Hi. I know. I'm an awful person/liar who said they were gonna update this story frequently. Well, I've had no time to type! I'm busy, busy, busy, busy! I've had cheer tryouts,(which I made, by the way.) my cousin broke his leg, meeting my sister's new 'boo thang', going to a Jason Aldean concert (which was awesome), and a lot of other things that I can't think of right now.

``````````````IMPORTANT STUFF:`````````````````

Got a weird pairing that you secretly ship and want a one-shot about them?

((So I was on Tumblr a few months (?) ago and I saw where someone in the CoD fandom (I think it was RP Kara? I dunno.) ask people if they would request an idea for crackfic, impossible pairings, etc. I laughed as I imagined some of CoD's impossible pairings, but I got to thinking… I realized that it would be a cool idea and that I really wanted to try it. So I began to have ideas and so on and so forth. SO! In order for me to write this, I must have pairings. And that's where YOU come in! I need you to review and tell me a couple of things.))

Name your favorite ship.

Name your least favorite ship.

Name a pairing that you've been dying to see.

Name a pairing that makes you want to puke.

Name a pairing that you absolutely love.

Name a pairing that would make you rip your hair out if they actually got together.

Name a pairing that you secretly root for.

Name a pairing that you never would imagine happening.

Etc. I just need pairings, okay?! I don't care if it's a main character, criminal, victim, if they're dead, alive… ANY character at all in CoD. Please tell me so I can write this and you can read it!

Read the rest of the author's note at the end! Please, please, please review!

Hope you enjoy!

Natara's Song

Chapter 3

*Four Months Later *

"I promise. I'm just going to tutor him in Algebra. That's it," I assured Mal for the 100th time since lunch. He followed me out of the hallway, easily keeping up because of his height despite the 500 kids roaming around.

"You sure? Because I've heard from some of the guys that he's taken interest in you. And when Dylan Hall takes interest in a girl, he does whatever it takes to get her," he said, tone serious. Mal was upset because I had promised a guy in my grade, Dylan Hall, that I would tutor him in Algebra tonight. He was worried that he'd 'try' something on me since Dylan was the All-Star of both the football and basketball team and could easily overpower me. Or, that's what Mal thought.

We stopped at my locker, him holding out the books he had been carrying for me. I grabbed them one by one and stacked them in a neat pile inside my locker.

"I'm just tutoring. It's not like he's gonna murder me," I said, rolling my eyes.

"I still don't know. Something about that guy just seems odd to me…" he tried to get me to understand.

"Look, I can't explain it… Something about the guy just doesn't add up…" I say.

"Heh… That's great," Mal replies, looking proud.

"It is…?" I ask.

"Yeah, look at you. Going from the gut. Trusting your mojo," He smirks, winking at me.

"Well nothing is going to happen. It's simply tutoring. That's it. Nothing's going on, Mal. I promise you," I reassured him, closing my locker.

I hear polite applause as the mayor steps off of the stage and merges in the crowd. My eyes flicker from him outside of the door where Mal is standing watching Oscar and me. Our eyes meet and he gives me a sad look. My hand raises as I give him a small wave. He smiles sadly and slowly waves back. My attention turns back to Oscar as I hear him clear his throat.

"Ahem… Er, Natara, I hope you don't mind me asking this but is there something going on between you and Detective Fallon?" Oscar asks, nodding towards the door where Mal has turned around and started talking to Ken.

I look at him in confusion for a moment. "Something going on…? Between us…?"

I bite my lip and continue. "Of course there is. Mal and I spend nearly every hour of every day together. We depend on each other in life or death situations… Just think about the level of trust that requires. Of course, there's something between us. It would be crazy if there weren't…"

"…Right," Oscar says, unbelievingly.

"But if you're asking if we've ever been more than that…?" I sigh, twirling my drink around in my glass.

"I suppose I was…" Oscar replies.

"Recent events have shown me that working with someone you're intimate with can be problematic…" My eyes darken as I look at the floor.

"You're talking about Shawn Mallory?"

"You know about that?" I whisper.

"I'm sorry, Natara. I didn't mean to pry… Before I decided to put you on the stand to testify against Vernon Frist, I asked around, and I might've heard a few things… I'd understand if you were upset."

"No, I'm not upset. In fact, I'm glad you know. It means you'll get what I'm talking about… It means you'll understand why dating a co-worker is so difficult," I say, looking back through the door one last time to look at Mal, who says one last thing to Ken and turns to meet my gaze.

"If you say so… But I swear to God, if he harms one hair on your head…"

"Did you know that you're number 2 on the pretty little Agent's speed dial? You two must be very close…" I hear the pyscho, Vernon Frist, talk into my phone. I can just barely hear Mal's threat.

"I swear to God, if you've harmed one hair on Natara's head…"

I grinned and kissed his cheek.

"You're sweet. But I'm late. I'll call you later, okay?" I asked, going to leave.

"Wait," Mal called, grabbing my arm.

"Yes?"

He pulled me close, hugging me tightly.

"If anything happens…Anything at all, call me. Immediately, okay? If he tries to hurt you or kiss you or make you uncomfortable then call and I'll come pick you up. If I don't answer, then just leave. Okay?" he asked. I rolled my eyes. I swear, at times, my boyfriend could be so overprotective.

"Okay. I've really got to go now. Bye," I said. He quickly leaned in and kissed my forehead before letting go of me. I jogged down the hallway, towards the exit of the school. Just before I opened the door, I looked back to see Mal standing in the same place, watching me. He gently lifted up a hand in a goodbye gesture. I lifted my hand and blew him a kiss before pushing open the door and heading out, completely missing the way Mal's face saddened as I turned away.

I've just been freed of being held hostage by Vernon Frist. I'm outside of the courthouse, about to get in the taxi after Oscar. I glance back at Mal to see him walking towards the courthouse with Ken, both talking in hushed whispers. I shake my head and get in the car, missing by an instant Mal looking back at me. The car begins to pull out onto the street but I don't look back, also missing the saddened look on Mal's face as the taxi drives away.

"Okay, so if y equals 16 then what does x equal to?" I asked Dylan, raising my eyebrow. I was currently sitting in Dylan's bedroom, on his bed, with Dylan himself looking over my shoulder at the book that I was pointing to.

"Well, you've got to divide by negative four so you'll flip the signs and it'll come out to be….8?" he asked hopefully.

I nodded appreciatively. "That's right!" I exclaimed, proudly.

He sighed in relief. "Thank God." I let out a slight laugh at his response. He replied back with a cocky smirk.

"So, now that we've finished that, why don't we take a little break?" he suggested.

"I don't know, Dylan. We've still got a long way to go and I have to be home by 10:30," I said, checking my watch. 9:58.

"Come on, just a little break," he pleaded, pouting.

"We've only got 20 more minutes left and another 5 sections of this chapter to teach you."

"Pleeeeaaaasssseee?" he pleaded.

I sighed in frustration. "You've got 5 minutes."

"Ugh, thank you!"

He slowly walked over to his light switch and without breaking his eye contact on me, swiftly turned the lights out. We were in complete darkness, aside from the soft glow coming from one his bedside lamps.

"What are you doing?" I asked, warily.

"Nothing, nothing. Just getting… Cozy," he replied, sitting down right beside me, his legs touching mine.

He pretended to yawn, stretching his arms out over his head, and then casually let one drape over my shoulder, pulling me closer.

"You… You've got three minutes," I said, shakily. He wasn't going to try anything on me…Right?

It all happened too fast. Somehow he had pushed me backwards, laying me flat on my back and had crawled over me, hovering. My legs were in between his knees while his face was a few inches above my own.

I squirmed to get out from under him, but he had me pinned.

"So, Natara. What is the probability that you'd kiss me right now?" he whispered, smirking cockily.

I restrained myself from rolling my eyes. Stupid, cocky jock.

"Negative zero," I snapped.

His expression turned from cocky to puzzled. "I thought you told me that there is no such thing as negative zero?"

"Exactly. It's nonexistent. Like your chances of getting me to kiss you." I said, disgustedly.

"And why not? I'm a hot athlete. You're a cute nerd. You should be begging me to go out with you. So, why wouldn't you want to make out with me?"

"Let me count the reasons. I would never go out with such a self-centered person as yourself. You're cocky. You think the world revolves around you and only you. You think you're the best person on Earth, when in reality; you're nothing more than an attention seeking, immature jerk. And lastly, I have a boyfriend," I finished, smirking at his angry expression.

"Who?" he growled, nostrils flamed in anger.

"Mal Fallon," I grinned.

"Fallon? The senior?"

"Yep," I responded, smirking wider.

He rolled his eyes. "Please. I could so take him."

"You wouldn't stand a chance."

"How the hell did Fallon end up with a girl like you anyways?"

"Well, well, well. You must be the FBI spook I keep hearing about. No one ever mentioned you were such a tasty piece… Now I get why they keep you around!" Dick Lugar, the tall, dark cop from the Oakland PD tells me, eyes roaming up and down my body.

"Watch it, Lugar," Mal growls, an irritated expression on his face. He shifts so that he is in between Lugar and me.

"What's wrong, Fallon? Don't like me hitting on your girlfriend?" he smirks at Mal. Mal opens his mouth to respond, but Lugar cuts him off. "Naw. I'm just kidding. No way you'd be able to seal this hot a deal."

He extends his hand towards me. I cautiously shake it, eyeing him.

"When this all done, you give me a call, sugar. That is, if you're ready for a real man." Mal's eyes flash angrily and he opens his mouth once again to retort but I beat him to it.

"Is there an event where I get to punch you? Because I'm feeling a huge urge to punch you…" Mal folds his arms across his chest and smirks at Lugar.

"He didn't pin me to his bed and force me to go out with him," I said, sarcastically, pursing my lips at him.

"Oh, so you do want to kiss me?" he asked, looking down at my pursed lips.

"Like hell I do," I narrowed my eyes at him. There is no way that this jerk is about to take away something as important as my first kiss. Sorry, bud, but that spot was already reserved for someone important. And that someone was my boyfriend, not him.

He leaned in anyways, aiming for my lips. I swiftly craned my neck far to the right so he ended up kissing his bedspread. He pulled away, eyebrows furrowed.

"You missed," I smirked up at him in victory.

He leaned in once again, while I avoided his lips by craning my neck to the left. He growled in frustration, pulling back.

"What's wrong, hon? Why do you keep missing?" I asked, innocently. He let out a noise of frustration, put both hands on either side of my face, holding me there so I couldn't move my neck, and leaned in.

Oh gosh, Mal was going to kill me. At the last possible second, I turned my head so his lips met with my cheek, sloppily. I cringed in disgust and waited for him to pull away.

"I'm just checking in on the lead. I gotta follow my gut. You know me," Mal shrugs from the passenger seat.

"I do," I say, grinning. He smiles, leans over the seat, and gives me a quick kiss on the cheek, right before I get out of the car.

"God dammit, Natara, stop moving!" he growled, anger evident in his eyes. If I didn't put a stop to this, he was going to hurt me, real soon. Fear crept up inside of me but I pushed it back down. If only I could reach my phone and call Mal. But, that wouldn't do much good considering he lived twenty minutes away. I exhaled in frustration. I guess I was going to have to deal with this on my own. God forbid it if I even thought about tutoring a jock ever again.

"No! Your five minutes are up!" I exclaimed, planting my hands on his chest, attempting to push him off of me. But this guy weighed a lot more than he looked. He didn't even budge as he quickly grabbed my wrists and pinned them above my head, also trapping my head in place.

Using one hand, he grabbed both of my wrists and the other slid down to my face, holding it still. I began to thrash about and squirm, trying to knock him off of me. I moved my lower body and kicked my legs.

Just as he was about to brush lips with mine, my knee seemed to have found its target. He grunted in pain as my knee flew up, straight in between his legs. Using his pain to my advantage, I quickly jerked my wrists from his grasp, planted my hands on his chest, and using all of my strength, just barely managed to push him off. He landed on the floor with a loud 'THUMP', immediately crawling into a fetal position and cursing.

In a flash, I was off of the bed and sprinting towards the door, books in hand.

"Gotta go, Dylan. Bye!" I exclaimed, before running out of his room and house, towards my car. I hopped in my car and locked the doors. I sat there for a few minutes, trying to calm my racing heart and get back to breathing normally. Gosh, I thought I was going to get raped in there. As soon as I was able to speak once again, I quickly got out my cell phone and dialed Mal's number. To my disappointment, it went straight to voicemail.

"Hey, Mal. Listen, I know it's late but this is super important. I've…I've really got to tell you something. I'm driving home right now. Could you possibly meet me at my house? Please? You don't have to call back. Just please come, if you can. It's important." I hung up.

I stand in the middle of the street, trying to process what the heck just happened.

Oscar… He has just proposed. He wants to marry me. Confusion and an overwhelming feeling washes over me. My instincts kick in as I reach into my pocket, pull out my phone, and call the one person that I can always turn to for advice… The number that I've dialed so many times in the past.

"Hello?" the person asks.

"Mal, thank god I reached you. Oscar just proposed and I…" I stop as I hear his voice once again.

"You've reached Mal Fallon. Leave a message. Unless you're Kai. Kai, we talked about this," his voicemail says before turning off.

"Hey, Mal. Listen, it's Natara. I need to talk to you about something important. Real important. I need your help…" I look down at the ground sadly. "Call me back as soon as you can. Bye." I slowly press the 'end' button and look out into the street.

"Mal…"

I then pulled my car out of his driveway and began driving towards my house, hoping to see Mal when I got there. I couldn't keep something like this a secret from him. Guilt would eat me alive. I was already feeling guilty about it and it wasn't even my fault. I'd feel a thousand times better if he knew.

Five minutes of driving later, my phone buzzed. I quickly looked to see it was a text message.

Be there in 10.
-Mal

I sighed in relief as soon as I saw Mal's car parked in my driveway. He instantly leapt out of the passenger seat when he saw me parking my car. He ran to my car's driver's side just as I was getting out. Both of his hands reached up and instinctively cupped my face. His eyes searched mine, his face etched in worry.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt? What did he do to you? Oh my God, I've been so worried," he blurted out before wrapping his arms around me in a tight embrace.

"I…I'm fine," I stuttered, surprised by his sudden closeness.

Three huge striped spiders crawl up my sleeve, heading towards my shoulder as I rise to my feet. They hiss at me, creeping closer and closer to my face. I stay perfectly still and watch as the spiders begin to calm, lowering their fangs.

"Natara! Hold on!" I hear Mal's voice exclaim from somewhere, but I don't dare move turn my head.

Mal rushes to my side and, with one smooth motion, pulls the jacket off of my back and tosses it aside, sweeping the spiders away with it. He grips my shoulders, facing me towards him. He then brings his hands up to cup my face as his eyes roam all over it, worriedly.

"Are you all right? My god, are you bit?!" he asks, fear in his voice.

"No, I'm fine, Mal…" he breathes out a sigh of relief. "But where'd our suspect go?"

"Thank God. So, what's this important news that you had to tell me about?" he asked, a little relief flooding onto his features.

'Um…Well. You're-You're not going to be happy," I muttered, leading him to my front porch. I sat down on the small metal bench on the porch and patted the seat next to me, indicating for him to follow my actions. He slowly sat down, eyes locked onto me.

"…What do you mean I'm not going to be happy?" he whispered, fear evident in his voice.

"You're just not."

"…Are you breaking up with me?" he whispered, looking away from me and gulping, obviously trying to hold it together.

"What? No! Of course not! Why would you even think-"

"Then what am I not going to be happy about?" he asked, impatience growing.

"Promise you won't be mad."

"…You know how I sometimes do crazy, reckless things, and you're always mad at me?" Mal asks me in a storage room in San Trobida.

"Yeah…" I frown at him.

He sighs before replying with, "Hang on tight."

"I don't know if I can promise that."

"Promise!"

"Nat…" he said, warningly, indicating that I should just go ahead and tell him.

"He…He tried to kiss me," I said under my breath, hoping that he didn't hear. Mal's body instantly went rigid beside mine. He stared straight ahead of him at his car, his shoulders tense.

"…What?" he muttered angrily.

"…He tried to kiss me," I said quickly.

"I'm sorry. I don't think I heard you correctly. I thought you said that he tried to kiss you!" he asked, disbelievingly, hoping that I would prove him wrong. I looked at the ground with a guilty expression on my face.

"He did what?!" he growled, springing up from the bench to glare at me.

"Wh…What happened to 'Oh, nothing will happen, Mal! Stop being such a worry wart! It's only studying!' Huh?" he hissed, angrily, fire replacing the usual sparkling, gentle blue orbs.

"I didn't do anything!" I defended myself, also standing up.

"Good Lord, Natara. You kissed another guy! While dating me!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"I didn't kiss him! He almost kissed me!"

"You should've never gone to Dylan's house. If you hadn't gone over there none of this would have happened!"

"You can't seriously be blaming me for this?! I didn't know he was going to try to kiss me! All I knew was that I was going over to tutor!"

"I knew right when I heard that he was interested in you that he'd do whatever it took to get you. And when he invited you over to his house? Alone…? God, why didn't I see it before?!"

"What…?"

"You should've just listened to me! It could have prevented all of this! You never should've gone!" he exclaimed crossly.

"Why are you so angry with me?!"

"Because you decided that you were going to take the risk and go over there! What if he hadn't tried to kiss you, Natara? What if he had tried to do more? What if he had raped you? Or beaten you? Or forced you to do something that you didn't want to do?"

"I can handle myself, Mal," I replied, annoyed, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Can you? Can you really? Could you if he held you down? By force? You're not stronger than him, Nat."

"I don't get what such the big deal is! He just tried to kiss me because he likes me. It's not like you don't have girls drooling after you every day," I rolled my eyes.

"I-I don't!" he yelped, offended.

"You do too!" I argued back.

"Name one."

I racked my brain for somebody particular and one easily came into my mind. "That Olivia girl! The senior? Head cheerleader?"

He scoffed disbelievingly. "She does not! She doesn't even know my name."

"Then why does she talk to you every single day and bat her eyelashes constantly when around you?"

"So, what? She talks to me. A lot of people talk to me," he rolled his eyes.

"Well, 'a lot of people' don't flirt with you nonstop. She obviously wants something more than a friendship!"

"She does not! You're only saying that to try and hide the fact that Dylan was all up on you tonight!"

"No, I'm not! I'm 100% sure that she likes you!"

"Well, then. Why don't I just go date her?! Oh wait, it's because I have a girlfriend! A girlfriend who's out until 11 at night making out with some other guy!" His jaw clenched angrily.

"We didn't even kiss! And it was not my fault! Why won't you believe me?!"

"How do I know that you didn't kiss? How do I know that it was Dylan who originally initiated the kiss? For all I know, you could've been the one who tried to kiss him and got rejected so you blamed it on him!"

"God, Mal. Do you not trust me?"

"I don't know who to trust anymore, Natara! Who's not to say that you're the liar?!" He threw his hands in the air, exasperatedly.

I stared at him for a few seconds in shock, very much offended. He glared back at me. I felt as if I couldn't hold it in anymore. I was struggling to hold in all of my emotions, even though all I wanted to do right now was cry. I looked back up at him and felt my bottom lip tremble.

Suddenly, his words seemed to have come together in his mind and his face softened. "Wait, Nat. I didn't mean it like tha-" While he was talking, I shook my head and shoved past him towards the door.

He quickly caught my elbow and tried to pull me back towards him. "Please, wait, Nat. I didn't mean it. Please. I'm sorry," he begged, trying to hold on as I squirmed out of his grasp.

"No. I don't want to hear it. Let go of me," I growled, struggling to try and get him to let go.

"No, please listen. I wasn't thinking, Nat. I-"

"Don't call me that. No, I don't want to listen to you. Let go of me right now." I ordered harshly, ready to get away from him.

"Listen to me! Nat, I'm-"

"No. I'm not going to listen to someone who basically called me a whore and a liar." I finally twisted out of his grip and ran to the door, quickly going inside.

"Natar-" he started, but I cut him off.

"Goodnight, Mal." I finished.

"Nat, I'm sorr-" he said, starting to walk inside after me, but I abruptly slammed the door in his face, quickly locking it. I turned and ran up to my room, trying to hold back my tears as they threatened to spill out.

Back on the porch, just as I slammed the door in his face, Mal raked his hands through his hair, cursing darkly.

He leaned his back against the large mahogany door and slid down it, landing on the ground with his elbows on his knees. He put his face in his hands and rubbed it tiredly.

"What have I done?" He muttered to no one in particular.

Back in my room, I had my face planted in my pillow, trying to hold in the tears. I was not going to cry. I refused to. Crying is for children. Not for 16 year old girls. I took several deep breaths, trying to process what had just happened.

Mal and I had just had our first fight. Ever. Well, besides play fights when we were younger, but we've never had a fight as big as this. What if we stayed mad at each other? What if we never forgave each other and never talked again?

"Well, we heard about you and Natara having your first fight…" Amy tells Mal, looking at the ground.

"…You doin' okay, buddy?" Kai asks, eyes saddened.

"What? What fight?" Mal denies.

"Word is, the Lieutenant split you guys up. Natara and Anders are analyzing the Boogeyman's boogey-patterns, and you got sent down here to the crime lab…" Kai explains.

"You 'heard'? That happened like three minutes ago!" Mal exclaims, irritated.

"Word travels fast. But I want you to know that, if you ever need a shoulder to cry on…" Kai starts.

"First of all, I will never go anywhere near your weird, gangly shoulders. And second… It was only a small fight."

"So it is true! Look, you don't have to put on a brave face just for us," says Kai.

Amy slowly reaches across her desk and pulls out of box of tissues, placing them on the table next to Mal.

"I'm just gonna put these tissues riiiight here, kay? Just in case. No judgements," Amy says, sincerely.

"Guys. I don't need tissues. Let's just analyze evidence. You know, our jobs?" Mal growls, angrily.

"Whatever takes your mind off your relationship troubles, buddy! It's like they say… Unlucky at love, lucky at crimes!" Kai exclaims, wrapping an arm around Mal's shoulders.

Mal brushes Kai's arm off of him and responds with, "No. They don't say that. No one would ever say that. Now could you just analyze the damn doll?" Mal snaps.

Suddenly, my phone from inside my pocket buzzed with a new text message.

I slowly dragged it out and opened the message. My heart clenched when I saw who it was from.

I'm sorry.
-Mal

I sniffled and pressed the delete button on my phone. A minute later, I got another text message.

Please, Natara. I didn't mean it.
-Mal

Soon, my phone was being blown up by him.

I'm so sorry.
-Mal

Please talk to me.
-Mal

Nat…
-Mal

With every new message that came in, they would all be deleted.

Come on. Please, please don't be like this.
-Mal

Please text me back.
-Mal

I'm begging you.
-Mal

You don't have to say anything. Just let me do the talking.
-Mal

You're not a whore or a liar. Please talk to me.
-Mal

I didn't mean it. I swear.
-Mal

Forgive me?
-Mal

Nat, I know you have your phone.
-Mal

I can literally see you from your window, checking it.
-Mal

My eyes widened as I read the last one. I took a mental sweep around my room, looking for him. Which was highly unlikely.

I'm outside.
-Mal

I quickly ran over to my window and opened the curtains just enough to see outside. And sure enough, there he was, sitting on the little bench on the porch, staring at his unresponsive cell phone, hoping that I would text back. I quickly shut the curtain and drew back, away from the window.

He was still here?

As if reading my mind, I got another text that read:

Yes, I'm still here.
-Mal

Please let me explain…?
-Mal

Please…?
-Mal

After a few minutes of him getting no response, he sent back.

Okay, then. I'm still sorry. I was wrong. Please find it in your heart to forgive me.
-Mal

I pressed the delete button to delete all of my inbox messages and quickly changed into some comfortable pjs. Just before I jumped in the bed, I peeked out of my window once again to see Mal sitting on the bench with his head in his hands, looking miserable.

He'll eventually get bored and go home…Right?

I quickly took out my phone and called my other best friend (Besides Mal), Lisa and informed her of what happened.

"What's he doing?" she asked me over the phone.

"Nothing. He's just sitting there," I said, eyeing him from the window.

"Wow..." she murmured.

"What do I do? He won't go home!"

"Well, obviously you should go outside and forgive him," I could just imagine her rolling her eyes.

"I can't!" I hiss-whispered.

"And why not?"

"You know why not! He basically called me a whore and a liar!"

"I'm sure he didn't mean it."

"Sure, my butt!"

"Natara, you and I both know that he didn't mean anything he said. He's just stressed."

"…Stressed, my butt!"

"Go outside and forgive that boy!"

"I can't!"

"Just do it!"

"No…"

"Fine then. Just wait it out. He'll leave eventually."

"If you say so…" I hung up, taking one last glance at the boy outside, before shutting my curtains.

I turned out the light and crawled into bed, despite being wide awake. Suddenly, my phone let out a short, yet loud, buzz. I slowly scrolled and opened it.

Goodnight Natara.
-Mal

Without deleting it, I just shut my phone closed, placed it back on my dresser, and after a while, fell asleep.

~CoD~

"I'm serious, Lisa. He still hasn't gone home!" I muttered into my phone the next morning. I peeked out of the window for the twentieth time that morning. Yep, I could still see his car. My eyes slid over to the porch where I could just barely see him laying uncomfortably on the tiny bench, his legs spilling over the side because of his height.

"What's he doing?" Lisa asked me.

"I think he's asleep…" I muttered, unsure. His body was still, although I could barely see his chest rising and falling.

"Go wake him up!" she chirped.

"What? No!"

"Natara, you can't hide in your house forever."

"I can too," I said, stubbornly.

"He's never going to leave, you know. He'll just stay right there on your porch until you forgive him. You know how stubborn he is."

"Yeah, I know… But just-" I started, sighing.

"But nothing. Are you going to let this one fight break up the two of you? You've been best friends since birth. You're seriously going to let one tiny little fight break up all of that… Forever?" she asked.

I sighed. "No…" I bit my lip. I couldn't lose Mal. No way.

"Then go outside and forgive the boy! The sooner you forgive, the sooner you forget and go back to being all happy coupley!" she exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes at her enthusiasm. "Lisa, I hate it when you're right."

"Of course you do! Now go, woman! Go get your man back!" I hung up and walked downstairs, opening the door quietly.

I walked outside and looked to my right to see Mal in the exact same spot. His head was leaned back against one arm rest while his knees occupied the other. I quickly stifled my giggle and gently nudged his side with my knee. He groaned and brushed away my knee, muttering something incoherent.

I nudged him again, this time a little harder. His eyes slowly slid open sleepily and landed on me.

"Nat…" he mumbled, before closing his eyes again.

His eyes suddenly shot open and he looked up at me again.

"Natara?" he asked, disbelievingly.

"Hey Mal…" I murmured. He quickly shot up off of the bench, stumbling and falling to the floor. He scrambled up to his feet, standing up straight.

"Nat, I'm so sorry. I don't know what I was thinking! I know it's not your fault. I was so stupid and I didn't mean it when I called you a liar and whore. I know you're not those things. I swear, I'm so sorry for blaming it on yo-" he started, before I silenced him by quickly standing on my toes and hugging him, squeezing tightly.

"I forgive you," I whispered, burying my head into his shoulder.

"Really?" he asked, breathless.

"Yes, really. I know that you didn't mean it," I nodded.

He sighed in relief and hugged me back, gently stroking my hair. "Thank God… I swear I won't ever do anything like that again. For now on, I'm going to keep my mouth shut."

I giggled as he blabbered on uselessly, promising that he'll be the best boyfriend ever and saying that I could drive his car from now on wherever I wanted to go to make up for his 'excuseless behavior.'

"Well… Perks of the relationship. At least you get a ride to work every morning," Mal says, grinning lovingly at me. My sheets were covering him up from the waist down, giving me a wonderful view of his strong abs that I love so much.

I grin right back at him, feeling happier than I had in a long, long time. "A ride? Oh no. I'm driving your car." I tease.

He frowns at me, eyebrows furrowing. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, we never agreed on that! That car's my baby!" he exclaims, actually sounding worried. I giggle at him, amused at his worried expression, along with his hair that is all over the place from just waking up.

I shrug innocently at him. "Too bad. Perks of the relationship." I grin one last time, before swiftly pecking his lips, jumping off of the bed, grabbing his keys, and walking out of the room. I can feel Mal staring at me from behind, so I purposefully sway my hips while walking out.

As I walk into the next room, I can barely hear Mal say, "…Is it too late for the talk about boundaries?"

"Just promise me one thing, okay?" I asked.

"Anything," he breathed, looking relieved.

"Promise that you won't go and beat up Dylan," I said, looking at him sternly.

"Aw, c'mon, Nat! I was looking forward to that! I won't hurt him badly…"

"No. N-O, Mal Fallon. You're not getting expelled over something as useless as him anyways. He's not worth it."

"Fiiiiine," he sighed. "I won't hurt him…."

"Much…" he muttered the last part, low enough so I couldn't hear.

"What was that?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing! Nothing at all!" he grinned innocently. We both sat back down on the small bench, cuddling closely. His arm wrapped around my shoulders as he pulled me even closer.

"So… What did you do when Dylan tried to kiss you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

I instantly blushed, thinking back.

"I…uh. I kicked him," I mumbled, my blush getting even darker.

He just blinked at me. "You kicked him?" he asked, confused.

"Yeah…" I said, wishing he'd change the subject.

"Where'd you kick him?"

I stayed quiet, looking at the ground embarrassingly.

He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as I refused to answer. Suddenly, his face lit up in recognition and he burst into laughter.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. You kicked him there?!" he asked in between fits of laughter.

"Shut up! It was an involuntary action!" I defended, blush somehow growing even darker.

He bent over, holding his stomach, he was laughing so hard. "Sure it was. Oh my goodness, I can't believe it. My little Natara Mansingh kicking Dylan Hall where the sun don't shine… Oh God, I can't breathe! I can't even…" he trailed off, unable to finish his sentence because he was laughing so hard.

I swiftly swatted him in the arm, sharply. "I said shut up! It's not that funny!"

"Yes it is! It's hilarious!" he exclaimed. After a few more seconds of his laughter, he sat back up, finally calmed down.

"Ahhh. That's my girl," he sighed, ruffling my hair. "I don't think he's going to be messing with you anytime soon."

I grinned at him and rolled my eyes. "You're so immature."

"Says the woman who kicked the star football player in his weak spot," he said, chuckling.

"Mal, shut up!"

Suddenly, my father walked out of the house, completely obvious to the fact that Mal and I were cuddling on the bench. He walked straight past us and towards his car. He stopped just before walking down the porch steps, staring at Mal's car in confusion. He looked around, wondering where Mal was and why was his car here.

"Hi daddy!" I spoke up. He jumped a little, surprised.

"Gosh, Natara. You startled me! I didn't see you two there…" he eyed Mal's arm that was around my back suspiciously. I guess I had forgotten to tell my father that Mal and I were dating.

"This is your…Boyfriend?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

"This is your…Boyfriend?" my father asks me, eyebrows raised. Mal and I had just entered the large room that held my family on Christmas Eve. I introduce Mal to my parents, seeing as Neha already knew who he was. I mean… Mal? My boyfriend? That's just crazy!

"Yes! Mal and I are dating now, Daddy!" I exclaimed, excitedly, looking up at Mal in adoration.

My father pointed a finger at Mal warningly.

"I've known you for a long time, boy. But, for my daughter's sake…I know big people in big places. You hurt my daughter and so help me, you will not see the light of day ever again. Do I make myself clear?"

Mal gulped, fear in his eyes. He quickly nodded and said, "Yes sir! I promise I won't hurt her…Sir!"

"Good," my father laughed. "I trust you. Don't make me regret my decision." And with that, he walked off of the porch and into his car.

That Monday at school, I was rummaging through my locker, looking for a specific book. I heard gasps and whispers behind me, so I turned around, wondering what all the commotion was about. My mouth popped open as soon as I saw Dylan Hall, walking into the building, sporting a black eye. He ducked his head, so as to not be seen by everyone else in the hallway.

As he walked by me, he looked at me for a split second before diverting his gaze to right beside me. Or rather, who was beside me. As soon as Dylan spotted Mal's scowl and glare towards him, he cowered away, and ran down the hall, towards his classroom.

I turned to see that Mal had come up beside me while I was watching Dylan. I shot a glare towards Mal and scowled, mentally asking, 'What did you do?'

Mal looked back at me with innocent eyes and shrugged, giving me a look that said, 'Nothing…Nothing at all.' Then he gave me a big, fake smile while batting his long eyelashes, trying to reassure me that he had done absolutely nothing.

I rolled my eyes and shut my locker. "You're in trouble, mister." I said.

"Come on. You and I both knew that I had to do something!" he pleaded.

I rolled my eyes and began to walk to my homeroom, Mal following closely behind, trying to convince me that he 'did the right thing.'

As I walked, I couldn't stop the small smile that flitted across my face.

I told Dylan that he didn't stand a chance against Mal… I guess he didn't listen and he's got a black eye to prove it.

Remember to review and tell me:

1. Your OTP
2. Favorite Random Pairing
3. Worst Pairing You Could Possibly Think Of
4. Pairing That's Just Totally Wrong
5. One That Would Be Interesting
6. One That Would Make You Laugh
7. One That You Would Like To See
8. One That You've Never Even Thought About
9. One You Secretly Ship
10. One That's So Awful You Can't Even Begin To Imagine It

And so on! I. Just. Need. Random. Pairings! Please! It'll help me out a lot to know what you guys want to see! Please please please?!

Hope you enjoyed! Until next time, my friends!

Hasta La Vista!

And yes, I did use Lisa's name deliberately. Throughout my stories, I will need random names here and there so most likely, I'll choose one of you. So if you want your name in here…Well, review because I have to know it.