A/N: For those who have already read the first chapter, I changed it up a bit. So you need to go back and read it again. I hope you like the changes I made. The original first chapter was sort of split, just FYI. Ok enjoy the chapter…
Flashback- 2 years ago
"Happy Birthday!" Sarah yelled, running into her twin daughters' bedroom.
Anna groaned at her mother, while Naomi just rolled over to face the wall, both hoping their mom would get the hint and just let them sleep. It was Saturday. They were supposed to sleep in, especially since it was their birthday.
"Oh, come on girls. You don't want to sleep away your birthday, do you?" Sarah asked in an annoyingly sweet voice.
Naomi and Anna groaned and sat up at the same time. They looked at each other and laughed. It was a twin thing that they always did, doing things in sync, like it was planned.
Naomi looked back at her mother. "Can't we just sleep for a little while longer, Mom?"
"Don't you want to see your best friend on your birthday?" asked a voice coming from behind the door.
Naomi would recognize that voice anywhere. A smile overtook her face. "Kendall!" Naomi jumped out of bed when she saw Kendall walk into her and Anna's bedroom, not even caring that she was in her pajamas and her hair was a mess.
Kendall smiled and picked her up in tight hug, when she ran into his arms. "So, how's it feel to be a teenager?"
Sarah rolled her eyes and turned to walk out of the room. "Oh dear, three teenagers in the house. I'm in some serious trouble."
Kendall, Naomi, and Anna all laughed. Naomi, realizing she was still in Kendall's arms, pulled away, hiding a blush on her cheeks. "I don't feel any different than I felt yesterday, honestly."
"Well, I for one am ecstatic to finally be 13. Now we have finally caught up to you four losers." Anna said gesturing to Kendall and Logan, who had just walked into the room.
"Is that anyway to talk to someone who brought you birthday presents?" Logan asked, holding out two neatly wrapped box shapes with bows on top.
Anna and Naomi grabbed the gifts and started ripping into them simultaneously. They paused for just one second, staring at the gift with shocked expressions. "AHHHHHHHHH!" Naomi screamed at the top of her lungs.
Logan looked smug. "How awesome am I?" He asked as he was tackled by his younger sisters.
"How did you even get these?" Anna asked speaking for the first time since she opened the gift.
Naomi nodded in agreement. "Yea, the Linkin Park concert was sold out weeks ago."
"I have my ways." He smiled, being all mysterious about it. "And I scored enough tickets for all of us to go, Carlos and James too."
"Sweet!" Kendall chimed in, giving Logan a high-five. "Dude, that's awesome! Way better than what we had originally planned to do tonight."
Naomi was curious. "Wait, what was the original plan?"
Kendall smiled sweetly at Naomi and shrugged his shoulders. "Oh, uh, just dinner and movie. But a concert is way cooler, don't ya think?"
Naomi just nodded her head.
"Where are Carlos and James anyway?" Anna asked because it was rare that the four boys were apart, except when they were sleeping.
"Oh, they are going to meet us there." Logan said, not wanting to give anything away.
"Meet us where?" Naomi asked.
Kendall put his arm around Naomi's shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. "You'll see."
Naomi heart was practically leaping out of her chest. When did I start feeling this way around Kendall? It's not like I like him or anything. Though he is really cute. Wait, did I just think that? Stop it, Naomi. He probably doesn't even like me like that. I'm just like a little sister to him. Naomi thought to herself.
Logan's voice brought her out of her trance. "We'll leave you guys to get ready, but hurry up. We got the whole day planned."
"Alright, get out." Anna said pushing both of the boys out their bedroom door, obviously getting slightly irritated with all the secrecy. She was never one for surprises.
Naomi on the other hand couldn't wait to find out what the boys had in store for them today.
After Anna and Naomi had finished getting ready and looked in the mirror one more time to make sure everything was perfect, they headed downstairs to where the boys were seated in the living room.
"Okay, we're ready to go. Is what we are wearing alright, since you won't tell us where we are going?" Anna asked sarcastically.
Logan rolled his eyes at his younger sister. "It's a surprise, Anna."
"Logan, you know I hate surprises." She crossed her arms in front of her chest.
"Oh, come on, it's your birthday. Humor us."
"Fine." Anna made sure to sound very unenthusiastic about the whole ordeal.
"Well, are we gonna go or what?" Naomi could hardly contain her enthusiasm.
"Hold on, girls." Sarah called from the kitchen. She walked out carrying two small birthday bags. "I have a present for you before you leave."
Sarah handed her daughters the bags, and waited in anticipation for their reaction.
"Oh my Gosh!" Naomi and Anna yelled at the same time.
Kendall tried to peer around them to see what they got. "What is it?"
"She got us the iPhone 4!" The girls yelled at the same time…again.
Kendall smiled and rolled his eyes. "You guys have got to stop doing that."
"Alright, we gotta go, Carlos and James just text me that they're waiting on us." Logan gave his mom a kiss on the cheek. "Bye, Mom. You're taking us to the concert tonight, right?"
"Yep. We'll be leaving at 6. So, don't be late." She kissed each of her children's heads, including Kendall. "Have fun, kids."
"Bye, Mom. Thanks for the phone. I love you." Naomi said hugging her mom. Anna did the same when Naomi moved towards the door.
The four of them walked out the front door and down the porch steps. They walked on the sidewalk talking, laughing, and playfully pushing each other around.
After about 5 minutes of walking, the boys abruptly stopped in their tracks, causing the girls to bump into them. "Why'd you stop?" Naomi asked stepping around Kendall and Logan.
"Because we're here," Logan said in a 'duh' voice.
Naomi shoved her brother. "Just because you're older than me, doesn't mean that you can talk to me like that."
"Oh, I beg to differ, little sis."
Kendall stepped in between them, to stop whatever was about to start. "Alright, guys. That's enough. Carlos and James are inside waiting for us."
"Mel's Diner?" Anna asked rolling her eyes. "Seriously? That's the surprise? You guys can do better than that."
Logan scoffed and crossed his arms. "This is only the first stop. We have the whole day planned out for you two. Besides don't you want breakfast? It's the most important meal of the day."
The four teens walked into the diner, and made their way over to where James and Carlos were seated. Carlos and James were at the end of the table, across from each other. Anna took the seat next to James, while Naomi sat opposite her. Kendall took the seat to her right, and Logan took the last available chair next to Anna.
"Happy Birthday!" James and Carlos chorused in unison, pulling four birthday bags of different sizes off the floor. They handed two each to the smiling girls.
Naomi smiled at the two boys. "You guys didn't have to get us anything."
"Speak for yourself, little sister!" Anna said, already peeking into the bag.
Naomi huffed. "You are only older than me by, like an hour. Big deal."
"Still makes me older."
Carlos couldn't stand the wait any longer. "Come on, open your presents. Mine first."
Anna excitedly ripped into her gift first. Tissue paper the color of the rainbow was flying everywhere. "You got me a Sony Bloggie MHS-CM5 Camcorder?" Anna practically jumped out of her chair to hug Carlos. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"Yeah, it's so you can record all those crazy stunts we're always trying to pull off. Thought it'd be cool to start putting them on the internet, see how many people would appreciate our craziness." Carlos sat in his seat with a smug grin on his face.
Anna leaned down to kiss Carlos on the cheek. "You're the best!"
"Yeah, Carlos. You're the best!" Kendall repeated mockingly.
Naomi smacked Kendall playfully on the arm. "Be nice, Kendall!" Kendall rolled his eyes. "Ok, it's my turn." Naomi tore into her present in quite the same manner as her sister. "Oh, Carlos. They're beautiful. But isn't earrings something a boyfriend would buy his girlfriend?" Naomi asked staring at the gorgeous white gold hoops in her hand.
Carlos threw his arm around Naomi's shoulder, while Naomi eyed him skeptically. "Yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you about that."
Naomi looked at Carlos then at his hand. She let out a small chuckle as she grabbed his hand and raised it over her head, dropping it on the table in front of him. "Uh, no."
James laughed. "Oh, rejected."
Carlos looked unfazed. "She knows I was just kidding." He turned his attention back to Naomi. "I saw you looking at them at the mall last week. I just thought you would like to have them for your birthday."
"Thank you, Carlos. I love them." Naomi pulled the hoops out of their box and put them in her ears.
"No problem, chica. I'm glad you like 'em."
James immediately perked up. "Oh, look our food's here. I'm starving." The waitress began sitting food in front of the six teenagers.
"Wait, I didn't order anything." Naomi had a confused expression on her face.
Carlos patted her on the shoulder. "No worries. We ordered for you guys. You get the same thing every time we come."
"Well, no arguments there. I do like their Cowboy Omelet. Best breakfast in town." Kendall said as his mouth watered when his food was sat in front of him.
Anna smiled up at Carlos when the waitress handed her, her food. "Chocolate chip pancakes. You know me so well, Carlitos."
Carlos shrugged his shoulders and smiled, while digging into his own breakfast.
"Alright, if you kids need anything, just give me a holler." The waitress turned and walked back into the kitchen, after we all muttered a 'thank you'.
James hurriedly swallowed his bite of food. "Okay, it's time for you to open my presents!" He was getting really excited. He was practically out his seat.
"Alright, alright. Calm down." Anna placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him from bouncing.
Anna and Naomi ripped into the presents at the same time. They stopped and looked at each other before looking back at the present. All the guys burst into a fit of laughter, knowing exactly what was in the bags.
"Tampons?" Anna asked unamused.
"Please tell me you're joking?" Naomi's face was flushed a bright shade of red from embarrassment.
James tried to get a grip on his laughter, but Kendall, Carlos, and Logan were still snickering in the background. "Oh, I am. I just wanted to see the reaction on your faces when you opened a box of tampons for your birthday." He began laughing again. "I gotcha good, didn't I?"
"Ha ha," Anna replied sarcastically. "Now where is my real gift?"
"You'll just have to wait." James shoved another bite of food into his mouth. "The real gift is a surprise."
Anna let out her breath in a huff. "Again with the surprises? Haven't you tortured me enough for one day?"
"Trust me, you'll like this surprise," he said grinning smugly.
They finished their breakfasts quickly and quietly, so they could do whatever else the boys had planned for them today. After Kendall paid the check (he was the only one with a job), they left Mel's and headed out into the brisk Minnesota air.
"Ok, so where are we going now?" Naomi asked to no one in particular.
"I actually have to go check on something in the store at the ice rink." Kendall smirked suspiciously at the other three boys without Naomi or Anna noticing.
The girls thought nothing of it and agreed. "Alright let's move then," Carlos said running ahead out of excitement.
Naomi leaned in to whisper in James' ear. "So, do you have any idea what Kendall has planned for me and Anna today?"
"Well, duh, but it would be wrong of me, as his best friend," James said placing his hand to his chest, "to say anything to the birthday girl."
Naomi scoffed. "Well that's not fair. I'm your best friend too." Naomi's puppy dog face was almost too much for James to resist, but after years of knowing Kendall's little sister Katie, it wasn't quite so hard.
"That's not going to work this time, Naomi." Naomi pouted and crossed her arms as she walked ahead a few feet, with James laughing behind her.
The six friends strode into the ice rink, laughing at some crazy antic that Carlos had done.
Kendall turned to his friends, "Ok, I'll be right back. Gotta see if my new hockey gear came in yet."
"Alright, we'll just be over there by the rink," James said, clapping Kendall on the shoulder before he walked away.
"So, girls, what do you feel like doing after Kendall is finished with his little side trip?" Carlos questioned.
Anna seemed to think for a second. "Well, since we are already here, why don't we play a small game of hockey?"
James looked down at his watch. "Let's see, it's about 10:30 now, so I think we got time to fit in a little, friendly competition."
Carlos excitedly clapped his hands together, and Logan smirked at James, knowing exactly what was coming.
Kendall came running up behind Anna. "Here, maybe this will improve your game." Kendall placed a new hockey stick in front of Anna's face. Anna grabbed the stick and spun around to face Kendall with a shocked expression on her face. "Happy Birthday!"
"You got me a new hockey stick?" Anna asked with unbelief still evident in her voice.
Kendall shrugged. "Yea, well I was noticing how beaten up your old one was looking and I thought you could use a new one for the game next weekend." Anna practically tackled Kendall in a hug.
"Thank you so much, Kendall. This is awesome." She released Kendall from her grasp and turned to face her other friends. "Who's up for that game now?" Anna asked smugly.
"Bring it, Mitchell." Carlos said confidently.
Logan looked back at Kendall, who was staring at Naomi. "Hey, Kendall, you guys playing?"
"Uh, no. Me and Nomes are gonna sit this one out." Naomi turned at looked at him confused, and he winked at her, making her blush and look away.
"Alright, suit yourselves." Logan followed James, Carlos, and Anna to get their skates.
Naomi watched Logan walk away then turned to face a smirking Kendall. "What was that about?"
Kendall shrugged his shoulders. "I just wanted to spend some time with my best friend." Kendall pulled a package from behind his back that Naomi hadn't noticed before. "I also wanted to give you these," he said handing her the box.
"What is these?" Naomi asked shaking the box.
Kendall chuckled. "You have to open it to find out, smart one."
Naomi stuck her tongue out at her blonde friend.
"Very mature."
Naomi proceeded to open the box, but found it taped shut. "Do you have your pocket knife with you?"
"Yea." Kendall pulled out his knife and slid it across the tape of the box.
"Thank you." Kendall smiled brightly at Naomi, making her heart flutter in her chest. I don't understand where these feelings are coming from. I mean, this is Kendall, my best friend. But…could we ever be anything more? Naomi thought as she finished opening the box.
Naomi gasped at what she saw. In the box was a brand new pair white ice skates. She looked back to Kendall. "You bought me skates? These must of cost of fortune." She pulled one of the skates out of the box to admire it more closely.
"Doesn't matter how much it cost. You're totally worth every penny."
Naomi chuckled to herself. "That was so cheesy, Kendall."
"Well, it's the truth."
Naomi scoffed. "Yeah, whatever." Naomi noticed a note attached to the skate she had taken out of the box. She grabbed it with her thumb and index finger, while she read the messy handwriting.
Happy 13th Birthday, Naomi. Hope you have the best day ever. Love always, Kendall.
P.S. I won't let go. I promise.
Naomi smiled to herself. "I can't believe you remember that." She looked up into Kendall's beautiful green eyes, getting lost in the depths of them.
"How could I forget? That was one of the best days of my life."
Naomi looked down hiding the blush that creeping up her cheeks. She seemed to be doing that a lot around him lately.
Naomi felt two strong arms wrap around her in a warm embrace. She reached her arms up around his neck and held him close, not wanting to let him go. "Thank you so much," Naomi whispered in Kendall's ear.
Kendall felt Naomi's breath against his ear, causing his spine to tingle. I like her so much, but there is no way I could ever tell her. It's not she would even like me that way. She only thinks of me as a friend. Kendall thought to himself, as he finally released Naomi from his arms.
"So, do you want to try them out?" Kendall asked gesturing to the skates.
Naomi nodded her head. "You won't let go?"
Kendall smirked. "Wouldn't dream of it." He grabbed Naomi's hand and led her to the empty rink across from them.
BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR~BTR
Present Day
"I can't believe you beat me!" Kendall stared at Naomi, who had just shot the winning goal, ending the game at 5-3.
Naomi had a smug expression on her face. "Well, I guess I'm just good like that."
"Hey, we had some part in that win, guys." Carlos said turning to wander off the ice.
Naomi and Kendall followed behind him and James, giggling to themselves. Naomi and Kendall's hands brushed against each other as they made their way over to the bleachers to remove their skates, and Naomi couldn't help the butterflies that stirred in her belly.
They all sat down to remove their skates, chatting away with each other, like a group of best friends would. Carlos, James, Anna, and Logan finished taking off their skates first, and they got up and made their way to snack bar, so Anna and Logan could buy the other two their hot chocolates, leaving Naomi and Kendall sitting on the bleachers alone.
"You played a good game, Naomi." Kendall clapped his hand on her shoulder. Unbeknownst to Naomi, Kendall felt a jolt of electricity shoot up his arm and through his shoulders at the contact. He removed his hand immediately, not understanding what he was feeling. "Uh, I think I owe you a hot chocolate," Kendall said nervously, standing to his feet.
Naomi followed his example and stood, looking up into his beautiful green eyes. Without her skates on, Naomi was a whole head shorter than Kendall, making her the perfect height for him to slip one of his arms around her shoulders. Naomi's stomach was doing flips at Kendall's touch.
They walked to the snack area where they saw the rest of their sitting and laughing in a circle. "Aww, you two would make such a cute couple." Anna winked discreetly at Naomi. "Don't you guys think so?" She asked looking at the other three.
"Yeah, definitely." James eyed his best friend, telling him silently, 'Dude, you need to make a move.'
Kendall seemed to get the message. "We'll be right back guys. I still have to buy Naomi her hot chocolate."
"With mini marshmallows?" She inquired of the taller boy.
"You can have it however you want it. Your team won the game." He said poking her in the side, making a slight squeal erupt from her lips. In return, she lightly smacked him in the arm, telling him to stop. Kendall just chuckled at the pouty look on her face.
They walked away from their friends, towards the counter. They ended up having to wait in a line, Kendall feeling nervous about what he was planning on doing.
Come on, Kendall. You can ask her to be your girlfriend. You've known her since you were in pre-k. The line continued to move forward, as he struggled with himself internally.
"Can I help whose next?" The young woman behind the counter asked, bringing Kendall out of his thoughts.
"Uh, yeah. Can I get two hot chocolates with mini marshmallows, please?" Kendall asked passing a five across the counter.
The woman, whose name tag read Erin, smiled widely at Kendall. "Sure thing, sweetie. Your total comes to $2.89." She took the five Kendall offered and handed back his change, plus the two hot chocolates. "And $2.11 is your change. Have a great day, sir." Erin said, no doubt shamelessly flirting with Kendall. He threw a kind, warm smile as they walked away. Naomi couldn't stop the pang of jealousy that she felt, wishing she could be on the receiving end of that smile and not 'Erin'. Even in her head, she made a sound of disgust at her name.
Naomi walked back toward the other four members of their group, but was stopped by Kendall grabbing hold of her wrist. "Hey, can I talk to you, real quick?" Naomi noticed how Kendall was kind of fidgety, which only confused her.
"Yea, sure, Kendall. What's up?" Naomi asked, noting how he bit his lower lip, a nervous habit of his. So, he's definitely worried about something, Naomi thought to herself. I wonder what it could be.
Before she could even react, Kendall had lips pressed against hers. It was short and sweet, but it got the point across. Kendall pulled away to see a shocked look cross Naomi's features.
Thinking this wasn't a good reaction, he began rambling. "Oh, my gosh. I'm sorry. You didn't want me to kiss you. You probably don't even like me that. I was so stupid to make that move. Please, don't be mad at me? Your friendship means the world…" He was silenced by a finger to his lips.
As Naomi regained her composure, and got over the initial shock of what just happened, she looked up into Kendall's eyes, finally confident that he felt the same way that she did. She flashed him her best smile, and leaned in to, softly, kiss him once more. After all they were in a public place.
They both faintly registered the cheering coming from their friends, as Naomi broke the kiss this time. Kendall had the biggest goofy grin plastered on his face. As looked at Naomi, she mirrored his expression.
"So, does this mean you'll be my girlfriend?" Kendall asked, pretty much knowing the answer before Naomi spoke it.
"What do you think?" Naomi asked as she leaned up to peck Kendall on the lips once more.
Kendall smirked against the kiss. It can't get much better than this.