"So…tell me again why I'm being dragged along?"

I ignored Dez's continuous question as I turned the corner, griping the car wheel so tight, I felt my knuckles go white. Next to me, the ginger was squirming in his seat, looking at me expectantly.

Seeing that I wasn't going to be answering anytime soon, Dez shrugged. "It's not like I'm going to lecture you," he said after a short pause. "But why do you need me to be a part of your sabotaging scheme-?"

"It's not sabotaging," I protested.

"Hm," the way Dez was looking at me made me feel two inches tall.

I sunk in my seat, as if it would help avoid his stare. "I'm just being a good friend," I amended, hopefully sounding more convincing than I felt. "I want to make sure that little-" Dez sent me a pointed glare. "-player. That little player doesn't get his filthy hands on my-"

I didn't realize I was spitting out my words until Dez let out a small laugh, shaking his head at me. "Isn't eavesdropping on them bad enough?"

Eavesdropping? I was about to protest that I didn't mean to stumble across Elliot and Ally just as he was asking her out. A flash of anger blazed through my eyes as the word set into my brain. Date. They were going out on a date.

The mere thought of it made me want to puke. I gritted my teeth, my vision turning red. Elliot's hands around her waist…her head buried in the crook of his neck… he'll just pull her closer and-

"AUSTIN! LOOK OUT!"

Dez's shriek caused me to flash back into reality to see that we were rolling straight towards a car in front of us. I jerked the wheel to the side just in time to narrowly avoid hitting it. The driver honked angrily at us as we zoomed past him.

If it was just .5 of a second later, if I was unable to jerk to the side fast enough… My heart pounded in my ears. Dez was clutching his heart like he just got shot, rolling in his seat, muttering "Are we alive?"

"Yes," I gulped down, not daring to let my sight leave the road. Forcing my body to relax, I allowed myself to breathe. "I'm really sorry about that, Man."

Dez looked as if he was going to strangle me. "You almost killed us!" he yelled.

"Sorry," I stammered out. "Sorry, sorry, sorry-"

"Someone's jealous."

I frowned, sinking into my seat so low, my head barely reached the armrests. "Yeah, yeah," I muttered under my breath as Officer Berkley grinned at me knowingly. "Look, before you go into your whole lecture on how it's-"

The cop stopped me with a wave of his hand. "Jeez," he rolled his eyes. "Calm down, Moon. As a police officer, it's probably my duty to remind you that your anger could have gotten yourself severely injured."

"No," my face mocked surprise. "You don't say."

Officer Berkley slapped me over the head, making me yelp. Was it even legal for cops to do that? "There," he said with a satisfied nod. "Maybe that'll get into your thick skull that car accidents are nothing to joke about."

There was a slight pause before his words finally fully processed through my head. Instinctively, I winced. "You don't think I know that," I snapped, my head throbbing, but it wasn't just from my momentary pain Officer Berkley gave me.

BETH.

For a moment, her image came back to me. Her brown curls, innocent doe eyes, one of her two front teeth missing… I pinched myself hard as I felt another pang erupt through my heart. "Let's just move on," I said hoarsely.

"I'm sorry, Kid," Officer Berkley said, as if he didn't hear a word coming from my mouth. "I forgot that-" the glare I sent him made him shut up pretty fast.

Swallowing hard, I ignored the sympathetic glances he was trying to send me. I didn't want to be pitied. It was as simple as that. Clearing my throat, I finally managed to get out, "So then Dez finally calmed down and…"

"Okay," Dez said, finally recovering from his hyperventilation. He pointed an accusing finger at me. "You-You better tell me that we almost got killed for a good reason, Austin Monica Moon. Because if you answer with some stupid excuse, I-"

"I said I'm sorry!" I said in exasperation. Annoyance crawled up my throat. It wasn't long before I started seeing red. "Dude, you're seriously making me regret even thinking about bringing you along in the first place."

Dez softened, but his glare still had the stinging affect. "Why did you?"

A knot bigger than the whole state of Florida grew in my stomach, making it twist painfully. I opened my mouth, but only ended up greeting him with a weak stammer. "I was hoping you would be able to convince me to back out of this."

It was so quiet, I was surprised he even heard it in the first place.

There was a slight pause. Stopping at a red light, I finally gained the courage to look Dez in the eyes. He gazed back sadly at me. "What do you want to hear, Austin?" he asked at last.

He waited for my response patiently. The truth?

I didn't have one.

I didn't know.

"And fifty cents is your change."

I nodded my head in thanks, ignoring the flirtatious glance the cashier sent me as her hand brushed against mine, dropping two quarters in my grasp. Picking up my popcorn and Coke bottle from the table, I made my way through the crowded movie theater before she could say another word.

Dez was already gone. We had come to an agreement that since I dragged him along here, I would have to buy him tickets to the new premier of Claws: Dun Dun Dun! Twenty dollars went from my wallet to immediately down the drain.

"It's so much better than it sounds," Dez tried to protest. "It's about this lifeguard who battles against this evil crab-" who would want to watch a movie like that? I had no idea. But if it kept the ginger happy, I wasn't going to argue.

The sight of a familiar brunette made me snap back into reality. I glanced at my watch. 8:00. Exactly on time. And she was alone. Before I could get my hopes up, I saw Elliot just a few yards away, waiting in line for popcorn.

Scowling, I tried to resist the urge to mentally punch him in the face.

Pushing my anger aside, I made my way towards Ally. As I got closer, my heart started to pound. Ally looked good. Like, really good. Apparently I wasn't the only one to think so. I could literally see every guy in the theater drooling over her, making my fist clench in spite of myself.

Ally was delicate. Innocent. Even more of a reason why I had to protect her from every dirty mind that was in this room right now.

"Ally!" I called out. Triumph set in my stomach as I felt every guys' gaze flash jealously at me. My joy didn't last long as Ally turned to me, her eyes wide with shock. I couldn't have blamed her.

She gawked at me for a moment before stammering out, "A-Austin? What are you doing here?" Something flashed through her face, but it was gone before I could even identify what it was.

"Seeing a movie," as if it wasn't obvious enough.

Ally seemed to be having the similar thought because she rolled her eyes slightly. "No," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "You don't say."

Laughing, in the corner of my eye, I saw Elliot moving quickly through the line. I didn't have as much time as I wished I did. "So," I said before I could completely chicken out. Maybe I should have thought this out more thoroughly because the next words that came out of my mouth were, "Are you here with anyone?"

Subtle, a voice peeked through in the back of my mind. Very subtle.

My words seemed to freeze Ally in time. A moment of panic was clear in her eyes. And immediately, I knew that she was just as uncomfortable about this idea as I was. "Uh," she coughed out, muttering something under her breath.

Before I could question a word she said, the jerk Elliot came running up towards us. My eyes instinctively glared at him, picking up every little detail. Clothes were too formal. It was a movie date, not prom. He was trying too hard. His smile looked forced. He was holding a bag of Skittles.

Ally doesn't like Skittles. She likes M&Ms.

"Okay Ally," he said, hardly noticing my presence, much to my annoyance. My hands immediately clenched. "Are you ready to go to the-"

I cleared my throat. Finally, Elliot turned to me so fast, it was almost funny. His expression vaguely resembled Ally's before asking, "Austin?"

"That's me," I growled out before I could stop myself. Ally flashed me a warning glance, but I hardly recognized it. Silently counting to three, I waited until my vision stopped turning red before asking, "What are you doing here?"

Elliot looked at me as if I was a piece of trash he decided to litter on the street. His eyes narrowed. I flinched at how much hate one look could show. "I'm here with Ally," he said, almost smugly, as if he had already won.

My hand went down to my pocket, where the one slip of paper was held. Wrapping around it, I pulled it out, waving it in his face. "Well," I said at last, my eyes resting on Ally, who was refusing to meet my gaze. "It's a good thing we're seeing the same movie then."

Ally looked as if she wanted to slap me on the spot. Ignoring the glares she was sending me, I turned to Elliot, who was currently showing off how many shades of red his face could turn.

"Good for you," he said through grit teeth, obviously not getting the meaning behind my words. "Well, Ally, I guess we can just-"

It was a better time than ever to put my plan into action. "Hey," I cut in, my eyes focusing on Ally. The expression she had was unreadable. I doubted it would stay like that for long. "If you don't mind, can I join you?"

Elliot frowned, much to my pleasure. "Actually, Ally and I are on a-"

Don't say it. Swallowing hard, I pulled off the biggest grin I could manage, clasping him on the shoulder. It was like grabbing a scorching coal out of a hot fire. "Great!" I could only hope that I sounded more enthusiastic about this than I felt. "We should hurry. We're going to miss the movie."

For a moment, a small sharp pain of guilt traveled up my spine as I threw my arm around Ally's shoulders, leading her through the theater as fast as I could without having her stagger back.

This is for her own good, I reminded myself. You're protecting her.

If only I knew how wrong I was. Because nothing could have made up for the look Ally sent me as I dragged her into the dark theater, leaving her so-called-date to follow our dust.

Maybe it would have been pointless to retell everything that happened on the NOT-date, mainly because thinking back on it, none of it was in my favor. I didn't regret anything that I did to sabotage Elliot's "flirting".

Sitting in the middle of the two when the movie starts so that he wouldn't pull off the overly cliché fake-yawn move… accidentally spilling soda over his shirt…not letting Ally take him to the bathroom to clean up the accidentally spilled beverage. That must have been the final straw.

As soon as the movie was over, Elliot left without another word. Ally must have had the similar thought because she stormed out of the theater, balling up her jacket and throwing it squarely at my chest.

"C'mon Ally, wait a second!" I helplessly called out towards her. For her small stature, she managed to move quickly in heels. Struggling to keep up with her, I finally managed to grab her arm, jerking her back.

Her head spun towards me, her usually gentle eyes blazing with anger. I felt my heart hit the ground with a clang. "What Austin?" she snapped out, her voice unforgiving. "What do you want?"

"Look Ally," I began.

What was I gonna say next? I had no idea. I never got the chance to find out because Ally interrupted me, looking as if she were seconds away from slapping me. "You probably ruined every chance I had with Elliot," she burst out.

I flinched. Ruined everything, the voice in my head agreed. Gritting my teeth, I pushed the thought off my mind. "He was going to hurt you!" I insisted. "Trust me in this, Alls!" Sounds like you're trying to convince yourself.

Shut up!

"Elliot actually happens to be a very nice guy," Ally protested. "Trust me in this Austin!" Annoyance was starting to grow in my stomach, and it all surrounded around the fact that Ally was so intent on protecting her precious Elliot.

The thought caused me to give a small yell in frustration. "Why can't you just listen to me?" I ran my hands through my blond hair, looking at her in aggregation. Ally frowned at me, her arms crossed.

"What was that back there?" she demanded.

"I had to do that," I burst out, not even bothering to question her. "I know what Elliot does to girls, Alls. He pulls them in and ends up breaking their hearts. Ask anyone in school!" I was trying to protect you. I bit back the words.

Ally huffed, glaring daggers. "Why can't you just face the fact that someone might just actually like me for once?" her voice rose to a yell. "Is that so hard?"

Hurt glistened in her eyes, catching me off guard. "Yes," I mumbled, "Because you belong with me." I hardly realized I said it out loud before my eyes instinctively widened. But Ally was so angry, she hardly heard.

So I swallowed the confession in my throat. "Ally-"

"You know what?" Ally interrupted me, her body looking small as she cowered back. And suddenly, she seemed exhausted, her whole body composition slumping. "I don't even what to know, Austin."

Pushing me hard in the chest, I stumbled back in shock. Ally curled her fists in anger, storming past me angrily. I watched her, as frozen as a statue, gawking at her as she raced down the street, as if I was just a waste of her time.

And there was a moment where I saw her stop in her tracks. She didn't turn back. But even from where I was, I could see her sobs. It was as if someone stabbed me repeatedly in the heart.

But my legs didn't move.

I don't remember how long I stood there, continuously punching myself in the face, wishing that a time machine was in my hands. But it ended when my phone buzzed in my pocket. The smallest hope flared in my stomach.

Fumbling with my phone, I turned it on to see it ringing with a text message.

My eyes ran over the message. Yelling in frustration, I stuffed the stupid device back into my pocket. Cursing hard, I gritted my teeth. I already made the worst mistake in my life, I didn't need another person mad at me.

I forgot Dez at the theater.

OMG! I'M SO, SO, SO, SO, SO SORRY!

IT'S BEEN OVER A MONTH?! OH. MY. GOSH.

I feel absolutely horrible. I've been focusing so much on school and updating HTGTG, time passed by SO fast... oh gosh... Feel free to yell at me. No words can describe how horrible I feel right now. I'm so sorry. I know I promised to update more often (I even pinky promised), and I haven't been able to live up to that. I can't even...

After reading all your amazing reviews and support, I decided to make it up to you guys. Which is why I woke up at 4 AM this morning to type up a new chapter today before I had to do homework and host my sister's birthday party :D And FINALLY, it's done. I really hope you guys enjoyed it!

You all are seriously SO amazing, no words can describe how much I love you guys. It means the world to me that you guys take time to read my stories... THANK YOU SO MUCH!

ILoveRossLynch: Awww that is so sweet :D Of course I would LOVE to help you! Just PM me and let me know! :D

Guest: Thank you so much! I'm so glad you enjoy it :D It means sooooo much to me!

Cassidy: AHHHH! THANK YOU!

S: Haha, yeah. I DEFINATELY need to update my bio, I just never found the time to do it :D And OMGGGGGG! THE HOUSE OF HADES WAS AMAZING! It's just- AHHHHHH! I LOVE IT!