Monday, October 5th; May's Residence; 7:26 a.m.

May was in the kitchen, grabbing breakfast as she poured some corn flakes into her bowl and then added milk afterwards. Her parents had just left for work, so she was sitting in the kitchen table alone waiting for Dawn and Max to get up. While crunching on her cereal, she looked at her phone for a brief second before a text popped in, resulting in her widening her eyes.

Her heart started beating out of fear and her hand trembled a bit, resulting in the spoon to drop and make contact with the glass bowl, making a sound 'CLANK' noise.

Dawn, who was walking downstairs, heard the loud and abrupt noise and walked to the kitchen, where she spotted her brunette friend with a worried and hyperventilated expression on her face. "Hey, what happened, May?" she asked with a worried expression on her face. "Are you okay?"

May stood up from the kitchen table and shook her head slowly. "No," she said vaguely before she picked up her phone from the table and showed the text to Dawn. "He's…back, Dawn. He's back!" she cried. "And he wants to talk!"

Dawn eyed the text with wide dinner plates. "Okay, I know this seems bad, but no need to worry, May. Just block Brendan. You don't have to talk to him. I wouldn't if I were you."

May sighed and nodded but then eyed her cryptically. "How does he even have my number? I changed it," she said. Dawn shrugged. "Yeah, I have to block him immediately," she decided, reaching for her phone and typing on it. After a few seconds, she sighed a breath of relief. "Okay, it's done," she said, resuming back to her seat and eating her cereal.

Dawn didn't like seeing her friend distraught and worried. The blunette sat across from her. "Don't worry May, I'm sure nothing's going to happen." May still seemed worried so Dawn tried to divert the topic. "Well anyways, do you remember last week when I slept over at Paul's place?" May nodded. "Well, I forgot to give his shirt back and I can't find it anywhere. Have you seen it?"

May thought about it for a second before the two heard another voice reply. "Are you talking about this shirt?" Both the girls looked towards the left where Max was as he held the shirt in his hand, but Dawn looked at it in awe when she realized it was stained.

"How'd it get stained?!" she exclaimed.

Max chuckled sheepishly. "I, uhh, thought it was my shirt but after I put it on it obviously wasn't. Anyways I was too lazy to take it off and was eating and spilled some soup on it. Sorry," he said.

May rolled her eyes. "Okay, I guess we could wash it," she said.

"Hopefully Paul won't blow his top off," Dawn said in a joking manner.

May gave her a look. "Why would he? The guy let you sleep over, Dawn! Paul, out of all people, is actually friends with you. I don't see him getting mad over this," she said, giggling. "I can't believe you two are friends, to be honest. Next thing 'ya know, you guys are going to be a couple."

Dawn's cheeks burned instantaneously. "That's ridiculous. We don't even have feelings for each other," she defended but May's lips curled into a smirk.

"Is there ever a morning where there's no girl talk?" Max commented dryly while walking over to grab the cereal.


Lumoise High School; 8:06 a.m.

Leaf was taking out her books from her locker, unable to take off her grin from her face. Her date with Gary was this Saturday and it was safe to say she was very excited and looking forward to it.

She laughed ironically at herself, thinking if she had ever gone out with Gary in the past, she'd probably slap herself silly. It was unbelievable that all these years she had a strong dislike for the spiky haired male, but things were undoubtedly different now. She had a misunderstanding about him all this while not realizing she harboured feelings for him.

When she closed her locker, her heart nearly jumped when she saw Gary standing in front of her. "Don't do that!" she exclaimed, pushing against his chest lightly, resulting him to chuckle lightly. "Now that my heart is functioning normally, what's up?" she asked.

Gary helped her with her books before he spoke. "I know I said I would keep the date a surprise, but I felt like you should know just in case." Leaf's eyes sparkled with excitement. "It's Daisy's birthday party this Saturday and I was going to take you there…are you okay with that?"

Leaf cocked her head slightly. "A party on the first date? That's something I would never guess."

Gary nodded. "Yeah, but if you wanna go somewhere else, I'm totally fine with that."

Leaf shook her head. "I love parties! I'm practically a social butterfly," she said. "It should be fun," she continued.

Gary smiled. "Good," he said before he caressed her right cheek and started to lean in. Leaf's eyes slightly widened, and her breath hitched when she realized what he was doing.

The sound of the bell spilt the two apart resulting in Leaf catching her breath again and trying to hide her blush that had appeared. Gary smirked slightly. "Saved by the bell, Leafy," he said, and this time caught Leaf's blush. "I'll see you after school."

Leaf shook her head in amusement before walking to her chemistry class.


10:32a.m.

Paul was in art class, attempting to paint something for the umpteenth time that he had to hand in by the end of the class. Painting for him was very easy in his opinion, the difficult part was thinking of something creative to paint on a blank canvas. He had painted nearly everything so far before and he was running out of ideas.

"Hey Paul," a voice said beside him and he didn't look towards the voice, but he recognized it. "How's it going?" Misty asked. "I just wanted to ask you if you finished the painting for this Saturday."

He was forced to make eye contact with Misty. "It's done," he replied simply before he resumed painting. He was attempting to paint a dark cave after he had done some deep thinking.

"Great, thanks so much! So, will you be there at the party? I invited you, remember?" she said.

Paul glanced at her. "I don't really do parties," he said before he looked at the canvas again, not seeing Misty frown in disappointment.

The class ended after twenty minutes and Paul felt satisfied as usual, handing in something he was proud of. He walked away without saying a word to Misty, unbeknownst to her disappointed expression.

She walked outside where Ash was waiting for her. "Oh no, you've got that look again…" he said, recognizing her expression. "What's wrong?"

She sighed in exasperation and flailed her arms in the air. "Everything! Everything's wrong! I just wish Paul would open his eyes for once and realize that I like him," she said. "I guess it's going to be harder than I thought."

Ash eyed her cryptically. "Does Paul even return your feelings? I mean, is it really worth it?" he asked. "Paul's not the type of guy for you, Misty," he said, scratching his head sheepishly.

Misty looked at him with daggers in her eyes. "You don't know that!" she protested. "And I'm sure Paul would like me back if he actually spent some time with me, 'ya know? But he doesn't hang out with anyone."

Ash thought about Paul's supposed friends for a moment before he said, "Actually, he's pretty close with Dawn and Drew. Drew mentioned how they've been texting recently."

Misty's green emerald eyes widened. "What? Paul has a phone and he didn't give me his number! Ugh!" she stomped her foot in slight anger before cooling herself off. "Okay, whatever," she said, causing Ash to chuckle. She thought about what Ash said. "So…Dawn and Drew huh? Who do you think is closer with Paul?"

Ash shrugged. "I'd say Dawn, maybe."

Misty nodded before she began to think of a brilliantly formed plan. "Perfect! Where's Dawn?"


11:13 a.m.

Dawn sighed, feeling overwhelmed with the new information she had just received from her calculus class. She picked up her backpack, feeling a bit fatigued, before walking outside, where she saw Misty and raised her eyebrow in confusion.

"Hey," Dawn said, breaking the silence. "What's up?" she asked.

Misty walked towards her. "I need to talk to you about something…or someone, to be more specific," she said. "And you're probably the best person to talk to."

Dawn was extremely curious. "Sure, go ahead."

Misty smiled. "Okay. How do I start?" she asked herself. "Okay, well how close would you say you are with Paul?" she asked, cocking her head in the process.

That question had caught her off guard a bit. "Uh, I guess we're kind of close? Why do you ask?" she asked.

Misty sheepishly smiled before she responded, "Well, because, I have a crush on him." Dawn parted her lips in surprise. That was something she did not expect, not in a million years. "And since you know him the best and you're close to him and all, I was wondering if you could convince him to go to my sister's birthday this weekend. I asked him myself, but he refused. I'm sure you could convince him!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Now Dawn was extremely overwhelmed. For some unknown reason, she didn't like the idea of Misty liking Paul and she had no idea why. She felt uncomfortable knowing that. "Uh…I don't know…" she said hesitantly.

"Oh, please!" she begged. "I really want him to come to the birthday party."

"Why?" she asked.

Misty formed a small blush on her cheeks. "I'm planning to confess, actually. I really want him to know my feelings and all," she said. "Just convince him to come and I'll be really grateful, Dawn!"

Dawn didn't understand why she was against the idea of Misty having a crush on Paul and wanting to form a relationship with him. She had no right to declare Paul's dating choice. However, an uncomfortable feeling still surfaced in her stomach and part of her wanted to refuse Misty, but she knew she'd be selfish by doing so. "Okay. I guess I could convince him. I'm meeting with him soon, so I'll talk to him," she said, and an immediate feeling of regret washed over her, making her completely confused why she was feeling this way.

Misty grinned. "Thanks so much, Dawn! You're the best! Oh, and you're invited too, okay? Again, thanks so much! I can't wait!" she squealed before walking away, leaving Dawn alone with her confused inner thoughts.


4:33 p.m.

The blunette sat across from Paul, looking at her notebook, biting her pencil in the process, still in deep thought about what Misty said. She was utterly confused on why she was so hesitant to tell Paul. Nothing was wrong with a girl taking interest in Paul. She sighed to herself.

Paul eyed her, raising his eyebrow at her expression. "What? Those problems aren't going to do themselves," he said, bringing her out of her thought process.

Dawn immediately removed her pencil from her mouth. "Sorry," she said before she began scribbling in her notebook. But then she stopped writing before she thought about Misty's words again. Maybe she was being ridiculous. Why did she care if Misty took an interest in Paul? If anything, she should have been encouraging it. Dawn looked at Paul and cleared her throat. "Are you doing anything this weekend?" she asked.

Paul raised an eyebrow. "Working. Why?"

"Take a day off," she commanded, and Paul huffed. "I want you to come to Daisy's birthday party."

Paul rolled his eyes. "I said it before and I'll say it again: I don't do parties," he said.

Dawn immediately retorted. "It could be a lot of fun! Don't you ever wanna do something fun in life, Paul?" she asked.

"Fun is different for everyone. I'm perfectly fine not going to that party and still having no regrets," he said. "Back to those problems now," he ordered, eyeing towards the notebook. He took out his phone before Dawn got an idea.

She snatched his phone away from him while Paul looked at her as if she was completely loony. "You're not getting this back 'till you agree to come to that party," she said satisfactorily.

But all Paul did was cross his arms and let out a small smirk. "I've been without a phone since a while. You really think that's going to convince me?" he asked. Dawn just blinked in response and sighed. "Try something else, why don't you?" Dawn handed his phone back, defeated. "Why do you even want me at the party?"

Dawn wasn't sure how to answer. "Misty invited me, and she said I could bring someone, so…why not?" she lied.

"Hn," Paul said, uncrossing his arms. He looked at her notebook again and then glanced at her. "If you get all those problems correct, then…I'll go."

Dawn's eyes gleamed. "Really?" she asked, and Paul nodded before she grinned in excitement. Her grin slowly turned into a frown as she realized she had a load of problems to solve. "But there are like fifty of these!" she exclaimed in worry.

Paul smirked again. "Good luck," he said before opening a book he had found.

After about an hour or so, Paul had read practically half the book when Dawn announced she was finished. She handed over the problems for him to see and after about five to ten minutes of inspecting them, he realized that they were all right and he would have to hold up to the end of his bargain.

Dawn eyed him expectedly. "So? Did I get all correct?"

Paul sighed. "Yeah."

Dawn grinned widely, resulting in Paul to let out a small smile as well. "Yes! Now you have to come."

"Don't expect me to enjoy it, though," he said, after standing up from his seat, taking the book along with him.

"You will if I'm there," she winked before also standing up and placing her bookbag on her shoulder. "So…what are you doing now?" she asked.

Paul had no idea why it was unbelievably easy to talk to her and just tell her everything, something he'd rarely do. It was out of character for him but for some reason, he didn't mind. If he had to admit, he felt satisfied seeing her smile. "Working for the rest of the night."

Dawn nodded. "Right. Well…I'll see ya around," she said, before leaving him alone.


Saturday, October 10th; Misty's Residence; 6:47 a.m.

"Happy birthday, Daisy!"

The blonde was woken very abruptly on a Saturday morning and resulted in her nearly falling off the bed. The carrot top sheepishly smiled as she watched her sister glare at her. "Seriously, Misty?" she looked at the clock. "It's not even seven in the morning yet, lemme sleep," she said, escaping a yawn as she placed the covers over her head.

"Sorry, I wanted to be the first one to wish you before Vi did," Misty confessed. "Plus, we're going to be planning your birthday party, so we could use some help," she added.

Before the blonde twenty-five-year-old could respond, Violet walked in and intruded in the conversation. "Misty, leave her alone. You and I can set up the party. Besides she's been working all week and I'm pretty sure she's tired," she said, and Daisy nodded.

"Oh, and make sure you invite all my friends," Daisy reminded them, forgetting about her need for sleep for a second. "I can't wait to update my facebook profile picture later!" she said as Misty rolled her eyes.

It was no doubt that Misty was the odd one within the trio of sisters. Her sisters would make fun of her for her tomboyish nature and compare her to other girls, but Misty was aware they loved her a lot. Misty obviously loved them despite their constant arguing which was why she wanted to celebrate her sister's birthday in a special way.

Misty looked at her other older sister. "Okay, Vi, let's get to work then," she said before Violet grinned and nodded.


May's Residence; 3:34 p.m.

Dawn looked in the mirror, glancing at her outfit. She was wearing a light pink sleeveless top along with a black skirt with a chained red belt that enclosed her waist. To complete the outfit, she wore white boots that nearly stretched up to her knees. Her hair had been let loose as always but her bangs were curled to provide a subtle change.

"Are you ready May?" Dawn asked, while she placed a bit of lip gloss on her lips.

Her yelling was heard from the bathroom. "Coming!" May said. After a few minutes, the door opened, and May stepped outside, grinning. "What do you think?"

May wore a sleeveless pink dress covered with a white coat that ended up to her knees. A headband was placed on her brown hair that had been let loose. Her black flats complimented her dress along with the pink choker across her neck.

"I love it! You look so hot!" Dawn exclaimed, giggling.

"Aw, thanks," the brunette blushed. "I'm so glad you invited me. I haven't been to a party in ages." Dawn nodded in understanding. "Though I've never met Daisy, have you?"

Dawn shook her head while she grabbed her purse. "No, but Misty invited me and I'm pretty sure she's nice," she said. Dawn looked at her watch on her wrist. "Let's get going, May, we have to be there soon," she said.

May nodded. "Right," she said, grabbing her car keys from her bedside table.

The two walked outside after bidding goodbye to May's parents and made their way to May's vehicle. Dawn watched as May unlocked her car when the blunette realized she hadn't driven in a while. "Hey, you mind if I drive?" she asked.

May looked at Dawn, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you couldn't drive," she said, remembering all the times she asked for rides.

"No, I can drive, I have my license and everything. I've just never had a car." Dawn explained.

May nodded in understanding. "That makes so much sense. Here, you can drive," she said, handing over her the car keys and Dawn grinned before she made her way to the driver's seat.

Dawn initiated the ignition once May sat beside her and started to drive after she turned on the stereo that was currently playing music. As the car was in acceleration, May looked at Dawn. "Leaf was invited to the party too, right?"

Dawn nodded, not taking her eyes off the road. "Yep. She told me that Gary's taking her to the party as their first date."

May laughed. "How exciting!"

The two then began to sing obnoxiously loud to their favourite songs that were currently playing and the two started laughing uncontrollably. Dawn closed her eyes for a brief second to control her laughter due to their awful singing before she opened it and gasped. The car was headed straight for a tall man who was crossing the road. Their laughter was instantly ceased once Dawn stepped on the brakes and the car stopped with a screech.

Dawn had to catch her breath before the two stepped out of the vehicle and walked up towards the man. "Oh my gosh, I am so sorr-" she stopped herself short when the man was someone she recognized once she got a closer look. "Reggie?"

May looked at Dawn. "Reggie?"

"Paul's older brother," she clarified, and May gasped.

Reggie seemed unharmed though and just sheepishly smiled. "Relax, I'm fine. You didn't hit me," he said.

Dawn sighed a breath of relief, but she still didn't like the fact that she had almost caused an accident. "I'm so glad you're alright. Who knows what would have happened if I had-"

Reggie waved her a hand of dismissal. "Accidents happen, Dawn. It's a good thing you pressed the brakes when you did."

"We're really sorry," May said. "It's both of our faults, we were just goofing off and Dawn didn't realize what she was doing."

Reggie smiled. "No worries. It's fine. I'm not going into a coma any time soon, I'm sure," he joked but the two still felt guilty for what had nearly happened. Reggie tried to change the topic. "Are you two going to Daisy's party?" he asked, noticing their outfits. "I think Paul's there already. Speaking of which, why is he going to a party anyway? Doesn't seem like him. I was shocked."

Dawn smiled knowingly. "Well, I asked him to go…though it took a bit convincing," she said. Reggie nodded in realization. Dawn sighed. "Speaking of Paul…would you mind not mentioning this little incident? I wouldn't want him to get mad."

Reggie chuckled. "I hear 'ya. Don't worry Dawn, your secret's safe with me." Dawn smiled. "Well you girls should get going, you don't wanna be late, do you?"

"Right," May said before Reggie waved the two girls goodbye.

Dawn glanced at May before the two sat in the vehicle again. Dawn still kept flashbacking to what had nearly happened and felt extremely guilty. If she hadn't pressed the brakes on time, then Reggie would have ended up in the hospital again.

"Are you sure that's Paul's brother? They seem so different!" May exclaimed in slight shock and all Dawn could do was giggle. "Seriously, it's like sunshine and darkness together," she said.

Dawn shook her head in slight amusement before she started the vehicle again, but this time, the car ride was silent.


Paul was seated awkwardly on one of the couches in Misty's place with a drink in his hand. He was wearing a purple shirt covered with a black jacket and dark jeans that he had bought a few hours ago from the very mall he was working at.

Loud music was echoing, and the beat was enjoyable, but only for a bit, and it kept penetrating his eardrums. Some wine glasses and bottles were kept aside in a separate table at the side, for which he assumed were for Daisy and her friends. The room was lit darkly solely with the large disco ball hanging from the near celling illuminating colourful lights of red, yellow, green and purple.

When he had arrived fifteen minutes ago, he noticed he was extremely early for some bizarre reason (or everyone was late); no one was here apart from Misty and her sisters. He had wished Daisy before he had handed her present, which undoubtedly was the painting that he had done for Misty a couple weeks ago.

There was a reason Paul didn't do parties. Actually, there were several reasons. He would always find himself alone in some corner due to the reason that he didn't prefer to socialize with anyone. Also, most parties were filled with annoying and disgusting kids that were drunk and wild. It didn't fit in with Paul, especially since he didn't drink. Sure, he had tasted a few drinks when he was a bit younger, but he had never gotten drunk and would never willingly.

Hence, he was surprised he was here. Was it because Dawn had pleaded him to go? Sure, he had refused at first, but it didn't take a lot of effort from her to convince him. Even Misty had asked him, and he wouldn't budge. Why was it a different scenario with Dawn?

Paul just took a sip of his soda, unable to find an answer.

After a few minutes, he could notice Daisy opening the door, as more and more people entered her abode. He didn't recognize any of them; he assumed they were college or work associated friends. Then again, he probably wouldn't recognize them even if they went to the same school.

Soon enough, people began piling up within the house and it was then that he recognized some people from school (surprisingly) and he saw Ash, Drew, Gary and another girl who he couldn't put a name towards. Drew made eye contact with Paul and waved, and he acknowledged him with a nod.

The group walked to where Paul was seated. "Glad to see you here, Paul," Drew said. "It's a bit surprising but still nice, nonetheless," he continued, grinning.

Paul rolled his eyes, but he couldn't really blame him. "Hn," he said, resulting in the group to laugh.

"What's that you're drinking?" Gary asked. "Soda?" Paul nodded in response. "Cool. Hey, do you want anything, Leaf?" he asked his partner beside him.

"Just water, thanks," Leaf said. Gary nodded before he walked over to where they were serving drinks, with Leaf following him from behind.

Before anyone could say anything else, Misty came up to the trio and hugged them tightly. "Thanks so much for coming guys!" she said excitedly.

Ash grinned. "Of course. Who would refuse coming to this party?" he asked rhetorically. Paul just averted his eyes and continued sipping his drink. "By the way, this party looks so awesome. Where's Daisy? I gotta wish her a happy birthday."

Misty giggled before she took Ash to talk to her older sister somewhere in a different corner. Instead of Drew following them, he decided to sit beside Paul and initiate a conversation with him. "Have you seen May or Dawn around? I thought they'd be here by now."

Surprisingly, Paul thought the same and he shook his head. "No, I don't have any idea." He found himself looking at his phone and contemplating whether to text Dawn or not.

But then, he saw Misty open the door and hugging two familiar girls before the two entered inside.

For some reason, Paul couldn't notice anyone else but Dawn. It was now that he noticed her in a completely different light. Her wide and enchanting smile got his attention, along with the outfit she was wearing. He had never noticed Dawn this way before. Sure, she had always dressed decent enough, but it was somewhat different tonight. She looked…good.

Paul wavered his eyes a bit, trying to drift his thoughts away.

He glanced at Drew, who he found was staring as well. But it wasn't at Dawn he was staring at.

Dawn eyed around the room, looking for Paul, when she spotted him seated on the couch. She grinned and waved to him and Paul raised his hand, not seeming to take his eyes off of her. Before she could walk towards him, Daisy approached her.

"Hi, thanks so much for coming!" she said, hugging the blunette tightly and then reaching out to hug the brunette.

The two girls giggled. "No problem, Daisy. Happy birthday!" Dawn said. "By the way, this is May, she's a really good friend of mine."

Daisy looked towards May. "Hi," May said. "Happy birthday!"

"Thanks so much!" Daisy said. "We're gonna start dancing and playing some friendly games so make sure you participate, alright?"

Dawn laughed. "For sure!"

Drew saw Daisy walk away from the two girls and he stood up from where he was sitting and walked up to the two girls. He looked at May in awe. "You look beautiful, May," he said bluntly and May smiled shyly. "You look great too, Dawn," he said, looking at Dawn, who just smiled.

"Thanks," she said, slightly smirking at the way the chartreuse headed male couldn't keep his eyes off of May. "Well, I'll just go get a drink and I'll let you two chat," she said but had caught May's widened eyes. Dawn just grinned mischievously before walking away.

Dawn poured herself a cup of soda as she watched Drew trying to flirt with May, who she was guessing to be rolling her eyes and not giving in as usual. She shook her head in amusement and her smile slowly ceased when she saw Paul walk towards her.

"Hey," she said. "How are you enjoying your first party?" she asked.

Paul just placed his hands in his pockets and that was when Dawn noticed what he was wearing. She could smell a bit of cologne. "I'm actually not enjoying it just like I expected."

Dawn frowned, as she brought the plastic cup to her lips, taking a sip. She was aware why, but the whole reason why she brought Paul to the party in the first place was because Misty asked her to. "Yeah, sorry. But maybe this party will get you to be…more social?" she said hopefully.

He gave her a knowing look. "You know I don't like being social."

Dawn sighed and nodded in understanding. She briefly wondered why he agreed to her. "Then why did you come?"

Paul couldn't find an answer to her question and it seemed he didn't need to. The two were then directed over to the attention of Daisy, who was standing in the center of the room, with a mic in her hand.

"Hi everyone, how are ya'll doing tonight?!" she screamed into the mic, which resulted in everyone cheering loudly as they raised their drinks proudly in the air. "Again, thank you all so much for coming to celebrate my birthday. I guarantee it's going to be a lot of fun."

Violet, who was standing next to her, also spoke. "And to commence the night of fun, we're going to play a little game that everyone probably knows and that is: Heads Up! It's one of Daisy's favourite games so download the game right now if you don't have it."

After a few minutes of people downloading the game, Violet began to explain the instructions. "Okay, we'll all split into two different teams: Team A and Team B. It doesn't matter who's in what team, there should just be an equal amount. The goal of the game is, as I'm sure you all know, to give clues to Daisy on what the word is. But one member of the team will give clues per word. For example, I would give clues until Daisy figures the word and then the next person and so on. The team that gets Daisy to guess the most words wins! Everybody understand?"

"So who gets to go first and stuff? How do we decide?" Gary asked.

"You'll decide that in your teams. You can also decide who goes second and all that jazz. Any more questions?" Violet asked and the room was silent.

Two teams were formed eventually, and one team consisted of Misty, Paul, Leaf, Dawn, Drew along with a few of Daisy's friends. The other team consisted of Gary, May, Ash and a few others as well.

It was declared that Leaf would go first from the first team. Daisy sat in a chair with Leaf in front as Daisy kept the phone above her head. Leaf noticed that the category was animals. The clock commenced and the first word was: ostrich.

"Uh, this is a bird that has a long neck and sticks its head into the ground-"

"Ostrich?"

Leaf nodded and Daisy lowered the phone a bit, signalling for the next word and for the next person to give a clue.

It was Misty's turn to give the clues once she saw the word, which happened to be: snake.

"Okay this has no arms or legs and they like to…slither around?" Misty noticed her sister was clueless and there was twenty-three seconds on the clock. "They can bite and they're very poisonous!" she added.

"Snake!" Daisy said, grinning and Misty nodded.

This repeated for about half an hour until the final points were added and the winner was declared. It was a very close game with the first team achieving six points and the second team winning by just one point. The second team was awarded with a large gift basket.

"Okay, congratulations, guys! Now you guys are free to eat and maybe dance around a bit so don't be shy otherwise all the food will be finished before you can get any," Violet said.


Gary managed to catch Leaf, who was currently talking to someone on the phone. Once she hung up, she turned around, smiling. "You having fun?"

Leaf had to admit; this party was pretty enjoyable so far, but she realized that this wasn't a suitable first date at all. She would have preferred if they would just do something alone together. "Well…yeah. It's just that, I don't feel like this is a date. It's more of a…hangout? I don't know exactly how to describe it. It just doesn't feel like a date. But, I'm still having fun."

Gary parted his lips in realization. "Oh…shit, I messed up."

Leaf quickly retorted. "No, no no, not at all, Gary. I'm having so much fun. I just feel like a date should be spent alone y'know?"

Gary nodded in understanding. She did have a point. He then listened to the music change and that was when he got an idea. "Well…do you wanna dance?" he asked, bringing out his hand, looking at her hopefully.

Leaf smiled shyly and accepted his hand. "Sure," she said. Gary's smile deepened as he took her to the center of the room.


May was currently eating a slice of pizza when she suddenly Drew walking up towards her. She quickly wiped her mouth with a napkin. He sat on one of the stools next to her and glanced at her, who was suddenly feeling self-conscious. Drew never understood why she would always retract away from her.

"May, do you hate me?" he asked, catching May off guard.

May blinked, unsure of how to answer the question. "What? No, of course not."

"Then why do you always flinch when I'm near you or try to touch you? I..I'm not going to hurt you…if that's what you're thinking," he confessed. May seemed surprised at how forward Drew was being.

May sighed and looked down. "It has nothing to do with you, don't worry."

Drew smirked. "Well of course not, I'm amazing," he said, flipping his green hair in the process. May rolled her eyes at his ego, causing him to laugh. "Joking aside, what's the reason then?"

May didn't feel comfortable sharing her past with someone like Drew. She didn't even know him that well. The only persons who knew about her past were Dawn and Leaf. She didn't feel the need to share this with anyone else unless they were truly important in her life. "You don't need to know," she said, looking at the other slice of pizza instead.

Drew mentally groaned. How was he supposed to get to know this girl if she didn't allow him to know about her? "So…I'm assuming you wouldn't wanna dance with me?" he asked.

May sighed. "I can dance…as long as you don't touch me," she said, narrowing her eyes.

Drew raised an eyebrow. He wondered what she meant by that. Regardless, he respected her wishes as he led her to the center.


Ash watched as everyone had made it to the center of the room and were dancing together. He could notice some people starting to grind against each other and he rolled his eyes, expecting this. He looked around for Misty and spotted her a distance away from Paul.

He walked towards her. "Hey Mist."

Misty's green eyes sparkled. "Hey Ash! So…I'm really nervous right now. I want to confess to Paul."

Ash's eyes slightly widened. He didn't expect for her to confess so soon and for some reason, he didn't like it. "Right now?" she nodded. "At a party? Doesn't this seem like the wrong place for you to confess?" he asked.

Misty sighed. "Yeah I guess, but I can't take it anymore. I've been crushing on this guy for probably a month now and I just have to tell him. What should I say? Should I loosen my hair?" she asked.

Ash only chuckled. "Just be yourself, Mist. Don't be someone you're not and go for it," he urged. However, the more he was encouraging this, the more he didn't like it.

Misty nodded and inhaled, preparing herself. She gave herself a mental pep talk and brushed her hair with her fingers a few more times before she exhaled and walked towards Paul, who was in the corner, on his phone.

Ash watched from behind and was having mixed emotions right now. Dawn, who was behind him, walked to where Ash was and noticed his gaze and looked towards Misty and Paul, slightly widening her eyes in the process. She connected the pieces together. "Is Misty going to confess, Ash?" she asked once she was beside him.

Ash glanced towards her. "Yeah," he said, his voice sounding a bit sad, to which he didn't understand.

For some reason, Dawn wanted to eavesdrop, so she cleverly stood in a position with a drink in her hand where she wasn't easily noticeable while still in hearing distance. Ash followed Dawn and decided to eavesdrop as well, trying his best to be discreet.

"Paul?" Misty called as the plum-haired male looked behind him. Misty's heart was beating so loud that she was pretty sure she could hear it, despite the loud music. "Can I talk to you for a few?" Paul nodded, and she decided to sit beside him on the stool.

Paul watched her expectedly, waiting for her to say something.

"Well," she started, "Umm…I don't even know how to start."

Paul's onix eyes narrowed. "You should probably just cut to the chase."

That made Misty extremely nervous now. But, she took a deep breath and released it before she uttered the words, which made her both relieved and anxious now that they were out in the open. "I like you."

Paul's eyes widened. He was not expecting that. He noticed her chest heaving up and down, as if she was going to hyperventilate at any moment. He had no idea of what to say or even how to respond to something like this. Not one girl in his life had ever bluntly told him that and to be honest, he didn't expect anyone to have feelings for him. He was both surprised and unknowing of what to say.

"Oh."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Oh? That's all you have to say?"

He couldn't really blame her for that reaction. But in his defense, this was an awkward situation, especially since he didn't reciprocate her feelings. "I'm not sure what else to say…" he confessed.

Misty frowned, and she felt her heart dropped. "I've had a crush on you for like a month now," she said, her voice small.

Paul noticed she was disappointed. "Look, you probably won't like what I'm about to say right now, but it's the truth. I don't like you back and I wouldn't want you to get your hopes up. Plus…I'm not really looking into a relationship at the moment."

Misty nodded in understanding, despite her heart being shattered into pieces. "Thanks for being honest," she sighed sadly. "Hopefully we can still be friends, I guess." Paul could notice her voice breaking and that was when he felt guilty, but at the same time, he wondered why he felt that way, knowing that there was no point in giving her any false hopes.

Both Ash and Dawn were both relieved and yet sad for their friend. Dawn noticed Ash sighing a breath of relief. "Are you happy that Misty got rejected?" Dawn looked at Ash with bewilderment.

"'Course not, but…I don't know, it just doesn't feel right seeing Misty with Paul. I don't understand it myself. It's okay if you don't understand it."

Ash had no idea that Dawn felt the exact same way. "You should probably go talk to Misty," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. Ash nodded as he walked away.

Sighing, Dawn walked towards Paul, who was now standing with his back facing towards him. Paul quickly turned around and walked forward, not seeing Dawn and bumped into her, spilling the drink she had in her hand and spilling it onto his shirt. Dawn placed a palm on her agape mouth.

"Oh, shit! I'm sorry!" the blunette quickly exclaimed and grabbed a napkin and attempted to wipe off the stain on his shirt.

Paul was about to dismiss it off when he noticed how close they were together. He stood a few feet taller, but he still could notice a few details about her. He noticed her stop and she looked up to face him right in his onix eyes.

They hadn't been this close since that night when Paul had saved her from that accident.

Dawn stepped back, giving them distance. "You should probably clean that up or change your shirt."

"I don't have another shirt," Paul said. He recalled the shirt that he had given her when she had stayed over. "Do you still have my shirt from that night you stayed over?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'll give it back to you once I wash it. That got stained too…but it was May's little brothers' fault, not mine," she said, before he could come up with any accusations.

Still, Paul smirked. "Right," he said. He noticed the stain getting bigger and the shirt was just getting damper.

Dawn noticed he was messing with his shirt and instantaneously grabbed his hand, dragging him against his will, as she wandered about in one of the rooms. She realized she was probably disrespecting someone's privacy, but she felt guilty. She rummaged through one of the closets and managed to find another shirt.

"Here," she said, handing him a white collared shirt. "I'm hoping this will fit you."

Paul eyed her and then glanced at the shirt. "Don't you think someone would notice that their shirt is missing? I didn't realize you were a thief," he said.

Dawn groaned. "I'm sure Daisy will understand, I'll explain it to her that you bumped into me and I spilled my drink."

"The only reason I bumped into you was because you were standing directly behind me," he reminded her, before taking the shirt from her hands.

"Well, I didn't know you would turn around!" she retorted before she rendered herself speechless once he took off his shirt and too, right in front of her. She thought he would have gone to the bathroom to change shirts, but it seemed he thought otherwise.

He had been shirtless for about less than five seconds, but Dawn still managed to catch a glimpse of his average build. He didn't have any abs, but for some reason, his build managed to make heat rise up to her cheeks without her even knowing it.

Paul caught her expression in the mirror once he had placed the white shirt on. Dawn looked at him again and parted her lips in surprise. "You look good in white," she said absentmindedly and slightly widened her eyes after.

Paul looked in the mirror. The white shirt did compliment his dark purple hair and his complexion. "I guess I do."


Happy halloween, all!

This is a veryyy long chapter so I better get some dang good reviews, I think I deserve it at this point. So many things happened in this chapter and I'm so excited to hear what you guys think. I was just having so much fun writing this chapter and for some reason, I couldn't stop.

Well, hopefully you guys enjoyed cuz I enjoyed writing this...and my hands basically hurt but I don't care.

This may or may not be my last update till late November. If I don't update in November, I'll probably update in January 2019. So yeah, no promises.

See you next time!