mace, you don't need to wear that," Nick stressed because he knew that if Macy walked into school like that, he would not be the only guy that would notice her change in appearance. "You're beautiful, Mace, just the way you are. And to be honest, I won't feel comfortable if you wore that during school."

"What? Why not?" she asked him now confused.

"Because I just know the other guys are going to start hitting on you and I'm not going to be there all the time to stop them from bothering you…"

"Nick, you don't have to worry about them," Macy replied. "I can take care of myself."

"I know you can. It's just them that I don't trust," he replied and then gave her puppy dog eyes. "Please, Mace?"

She stared back at him and of course she got sucked into his spell. If Macy had to name her number one weakness, it would be Nick Lucas without a doubt. That is why without anymore prodding, Macy went upstairs to change. It was silly anyway. Plus, the only guy she needed to impress was Nick so her attempts to look more mature was actually fruitless since she and Nick did a lot of mature things together.

Now that everything was back to normal, the two of them headed to school full of excitement.

"I'm thinking of joining the baseball's varsity team again," Nick mentioned as they headed towards their school.

"Oh you should! Coach Michaels been trying to get me to persuade you to rejoin the team," Macy explained.

"He has?"

"Yeah, he's the assistant coach of the girls' softball team and I guess he knows we're together so he's been asking me to convince you to pitch again for his team. In fact, the team's been doing really well since last season. You should definitely try out again. I mean you have so much free time now that the band's on hiatus."

"You really think I should?"

"YES! You love baseball, Nick!" Macy exclaimed. "I can see it now. We can both be Horace Mantis' MVP couple, Nick and Macy. We could be our senior class' IT couple!"

"Macy, don't get carried away," Nick said while rolling his eyes since Macy was off in her own lala land, which she had a habit of doing sometimes. "But yes, I guess you're right. I'll give it a shot. Anyway, I hope we're in the same homeroom. You think we're going to have Mr. McComb? I hope we do because he doesn't take attendance."

"That's true or Mrs. DeWitt. She's the best. Stella had her last year and every Friday she would come in with fresh baked goods. Apparently, she was a baker back in the day."

"Hm…I guess Mrs. DeWitt would be nice too but she's so old. I'm surprised she still knows her way around the kitchen," he retorted as he tried stifling his laughter because the image of Mrs. DeWitt losing her dentures in her cake batter was quite comical to the Lucas boy.

Macy playfully hit his arm and exclaimed, "Nick, she's not that old—

"Are you kidding me? Isn't she like one hundred-years-old!" he said while laughing out loud now.

"Nick! You shouldn't make fun of—HEY!" Macy couldn't finish what she had to say because someone bumped into her from behind and dropped her stuff.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," said the lady that bumped into them. "I was in a hurry and I didn't see where I was going. So sorry!"

She was a young lady in her mid-twenties. Her skin had a nice California glow to it and her hair was a shiny dirty blonde that seemed to naturally fall into perfection. She was absolutely stunning. With one glance at Nick and his reddened cheeks, Macy knew he was thinking the exact same thing.

"Here, let me help you with those," Nick offered the beautiful stranger. Macy knew Nick would offer his assistance to anyone in need but Macy also knew that Nick had the tendency to blush profusely every time he encountered someone attractive. Thus, her blood was boiling with jealousy because there was no denying that Nick Lucas was blushing profusely since he was in close proximity with this gorgeous woman.

"Thank you so much. You are such a gentleman," said the young lady, who by now was standing up and straightening her clothes. "I'm so sorry about bumping into you guys."

"It's no problem," Nick said obviously smitten. He looked so bashful and shy. "It gets so crowded around here that an accident is bound to happen. It's no big deal. I was surprised it didn't happen sooner. Haha! Am I right, Mace?"

But the brunette girl just glared at him and stayed silent. Of course, Nick did not notice this.

Macy now felt even more overwhelmed because the lady had long slender legs and she flashed a smile that could light up any room. She must be a model or something because she definitely won the genetic lottery.

"I guess you're right but I'm still sorry for not paying attention to where I was going. I can be so clumsy sometimes! Anyway, I should get going! Don't be late for class, you guys!" she called out to them as she hurried away.

Nick realized that he was ogling at the beautiful stranger but he immediately stopped when he realized this. As a result, Nick did not have to look at Macy to figure out that she was glaring at him now as a consequence.

"Ahem," he cleared his throat nervously and then asked her innocently. "Anyway, what were we talking about?"

"HMPH!" Macy said as she stormed away from him.

"MACY! WAIT! MACY!" Nick said as he ran after her.

"I can't believe you flirted with her right in front of me!"

"I didn't flirt with her," Nick tried to defend himself.

"Yeah, okay. Like I believe that," Macy retorted. "You're a guy I get it. Once you see a hot girl its part of your natural instincts to just act like a total pea-brain."

"I wasn't flirting with her! I didn't even notice that she was hot—

"OH PUH-LEASE! You did not find that lady hot?" Macy cried out incredulously. "She looks like one of those women that would be part of every guy's fantasy. I'm a girl and I even thought she was smoking hot."

"Okay, maybe she was mildly attractive," Nick admitted. "But I'll never look at her like how I look at you, Mace. Plus, we'll never see her again. She's probably someone's older sister or something. Mace, don't be mad at me, please?"

"I'm not," Macy said a little miffed. She knew she needed to control her jealousy. If there was one thing she learned over the summer, it was to not let any jealousy get in the way of her relationship with Nick. Plus, he was right. There is no way they will run into that gorgeous stranger again.

"Okay," Nick said as he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "C'mon let's check the list to see if we're in the same homeroom. I really hope so!"

"Alright," Macy answered now in better spirits. "I do hope we get Mrs. DeWitt. Imagine getting chocolate chip cookies every week!"

"Or Mr. McComb. Imagine not stressing about coming to school on time," Nick pointed out as they made their way to the bulletin board to check out who their senior year homeroom teacher would be. There was already a crowd of seniors lingering at the post but Macy and Nick maneuvered their way in.

After a few minutes of looking at the list, Macy suddenly cried out, "HEY NICK! HERE WE ARE."

"Yes! We're in the same homeroom!" he exclaimed as he gave Macy a side-hug. "Who do we have? Mrs. DeWitt?"

"Hm…no, in fact, Mrs. DeWitt's not on any of the lists," Macy said sadly and a little bit perplexed.

"Maybe she retired?"

"Probably. It says we have Miss Goode," she told him.

"Miss Goode?" Nick repeated. "I never heard of her before. I bet she's new. Okay, it says we're in room 124. Let's go before the bell rings."

The two lovebirds made their way to their new homeroom, which was not hard to find since there was a crowd of students, mostly boys, blocking the door to their room.

"What's going on?" Nick asked them.

"Oh hey Nick," replied Jimmy. "Is this your homeroom?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"You lucky dog," replied Trevor. "I'd trade places with you in a second."

"What are you guys talking about?" Macy now piped in.

"Check it out yourself," said another one of their peers. Immediately, the answer became apparent when the group cleared and there sitting at the teacher's desk was none other than the beautiful blonde they encountered minutes ago.

"Why hello there! We meet again! Come in!" welcomed their new homeroom teacher.

"Hey," Nick said happily as he took a seat in the front of the classroom with Macy following close behind.

"Hello," Macy said in a much lower volume because she could not hide the distaste in her voice.

"Isn't this great! At least, I know two familiar faces now," Miss Goode exclaimed. "I'll be your homeroom teacher. I'm Miss Goode. I hope we have a good year together!"

"I know we will," Nick replied dreamily but when he caught himself, he cleared his throat and said in a much more dignified manner, "I mean…uh…yeah I hope so."

However, it now became apparent that the great year that Macy was hoping for, was definitely tainted as she stared back at their very attractive homeroom teacher, Miss Goode.

This was going to definitely be an interesting year.

Closing Remarks:

So here is the third installation or sequel of Trust Me. First was Remember Me and then Trust Me and now it's Believe Me, which takes place during Nick and Macy's senior year. As you know I love drama so this story will definitely have much of that! HAHA! It's good to be back. Hopefully, I can update as fast as I did before. But like I mentioned before, I feel as if my writing streak is not up to par with last year's. Looking back at it now, I felt really inspired back then. I still hope that some of my loyal fans are still out there. I know that the NACY fandom is not as strong as before ever since JONAS LA ended but I do hope you guys are still interested in my stories. As long as I keep having ideas, I plan to keep writing. It may take time and be sporadic but I hope you guys understand that I am really doing my best to put out more quality stuff for you to read.

So for this story I would just like you to know that Miss Goode looks like Nick's current girlfriend, Delta. In fact, the way I described Miss Goode in the story is how I would describe Nick's girlfriend in real life. So there's your character casting for their homeroom teacher. I hope to explore their relationship even more as I continue to develop this story. Also if you haven't yet, vote on my poll that I put up on my page about what rating you want my next story to be! Who knows? The results could influence me to change the rating of this story from T to something else! Also, I plan on keeping Secret Liaisons on hiatus for now. I haven't been able to develop more story plots for that one. Hopefully I do soon!

So please read and review! I would love to know who is still reading my stories. Hopefully I hear from familiar reviewers! I miss you guys! REVIEW!

Thanks!

-Penelope36