Chapter three is here. Longer than both 1 and 2. I'm excited. I hope you guys like it so far. I'm still developing the characters. But it does get better; at least, that's what I'm being told, that it's a good story and to keep going. So even if there's just one reader, I'll continue posting. Don't forget to review :D Those little rays of sunshine are so fun to see in my email so *click, type-ity type, submit* and done. Enjoy Rodrick, I know I do

Eva's P.O.V.

Eva returned to the room just in time to see Rodrick retreating through the door as the bell clanged merrily. She looked out the window at him. She normally thought that guys looked just plain weird in jeans fashioned after girls' clothes, but he wore skinny jeans well. They ran down to his black converse. He had a grey t-shirt that she had earlier seen held some band's logo. A black belt with metal studs added a 'rocker's' edge to the outfit. She also noted a cute butt.

She collected his money and plate then cleaned where he had been seated. She hated to admit it but Rodrick was on her mind most of the remainder of her shift. It was hard to distract herself seeing as it was a Tuesday night and not very busy. After she got off at nine, she hurried home to work on her Spanish. She walked in.

"Hey mom, I'm home," she called to the two story home she lived in with her mother and occasionally a sibling or two. "Empty as usual," she mumbled to herself. She checked on the fridge and her suspicions were confirmed. A note was taped to the fridge and in her mother's tiny scrawl were the words

Eva, had to work late. I'll be home as soon as I can. I ordered you a pizza. Pepperoni, your favorite. Yummy. I love you sweetheart, love mom.

Eva rolled her eyes. Her mother worked at a dealership and her mother didn't work late unless some loser had hit on her and offered to take her out for drinks. She always claimed she was trying to find Eva a father, but Eva didn't need a father. She had one. He just happened to have another house, wife and set of children that he cared for more than Eva and Katie (her mother) as well as his 6 other children from his first marriage. He always tried to keep in touch with Eva but she, unlike her older siblings, hadn't seen a divorce coming. They still talked to and even saw him. She however refused his calls, letters, and visits. She was pretty sure he had finally gotten the message after she had dipped his four page letter first in the toilet and then put in the blender without reading it and sent it back to him, along with the aquamarine stone necklace he had sent. Thanks but not thanks. Even if he did get the birthstone right, he wasn't about to buy her love. She looked back at the message and huffed. Pepperoni wasn't even her favorite; she liked sausage and ham and bacon.

She had grabbed something at the diner but didn't want her mom to feel bad so she grabbed a couple slices and shoved them down in the bottom of the trash can. Grabbing herself a strawberry soda, she picked up her bag and went to her bedroom, top floor, back corner. She dug out her ipod and set it in her speakers. She smiled to herself as she kicked off her brown cowgirl boots and All Time Low began to play.

This city, so pretty, under moonlit skies

We'll be hangin' like a cigarette

So stunning, start runnin'

Tonight's like a knife

Would you cut me with your kiss?

She loved all types of music…usually. But everyone expected her to listen to just country music. It really surprised some when she sang along with Breaking Benjamin. She set out her homework and started translating verbs on flash cards along with other vocabulary. Everyone thought she was SO smart but really she had to work very hard to pull her A's and go the extra mile. Still, people said she was just smart even after she told her secret.

After finishing, she did all she had to do to get ready for bed. By the time she actually climbed into bed, her little alarm clock's blue florescent numbers read 11:13. she sighed and rolled onto her side to face the wall. She started to drift off to sleep and the last thought she had before falling asleep was Rodrick's face when she told him of their first day together. With a small chuckle, she closed her eyes and escaped into sleep's welcome embrace.

Rodrick's P.O.V.

Band practice had actually been somewhat productive. They had managed to play through an entire song, no mistakes. Rodrick was able to run a new song by the guys and get their approval and this song had absolutely nothing to do with diapers. After his band mates had left, Rodrick had dinner; homemade lasagna, green beans, and garlic bread. He then went up to his room to work on homework which for him meant throwing his book bag on the floor and ignoring it while he looked up videos of some of the most awesome drummers' performances of all time on his mom's laptop, making sure to clear the browser. Once he was done with his homework, he did sit ups and lifted some weights.

Doing a pit check, he decided he better break the two day streak and go shower. As he got out, his mind strayed to that afternoon. Eva. She had grown up nicely and wasn't bad company either. He thought about how she had laughed earlier and how she hadn't quailed under his look. She had pretty lips, not too small, not too big, and didn't look like she had hid them underneath a bunch of goop; they were just naturally that inviting pink.

"Nice teeth," he said out loud, thinking back on her straight white pearls that showed when she laughed or smiled. "Who's got nice teeth sweetheart?" Susan Heffley asked pleasantly as she appeared in his door way. "MOM," he yelled. "I thought that you and dad said that you wouldn't just barge into my room. This is my personal space, my private space and you said that you'd respect that!"

She stood there with a laundry basket balanced on her hip. "I know that but you didn't answer so I came in to get your dirty clothes. And who's got nice teeth?" she asked again. If it had been someone else, they might have blushed, but not Rodrick Heffley. "No one. Just a girl."

She gave an excited smile while throwing a few shirts and some pants into her basket. "Oooh, a girl? Which one? Is she cute? Do you like her? You should invite her over." Rodrick forced himself not to roll his eyes. "She's just some girl from school. I promise mom. If I like someone, you'll know before you show up at the wedding." He knew better than to talk girls with his mother.

"Thank you honey," she said. Rodrick was pretty sure she hadn't noticed the sarcasm. "I bet she's smart," she added as she grabbed the last pair of socks. "Mom," growled Rodrick. "Alright, alright. I'm going." She giggled and retreated up the stairs. Before she reached the top landing though, Rodrick was at the bottom of the stair case talking up to her. "Mom, where do we keep the old year book?"

Ten minutes later, Rodrick was sitting in the middle of his bed, a stack of yearbooks beside him. He was currently staring at a kindergarten class. There, 3rd in line, after Larry Almen and Chelsea Atteron but before little Rodney Carson she sat smiling at the camera, one front tooth missing, her hair in red tinted brown, curly pig tails that hung down out of the frame, the picture capturing only shoulders up. She looked happy and shy at the same time. Eva Bishop. Looking at the picture brought back memories, and he worked to remember that first day.

He recalled his first day of school. A little girl walked into the classroom with a few others. She stuck out a bit wearing her little blue denim skirt and a pink shirt, tucked in, with a collar. And matching her shirt was a pair of cowgirl's boots, pink with little white tassels at the top and shiny metal on the tips. A design was stitched into them with white thread. She carried a little pink book bag with horses on it on her back and unlike most of the other students passing through the door, she didn't look frightened, but rather, curious about this new place.

"Hello girls, welcome to your first day of kindergarten. Find your name tags and sit down please," Ms. What's-her-face said with a smile. The little girl with the boots started looking at the empty seats while Rodrick continued looking at her. Her hair was one big, thick braid down her back and tied in a pink ribbon. He looked at the empty desks around him. They were sitting in islands made of six desks, two rows of three facing each other. Rodrick sat on the left end of their island. A boy sat on the other, Rodrick's side and one sat diagonal to him. A girl who's name Rodrick had forgotten sat across from him. He looked hopefully at the seat next to him as the little girl with the red-brown hair walked up. However, she kept going. She then gave a smile and took the corner across from the other boy in his row.

"Hi, I'm Dylan," the boy next to her said. "I'm Billy," said the shrimp across from her.

"Hello. I'm Eve." She smiled at them. The girl across from Rodrick leaned forward to see around Dylan. "I'm Lauren. Lauren McCraine." They smiled at each other and Eva turned to Rodrick almost expectantly.

"What," he asked her.

"I'm Eva. What's your name?"

"Rodrick Heffley. Why do you want to know?" Her nose wrinkled in annoyance. "I was just trying to be nice you meanie."

"Hey Eva, knock knock," Billy said and proceeded to tell her some joke Rodrick forgot but one that he knew made her smile.

And that was when he decided he didn't like Billy. He had wanted Eva to sit next to him but instead some girl who smelled like pickles did while Billy and Dylan got to make Eva smile and laugh. That day on the play ground, Rodrick found Eva and decided he didn't like her too much either. She was just climbing off of the slide.

"You dress funny," he had told her, pointing at her shoes. She looked down.

"I do not. You do."

"You do too! You're weird. I bet you're just a weird tacky farm girl."

"I am NOT" she huffed, stomping her foot.

"You are too! Farm girl, farm girl, you are a farm girl," he taunted.

"I. Am. NOT, you big butthead," she yelled. The students who had stopped around them laughed or 'ooohh'ed so Rodrick did what he had to do. He stepped right up to her and shoved her down by her shoulders. "Are. Too."

She glared up at him, no tears, just anger. "I'll get you Rodrick Heffley." He soon found out that those shiny metal tips on the ends of her boots were not something he wanted to mess with. When recess ended, they went in to lunch, Eva and Rodrick as far apart as they could be. After that, it was to the art room. They all sat in big circular tables pushed close together. Eva's seat was right behind Rodrick's.

"Eva," Larry Almen asked leaning over to her.

"What," she asked looking at him. He didn't look back though.

"Do you really have cooties?" Rodrick snickered. "What," she had asked, wide eyed and looking indignant.

"Rodrick said at lunch that you have cooties and that you give them to people by looking at them." He sounded scared.

"That's not true." She turned to face Rodrick as she said this. "Eww," he quickly said. "Don't give me your cooties," as he looked down. Kids at both tables were staring. She looked back at Larry.

"That's not the truth. Rodrick is the one with cooties. They make him smell bad. Like doggie poop," she added. The kids laughed and she smiled as she went back to painting.

Rodrick glared at his picture… a blue car with purple tires and a green road. He then had an idea. He picked up his picture and paint tray from the table. He looked around for the teacher and saw her busy at another table. He turned around in his chair. Carefully, he picked up the end of Eva's braid and dipped it in his paint, using it to make his car and windows and tires. "Rodrick, what are you doing," one kid hissed at him. "SHHH," he hissed back and kept painting.

Just then, Eva swatted at her hair and it pulled. She whipped around and saw Rodrick so instinctively, she pulled her braid back over her shoulder. And saw the paint.

"AAAAAHHHH," she screamed. She jumped up as the teacher rushed over.

"Oh, my goodness," the teacher said.

"Look at my hair," she sobbed. Then she pointed. "Rodrick did it." The teacher looked at Rodrick who had not stashed the evidence.

"Young man, we're going to the principal right now." And they had.

He laughed, coming back to the present. He had looked up 'Bishop, Eva' in all of the yearbooks and now lay thinking about what he had seen. He saw her grow up one year at a time. More missing teeth in 1st and 2nd grade. Tiny purple frames in 3rd. Braces in 6th. The glasses were gone in 7th, replaced with a perm. No perm in 8th, just much shorter hair with some traces of frizzies. It was back to its original waves and growing in 9th and 10th. The braces had been missing in the 9th grade photo as well. And then he had seen her today.

She had definitely grown up from being a 'tacky farm girl' with little pink boots. His mind strayed to the way her shirt had fit snuggly across the curve of her chest and the way her jeans hugged her calves, thighs, hips, her nicely rounded ass which had a slight sway with her walk. As his mind moved further and further away from decent, he looked down and in the privacy of his dark bedroom, blushed a deep red. He fell asleep reciting the Pledge of Allegiance as well as all of the different members of his favorite bands and dates of some of their best rock shows.