Martin finished his conversation with Eric and then asked his permission to go up to Ruthie's room and ask her out on a date. The whole situation felt awkward considering how many times Martin and Ruthie had been alone in her room and in his, but Martin still wanted to be respectful. Eric smiled and nodded his acceptance.

Martin took the stairs two at a time, overly excited to tell Ruthie the good news. (He just hoped that she would be willing to talk to him.)

Ruthie's door was ajar when he approached it. He could hear Ruthie's voice. It sounded a lot more lighthearted than he had assumed it would, considering how upset she had been last week.

"Well thanks for the support. It's good to know that we can still be friends," Ruthie said. "A movie? Yeah, I think that would be okay, but I'll have to check with my parents. (giggle) You're too funny! Okay, okay. I have to get back to my homework anyway. I'll call you tomorrow and let you know about Saturday. Thanks. You too. Good night!"

Martin waited until he heard the click of the phone, before bursting into Ruthie's bedroom. Ruthie jumped a good foot, clutching her chest when her feet finally returned to the ground. "Martin?"

"Who was that on the phone?" he asked angrily.

Ruthie's composure returned and she squared off against Martin, hands on hips. "None of your business and I would appreciate it if you'd knock before barging into my room."

"Who were you talking to?" Martin repeated.

Ruthie looked away when she answered, "Vincent."

Martin rolled his eyes and strolled into Ruthie's room, straight to her phone. He picked up the receiver and handed it to Ruthie. "Phone him back and tell him to never phone here again," he demanded.

Ruthie stepped back to get a better look at Martin. "Excuse me?"

"Should I dial or should you?"

"No one is dialing Vincent. He heard through some mutual friends that I've been pretty down lately and he wanted to call and see if I was okay," Ruthie explained.

Martin sighed and crossed his arms firmly over his broad chest. "He's a jerk! I don't want you talking to him again."

"You're not my boyfriend, remember?" Ruthie shot back.

"Well, just to set the record straight, I'd like to be! I was coming up here to tell you that your father finally agreed to let us date. It's nice to know that while I was downstairs fighting for us you were up here chatting away with your ex!" Martin shouted.

Ruthie tried to process all that she was hearing. Martin had convinced her father to let them date each other? Martin fought for them to be together? How had she not known this?

Martin's tone softened as he sat down at Ruthie's desk. "I don't like Vincent. He treated you bad and he wasn't good for you. It sounded almost like he was asking you out on a date or something. Even more disturbing is the fact that it sounded like you were accepting. You weren't actually going to go out with him again, were you?"

Ruthie shrugged. "I'm a single girl. I can date whomever I choose."

"Didn't you hear anything I just said to you?" Martin asked, his voice rising again. "I came up here to ask you out on a date."

"So go ahead and ask," Ruthie said with a smirk.

Martin smiled and got up from his chair to stand directly in front of Ruthie. He looked down into her beautiful eyes and took a deep breath, taking in the fragrance that always reminded him of her. "Ruthie Camden, would you like to go out with me?"

Ruthie shrugged nonchalantly. "It depends. I've got a really busy schedule and then there's…"

Martin interrupted Ruthie with a kiss that told her exactly how much he wanted her to clear up her schedule. He wrapped his arms around her petite frame and lifted her off of the ground, so their faces were eye-to-eye, forehead-to-forehead. He looked deeply into Ruthie's eyes and said, "I think I'm going to like having you for a girlfriend."

"I think I'm going to like having you for a boyfriend," Ruthie answered back.

"I don't think I'm going to like any of this," Eric said to Annie as they watched Martin and Ruthie hug and kiss through the opening in Ruthie's bedroom door. "Not one bit."

A/N: There will be a part two (since I've got some great scenarios for Martin and Ruthie) but it will come out under a different story name. Thanks for all of the great support and kind words. I can't wait to get started on Part 2…