I pulled away almost immediately, shock ruling my actions again. This seemed to happen a lot come to think of it. "What was that? That-that thing you just did! What did you just do?"

Lucas raised a single eyebrow, looking slightly confused. "I just kissed you, Riley. Granted, it was only for a split second because you pulled away, but ... that's still what happened."

"Since when can you do that?" I was practically screaming now, and all of the adults on the subway whose attentions had previously been fixated on their cell phones were staring at me like I was a lunatic. And maybe I was. The boy I loved just kissed me, and I yanked back within no time at all. Not only that, I was basically having a panic attack over this. Maybe I had less sanity than I had thought.

"Since when am I not allowed to?" he retaliated, although he was grinning slightly. "Come on, it isn't like that was your first kiss or anything. You dated Farkle for a couple months, didn't you?"

Here comes embarrassing. "We never kissed, Lucas. So, yes, actually, you were my first kiss and- you know what, you can't just kiss a girl like that!" So I was trying to change the subject as subtly as possible, and failing miserably. Why was I not even surprised?

He paused for a long moment before eventually smirking slightly. "I was really your first kiss? Seriously? You honestly aren't just saying that for my benefit, are you?"

I stared at him blankly, fleetingly pursing my lips. "Why in the world would I embarrass myself for your benefit, Lucas Friar?" I asked at last, my voice as dull as my mood. I supposed I should be elated - the guy I was hopelessly in love with had just kissed me, after all. But the only emotion I could bring myself to feel was helplessness. Almost as if I had no idea what was going on. Which, coincidentally enough, I did not. In a way, maybe Lucas had a good reason for keeping things from me - this situation was most likely painfully simple, and I was still confused as heck. Yeah, it was definitely making sense to me now.

He laughed lightly, seeming about one hundred times happier now. "I don't know, but I'm kind of the type of person to assume the worst. But you know, I guess this is sort of fair."

"Fair?" I questioned.

Lucas nodded. "Mhm. Fair as in, you were my first kiss, too. It isn't such a huge confidence booster that I initiated it and you retreated within a second and a half, but hey, I'll take what I can get, sunshine."

I raised my eyebrows reflexively. "How is that even humanly possible? You're older than me, and I'm sure you dated loads of girls back in Texas. Didn't you?"

This time, Lucas stared at me blankly. "Thanks, Riley. No, really, it means everything to me that you think that highly of me. It's an absolute honor that you consider me the kind of boy to date a million or so girls, right?"

I shook my head immediately, my cheeks flaming from embarrassment. "That isn't what I meant and you know it. But you are still older than me, so you can't exactly feel offended that I assumed you already had your first kiss and girlfriend and all of that stuff. Most people your age have, right?"

He shook his head, although it seemed playful now. "You're adorable, Riley Matthews. But yeah, I guess most people my age have already done that type of thing, but I haven't. I was never really interested in anyone until I met you."

I bit my bottom lip lightly to hide a smile. After all, I was still trying to process what exactly had just happened between us. I opened my mouth to respond, but the subway came to another abrupt halt and I smiled apologetically. "This is my stop. Hey, you should come with me!" I suggested, a little louder than I had intended. Several adults turned to stare at us again before seemingly shrugging it over. I blushed scarlet, ducking my head so my hair would cascade in front of my face. There was no need to allow Lucas to see me resembling a bright red tomato.

"You're cute when you blush," he remarked, and I could almost picture his smirk right now. I blushed darker, and he chuckled. "But yeah, okay. I'd love to go with you. There's no place else I'd rather be. But also- it's my stop, too, if you recall. We're living in the same apartment building, sunshine."

Well, now I looked more like a raspberry than a tomato. Why was I blushing so much around him recently? Reluctantly snapping my head up, I grinned sheepishly. "It might have slipped my mind. But come on, then, unless you want to end up in Chinatown."

"I didn't even know New York had a Chinatown."

"Doesn't everywhere?"

. . .

"Wait, what are you doing?" I asked Lucas, grasping his wrist and quickly tugging him back. We were walking up to the apartment building, but he had taken an abrupt detour, and was apparently planning on heading to the fire escape that led up to my bay window instead.

He raised his eyebrows at me. "I like to live dangerously."

I sighed quietly. "You're still a troublemaker at heart, aren't you?"

He smiled dryly, hints of mischief in his bright green eyes. "Always have been, always will be." Lucas pulled out of my light grip, flashing me a crooked smile before heading back over to the fire escape. I rolled my eyes at him, but decided that he had already made up his mind. Nothing I said or did was going to change his mind, so I might as well continue my original plans of living like a normal person and just using the front door.

. . .

"Well, it's official," I muttered, striding into my bedroom and instantly plopping down on my bed." My parents think I've lost my mind. And you're honestly the only person I can blame."

Lucas smirked, hopping up from my bay window and walking over to my bed. He didn't sit down, though, simply hesitating a couple feet away from me. "I kind of overheard. You sounded pretty eager to go up to your room, so I'm not surprised they were so suspicious. Also, no offense, but your excuses about why you decided to ditch the dance were sort of lame."

"Shut up."

He laughed lightly, loud enough for only the two of us to hear. "You get pretty feisty sometimes, don't you, sunshine? Don't worry, though, I find it endearing. Then again, everything you do is adorable so that isn't too big of a shocker, either."

"Enough with the compliments. I'm tired of resembling basically every kind of red fruit that there is," I said, grinning sarcastically before continuing. "Is there any actual reason you decided to climb in through my bay window, or do you just like risking being murdered by my father?"

"Both," he answered automatically. He paused for a second, hesitating again before sitting besides me on my bed. "I know you're probably still wondering about why I poured my heart out to your best friend instead of you, right?"

I wasn't a huge fan of the reminder. Maybe that was why my sarcastic mood increased by roughly two thousand and twelve percent. "No duh, Sherlock. Are you ever going to give me a real explanation for that, or will we keep on playing guessing games until I'm in my eighties?"

"Someone's in a bad mood," he said tauntingly. Noticing the lack of amusement in my expression, he awkwardly cleared his throat. "Yeah, okay. Sorry. So, you have to promise you won't get mad at me, all right?"

"We'll see. Just spill it, Lucas."

He bit his lower lip hard before finally sighing. "Okay, okay. I didn't want to scare you away, I guess. There's already so much I've told you that hasn't been exactly good, the kinds of things that typically cause people to run away screaming. You were always understanding and accepting, even when I probably didn't deserve it, but I knew it was only a matter of time until it became too much for you. One of these days I was going to reveal one thing too many about my crappy life, and you were going to run away to Jamaica or something, desperate to find some way to forget about your screwed up ex-friend."

"Lucas, that's absolutely insane." Well, I was beginning to speak my mind more and more these days, and this was one of those times.

"Maybe it is, but it also kind of makes sense if you think about it. Look at it from my perspective, sunshine - the two people that literally gave me life can't stand me. Wouldn't you feel a bit paranoid of losing people if your two 'creators' despised you?"

I pressed my lips together tightly, his flawless logic rendering me speechless for a moment. I eventually recovered, swallowing hard. "Okay. Maybe I can see your point. If my parents were anything like that"-it was a lot more depressing to envision my parents pretty much wanting me than I cared to admit-"I would be the same exact way. But you know me, Lucas. You should have been able to trust me."

"Sometimes I guess it's easier to open up to people that have been through similar things. You assume they'll understand more than anybody, and sometimes they do. Maya is a great friend, but she's suffering through her own stuff, too. I shouldn't have dumped it all on her, either."

My eyebrows furrowed. "You're telling me this because ...?"

"I'm telling you this because you're my best friend, Riley. Not only that, you're already well-aware of how I feel about you."

"I am?" I asked, accidentally letting doubt color my tone.

Lucas caught on fairly quickly, and gently grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers. "I'm in love with you. Haven't I mentioned this a couple times before, sunshine?"

I smiled slightly, hesitantly glancing over at him. He was a lot closer than I had anticipated, and I felt my eyes widen slightly. There were only a few inches between us, our lips almost brushing. Needless to say, it was positively terrifying. "I believe so," I murmured once I had remembered how exactly one speaks.

Lucas chuckled lightly. "I'm more afraid of scaring you away than I am of scaring Maya away. She's my friend now, obviously, but you're the girl I love. It's a lot more risky to tell you everything, because if you leave ... if you leave me, then I'll be afraid of everything."

I frowned immediately. "I would never leave."

"You can't be completely positive about that, Riley. The future is totally unpredictable, and anything in the whole world is possible. You could meet someone new, you could finally get sick and tired of my endless sob stories, you could-"

"Lucas?"

He exhaled quietly. "Yes?"

"Shut up," I repeated, leaning towards him and hesitating for only the briefest of seconds before pressing my lips against his.

. . .

A/N: So this is the second chapter I've ended with a Rucas kiss, and I'm pretty much crying my eyes out because we hit 180+ reviews. In other news, you guys are amazing! Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting. I still have a lot planned for this story, and I can't wait to hear your reactions. :D Feel free to leave your opinion on this chapter! It's still pretty awesome to hear from all of you!

Also, Girl Meets World, still do not own it. Sigh.