Hello! I know I promised to update by the end of the last week, but I keep forgetting how different times is for everyone. Like, I thought I would update on Monday so that it would show up as being updated on Sunday for those who live in the Western part of the world and yeah.. I messed up on that.

But anyway! Here's Chapter Seven. This is kind of a filler chapter, but we meet our last of the core four, so that's fun, I guess.

That Cliché Love Story

Chapter Seven

Previously on That Cliché Love Story:

"I saw Gabrielle staring up at us," she muttered quietly, unsure if he could even hear her over the background noise as people began to fill the room again. The way his arms tightened around her told her that he had, but he remained quiet, waiting for her to continue. Except, she didn't know what else to say. Was there anything else more she had to say? "It was when everyone was coming back inside... I think Kimmy noticed us and told Gabrielle, and when she looked up, she saw your arms around me. She didn't look particularly happy."

Austin was silent for a moment. "I guess the plan's working then. She's beginning to take more notice."

"Hmm.." Ally hummed, burrowing her head against the crook of Austin's neck and watching everyone gradually come back inside the guest room from over Austin's shoulder. She was still cold and the hairs on her arm were still standing up. Despite how warm Austin was and despite the fact that Gabrielle was probably inside the house by now, she could still feel her ice-cold gaze still burning into her skin.

And this, Ally knew, meant that her cousin won.

"Hey, lovebirds! Get back inside so we can continue the game." A familiar voice called out Austin and Ally. Austin glanced over his shoulder, noticing a certain Latina standing a few feet away from the balcony doorway. With a grin, Austin stepped back from Ally and, with a hand on her back, lead her back inside where it was warmer.

"Trish, stop ruining the moment!" Dez replied as he stepped back inside the room. As per usual, he was dressed up quirky graphic tees with printed pants. Tonight he was dressed up in one his most 'normal' outfits; a bright blue shirt with a cat wearing a party hat, and black and white striped pants.

Upon his appearance, Trish rolled her eyes and groaned, shaking her head at Austin. "Dez, it's called a joke. You know, something you should be familiar with since it's your entire existence?"

The joke flew right over the redhead's head because he grinned at her. "Aww... Trish. That's, like, the first compliment you've given me since… 7th grade." He patted her shoulder, "thanks for calling me funny."

Austin, Ally and Trish merely stared at Dez, unable to comprehend whether he seriously thought what the Latina said was a compliment. When he merely blinked at them in return, the three exchanged looks, silently deciding not to explain the off-handed insult to him.

Trish stepped between Austin and Ally, a smile pasted on her lips as she stared up at Ally. "So, you're Austin's new girlfriend, aren't you?" Although she sounded sweet, the way her eyes raked over Ally's body – or rather, her outfit – made Ally feel like she was being judged to see if she was suitable for her friend. Trish De la Rosa was probably one of the only people who didn't bully or make fun of Ally in the popular crowd, and for that, Ally didn't mind the Latina's analysis of her.

"I didn't even know Austin and Gabrielle had broken up until Monday, and then when I returned back to school, everyone was talking about an Allison Dawson who had a complete makeover over the school holidays and was now dating Austin." Trish chuckled under her breath, "I didn't even know of an Allison Dawson, until I realised it was you – the girl Gabrielle hated the most, for some godforsaken reason."

Ally pursed her lips, trying hard not to show how offended she was. Of course, she knew most people wouldn't know her full name; she'd always been the quiet girl in the background who'd rather read books than go out to the playground and play tags with the others. But she'd known Trish since they were kids and went to the same elementary school as her. Hell, they even went to the same daycare. So, it hurt a little for her to not recognise Ally's name.

Seeing Ally's expression, Trish snorted. "No offence, but I don't really make it routine to memorise the name of the victims my friends bully. Plus, I'm usually bad with people and names. Now that I've seen you close-up though, I know who you are now – everyone used to call you Sally Dorkson, didn't they?"

Ah yes. Sally Dorkson. It was the name given to her by the popular crowd because 'Sally' was a stereotypical name of someone plain, boring and a goody-two-shoes. And 'Dorkson'? Well… it's pretty self-explanatory, isn't it?

"Yep, that's me." Ally glanced up at Austin, who promptly looked away. At least he had the audacity to flush since he was one of many to call her the name. She turned back to Trish, who had been watching the exchange with curious, dark eyes. She tentatively smiled, "but I prefer to be called Ally, thanks."

"Well, Ally, I think you and Austin make a pretty cute couple." She waved her hand, "much better than him and Gabrielle, at least."

Austin scoffed, rolling his eyes. "You never liked Gabrielle anyway."

"That's true."

At Trish's words, Ally grinned, glad to have won her over without doing much. "Um, thanks. I hope we can be good friends, Trish – I kind of need a girl-friend to guide me through the sudden attention I have because of Austin."

Trish smirked at her proposal. "You know what? I think we'd be great friends, even without Austin in the picture." She said, linking her arm with Ally's. Although she said it teasingly, Ally knew (for some reason) that she meant it, too. An odd hopeful feeling bubbled in her chest at the idea of forming another friendship; so far, the only person she could ever consider a friend was Cassidy.

"Are you guys joining us, or what?" Gavin's southern drawl caught their attention as he sat in the circle with everyone else. Despite the busy chatter among the group, some of them had paused their conversations to stare at Austin and Ally's interaction with Trish. One of those people included Gabrielle, who watched silently as the group of four remained the only ones up.

Trish rolled her eyes, pulling Ally forward. "We're coming, we're coming." She sat down as people made space for them, prompting Ally to sit down next to her. Austin and Dez joined momentarily afterwards, and the game of Truth or Dare continued.

"Okay, my turn," Trent said as he leaned forward, spinning the bottle and leaning back against as the empty bottle came to a slow stop. Everyone watched as it landed on Austin, suddenly unsure of how to react. They knew Trent and Austin had always had a tense friendship – one that teetered on the edge of friends and enemies – and now that Trent had the power in this game to make Austin do something or say something without real consequences to him, he could abuse it.

Knowing this, Ally began to nibble on her bottom lip, peeking at her right where Austin sat next to her. However, he wasn't looking back at her; he was staring directly at Trent with his jaw clenched. He looked calm, a well-practised performance she was sure, but Ally knew he was anxious.

She was anxious, too.

"Austin…" Trent's voice raised an octave higher, as he rubbed his hands. Now that he was the one serving the ball in the court, he was excited. "Truth, or dare?"

Ally glanced toward the blond next to her, watching with worried eyes as he contemplated what decision he would make; which one was more riskier than the other? She hoped he would choose dare. Of course, with 'truth' he could get away with lying, but depending on what the question was, he'd have to make it up on the spot and make it believable. What if it was about Austin and Ally's relationship? They'd only been fake-dating for three days, and have barely talked about what they would say if people asked about their relationship. They were underprepared, and it would be their own fault if they were caught.

But, if Austin picked dare, they still had a chance of getting away with everything.

He had to pick dare. He had to.

At last, Austin turned his head toward Ally, taking notice of how she was worrying her bottom lip with her teeth and the concern laced in her furrowed brows. He didn't know what it was about that expression that made Austin want to protect her, but he opened his mouth, having made up his mind there and then. "Dare." He said, turning to Trent with confidence in his eyes. "I pick dare."

His words broke the tension around the room, as Dez whooped and clapped Austin on the back. Everyone joined in on cheering for Austin, while Trent decided on what dare he would give to his friend.

"C'mon, dude, we don't have all day." Elliot joked, nudging him and making everyone laugh.

"Alright, alright," Trent said, clapping and bringing everyone's attention back on the game. He grinned at Austin, obviously up to no good. "I dare you… to tell us how you and Gabby broke up, and how you and Ally got together."

What was previously a light-hearted atmosphere suddenly felt awkward. The tension was so thick in the room, you could cut it with a knife. Everyone was either staring at Trent in shock or watching Austin, Ally and Gabrielle's expression, once again unsure of how to react.

From across the room, Ally saw Gabrielle's eyes widen as she focused on looking at the ground. Despite how pleased she felt at seeing her cousin panicked, and despite how hard she wanted the truth to be revealed about Gabrielle being a cheater, she knew that Austin wouldn't reveal that out loud to everyone. Not only would it be a blow to his pride that he got cheated on, but he'd also have to reveal how he and Ally got together. And, no matter what lie he came up with, the delivery of the lie was also important, so if he lied about Gabrielle, she could also make a guess that Austin was lying about how and Ally got together too. She'd begin suspecting their relationship.

Oh god, Ally thought, I sound so paranoid. This is what happens when you spontaneously agree to fake date one of the most popular guys at school.

Austin laughed under his breath awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Fucking hell, Trent, you know that shit's private." He glanced at Ally, before turning back to Trent. He could feel his ex-girlfriend's eyes on him but he continued to ignore her presence. Austin smirked, pretending to be nonchalant, as he raised an eyebrow at his frenemy. "Give me a different dare, dude, or else I'm not playing this game anymore."

Trent stared at him, obviously not happy about the diversion of the topic. Finally, he grinned cheekily and nodded. "Alright then. Since you won't do that dare, I dare you to give Ally a lap dance in front of everyone."

The tension in the room broke at the dumb dare.

"Wow, Trent, horny much?" Kira gagged. "If you want to see someone give a lap dance, go to a fucking strip club."

"Shut up, Kira." Trent hissed, glaring at the raven-haired girl. He turned back to the blond, quirking an eyebrow up at him. "So? Are you gonna do the dare or what?"

Ally, who had been holding her breath during the moment between Austin and Trent, smirked. "Do I get a say in this matter? What if I don't want a lap dance?" Almost everyone laughed at her words as she diverted the attention away from what happened seconds earlier. When she turned toward Austin, he was also smiling at her.

"Nah, you're just gonna have to deal with it," Austin said as he stood up. He snapped his fingers, eyes still on Ally. "Someone give me music; I can't give a lap dance in silence."

Dez pulled out his phone immediately, scrolling through his Spotify playlist until he landed on a song. When the first lyrics of 'God is a woman' came up, Ally threw her head back in laughter whereas Austin threw his middle finger up at his best friend. Not even a second later, Austin was twisting his hips with his arms in the air, dancing around Ally and curling her hair around his finger 'seductively' as he mouthed the lyrics. It was when he began twerking next to her as she hid behind her hand that everyone burst out into uncontrollable laughter and cheers, some people even taking videos or Snapchatting his dancing skill.

As the first chorus came up, Austin faced Ally and kneeled above her with his knees sat on either side of her crossed legs. Despite how awful his body rolls were, she knew he was just messing around. He made it a point to avoid touching her body as much as possible, and for that, Ally was relieved. He did, however, try to make it look like he was grinding on top of her by lowering himself so that only an inch or two remained between their bodies as he rolled his hips.

No contact was really made, except when his thighs grazed hers when he struggled to keep himself up, and Ally wasn't sure if she was glad or disappointed.

When the song finally came to an end, everyone cheered for Austin as he blushed, hiding his face in his hands as the realisation of what he had done had finally hit him. Ally chuckled up at him and waited for him to pull his hands away so that she could take a look at his embarrassed expression. He laughed into his hands along with the others before reluctantly pulling them away to run his hand through his hair, a nervous habit that he's had since he was young.

His eyes met Ally, who was still trapped by his legs on either side of her knees, and Austin grinned down at her, taking in the light lipstick on her smiling lips (faded from their make-out session earlier) and the way her eyes brightened as her laughter quietened. At that moment, with her cheeks stained red from embarrassment and laughter, she looked so beautiful.

Suddenly, without a word, Austin cupped Ally's face and tilted her head back to meet her lips with his in a gentle kiss, ignoring the whistles and whoops in the background.

He didn't know why he kissed her. He just did it when the urge rose up instinctively. Like it was the most normal thing he could be doing in the entire world.

And, strangely enough, kissing Ally didn't feel weird or unusual or forced.

It felt right.

Ooh la la, Austin's beginning to feel things and is finally acknowledging them (kind of). I hope you're satisfied with this smol lil' kiss between Austin and Ally. Honestly, I don't plan on making them have full-on make-out sessions and stuff, because I need some cute, soft kisses as well.

As we go on, we will begin to establish a friendship with Ally and Trish and also reveal the history between Ally and the popular crowd, but especially Ally and Gabrielle. This story is very Ally-based, though we will see a few things from Austin's perspective every now and then.

P.S I don't know when I will update next. I'm still trying to figure out the storyline to this, and what exactly I want to happen and who I want it to happen to and stuff. I have an ending idea in my head, but I can't have it rushed, ya know what I mean?

Don't forget to review to let me know what you think of this chapter! Also, favourite and follow to get updates, notifications for when I post a new chapter and just to keep up with the story and me in general.

Thank you, and until next time, love from FashionLovah!