Thank you all so much for your awesome reviews (: It's always scary publishing a new story because you really want people to like your idea and you have no idea if they actually will, so reading all of your excitement and encouragement made me feel better! So huge thanks to all of you awesome people out there keeping this fandom alive lol.


Chapter 2

{Cammie}

"You know, I've been wanting to ask you out for a while now," Lucas said out of nowhere, his tone completely calm and in control.

Something mine totally wasn't when I answered in shock, "Really?" There was no way that was true. I mean, Lucas Grey was the star athlete at Roseville High, practically on every varsity team imaginable, and he was the smartest guy in our graduating class! Why would he seriously be interested in plain, boring Cammie Morgan?

But apparently he was, because he smiled and nodded.

"What took you so long?" I asked, keeping my eyes locked on my shoes in an attempt to hide my blushing cheeks.

With a small laugh, he replied, "Well, you're kind of intimidating."

"What?" The notion was so ridiculous that I couldn't help but actually laugh out loud.

"I mean, you have to know how beautiful you are. It's kind of obvious," he told me, rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably.

"No way," I paused to laugh again. "You're just saying that because you're nice."

"No, seriously, Cammie." He stopped for a second to bring my hand to his lips. His lazy smile was perfect as his eyelids dropped and he looked at me with such admiration.

And I hated myself for letting my mind wander back to a time when a different boy used to give me the same look. Was I ever going to get Zach out of my head?

"You really are beautiful. Trust me," Lucas continued. For a second, I actually forgot I was standing in front of him instead of Zach, which of course made me feel guilty. I turned away and continued to walk towards the parked cars, him casually following behind.

"If that's true, then why hasn't anyone approached me before tonight?" I asked him. "I mean, you're the first guy in years to show any interest in me."

"That's because your friends are pretty intimidating, too," he answered, sheepishly.

My friends were intimidating? What exactly did he mean by that? I mean, I know Hannah was your typical blonde Barbie with incredible good looks that were just plain unfair to the rest of the female population, and Bex and Liz were both beautiful in their own exotic ways, but even they have had dates in the past. And Macey could give the best supermodels a run for their money and she still had Declan Wilson for a boyfriend. So, why should they even be an issue when it came to dating me?

Without waiting for a response, Lucas continued, "I mean, Grant is one big dude, and Zach has pretty much threatened any guy who's even thought about talking to you."

"Wait, what?" Was he saying that my guy friends were the intimidating ones? And did he just say that they were preventing guys from asking me out? "Grant and Zach are the reasons no guy wants to date me?"

He nodded. "And Jonas and Ryan," he added. "Except a ton of guys want to, but they're all afraid to. Trying to get to you is like trying to break into the White House with as many body guards as you seem to have." He finished with a laugh, but I failed to find the humor in his words.

I was going to kill those guys…

"I can't believe them," I muttered through clenched teeth.

"Hey, don't worry about it. I'm here, aren't I?" Lucas assured me. Again, he gave me that sweet smile, and my anger started to dissipate. "Besides, it just makes you more appealing. There must be something extremely special about you for them to go through all that trouble to protect you."

"Or they're just idiots," I countered, to which he laughed at.

"I'm sure that's part of it, as well."

Despite being angry, I finally cracked a smile. After all, he wasn't chased away by my friends' stupidity and their absurd threats, and that made me feel kind of…good.

I turned to him and gave him a genuine smile. "Thank you for asking me to dance, Lucas. Even though my friends will probably have something to say about it next time they see you." I laughed, hoping to disguise the fact that it was probably true.

"It was my pleasure, Cammie," he told me with a smile of his own.

We stopped in front of a big silver truck, which coincidentally was the same one I pointed out to Macey when we first arrived at the party because it was the most attractive car I had ever seen.

His brilliant smile faded into a hopeful grin when he looked at me and asked, "Are you sure I can't drive you home?"

Suddenly, I was reminded of how big of a wimp I was. At the start of the night, I was determined to find myself a distraction—one that would help me kick my unhealthy Zach-addiction—and I was graciously awarded the perfect one, but as soon as he had asked while we were dancing if I needed a ride home, I lost all my courage and had to refuse, offering to walk him out to his car to say goodbye instead.

I was actually slightly upset with myself, but all my nerve was gone, and there was nothing I could do but hope he wouldn't take this as a rejection.

I shook my head. "You have practice early tomorrow, remember? You need to get home and get some sleep."

A look of disappointment crossed his face.

Trust me, I know the feeling.

"Okay." As quickly as his mood deflated, it picked right back up as he eyed me with a mischievous smirk. "On one condition."

Giving him a wary look, I asked, "What is it?"

"I get a goodnight kiss."

Shocked and surprised, I stood there speechless. Lucas actually wants to kiss me!

He placed his hand on my waist, giving me a slight tug so that my body was pressed against his, but he kept a small space between our lips, apparently intent on waiting for my consent before diving in.

"Oh…kay," I answered, sounding more unsure than I felt. Of course I wanted to kiss him, but a voice in my head was telling me that it was all wrong. Probably the same voice that tells me dreaming about Zach won't hurt.

Lucas leaned in, placing his lips just a hair width from mine, when a voice from behind us spoke up.

"Lucas, you heading out?" Grant Newman's deep baritone echoed off the maze of cars surrounding us.

Looking uneasy and confused, Lucas glanced at me and then at Grant before answering, "Um, yeah. I have to be up early so I was just saying goodbye to Cammie and then I was—"

"Leaving," Zach finished for him, his tone very dry and almost demanding—like it wasn't up for discussion.

I glared at him, but he didn't notice since he was too busy also glaring at the boy I was this close to kissing.

"Well?" Ryan Matthews asked, gesturing towards Lucas and me. "Don't let us stop you. Say your goodbyes." He leaned up against the bed of the truck, his arms crossed in front of him saying that he wasn't moving, so we better make it quick.

He (along with Grant, Zach, and Jonas Barrett) continued to stare while Lucas and I simply stood there, dumbfounded by the turn of events.

"Uh, guys? A little privacy?" I asked, but no response came. The four of them didn't move—they didn't even blink. "I guess not," I sighed. Turning to Lucas, I asked, "Call me later?"

Glancing over my shoulder at the boys, he stuttered, "Uh, yeah. Sure." Climbing into the driver's seat of his truck, he mumbled a "see ya" and then drove off.

By the look on his face when he left, I knew he wasn't going to call.

Oh, I was so going to kill those guys…

::*::*::*::

{Zach}

It took every ounce of self-control I had to keep from pummeling Lucas when I saw how close he was to locking lips with Cammie. Through my fit of anger I only said one word to the guy, and I cringed when I heard the possessive growl in my voice when I told him to leave. Judging by the scowl Cammie shot me, I assumed she heard it, too. But I didn't care as long as it got Lucas to back the fuck up and get away from her.

I was pretty proud of myself when Lucas hopped in his car and drove off without so much as a second glance. That is, until I realized Cammie was absolutely pissed.

She snapped around towards us quicker than a flash of lightning, and the look she cut the four of us was just as deadly.

"What is wrong with you guys?!"

I could tell how mad she was by the way she pulled at her hair and practically stomped her foot, her eyes wild with anger.

"Come on, Cam. You don't want to be with Lucas," Grant told her.

"Like you have any idea what I want," she spat at him, angrily slamming a hand into her hip and cocking it out to the side. Although the act was supposed to express how frustrated she was, all it did was accentuate the natural curve of her body.

"Trust us, we were doing you a favor," Jonas explained, completely unaffected by our friend's obvious beauty and distracting sex appeal.

"Yeah!" Ryan agreed enthusiastically. Patting her shoulder a couple times and giving her a wink, he continued, "You're welcome."

She shrugged him off with a huff. Then, turning to me, she narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips. "This is all your fault," she growled.

I was taken aback by the accusation. I hadn't done anything the others hadn't done. In fact, I was pretty quiet while Grant and Ryan were the ones who harassed him. "My fault?"

She stepped closer, tilting her head back as she did so she could keep the eye contact and continue to glare. The act exposed her bare neck even more considering her hair was tied up. I internally groaned at the sight of her soft skin just waiting to be touched.

"Lucas told me that you go around threatening guys who are interested in me. Is that true?"

I didn't know how to respond. I mean, yes, it was true, but it's because I can't stand the thought of her being with someone else. Especially those scumbags that only want her for their own personal gain. But was I going to tell her that and expose my feelings toward the girl who so obviously hates my guts? Hell no. I'd rather her hate me for a lifetime than to do something that stupid.

"We're just trying to look out for you," Grant sighed. "That's all." Although it sounded like he was coming to my defense, I knew he was actually telling her because he wanted her to know we had her back. That's the thing about Cammie—no matter how close and loyal the guys are to each other, we would always put her first.

She turned to him and laughed. "Oh, really? Zach's looking out for me?" she asked in disbelief.

Ouch.

Spinning back on me with a sharpness to her voice, she grumbled, "Say it. You just like to make my life miserable."

Okay, I may not be the best friend or even the best guy to her, but we were still friends. At least in my mind we were. I was actually a bit offended by how little she thought of me considering all I've done since I screwed up our friendship was try to help her.

"Is that what you think?" I asked, my voice calmer than it should've been.

With as much attitude as that little body could hold, she answered, "Well, you've been doing it for years so yeah, that's what I think."

"Unbelievable." I was about to snap, worse than ever before because, seriously? Was she that dense that she couldn't tell how I truly felt about her? That I honestly cared about her?

"Okay, fine," I blurted out with a huff. "Yes, it's true that I threaten any guy who talks about you with such disrespect, like you're a fucking piece of meat. Yeah, I tell guys to back off when they talk about wanting to get a little handsy with you. If that makes me a bad friend, then so be it." I stepped even closer to her so she knew how serious I was, and I could've sworn I saw her eyes glaze over with desire for the briefest of moments. Her anger had finally lessened, but she still looked fiercely determined. And beautiful. So damn beautiful. "Whether you believe it or not, everything I've done the past few years has been for you, not against you. No one wants to see you get hurt by some jackass, Cammie. So don't you dare accuse me of just trying to make your life miserable."

Without warning, she shoved past me and walked back towards the party.

I sighed heavily. "Cam, wait—"

She didn't even bother to turn around when she yelled back, "Screw off, Zach."


I gotta say, I'm really excited about this story! At first I was a little hesitant about the story line, but now I'm kinda proud of what I've thought through and have come up with for you all (:

I am currently looking for a beta, so if you're interested PM me. I need someone who can get back to me fast and who really truly wants to help make my story better...not just point out grammar mistakes or misspelled words. Sometimes, I have writer's block and I need someone to help me work through that...and if there's a scene that they don't like or they don't think will make my story progress in the right direction, they're not afraid to tell me. And they're not afraid to share their ideas with me, either! If that's you, then you're perfect! Lol.

A big huge thanks to one guest named AllyCarterFan who left me the most awesome review ever! It made my day to read how my story was EXACTLY what you were looking for... Makes me feel like I'm doing something right lol. Another big thanks to all who are reading and reviewing and making me smile with all your kind words (: Stay awesome!