First, let me thank each and every one of you for your reviews. I have tried to get back to each of you individually but that isn't always possible. But I appreciate all your reviews and am doing my best to check out all of your work. With the lack of Finchel stories, it's extra important that our Finchel writers keep growing strong!

I hope you enjoy this chapter. Please review if you want me to keep going! An author's note: Lizzie, Lexie, Laura, Izzy and Meg are named after close friends of mine from fanfic and RP. They are amazing girls and I just had to incorporate them into my story! Enjoy and review if you want me to keep going!

Chapter 10: No More Pretending?

Emma sighed as she looked at Nick's picture she'd put in her new locker at Roxbury. Since Nick didn't go to school here, she had no problem with putting his picture in her locker. Actually, she'd printed it off his Facebook page and framed it in one of Sarah's foam frames. (She wasn't sure how she'd managed to convince her sister to let her use it.) She felt so safe and relieved here, but she missed Nick every day.

"Who's that?"

Emma turned to see Lizzie and Laura standing by her locker.

Emma looked down at the ground. "A boy crush?" Laura asked.

"He saved my life," Emma said, realizing she may be exaggerating a little bit.

"He's a cutie, whoever he is," Lizzie said. "What's his name."

Emma smiled at remembering his name. "Nick Dougherty."

"The board president's son?" Laura asked.

"Yeah, the board president's son," Emma said. "He helped me a lot at Miramar. He's my brother's best friend."

"Do you miss him?" Lizzie asked.

"I do," Emma admitted. "He was the only reason I considered staying at Miramar. Well, him, my brother and my only friend who was a girl."

"If he's at the football game on Friday, I expect to be introduced to him, Emma," Lizzie said.

"You will be, trust me," Emma said.

The bell rang and the girls started walking to their classes. Emma was glad she was here, but she couldn't help but wonder what Nick was doing halfway across the district.

x

The bell rang at the end of the school day, and as soon as the bell rang, Emma heard her phone go off, alerting a text message. Emma looked at the phone, seeing it was Nick. Do you think you can come over after school?

Emma started typing a reply. To your house?

My dad's got a board meeting tonight and my brother's on the sixth grade overnight. Which means I have the house to myself. I could use some company and we need to catch up.

I'll be there at six. Emma's heart skipped a beat. Was she really going to a boy's house by herself?

"Was that Nick?" Lexie asked.

"Yeah, it was Nick," Emma said. "He wants me to come to his house after school today to talk."

"You should!" Meg said. "Maybe now you and Nick can try to form a relationship."

"Aren't we a little young for boyfriends?" Emma asked. But she knew several people who had boyfriends, though they were simple relationships.

"Well, complex boyfriends like ones high school kids have, yes," Lizzie said. "But you'd be fine just hanging out with him."

"Have you guys ever had boyfriends?" Emma asked.

"Well, middle school type boyfriends," Laura said. "It's not like the high school ones. But like we can do some sorts of affection, like holding hands or putting arms around each other."
"And of course, there's invisible boundaries that should NEVER be crossed, and we all know what those are," Emma said.

"True," Izzy said. "But there's no harm in just hanging out."

"Okay," Emma said, taking a deep breath. "I'll go to his house."

x

After finishing her homework that evening, Emma walked to Nick's house, which was just a few blocks from hers. She knocked on the door hesitantly as he opened it.

"Hi," Nick said quietly.

"Hi," Emma said.

"Well, how about you come in?" Nick asked.

Emma went into the house. She'd never been inside his house before but it was pretty nice. For a one-parent home especially. Nick led Emma into the dining room and pulled out a chair. "I ordered Chinese for takeout. Beef with pea pods, kung pao shrimp, basil chicken and spring rolls. Sound good?"

Emma smiled and sat down. "Sounds great." She looked at the table, seeing he had lit it with candles and put flowers in the center of the table.

"A toast," Nick said, pouring water into their glasses. "To a great rest of eighth grade and that we can keep our friendship growing strong."

They began eating and talked over dinner. "How's Roxbury? I miss you," Nick said.

"I miss you too, a lot," Emma said. "I like Roxbury though, it's so quiet and the kids there are so much more serious about their studies."

"At least we'll be together at the high school next year," Nick said. "We'd better get LOTS of classes together."
"Oh, I'm getting my schedule fixed if we don't!" Emma laughed.

"So, I'll miss being leads of the Miramar choir together, but I was thinking, we should try out to be the leads for the big concert this spring, that all the middle school choirs participate in."

"I'd love that," Emma said. "How do we try out?"

"We pick a duet to sing together and then try out in front of the middle school choir directors and the high school director," Nick said.

"Meaning my mom?" Emma said. "Because if we have to do a duet, I have one in mind."

"Really? Which one?" Nick asked.

"I'll show you after dinner," Emma told him, and after dinner, they were sitting in front of the computer. Emma found the music for "Pretending" on YouTube, a duet her parents had sang in high school. "My dad wrote this song his junior year of high school, when he and my mom were going through a rough spot in their relationship," Emma explained. "They sang it at Nationals together and they placed in the top fifteen. It's a really good song, we should do it."

"If the words pop up on the screen during the music, we can try," Nick said.

Emma smiled. "Let's do it." She pressed the button on the YouTube video.

Nick: Face to face, and heart to heart
We're so close, yet so far apart.
Emma: I close my eyes, I look away
That's just because I'm not okay.
Both: But I hold on, I stay strong
Wondering if we still belong.
Nick: Will we ever say the words we're feeling,
Reach out underneath and tear down all the walls?
Emma: Will we ever have a happy ending
Or will we forever only be pretending?
Both: Will we a-ah, a-ah-lways, a-ah, a-ah-lways,
a-ah, a-ah-lways be pretending?
Nick: How long do I fantasize?
Make believe that it's still alive?
Emma: Imagine that I am good enough
And we can choose the ones we love?
Both: But I hold on, I stay strong
Wondering if we still belong.
Will we ever say the words we're feeling,
Reach out underneath and tear down all the walls?
Will we ever have a happy ending
Or will we forever only be pretending?
Will we a-ah, a-ah-lways, a-ah, a-ah-lways,
a-ah, a-ah-lways be...
Nick: Keeping secrets safe
Emma: Every move we make;
Nick: Seems like no one's left to know
Emma: And it's such a shame
Nick: 'Cause if you feel the same
Emma: How am I supposed to know?
Both: Will we ever say the words we're feeling,
Reach out underneath and tear down all the walls?
Will we ever have a happy ending
Or will we forever only be pretending?
Will we a-ah, a-ah-lways, a-ah, a-ah-lways,
a-ah, a-ah-lways be...
Will we a-ah, a-ah-lways, a-ah, a-ah-lways,
a-ah, a-ah-lways be...
Will we a-ah, a-ah-lways, a-ah, a-ah-lways,
a-ah, a-ah-lways be pretending?

"That was good," Emma said.

"It really was," Nick told Emma. "You're really good."

"Thanks," Emma said. "That was one of my parents' favorite duets to sing together in high school."

"I didn't know your dad was such a talented songwriter," Nick said.

"My mom wrote a song too," Emma said. "I bet my mom will like it when we sing her song for the audition for the leads for the big concert."

"That'll give us an advantage," Nick laughed. "Just wondering, Emma, why did you choose that song?"

Emma blushed, not willing to confess her feelings just yet. "I think it's the right song for me, with everything I've gone through."

x

Finn went into the bedroom where Rachel was waiting. Rachel was staring at the picture on their bedside table from when she and Finn were in their last year of college, when Ryan and Emma were two-year-old toddlers.

Now those little children were in their last year of middle school.

"What is it?" Finn asked.

Rachel took her husband's hand. "I was just thinking. I can't believe how grown up the kids are now.

"It's pretty scary, isn't it?" Finn agreed.

Rachel buried her face in Finn's chest. "She went through so much at Miramar. I just can't help but worry about her. And now she may be getting a boyfriend."

"Nick's a good boy, you and I both know that," Finn said. "And don't worry about her. She'll be safe at Roxbury. I'm there, she has friends."

"It scares me to see our kids growing up," Rachel said. "I remember when Ryan and Emma were little and I was pregnant with Sarah. I remember when we found out I was pregnant with Ryan and Emma."

"A lot has changed," Finn said, both of them thinking about the most obvious change.

Rachel squeezed Finn's hand tight. "We should really have five kids with us now."

Finn nodded. "We should. But I do know that we have four amazing kids with us and that they make us the two luckiest people in the world."

"He watched over her, I think," Rachel said.

"He does," Finn agreed. "And he watches over all of us, too."

Finn and Rachel began kissing when they heard the doorbell ring. Hand in hand, they went to the door. "Did you and Nick have fun?" Rachel asked.

"We had an amazing dinner and we found the perfect duet to sing for our auditions for the leads at the big district wide concert," Emma sighed.

"Awww, Emma has a boyfriend!" Sarah called from the living room.

"He's just my friend!" Emma said. But Rachel could tell by the look on her daughter's face that Emma saw Nick as more than a friend.

x

The next evening, Emma was at the football game at the high school with Lizzie, Lexie, Laura, Izzy and Meg. It was the first game at the high school she'd ever been to. Heights had a pretty good football team and the band was really impressive. Ryan was at the game with Nick, but Emma hadn't seen them yet. Her parents had also brought Sarah and Grant to the game.

"The hot dogs here are really good," Meg said as the girls sat down to wait for the kickoff.

"Especially with cheese!" Izzy added.

"I don't know, I prefer them with onions and relish!" said Laura.

"They beat cafeteria food at Miramar, that's for sure!" Emma said, biting into her hot dog. This was her first time going out with a group of friends, and she was feeling rather self-conscious.

Emma looked up to see Ryan and Nick walking down the stands to where the girls were sitting. Emma gulped, spilling her soda a little.

"What happened?" Lizzie asked.

"Nick's here!" Emma whispered.

"What? Where is he?" Lexie asked.

Emma pointed at Nick and Ryan. "He's cute but his friend is cute too!" Lexie giggled.

Emma gave her a look. "That's my brother you're talking about."

"What's your brother's name?" Lizzie asked.

"His name is Ryan," Emma said. "But guys, we have lots of hot guys at our school and you're checking out my brother?"

The girls all shared a laugh. Ryan and Nick came over to the girls, and Emma introduced them to her friends. The girls enjoyed the evening at the game. By halftime, Heights was winning 30-9 and the halftime band show had been great. After the band finished performing, Emma went to the concession stand to get a drink. She froze in her tracks for about five minutes when she saw who was in line at the concession stand: Dominique, Tiffany and Brianna.

"What's going on?" Emma turned around and saw Ryan and Nick.

"Dominique - Tiffany - Brianna," Emma blurted out, still freezing.

"You'll be okay," Ryan told his sister, touching her arm.

"Where are Mom and Dad?" Emma asked. "I want to leave."

"Are you sure?" Nick asked.

"I don't want to be anywhere near them!" Emma said.

The three of them stopped and turned. "Hey, having fun with the rich preps at Roxbury?" Dominique asked.

"I am enjoying Roxbury," Emma said. "There, the kids are actually nice."

"We're not mean, we just don't like you," Tiffany said.

"Leave her alone," Ryan said. "You don't get to do this anymore?"

"Or what?" Brianna asked.

"Let's see if together, you can take down all of us." Emma turned to see her new friends from Roxbury standing there.

"Oh, the Roxbury freak attack," Brianna wailed.

"What's going on here?" The teenagers all turned to see one of the assistant football coaches.

"Um, nothing," Tiffany said before running away with Dominique and Brianna.

"Why do they think they can still find ways to torment me?" Emma asked.

"They can't," Nick said. "They can't touch you. They can't touch us."

Emma smiled at her brother, her crush and her friends. "You guys are awesome, I hope you know that."

Chapter 11 preview: Takes place a few months later. MAJOR milestone for Nick and Emma. Another couple begins to form. More news on the bullies - news that is even shocking to Emma.