Guys! Twenty chapters already?!

And please, please, PLEASE tell me if you want anything to see in the Valentine's day special.

I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: all Selection rights belong to Kiera Cass

As Aspen had predicted, my parents - mainly my mom - were worried sick thinking I was lost or possibly missing. My mom went wide eyed when I told her the truth, and I swear she almost grounded me. But, ironically, Astra graced me with a large bawl, letting mom rush to her granddaughter, forgetting about the whole situation. Surprisingly, although dad gave a firm warning explaining that I should never do it again, he smiled at me and said, 'My little girl is growing up'.

Facing what my parents had in store for me was alright, but I still had to deal with the rest of the school. More specifically, Maxon.

It was now Monday and I wasn't looking forward to seeing him for once. I had been ignoring all his calls and texts over the weekend. I was a bundle of nerves this morning, so I decided to wait out the time by getting ready slowly, so he couldn't talk to me before the day really began.

I arrived at school a few minutes just before the bell, so he would surely be in his class already, probably asking the teacher a question about an upcoming assignment.

I was safe for first and second period, seeing as I didn't have any classes with him. But all seniors had the same lunchtime, so I knew that my hiding wouldn't hold me long anymore.

The bell for lunch rang and I could hear my heart pounding in my head. This was it.

"Marlee, everyone has the wrong idea of what happened. Please help me," I begged.

She took my hand from across the table and looked at me like I was an animal about to be taken for sacrifice. "Tell him it was all a misunderstanding," Marlee said.

"But...what if he still thinks it was intentional?" I asked.

She looked apologetically at me.

"And did you read that comment Celeste posted? It said 'Wow! Feisty redhead! Dating two boys at once? You don't need both of them'. And she put a winking emoji at the end! Do you know how bad that is?" She bit her lip because she knew that Celeste wanted to ruin my life. She opened her mouth to say something, but immediately shut it and squeezed my hand, the warning signal.

I held my breath and felt a whisper against my ear, sending a chill down my spine.

"We need to talk," Maxon's voice said.

With silent eyes, I begged Marlee to do something, to stay, but all she gave me was a slight sorry shake of the head, telling me that she couldn't.

I dreadfully got up from my seat and faced Maxon. He was difficult to read; anger, concern, and jealousy all playing across his features. My legs felt like heavy weights, dragging me down beneath the surface of the water, about to be drowned by the currents. The chatter around us hushed as everyone watched us, girls looking both curious and happy that there was tension, and boys with confusion wiping across their faces.

"We should go somewhere else," I quietly said, fiddling with my hands.

He took a breath and nodded, walking away. I trailed behind him, following him up the stairs and into a secluded hall. Maxon crossed his arms and faced me.

"So I saw the picture," he stated like it was an obvious fact.

I bit my lip like I was a young child being chastised by her father.

He looked at me expectantly, waiting for me to respond.

"It was all a misunderstanding," I mumbled.

He raised his brows, challenging me. "Please explain."

"Astra was crying in the middle of the night, and I got really annoyed. I couldn't sleep, so I tried to call you, Marlee, Kriss, anyone. And Aspen just so happened to be the only one who picked up, so I asked him if he wanted to go for coffee or something. He said yes, and then we talked…"

"And then?"

"And then he found out that I had left the house without telling anyone and grabbed my hands. He told me he was taking me back to my home, but then Bariel came in at that moment and she took a picture.

"Maxon, you have to believe me when I say it was all a misunderstanding. I swear I'll never do anything that stupid again," I begged.

His hands hung at his sides and at first, he looked at me skeptically, then his eyes filled with concern.

I stiffened, not sure what to make of this immediate switching of emotions.

"America, why didn't you tell me before?" he asked me.

I twiddled my thumbs. "Because I was scared that you would be angry," I quietly admitted.

He reached for my arms and his expression softened. I looked into his brown eyes and felt the tension melt away from me. "I wouldn't be mad at you. I mean, I'm a little upset, but not mad. I get your intentions and if you're telling me the truth, then there's nothing to worry about." If I told him the truth. How could I prove it, though? But, he let this slide, as if telling me it was only a warning.

He thought of something and knit his brows together. "Would you still have gone out if Aspen hadn't said yes?" he asked me.

"Probably," I admitted.

He looked worried again. "Princess, you can't go out there alone at that time in the night. It's not even a 'you shouldn't', it's a 'you can't'. Do you have any idea how dangerous it is for you?"

I nodded meekly, reminded of the Christmas party at Celeste's.

He lowered his voice, "Next time you want to go anywhere that late, you call me. Call me as many times as you have to. I don't care if you wake me up. But you just can't go wandering around the streets like that. I'll come by to your place to pick you up and we can go wherever you want. Just never do that again. Got it?"

He was now a few inches away from me, and his presence made my skin tingle. I couldn't think straight.

"Got it," I muttered.

He smiled out of relief and moved a hand to the base of my neck.

"So, princess, are we good?" he asked.

I smiled. "I swear on my life that I will never ever take sporadic trips to the coffee shop at night and freak you out again. So yeah, I think we're fine."

He grinned. "Good. I would've gone crazy otherwise."

He closed the distance between our lips and sealed the deal. My insides twisted into a knot. This all felt surreal. We had gotten through our first times of tension, and I finally knew we could do it. Fights were a part of life, of love. For the first time ever, I could clearly envision a picture of me walking down the aisle towards him, driving our kids to soccer games, our little fights over nothing and small kisses to make up. For the first time ever, I could see a life with Maxon Schreave.

With that thought in mind, I kissed him harder.

Hope you enjoyed their first uncertain time (?) -not a fight btw

I really think that's what Maxon would do: care more about her safety than getting his heart hurt

Anyway, review replies!

KittyKnight: Thank you! And sorry, but you were right. I'm not going to tell you just yet about the Celeste question. You'll have to wait. Sorry!

Booklover122015: Awwww thank you! I know there wasn't a breakup in here, but I hope you still enjoyed their little disagreement!

Guest: Thank you!

Guest: Thanks! Hope you liked this one!

morethanjustastory: haha lol

kkhardenstein: I'm sorry there wasn't too much drama here, but I PROMISE you'll get more drama later. Anyway, the poll is on my profile page if you haven't found it already.

Someone the World Forgot: Dw. I've always hated Bariel too. She was just so annoying and creepy. Anyway, I love both Aspen and Maxon. I know many people don't really like Aspen in the Selection, but he's honestly so kind and selfless (for the most part). I loved him even more in The Heir because he was like a second father to the kids basically and it was so cute. The more I write about him, the more 'wow' he seems. But, despite that, I still love Maxerica way more than Asperica, because Maxerica is just too cute! And awww, I wish you the best of luck for finding your university!

Guest: Thanks!

Maxerica15: Thank you! And yay they didn't break up! And ya, I'll definitely let them have their cute moments in the Valentine's Day chapter.

Thank you for reading and reviewing! Love you! 3

Please review!

Bye!