Ally

"So, you'll spend the day with us in Denver?"

I sighed at Cassidy's question, rubbing my temples as I thought through the agenda my two best friends had been explaining for the past five minutes.

Cassidy's twenty first birthday was tomorrow, and the two of them were currently spending their lunch breaks trying to convince me to head to Denver and spend an entire day shopping with them before going out on the town to celebrate. Glancing at the two of them, I wavered at their hopeful looks. Cassidy batted the thick lashes framing her ocean blue eyes while Trish hit me with the smile that I only saw whenever she was trying to convince me to do something.

"I don't know," I sighed, waving at a customer once hearing the ding of the door. "I work tomorrow."

"Child, take the day off, I can handle the store for a day without you."

I glanced over my shoulder to find Betty standing in the doorway, sending me a pointed look that left no room for arguing whenever I opened my mouth to do just that. Turning to look back at Trish and Cassidy, I shot both a bored expression whenever they danced a little.

"Come on, Al," Trish begged. She had been doing a lot of that the past couple of weeks. "It's just one day, and besides, it's Cass's twenty first. How could we not go out and celebrate?"

"I hate going out," I ground my teeth. "I hate partying. You two know that better than anyone."

They each shared a look before Cassidy finally turned to me. And with that gentle look of understanding, I knew that I would agree to whatever she wanted. Cassidy had always been the hard one to turn down because she always understood why I did, and never held any animosity towards me for it – which came with a bubble of guilt that grew each time I denied her of something. I could see how badly she wanted me there, and why wouldn't she? It was my best friend's most important birthday, and I was wanting to bail on her. We had been planning this since we were sixteen.

If anyone deserved to go out and celebrate with her best friends by her side, it was Cassidy. She was the sweetest, most caring of the three of us; always going along with whatever we wanted and making sure we were taken care of first. It should be Trish and I convincing and surprising her with a night out, not the other way around.

"Look, if you don't want to go, we aren't going to force you," Cassidy began, kicking back towards Trish whenever she tried to interrupt. "But I really, really want you there, Al. I'm turning twenty-one," she grinned. "We've celebrated each of our birthdays together. I don't want to celebrate this one without you there. And the past two we haven't really done anything, ya know."

I swallowed the discomfort in my chest at the fact that they had both celebrated their last two birthdays in their apartments with me because I hadn't wanted to go out. There had been pizza and movies like we were high schoolers again, and while they were fun, it wasn't what they deserved. They deserved so much more for putting up with me the last two years.

Smiling softly, I nodded with a deep breath. "Okay," I whispered, watching as Cassidy's eyes lit up.

"Really," she asked, trying to contain the excitement.

And when I nodded again, that excitement burst as she turned to Trish with a wide smile, grabbing Trish's arms and bouncing in her heels. I laughed as Trish pried her off, but I could see her own smile forming while I fought against the nerves dancing in my stomach. Nothing good happened when staying out late and partying, much less being in a big city. But as I watched my two best friends gush over everything we could go and do tomorrow, I shook my head, pushing those thoughts away.

Damn them and the fact that I loved them so much.

The bell on the shop's door rung again, and I looked up, ready to extend a greeting when noticing Austin Moon walking through the door. Those words died in my throat as I watched him look around, lip poked out in, what I hoped was, an impressed matter.

And when his hazel eyes fell on me, and a cocky grin spread across his face, an entirely different bundle of nerves erupted within my stomach.

"Austin," I stammered, "what are you doing here?"

I walked around the counter, wrapping my arms around myself as I met him halfway. He held out a cup towards me, one from the juice bar next door, and I eyed it suspiciously.

"I figured I would see what's the fuss about flowers and candles," he smirked down at me, and then nodded towards the beverage. "And they were offering a two for one special, and I thought this would do you some good after the workout yesterday; helps aid in recovery and hydration."

My lips parted as I stared at my trainer, wondering if during yesterday's workout he had hit his head whenever I wasn't paying attention. My eyes roamed over him quickly, taking in his casual gym attire and relaxed posture as he waited for me to take the cup from him. I timidly reached for it, ignoring the way my fingers brushed lightly against his.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Trish and Cassidy watching us intensely, their earlier planning the last thing on their minds as they watched our encounter.

Bringing the straw to my lips, I was shocked to find the mixture of orange and coconut dancing across my taste buds. My face scrunched for a moment, long enough for Austin to notice, and a rough laugh sounded from his chest.

"Do you not like it," he mused, watching me take another sip.

To my surprise, I found that I didn't mind the combination, and continued to sip from the straw while shaking my head. I finally let it fall from my lips with a soft smile.

"Who the hell comes up with orange and coconut," I probed, wrapping my other hand around the plastic cup as I stared up at him.

And when that grin returned, I was surprised to find that same playful personality I had been met with for the first-time during yesterday's session – a side of Austin that wasn't strictly business.

He shrugged, bringing his own juice to his lips to take a sip before answering. "Orange juice is great for recovery; containing potassium, electrolytes, and rehydration along with coconut being high in vitamin B and full of minerals."

I nodded, pretending like I knew exactly what he was talking about as I happily drank away at the juice while Austin watched me for a moment, an amusing glint in his eye.

Someone clearing their throat from beside us brought our attention away from each other and towards Trish and Cassidy, each of them staring at me expectantly before shooting smiles at Austin. And while Trish just eyed him, her eyes trailing up and down his body very noticeably, Cassidy took a step forward with an outreached hand.

"Hi, I'm Cassidy Pierce and this is Trish De La Rosa. We are Ally's best friends," she claimed, a friendly smile overtaking her face while she, not so subtly, elbowed Trish. And I held back a groan as Trish winked in my direction.

"It's nice to meet you," Austin returned her smile, and I felt a hint of disappointment that they had each gotten a smile from him while I got grim looks during our first meeting. Although, I do remember not offering Cassidy's award-winning smile that first day either.

"You must be the trainer," Trish pipped in, and I didn't miss Austin's eyes drifting to me as he nodded. "Ally has told us so much about you," Trish continued, and I felt my lips purse into a glare. "Mostly about how much of a hard ass you are, and how long it's going to take before you make her cry."

"Trish," I exclaimed, feeling heat trickle up my neck and flush my cheeks.

Much to my surprise, Austin let out a laugh before turning back towards me with a questioning smile. My stomach fluttered at that smile directed towards me, one that had me taking a slight step back.

"Make you cry," he questioned, voice softer than his laugh had been, holding genuine curiosity.

I chewed my straw before letting out a hesitate laugh. "Yeah, I figured I wouldn't make it through the first week without you making me cry," I admitted, "I'm surprised I didn't cry yesterday."

And although Austin let out another little laugh at that, I didn't miss the guilt when his eyes met mine. He shouldn't feel guilty, yesterday had been the best I had felt in forever, and although today my body hurt more than I could ever remember after a workout, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

"Well, we will see if you cry tomorrow," he joked, and my eyes widened slightly as I caught Trish and Cassidy's. They had wanted to leave early in the morning to make it to the city before morning rush hour. Their brows furrowed in defeat, and I felt that familiar guilt resurface – that would throw off their entire itinerary.

I bit my lip. I hadn't even thought to argue that my session was in the morning. How could I have forgotten that?

"What's wrong," Austin asked, turning his back on Trish and Cassidy as he took a step towards me.

The tiniest bit of fear slivered up my spine. He had been so angry yesterday when I had been fifteen minutes late, and now I was about to have to tell him that I had to skip the session tomorrow all together. I was doing a great job proving to him how serious I was taking this.

"I," I took in a breath, hoping to calm my nerves. "Tomorrow is Cassidy's birthday, and we are leaving for Denver to spend the day. I'm afraid I won't be able to make the session tomorrow. I'm so sorry, Austin."

My stomach was in my throat as I watched Austin blink, seeming to ponder for a moment before simply nodding. "That's okay. Would you want to skip tomorrow and do Saturday to get your three days in?"

"Umm."

I'm sorry, what? The man that nearly caused my death yesterday over being fifteen minutes late was offering to rearrange his own schedule because I was missing a session to go on a girl's day.

And as I were about to relay that information in the form of a snarky comment, I blinked. There was no way I could be bitchy towards him when he was offering me training time during his off hours.

"Aren't you off during the weekends?"

He shrugged, "I don't mind coming in; besides, I would really like you to get one more session in before we incorporate boxing pads next week. But if you have plans or have too work, that's fine."

Where the hell was the Austin Moon from Wednesday morning?

Pushing away the shock bubbling in my chest, I returned his shrug. "Yeah, sure. That sounds good. What time do you want me to be there? The shop doesn't open until ten."

"Let's do our normal time," he suggested, and when I nodded, he gave me one in return.

"Good. I'll see you then," he glanced down at his watch. "I need to start heading back to the gym." Turning, he gave a small wave towards Cassidy and Trish who were pretending to have their own conversation, but the bitches were doing a horrible job. "It was nice meeting you two."

He turned back to give me his signature smirk. "Have fun in Denver, but you better be prepared Saturday."

My eyebrows shot up, that same determination I was becoming accustomed to returning. "You threaten me," I asked, head titled as I studied his retreating figure. But he just sent me a wink, pointing towards the juice.

"You're welcome," he claimed, hand on the door.

A breath of a laugh escaped as I held it up. "Thanks for the juice, Austin. See you Saturday."

"See you Saturday."

His voice was husky and full of unspoken promises before he exited the shop.

Turning, I didn't have a single second before I was bombarded with glares from my two best friends that stood only a few feet from me, tapping their foots with arms crossed.

"You sleazy bitch," Cassidy claimed, and my head snapped back, shocked that an insult like that could fall from her; she has been spending entirely too much time with Trish.

"You didn't say he was hot," Trish exclaimed, and Cassidy nodded incessantly.

I rolled my eyes, turning my back towards them as I walked back behind the counter. When I took a seat on the stool and looked back at them, they were still staring at me expectantly with only the slightest bit of hatred. Oh well.

"I don't know what you are talking about," I said, continuing to suck on the juice – I think I had found my new favorite combination.

They each groaned as I played dumb, but I knew better. Had I come to them the day I had met Austin, claiming that he looked hotter than a Texas parking lot in July, then I would never hear the end of it. It didn't help that we would have to spend three days a week together for at least the next six weeks, and the last thing I need was them constantly talking about him.

"I could slap you," Trish mumbled.

"Ally," Cassidy dragged out my name, a dreamy sigh leaving her lips. "How in the world could you keep something like Austin Moon from us. That smile was panty dropping." Trish followed the statement with an agreeable hum, and I frowned. Of course, they would know that only within the first two minutes of meeting him considering he had no problem being a decent human to them.

My frowned deepened as that thought skated through my head. I had no right to be upset over something as small as a smile and pleasant greeting when I hadn't been the nicest person to him either. And besides, it didn't matter anyway. Who Austin Moon smiled at was none of my concern.

I internally groaned, wanting thoughts of Austin Moon and his damn smile to remove themselves from my head – I have enough shit up there to worry about and there was no room for him.

"He is my trainer," I deadpanned.

"Oh, come on," Trish shot back, "you can't tell me you don't think that man is hot as hell. Those arms."

He did have really good arms.

"I mean, yeah, he is good looking, I'm not blind," I admitted, "but I don't have time to think about that whenever he is yelling at me for ninety minutes three days out of the week."

"You could have at least said something about him," Cassidy pipped up, "we've been thinking he is forty and bald."

Yeah, I had thought that at first too only for that to be thrown out the window the moment I laid eyes on him.

"You said he gave you a massage yesterday and then he brought you a juice today," Trish swooned, placing a hand over her chest.

"He gave her a massage," Cassidy asked slowly, and when Trish nodded, Cassidy's entire face lit up with a grin.

This time I did groan aloud. "Guys, stop. I get it, he is hot. But I'm serious, I'm not doing this with you two. He is my trainer, that's it, and I don't feel like hearing about his panty dropping smile again. Got it?"

Trish and Cassidy shared a look. "Mhmm, tell that to the sexual tension between the two of you, and he was only in here for five minutes," Trish spoke, and when Cassidy fanned her face, I clenched my cup.

I shot them both a glare, ignoring the feelings rumbling in my belly. There was no sexual tension between Austin and I – I hadn't felt anything like that since Dallas. They had no idea what they were talking about. There was nothing between Austin and I except for a mutual understanding between a trainer and trainee – I had known him for a week, nothing could transpire in a week.

"Can you two drop it," I snapped, slamming my cup onto the counter causing them to both jump.

Their smiles instantly fell, that excitement that had been pouring from them quickly turning to slight animosity as they eyed me.

Sighing, I closed my eyes in order to contain myself before opening them again. "I'm sorry, but I'm asking for you guys to please not do this. Austin is my trainer and the last thing I need is for comments like Austin dropping panties making me feel awkward in front of him. Okay?"

It took them a minute before they nodded, each apologizing softly. We were all quiet for a few more minutes before Trish and Cassidy both announced they had to head back to work, leaving me alone with my thoughts and the juice sitting before me.

The next morning rolled around far too quickly for my liking, and before the entire bickerment between the three of us had blown over, I found myself sitting in Larimer Square at a patio table outside one of Cassidy's favorite restaurants.

Words had barely been spoken towards me since meeting them at the train station, and I had sat twisting my fingers for the thirty-minute train ride. But it wasn't entirely them, I think they knew I wasn't up for talking.

Now, they sat across the table from me, both looking down at some trifold paper in their hands while I sat quietly observing passing people and taking in the street decorations. Larimer Square was Denver's most historic block in the city containing old buildings and businesses built from the ground up. It was beautiful during every season, but during Christmas, when the massive strings of lights loomed above the streets putting Littleton to shame along with Christmas music blaring from every shop and restaurant, nothing could compare.

And as I stared down the busy street, I could see a younger me wrapped in Dallas's arms during our last Christmas together. We had come to Christmas shop and relish in the holiday spirit, walking along side one another; my arms wrapped around his torso while his wound around my shoulders. Resting my cheek on his coat clad shoulder, I gazed up at him while softly singing along to the carols. And right as the snow flurries fell, he leaned down to give me the sweetest kiss.

His cold nose rubbed against mine as the words 'I love you' were a breath across my lips.

And in that moment, nothing matter – I had been so caught up in his love for me that I would've been content if the world stopped moving.

"Al."

I blinked, the sound of Cassidy's soft voice pulling me from the memory as I focused my gaze back on them. She sent me a tiny smile, almost as if she knew my thoughts were wrapped up in Dallas. "We are thinking of going to shop of sixteenth street, you up for that," she asked gently, and my heart beat a little harder in my chest – I didn't deserve her or her kind nature in the slightest.

Forcing my best smile, I reached across the table to clasp her hand in mine. "Cass, it's your birthday, we are doing whatever you want to do today, okay?"

"I haven't shopped over there in forever, and I love all of the shops," she claimed, and I shot her a playful glare. She didn't have to give me a reason for wanting to go over there. The entirety of sixteenth street was a mall that made up a mile and a quarter of Denver, another highlight of the city. Even I shopped there every time I was in town.

"Then let's go," I exclaimed, gathering my belongings. "I want to go to H&M."

Her smile brightened, and she let out an excited clap before following my lead. We threw away our trash and began walking, Cassidy linking her arms through both Trish and I's.

And as the day carried on, each of us shopping and laughing while trying random food from stores we hadn't seen before, I realized just how much I missed this – how much I missed them.

I couldn't remember the last time the three of us had taken a day off and spent the day together. In high school, we would spend summers and holidays glued to each other's hip, sometimes saving up money and traveling as far as our parents would allow us to – Dallas and any boyfriend's the two of them had, had always envied that.

The summer before our senior year, the three of us had somehow convinced our parents to let us travel across the state and into Utah where we spent three days exploring Zion National Park. Our days were filled with camping, hikes, and drives throughout the mountains. We visited the narrows and admired all the ones brave and experienced enough to do angels landing. It had been the best trip I had ever been on; filled with laughs, pictures and views of a lifetime, and quality time for just the three of us.

I looked between the two of them as we stood on the top tier of one of the buildings on sixteenth street. Turning around, I found a woman sitting with her daughter on a bench. Stepping away from them, I grabbed my phone from my pocket before stepping towards her.

"Excuse me." I tapped her shoulder lightly, "would you mind taking a picture of the three of us."

Her smile grew, "of course, dear."

As I turned back to Trish and Cassidy, they eyed me before I skipped towards them, wrapping an arm around each of them. "I want a picture," I claimed, and there wasn't the slightest objection as they each snuggled closer to me, resting their heads on my shoulders.

"Here you go."

I thanked her, grasping my phone in my hand before we huddled together to look at the photo.

My heart swelled; they leaned into me lovingly as I had my arms wound around their middle, my gloved hands squeezing their arms. The wind blew our hair back slightly giving a perfect view of our rosy cheeks nipped from the cold and our smiles that were full of life and joy. It had been the first real photo we had taken in years that resembled the girls we were before life took a turn for the worst.

"I love it," Trish whispered tenderly, and Cassidy admired it with the smallest grin before nodding in agreement.

"I don't tell you guys enough, but I love both of you," I admitted, dropping the phone and glancing at both. "I really don't know what I would do without the two of you in my life. Thank you for putting up with me."

Cassidy wrapped her arms around me, kissing my cheek. "There is no putting up with you, Al. You are our sister; we would do anything for you. I'm just happy to see you finally getting a little bit of yourself back."

"Ditto," Trish agreed, kissing my other cheek before they both released me.

I turned to Cassidy. "Okay, miss ma'am. Let's go get you drunk."

"Cassidy, you are the worst drunk on the face of the planet."

I groaned as she laughed, leaning against me for support as we walked down the street towards the train station. And while Cassidy wasn't so drunk to the point she couldn't walk, Trish and I still made her stay directly between the two of us considering she had a bad habit of getting distracted and running off.

It was safe to say she had a short attention span.

Trish groaned when catching Cassidy wrist's as she began to try and head back to talk to the 'cute guy' at the bar. It would be funny when we told her that, that 'cute guy' happened to be nearly forty and married when she sobered up in the morning.

I pulled my phone from my jacket pocket. "I think I'm gonna call a cab, I don't feel like dealing with her like this for another five blocks."

Trish nodded in agreement, and I began looking for a cab service when Cassidy saw something pretty from across the street. Before Trish could grasp her arm, Cassidy stepped forward, knocking into me, and in a tangle of hair and limbs, my phone flew from my hand, into the street right in front of the path of an oncoming vehicle.

I heard Trish gasp and Cassidy being pulled off me as I slapped a hand over my mouth just as the vehicles front tire ran directly over my phone.

"Fuck," I yelled, quickly looking both ways before stepping forward and squatting down. My heart dropped as I reached for it but decided against it when seeing the number of glassy shards surrounding it.

I rested my elbows on my knees, placing my head in my hands as I felt tears prickle my eyes. Everything was on my phone, pictures, messages, voicemails, all my memories with Dallas, and now the sims card was more than likely ruined meaning I had probably lost everything.

"Al," Trish whispered, "come on, let's get out of the street."

With a little sniffle, I pulled my gloves from my pocket, slipping them on before gently grabbing the pancaked device. Turning around, I saw Cassidy standing stock still having sobered within the last minute.

"Ally, I'm," she tried pushing past a slur. "I'm so sorry. I'll fix it."

I shook my head, biting my lip as it trembled. Normally, I wouldn't have cared, it was a cell phone that could easily be replaced whereas Cassidy couldn't be. But fear gripped my vocal cords; I couldn't remember what all I had backed up. And throughout the past two years, I hadn't been able to bring myself to transfer anything to do with Dallas somewhere safer.

"Let's just get you home," I said, trying hard to hide the crack in my voice, but they both noticed.

"It'll be okay, I'm sure Cassidy's dad can fix it," Trish reassured, rubbing my shoulder.

Cassidy's father owned a chain of well-known stores throughout Denver that repaired, restored, and rebuilt electronic devices. As smart as they come and loaded to the point where his family had never wanted for anything, Cassidy's father was the nicest man in the world. And although he was damn good at his job and considered me as another daughter, I didn't know if he would be able to fix this.

"Yeah, daddy can fix it," Cassidy pipped, her voice higher than normal. "Absolutely no charge, and if you need a new phone, I'll take care of it."

I gave her a sad smile. I didn't care for a new phone, I cared if I would be able to regain my memories.

"We can talk about it in the morning, Cass. Come on."

And although she tried, Cassidy couldn't manage to walk a straight line as we continued our trek towards the train station, deciding against a cab, but since the stunt had sobered her up a little bit, we were able to make it safely.

Once we were seated, I leaned against the window as Cassidy leaned her head onto my shoulder, mumbling repeatedly how sorry she was.

Here you go! This was somewhat of a filler chapter and I know not a lot of interaction between Austin and Ally, but I promise, the next chapter will make up for that. I already have most of it written!

The story is finally about to start picking up and I'm so excited for you to read it!

Thank you all for the feedback I've been getting and thank you for reading my story! I love writing on here no matter if I have one reader or hundreds.

I hope to get the next chapter up to you within the next week!

Let me know what you guys think!

-meg