I'm so sorry. I meant to upload this a lot sooner, but I may or may not have accidentally lost the majority of the chapter ...and I may or may not have had to start all over and I may or may not have gotten so frustrated and annoyed every time I opened up the document and saw all the progress lost... yeah.

Apologies for any typos.

Chapter 3: It was enchanting to meet you

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D: Hey…uhh..who is this?

It felt like my whole world had just crashed down. And no I was not being dramatic…okay perhaps I was being a little dramatic but this particular moment called for dramatics! I hadn't seen this girl for more than an hour and she didn't know who this was? Did she forget that she happened to write her freaking number on a stranger's hand?!

It made me wonder if I was the only one that this had happened to. Or did she have more people she carelessly gave her personal cell phone number to and I was just one of many?

God I knew this was too good to be true. Never trust a cute girl to write her number on your body. It never turns out the way you want it to.

I sank back into my bed, seriously considering the whole pillow suffocating plan again when my phone buzzed for the third time. It was her.

I was already so depressed over her reply I wasn't sure I could handle any more of her indirect rejection. I opened it anyway, against my better judgment because hello, it was Demi Torres.

D: …this is Selena Russo right? Just making sure before I make an even bigger fool out of myself lol

She knows my last name?

Oh my god SHE KNOWS MY LAST NAME OH BE STILL MY BEATING HEART

The grin – the stupid, stupid grin spread across my face before I could process anything more. My face felt hot as I fumbled with my phone and reread the recent text message. She knew my name. She knew my freaking full name! How was that even possible?

I was more than positive that I faded into the background in class. In fact I made sure I did a good job with the fading. How could she manage to know my last name, or even recognize me at all?

I chewed my lip, attempting to prevent the smile from growing as I typed a reply with trembling fingers.

S: Yes lol

And then another one came in immediately.

D: oh okay cool haha

D: So what are you up to?

I stared down at the text message for a moment, probably longer than necessary. Was this really happening? Were we really going to fall into an easy conversation as if the fact that I had bumped into her at the grocery store wasn't weird at all?

Wow, um it's not weird at all. You're just making things weird you weirdo!

S: Nothing much

I hesitated trying to think of a valid elaboration of nothing much. Squirming about like an idiot over the girl didn't even come close to valid.

S: I had a friend over :/

I sent it before I could even begin my fit of stressing.

D: why the :/ face?

And immediately I regretted doing something so impulsive.

S: It was't a very welcome visit

S: *wasn't

S: He's kind of annoying

Was that too critical? God I sounded like a total lousy friend.

D: Nah I get it sometimes my friends get on my nerves too

D: btw I'm sorry if I'm bothering you Selena

Oh jesus just seeing my name in that text was doing things to me.

D: I don't usually give out my number at supermarkets

D: I just don't want you to think I'm a total weirdo or anything

S: no I don't lol

D: are you sure? You kind of looked like I freaked you out

S: no hahaha no you didn't freak me out

Total. Complete. Lie.

D: oh that's good lol :)

My heart skipped a beat at the smiley face. She put a freaking smiley face. Colon and parenthesis. It was kind of ridiculous how I felt in near complete bliss over a text message. No, over a stupid face. I tried to pretend that she spent a significant amount of time debating over which one to use. Fantasies… The rational side of me knew she probably habitually sent faces in her texts.

But what if she didn't?

I was so caught up over the stupid face that I didn't realize the finality of her message: 'oh that's good'.

What did that mean? Good as in genuinely good? Good as in goodbye I have nothing more to say to you, you strange human? Or good keep talking? What if I came off as annoying?

Stop stressing out so much over a freaking text message Selena!

I drew in a deep breath and began typing a reply. Or at least trying to formulate an open window to continue this conversation. I didn't get that far into typing when my phone began buzzing and the screen changed abruptly to: Taylor Swift calling. I groaned, sliding the call button.

"Selena!"

"Yes." I sighed. There was a short pause.

"Oh, er is this a bad time?" Taylor questioned curiously.

I resisted the urge to sigh again. "No what's up?

"You didn't reply back and – Joe seriously stop!" Taylor half laughed and half scolded on the other line. I could faintly hear Joe cackling in the background. My assumptions of his whereabouts were on point. As usual. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes but then realized she couldn't see my face so I rolled them anyway. "Um, I was hoping you'd want to come over tomorrow – Joseph!"

I sighed loudly through my nose. "That's fine Taylor."

"'Kay, 'kay, I'll see you tomorrow! Say bye Joe -"

"-bye Lena, don't wear yourself too much with all that blogging and fanfiction." Joe mocked on the other line. I heard vague signs of Taylor scolding Joe before the line went dead.

My mood dropped almost instantly after the call. It was incredible how easily the two of them managed to do that lately. Seriously they should win some kind of award for this.

I slumped back into bed, feeling my face form into a scowl over it all. The scowl wasn't permanent, especially after I felt my phone buzz and saw another text from Demi.

D: So anyway, what are your plans tomorrow if you don't mind me asking?

I wasn't sure if I was relieved that I had plans with Taylor tomorrow or annoyed.

S: I'm going over a friends house

D: the annoying one? ;) jk

I felt my face flush and the stupid grin form on my face again. Jesus Christ, this girl was seriously going to kill me.

S: No lol not the annoying one

D: I figured… so what about Friday?

S: I'm free Friday

D: Cool we'll go out for frozen yogurt

D: I mean…unless you prefer ice cream?

D: jesus I didn't ask if you even wanted to hang out I'm an idiot

S: No lol Friday sounds good

D: cool! I'll see you then! ;)

S: okay :)

Selena what the actual fuck?

I couldn't even begin to process what just happened in the span of ten minutes. I went from never speaking to Demi Torres to going on a fucking ice cream date with Demi Torres. Date. Date.

Was that even the appropriate term to use in this situation?

This sounded an awful lot like a date. I mean wasn't this what happened in movies all of the freaking time? You run into your future significant other at a coffee shop…or in this case the local supermarket. You share a few words, numbers get exchanged, and then you go on dates. Or was I completely misinterpreting every clichéd, cheesy rom-com movies I'd ever seen?

And wasn't the ice cream shop (Yogurtland..whatever) like the prime hot spot for coupledom?

This was suddenly moving way too fast. This was becoming too overwhelming.

Rational-Selena knew exactly was going on, however. Rational-Selena knew it was going to be okay. She knew everything would work out. It was just a little get together. Just ice cream. It wasn't like I was expected to show up and declare my undying love for the girl. This was a walk in the park. Piece of cake. Rational-Selena could take this!

Unfortunately Rational-Selena was reduced into a thick pile of mush after Demi sent an early goodnight text signed with another goddamn smiley face.

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The next day, as I prepared for my visit to Taylor's, I still worried over my eager response to Demi. She wanted to hang out with me…so soon? I wasn't sure if I was severely anticipating this friendly date or completely dreading it. What would I wear? Certainly not that ridiculous get up she caught me in during our previous encounter. And I would make sure to shave my goddamn legs.

I stressed over it the entire time and I didn't even realize I was already parked outside Taylor's house. I sighed placing my hands on the wheel for a moment, contemplating banging my head against it. I chose not to, the first logical decision I felt I made over the past twenty-four hours, as I scrambled out of the car and made my way to the porch.

I knocked a few times, and then heard quick footsteps on the other side. The door had barely opened before I was engulfed in a tight hug. The smell of vanilla gave away the person, as did the excited little squeal that erupted from her lips.

"Hi Selena!" Taylor exclaimed happily, before I had the chance to greet her back. "Oh, how nice of you to drop by!"

"You're the one that told me to come." I muttered pointedly as she pulled away and smiled down at me cheerfully. I was almost convinced she would grow a tail and start wagging it.

"Still it's nice to see you." She replied, leveling her gaze with mine. I was tempted to respond with a snide remark. Maybe even an insult along with the comment. But as quickly as the temptation came it faded away. This was Taylor, sweet Taylor, the opposite of her nuisance of a boyfriend, Joe.

I sighed, lifting my lips into a convincing smile. It must have worked because her blue eyes brightened significantly.

"Come on, come on, I've got cookies in the oven."

I felt my own mouth suddenly crave the baked goods over my better judgment as I walked in after her. I saw Taylor's mom watching T.V and waved a brief hi, before I was whisked into the kitchen.

"Soooo, Selena," Taylor drew out her speech, before pausing dramatically. "How's life?"

She looked over her shoulder as she pulled the cookie sheet out. I felt the heat of the oven beat against my face for a moment and then she closed the door. Slightly distracted by the cookies, I mumbled out a halfhearted, "Okay."

"What do you mean just okay?" She probed curiously. I continued to watch as she peeled the cookies off the sheet and left them to dry on a decorative plate.

"Uh, yeah I mean fine."

She looked so genuinely happy to see me, which made me feel even more like shit over being annoyed with her. How could you ever be annoyed with Taylor Swift when she was giving you that smile and thrusting warm cookies in your face?

I sighed sheepishly, grabbing a cookie off the plate and she watched with rapt attention as I took a bite. Any minute now that tail was going to poke out of her daisy dukes again.

"Delicious." I mumbled through the gooey chocolate. She threw her head back dramatically and laughed, dragging me up the stairs to her room.

Taylor's room probably fulfilled every cliché, every stereotype, every description for the "typical teenage girl". Light blue painted walls. Pictures of cats on her wall. Her teen heartthrobs ripped out of magazines and pinned up. She had a collage of pictures taped above the head of her bed. Pictures of Joe, Taylor, Nick, me. The good old days. My eyes landed on a picture of just Nick and I. We were in line for a roller coaster at the local fair. I was smiling happily into the camera, making bunny ears at the top of his curly head. He was smiling too, but he wasn't looking at the camera.

I cleared my throat, feeling uncomfortable at the memories staring back at me.

I stepped away, instead sinking into her neat and tidy bed.

Taylor was too busy rummaging through her desk and filling me in on the latest celebrity gossip, to notice my staring.

"I wrote a new song. You want to hear it?"

I forced a smile as she brought out her guitar. It wasn't that I didn't like her singing or anything. It just seemed that lately everything that came out of her mouth was –

"Joe and I worked on this together." She smiled coyly, but then it faded immediately. "Maybe I should wait, so he can be here to help me."

I would have rather gouged my own eyes out. Yikes. Back with the dramatics. Well for what it was worth it was partially true. More things I could definitely live without: being the third wheel.

I knew, perhaps I was being a bit too critical of their relationship. I just didn't understand it. I knew whenever Taylor got into a relationship, anything and everything of it was the center of her attention. It wasn't entirely her fault for getting so deep into her boy toys. She was just passionate about things I guess. This current thing being, none other than, Joe fucking Gray.

Taylor was just – I mean where do I even begin to describe Taylor Swift?

She was probably the most magickal person I had ever met (yeah with a K). Creative. Glittery. Typical all American kind of girl, with the curly blonde hair, denim vests, baby doll dresses, cowboy boots, and a smile that could light up this whole town. She was the overplayed, cheesy love song on the radios that you hated to love, but loved anyway. Because despite your negativity and how you claim you don't believe in love, a small part of you will always hope. She was basically that living embodiment. She was a dreamer, yet she always knew what she wanted. I envied that about her – actually I envied that about a lot of people.

Taylor was a stellar opposite of her boyfriend. Joe never took himself or anyone so seriously. He was the laid back, goofy idiot that could never decide on anything. I suppose that was what we had in common – we'd flip flop all over the freaking place. Not that his sexuality was a flip-floppy as mine (he used to be one of the biggest manwhores I knew).

If I was being completely honest, I guess I never really put much effort into trying to understand their sudden relationship. And maybe I was still a tiny bit hurt over them keeping it a secret from me for months. It wasn't until around the time of their senior prom that they finally dropped the bomb on me – of course Nick already knew. Which bothered me even more. Because we were such a close-knit group – the four of us.

I knew the Grays the majority of my childhood. We instantly became friends the moment their family Chihuahua attacked me and Kevin, the eldest brother, rescued me from that little monster. I was seven.

I met Taylor a little later, in sixth grade. One day during class she complimented my glittery folder (a folder my mother had bought when I specifically told her I wanted the puppy one), and we hit it off since then.

I never would have expected Taylor and Joe as an item. Never. Once high school hit, they didn't show any particular signs of interest in one another. And they certainly didn't share common hobbies. While Taylor was baking cupcakes and decorating her locker, Joe was out partying and playing hooky. If anything people expected Nick and I to –

"Gosh, you look so much older Selena." Taylor exclaimed plopping on her bed beside me.

"Taylor you literally saw me like last week." I muttered flatly. She giggled, nudging me in the ribs playfully.

"I don't know you've got like this kind of enlightened look to you. You look different."

"Enlightened?"

"Anyway, where have you been this whole week? I missed you." She said, completely dropping the previous subject.

What I really wanted to say was: "Avoiding your gross PDA and fluffy couple aura that makes me want to gag." But I ended up just saying: "Home."

"Joe says you've been wallowing away."

Seriously, I was sure by the time I got home everybody in this fucking town would start saying that every time they looked at me. Taylor must have seen the irritated expression on my face because she smiled sheepishly.

"I didn't believe him of course." She added quickly. "I just, I don't know, I'm worried about you Selena. I mean I know Joe and I being together kind of took you by surprise. I totally get why you won't hang out with us, but I mean we're still your friends."

God, she had a knack for making me feel like the worst friend ever. Joking. Again, it wasn't her fault.

"I know. I'm sorry." I murmured, chagrined.

"And then with everything that's happened between you and Nick…"

And just like that, the guilty feeling disappeared and a sudden sense of frustration replaced it.

"-Is this why you called me over? To talk about this?" I interrupted rudely.

"I just – I mean – I figured you might want to talk about the whole Nick thing." She started apprehensively.

"No, no when did I ever give you the slightest inclination I wanted to-"

"-when was the last time you've even spoken to him? He looks so sad-"

"Taylor! No, we are seriously not going to talk about Nick right now!"

She relented, shrinking away from me, which made me feel like even more crap. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt Taylor. I hated seeing her upset, and what killed me was being the cause of it.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pushed." Taylor mumbled quietly.

She stayed quiet for the majority of my visit, only making a few comments here and there while I uncharacteristically lead the conversations. I was running out of things to talk about, almost resorting to the whole Demi subject. But I wasn't sure I would be able to keep a cool face during that possible conversation. And besides she didn't need to know about that. Not even Taylor knew of my ridiculous crush on Demi Torres.

Her dispirited mood still worried me, even as I left the blonde and drove home a couple of hours later. It wasn't like her to brood, even if I did upset her. She'd usually just bounce right back up.

It made me wonder why exactly she even invited me to her house. My suspicions of Joe conspiring with her about trying to rekindle my friendship with Nick did occur to me. But for some weird reason I got the sense that this was more than just that. And I didn't know why, but I got the eerie feeling that there was something Taylor wasn't telling me.

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A/N: I know this is progressing rather slowly...but I promise it'll pick up soon. For the most part, the introductions are out of the way. Demena next chapter for sure.

Anons:

Guest: Hahaha yes high school. Four years of embarrassing, cringe-worthy things we all did in regard to our crushes lol. I know the chapters are pretty short. I'm still trying to find a good pace at the moment. But for now...I'm sorry they're so short. Thank you for reading and reviewing :D