How Kartik and Gemma first got together...

"I love senior cut day!" I say, flipping my sunglasses back onto my nose. Next to me, Felicity does the same.

"It hardly matters that we're juniors, right?" She gives me a dazzling smile. There's the Fee I love, happy and relaxed, not bitchy and high strung, the way she is most of the time.

"Details, details. All that matters is that it's a beautiful day and we're here at the beach," I say, taking a sip of my peach lemonade.

"And of course that we're the two hottest girls in our class, wearing designer bikinis and sunglasses. Old money has its perks."

"That it does," I say, fingering the long strings holding up my halter bikini top. The sun is at its peak, but the sea breeze is cool and inviting, and the view is incredible. I sigh with happiness. "Nice scenery, right?" I ask, nodding my head at a few guys from our class playing Frisbee at the water's edge.

Felicity peers over her sunglasses at the boys, their skin glistening with sweat, water, and sunscreen. "Mmm, and to think we grew up with some of them. Who knew the dorks that used to pick their noses in class would turn out to be so hot?"

"Kartik never picked his nose," I say quickly, immediately regretting bringing up his name.

Felicity laughs in surprise. "You like Kartik!"

"Not really," I say, blushing. "I'm just saying he's over there and he never picked his nose in class."

Fee's blue eyes follow Kartik's form, dashing about in the sand with his friends. "He has gotten quite gorgeous."

"I know," I say wistfully. "He's beautiful."

She pushes her sunglasses back into place. "He's also checking you out."

"What?" I shriek, immediately turning to look.

"Shh!" Felicity says, grabbing my arm. "Play it cool Gemma! Don't let him know you're into him."

"But I want to see if he's looking at me," I whine. She sighs in frustration.

"That's what these are for," she says, pointing at her shades. "Sit normal, okay?"

I sit back into my lounge chair and watch the boys playing. "He's not looking!" I hiss.

"Well he's not going to be obvious about it! Watch him; he'll glance over at you. In the meantime, invite him to look," she says.

"What do you mean?"

"Sunscreen." She hands me the coconut scented sunscreen we were sharing.

I giggle. "Fee, you're so bad!"

She smiles. "No, you are. Make him want you."

I squirt some lotion into my hand. "How can I make this look sexy?" I ask, staring at the glob of white in my hand.

"How can you not? Just put it on normally. I'll coach you through it."

"Okay," I say, rubbing sunscreen onto my shoulders.

"Right, now arch your back; stick your chest out."

I try my best to twist my body like Fee told me, but it's near impossible to stick my chest out and reach over my shoulder at the same time. She seems to notice my dilemma.

"Right, enough shoulders. Do your chest."

I spread the lotion over my collarbones and the tops of my breasts. "Now," Felicity says. "Without moving your head, look up." I let my eyes drift to the boys. Sure enough Kartik has stopped playing; seeming to not even notice he was playing in the first place. The Frisbee sails right past him and lands in the sand. His friends yell at him in protest. I smile widely at Felicity.

"Told you," she says smugly. "Keep it up; maybe he'll come over here."

I rub more lotion into my legs, taking great care to stretch them out to their length. Once again Kartik seems bewitched. I suddenly feel very giddy. I sit back and admire his physique – broad shoulders, lean muscles, long legs. All a shining honey brown; he looks as if he'd taste sweet. I wouldn't mind finding out.

"Ohh," I say, rubbing my legs together. "I want him!"

"That's the spirit! We need to get you laid."

"I never said I wanted to have sex with him!"

"Yes, but you know you want to. Tonight just may be your chance."

"What do you mean?"

Felicity gives me an exasperated look. "We're all staying in two hotel rooms right next to each other. There are plenty of beverages to be had, you know. Who knows what can happen? He's obviously into you."

I shift in my seat. "I don't want my first time to be while I'm drunk though. It sort of defeats the purpose doesn't it?"

She shrugs. "I guess it depends on how you look at it." She reads her magazine quietly for a moment, then looks up again. "Just promise me one thing, Gemma. Whatever happens, don't be so shy. Flirt with him. Please."

I toss my beach waved hair over my shoulder. "Promise," I say, feeling a surge of confidence. I catch Kartik's eye and do the most audacious thing. I blow him a kiss, much to his surprise. He looks back at his friends and saunters toward me. My heartbeat immediately quickens.

"Don't spaz out, Gemma," Felicity warns.

"Hey," Kartik says, flopping in the sand next to me.

"Hi," I chirp.

"Hello," Fee says without looking up. Kartik gives me a warm smile that turns my insides to mush. I suddenly feel like laughing, dancing, and throwing up all at once. When did he get so heart wrenchingly handsome?

"What's up?" I ask, twirling a tendril of hair between my fingers.

"Nothing," he says, looking back at his friends again. I see his eyes quickly pause on my legs. I bend them, showing off my toned calves. "Just got bored of playing, that's all. Having fun?"

I shrug in a way that gives me the illusion of having cleavage, if only for a moment. "Can't complain," I say nonchalantly with a smile.

"You look bored. Hang out with me."

I glance at Felicity. She is still absorbed in her magazine, but I see her give a subtle nod. I turn back to Kartik, who has an anxious look on his face. "Sure," I say.

"Cool," he says, jumping up and brushing sand from his swim trunks. He extends a hand to me like a gentleman.

"Thank you," I say, taking it. I pull my white eyelet sundress over my head, making sure to wiggle my hips as the loose fabric fall over my body. "What do you want to do?"

He runs his fingers through his glossy black hair. "Take a walk with me?"

I nod, feeling excited. Boys don't ask you to take walks for nothing, right?

"Gemma, I've known you for forever it seems," he says once we've walked out of earshot of our friends.

"Well we have been classmates since fourth grade."

"Yeah," he says with a sweet smile. "That's when you moved here." He looks up to the horizon and I study his profile. Straight nose, full lips, nice jaw. I love the way his hair falls into his eyes, as if he's purposely trying to look sexy and alluring, even though he's not. One thing I've known about him is that he's incredibly adorable, without trying. He doesn't know how attractive he is, which makes it that much sexier.

"Why don't we hang out more often, Gemma?" He sits on one of the rocks at the deserted end of the beach. "I mean, we should," he adds shyly.

I blush and push my sunglasses up into my hair. "I wasn't aware that you wanted to," I say, taking a seat next to him. "You never were interested in hanging out with my group of my friends."

He tears his eyes from the ocean and fixes them on mine. "That's just it, Gemma. It's not your friends I like, it's you. You're not like those girls. You don't put on a show to try to catch someone's attention."

"No, of course not," I lie, cursing myself for listening to Felicity.

"You're really sincere," he says quietly. "I like that."

I stare at my knees, unsure of how to react. No guy has ever been so straightforward with me.

"I'm coming on too strong, aren't I?" Kartik asks.

"Not at all," I say. "No one's ever said anything like that to me. The last guy that came on to me told me he would show me his if I showed him mine. I kicked him in the shin and ran home crying." I smile weakly at Kartik, feeling like a loser. "I mean, I've kissed guys before, but it's always just happened, you know? No one's ever tried to ask me out. And now I'm just babbling and you probably weren't doing anything of the sort of what I've just explained. I'm sorry, I feel like an idiot. I should just go," I say, going to hop off the rock.

Kartik's hand catches mine and pulls me back. "Stay," he says, smiling widely. "Do you know why no one's asked you out before?"

"Because I'm a loser?"

He laughs. "Do you really believe that?"

"Honestly, yes. All my friends have had wonderful relationships while I play the single card. I'm beginning to think I have cooties."

"You know you don't have cooties, despite my claims in elementary school." He nudges my knee with his own playfully. "No one has asked you out because they're intimidated by you."

"What?" I ask, shocked. "I'm one of the nicest people I know!"

Kartik runs his hand through his hair again. "That's just it. You're beautiful, smart, and nice. A guy's total dream and nightmare. All my friends wanted to ask you out, but they were afraid they'd get rejected."

"You think I'm beautiful?"

"You are," he says. My hand flies to my mouth as if to hide the smile forming there.

"How can you be so confident?" I ask.

He sighs. "I assure you, I'm a complete mess on the inside."

I slide a bit closer to him, smelling the sunblock and salt water on his skin. "Let's not beat around the bush then. Kartik, I -,"

He cuts me off with a kiss full on the mouth. The initial shock wears off quickly as the scent of him overwhelms my senses, drawing out a yearning I never knew I had. My arms encircle his neck loosely, one of my hands tangling in his hair. One of his hands finds the back of my neck, angling my head to kiss me deeper. Kissing him is like magic, everything feeling perfect and natural, as if I had been kissing him my whole life.

We pull away simultaneously. Kartik grins sheepishly, his face flushed, though not nearly as much as mine. "You were saying?" he says breathlessly.

However, my brain has seemed to cease all functioning. "Wow," I breathe. "We should hang out more often." Kartik laughs, looking beautiful as he does so. I can hardly keep my hands off of him.

This time it is me that initiates the kiss, letting my hands linger on the sides of his waist, feeling the warmth of his soft skin.

"Gemma," he says a few moments later. "We could be good together." His eyes sparkle in the sunlight.

"We already are."

Aww cute! Little juniors, they are!

Thought I'd update this one, seeing as how I've completely abandoned this fic for High and Dry. I needed something light and fun to write as well, since I just saw Saw 3 today. Let's just say I don't think I'll get much sleep tonight. Every time I close my eyes I see people getting their ribs ripped apart and their heads twisted around. Not to mention pig carcasses getting chopped up and spewed all over me. Good thing I never really like pork anyway. O.O

I keep petting my ankles to reassure them I'll never saw them off,
LunaEquus

Felicity makes me laugh in this fic. She is oh so based off of Gossip Girl. Gemma's supposed to be rich too, but not extravagantly. And Kartik isn't rich per se, he's just spoiled and doesn't know it. Like, he got a BMW for his birthday and his mom still does his laundry. So he drives Gemma everywhere because she got a horse instead of a car. Which, as anyone should know, is way more expensive than owning a car. Upwards of a thousand bucks a month, to be specific, at least at my barn. Which is craptastic, if you ask me.