A/N: ABCs of Writing prompt D. Let's see where this goes! Probably won't be a one-shot lol I'm such a sucker for character development... Anyway, I hope you enjoy it all the same! R&R!

DARE

Chapter 1: Drive

Tonight was going swell! Rose couldn't make it to pick her up, since it was her party. Finn couldn't come get her because he was trying to help Rose around their shared apartment. Poe was already too preoccupied with things, though she didn't know what things Finn was talking about... Zorii didn't answer her phone. Paige was sick. There was literally no one to come get her for the party. Rose insisted that she had someone to come get her, a friend of her employer, she said. Rey rolled her eyes as she waited in her living room, adjusting her outfit for the umpteenth time tonight. It was already 6:30 and her ride was supposed to be here by now. She didn't have a number to contact them at, nor did she even have a name. She sighed as she rubbed her temples, a headache starting to form from all the frustration. Was this party really worth it? Sure, she hadn't seen Rose in what seemed like forever, since they were both so busy, but this night was turning into a nightmare.

She heard a car pull up and she peeked out the window. She didn't recognize it. It was a black Camaro with red markings. Her brows shot up at the sight of such a beautiful car. She observed a man getting out of the car, long black hair to his shoulders and a large frame, dressed all in black as he looked up at the building. She couldn't really see his face that well, being on the second floor. Eh, he probably wasn't even there for her anyway. She sighed as she whipped out her phone and started to text Rose, pulling herself away from the window to sit on the couch and kick her heels up on the coffee table. "No one's here yet... Are they even coming?" She sent the message and huffed out a sigh, glancing around her apartment quietly. She was so bored. She debated just playing a video game or something, but she decided against it.

Her phone buzzed and as she read it, her head tilted to the side in confusion. "They're there, Rey. Give them a minute to climb the stairs or something. Enjoy the ride over! Can't wait to see you!" She rolled her eyes at Rose's enthusiasm and let a small smile come to her lips. That girl was always so enthusiastic. It was nice. She had turned into a bit of a hard case the older she had gotten, but Rose maintained that gentle, fun loving persona Rey always knew her as. She didn't recall a single day that Rose was ever sad. She snuggled into her couch and closed her eyes, only to be shocked beyond compare when a knock rapped at her door.

Rey quirked a brow and stood as she walked to the door. She looked through the peep hole and saw the man from downstairs with the Camaro. He was looking away, down the hallway as if he were surveying his surroundings. She shrugged and opened the door. "Can I help you?" she asked as she stood in the doorway. He turned his head to look at her, his eyes dark, hair darker. His face was an interesting one, she thought. Such angled features. Such a masculine jaw. His face seemed to command respect. His stare was a little blank though, as if he were uninterested. But as he considered the woman before him, she could tell that there was something hidden behind his dark eyes.

"Rose sent me. Get your things. We need to go," he said as he turned on his heel without another word, stalking down the hallway. Rey blinked several times at his rudeness. Wow! Hadn't even met this man before and already she hated him. She growled to herself as she snatched her keys off the entry table and locked her door with a huff. The nerve of this man thinking he could command her like that. This was going to be an annoying 45 minutes. She mumbled under her breath as she stalked down the hall, talking about how rude this idiot was and such. Then, she ran into his back at the top of the stairs. She blinked out of her stupor and glared up at him. "Do you make it a habit to talk to yourself?" he asked as he shot an arrogant smirk over his shoulder.

"Do you make it a habit to aggravate everyone you meet?" she hissed back, crossing her arms as she glared at his smirk.

He scoffed. "It's ok. I'm used to crazy," he said as he walked down the stairs, hands in his pockets. Rey's eyes widened as she stared in shock at the man's boldness. He didn't even know her and he called her crazy!? What sort of man did Rose know?! She stared after him and he stopped at the bottom of the first flight. "Did your shoes melt into the floor? Don't tell me you need to be carried," he said as he shot a dark brow up at her.

She let out a frustrated growl as she stalked down the stairs in her heels, making it sound as if she were stomping as she glared at him. He just grinned at her and continued walking when she joined him after the first flight. He stayed a comfortable distance away from her as she glared daggers at his back. However, the more she considered him, the more she noticed. He wore dark colors. Was he goth? Emo? Punk? Definitely seemed like a punk to her. Maybe he was one of those metal heads. She rolled her eyes at that. That fit, too. She realized she didn't even know his name. She'd just call him Darkside for now. She didn't really care to know anything else. But still... there was something appealing about this mocking between them. It seemed right. It was actually rather fun. She had to do better to keep him on his toes. She had been so caught off guard by his remarks that she didn't really know how to respond until now. Oh, game on, brother.

They made it down the stairs and he walked to the Camaro, opening the door for her and waiting for her to get in. She stared curiously at his gentlemanly gesture. Was he for real? She walked to the passenger side and slid in quietly, Darkside shutting the door behind her once she was in. She took the short time to look around on the inside. It was clean. Surprisingly clean. Not a speck of dust on the black interior. She couldn't wait to hear it roar to life. She loved cars. As she continued to look around, a spicy smell hit her nose. And then Darkside was in the car next to her. The spice grew stronger. Was that... his smell? Oh, she was liking this smell, that was for sure. She risked a glance at him as he started to engine. It roared to life, just as she expected, and it sounded amazing. She felt a bright smile come to her face as she considered the car a little longer. Until he talked again, which ruined her bliss. "You seem to be enjoying the car as much as all the other bimbo women I've met." It wasn't malicious. It was more playful than anything, as if he were goading her into another exchange.

She looked over at him then and shrugged. "I don't know what bimbos you're interested in, but I at least know my way around a car."

"Do you now?" he asked in disbelief.

"My guardian taught me about cars and I worked in his shop for a while," she said with a shrug. When he didn't respond back to her, she smirked. "What? A little sad you're not dealing with a stupid car chasing bimbo?" she cooed sarcastically.

He hesitated for a moment and glanced at her with a small grin. "No. Relieved, actually," he said as he kept driving, hopping onto the interstate. Her cheeks started to heat up at the grin he gave her. Was he always that attractive? She looked away and glanced out the window. This was going to be a long drive...

"So, how'd you get roped into picking me up, Darkside?" she asked as she kept looking out the window.

He raised a brow at her and couldn't help but snicker at the nickname. "Darkside?" he asked, clearly amused.

"Well, you're dressed in black and you have an even darker personality. And I don't know your real name. So, it fits."

He shrugged. He figured it was all right. "Rose and Poe work for my mother. Rose called my mother and, as parents often interfere, designated me as the delivery person." He let out a huff of annoyance. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and considered him for a moment. He seemed to be as uncomfortable about this as she was. She actually felt sorry for him. She didn't really know what it was like to have a mother figure to interfere. She looked back out the window as she felt the loneliness start to surface again. She'd never been able to hold down any sort of relationship, let alone friendship. Rose was... Rose was a good person. Even when Rey didn't contact her, Rose would call and keep the line of communication open. Rose always included her in things. She was her only friend. Her only good friend. Until she met Finn and Poe. Those three were really good friends of hers. "What about you?"

She blinked out of her stupor and looked over at him. "Pardon?"

"How did you get roped into being picked up by a random guy you've never met?" he asked with a small grin.

She shrugged. "Rose said she knew of someone to come get me. And I trust her, which meant that I trust whoever she sends for me," she said as she glanced over at him. "Unless it is misplaced?"

He felt his own cheeks tinge a slight pink as he tried to nonchalantly shrug. "I wouldn't consider myself trustworthy."

"Well, you kept your word to come pick up a crazy girl, so that's trustworthy isn't it?"

He didn't say anything back. He just concentrated on the drive as she watched the scenery fly by. A comfortable silence fell upon them and Rey felt her eyes start to close in contentment, feeling the headache start to take over. It dawned on her that she hadn't had any caffeine today... Withdrawal? She felt the car start to veer off to an exit as she realized that this was nowhere close to their exit. She looked over at him, a small rising fear present in her face. "Coffee," he said as he turned and made his way to a coffee shop. She nodded and leaned her head back against the seat, eyes closed. When they stopped, she was already asleep. He looked over at her and saw her peaceful sleeping face, admiring the woman in his front seat for the second time since they'd met. Her makeup was minimal. Her brown hair was pulled back into triple buns as a few tendrils stayed at the side of her face. She wore a blue cowl neck and dark blue jeans with black heeled booties. She was really... beautiful. He pressed his lips together as he realized he couldn't just go in an order something because what if she didn't like it? He sighed to himself, wondering why he cared. "Hey," he called, voice loud enough that it should have woken her.

Nothing.

He sighed again, hesitantly reaching out to touch her shoulder to lightly shake her. "Hey, wake up," he said as he shook her one last time. She blinked awake and looked around as he retracted his hand. When her sleepy eyes landed on him, she sat up straight and realized where she was. "Coffee?" he asked with an amused grin. She blushed and got out of the car without a word. He found it rather appealing, honestly. She was either comfortable enough around him to sleep, or she was just that tired. He was leaning toward the second option. They walked into the coffee shop and she yawned loudly, making him chuckle quietly. He put in his order and told the woman at the counter that he was paying for Rey's as well, no matter what she got. If there was change leftover, she could keep it. It was amusing to see offer to pay, but look at the woman with evident confusion. When the woman at the counter pointed at him, Rey's face going over to him, her cheeks turned pink as she curtly nodded at the woman and walked over to him with a scowl.

"You didn't need to do that," she said with a huff.

"I know, but it was a lot easier than watching you stumble through your wallet to pay the accurate amount in your sleep-deprived stupor," he replied with a satisfied smirk.

"Nothing gets past you, does it, Darkside?" she quipped with a roll of her eyes. She then thought that they'd have to call out their names. She would finally know his name! She looked up at him and saw him lean his head back against the wall with a sigh, eyes closing as well. It was then that she realized how tall he was compared to her. She wasn't exactly short, but he was taller than her, which was... interesting, to say the least. His figure was broad. She could tell he had muscles through his long-sleeved black shirt with a gray hoodie overtop it. He wore simple black jeans and black boots. He was... attractive, she supposed.

She turned to look at the woman reading the name on the coffee and felt a flutter in her stomach. "Darkside!" she called, making Rey deadpan. She looked up at the man and found an amused smirk playing on his lips as he walked over to get his coffee. On his way back, he saw her staring in disbelief.

"You look disappointed," he said as he sipped his coffee.

"Did you seriously-"

"Yep."

Rey couldn't help it as she let out a laugh. She'd never seen someone own a name as he did and it was quite hilarious to have his nickname called out in a coffee shop. The best part was that he was completely unfazed by the situation. When her laughter died down, she wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled up at him mischievously. "At this point, I don't care what your name is. Darkside is definitely going to stick," she said with a small snicker. He gave her a small grin and shrugged.

The lady came back to the counter and read the label. "Yours is up," he commented, hiding a smirk behind his coffee.

She went to walk to the counter, just as the lady called the name on it. "Sunshine!" Rey blinked in confusion. The lady held out her coffee to her and Rey eyed it suspiciously, thinking that maybe it wasn't hers. She verified that it was correct and she remembered that he had paid for hers. She rounded on him and looked at his face, seeing him snicker as he watched the emotions play out on her face.

She walked to his side and stared up at him. "'Sunshine'? Why?"

He shrugged again. "Rose said your name is Rey. Plus, we seem to be opposites. So if I'm 'Darkside', then you must be 'Sunshine.' Come on, time to go, Sunshine," he said as he walked out the door.

Rey didn't know if she wanted to blush or if she wanted to be indignant. She looked at the name label on her cup and decided that she would be flattered. With a small smile, she followed him out the door to see him waiting at the passenger side, door open for her again. She smirked at him and got in, allowing him to close the door. When he got into the car, she hid behind her coffee, cradling it like it was liquid life. "Thanks for the coffee," she said as she sipped it again. He nodded and took off to go to Rose's. He realized that little by little, he didn't mind her company.