Disclaimer: I don't own Lemonade Mouth!
After that first date, each date took on a pattern. Dylan picked up Stella, they did their date then Stella tried to steal a kiss from him. When Dylan thought about it he laughed, thinking that the roles in their relationship should be switched; he should be the one trying to steal a kiss from Stella. So it went on following that pattern for a few months.
Dylan stepped into the room looking around at Lemonade Mouth. Stella had told them what he was doing and while some found it funny, it made things a little awkward when he tried to help out.
"Hey Dylan" Stella sauntered up to him. She had taken to applying makeup just for Dylan—just for their dates or when they were Lemonade Mouth. Dylan smiled looping an arm around her and kissing her forehead.
She looked disappointed but she kissed his cheek. Then they moved apart, Stella to pick up her guitar, Dylan to the couch. The band practice had become quiet whenever Dylan was there. No one ever really talked to him but they smiled. That was at least something.
Dylan felt his phone vibrate as Lemonade Mouth started to play. Listening vaguely, he pulled out his phone. Staring at the screen his heart constricted. Two messages awaited him. He kept dreading the text from Stella that told them they were over. Dylan had grown attached to her. His fingers trembled as he opened the first message.
Why won't you kiss Stella?
He smiled slightly, his heart slowing its jogging. So Lemonade Mouth was just worried then. Opening the second text, Dylan got scared again. This one was from Kyle.
Practice today at 5:30
Dylan glanced up at the clock and shivered. It was already 4:45. He had to be at the practice or the Rebels would be suspicious. Turning back to Lemonade Mouth he froze once more when he heard the lyrics of their song.
"Boy" Stella sang staring straight at him "Why you messing with my head? You know I love ya but you leave me hangin. I can't take this no more. Boy why you messing with my head?" She jumped up on the couch next to him.
"You take me out! You take me home! We hang about but you won't say ya love me! You've got a leash around my neck and it won't come loose no matter how hard I try! Boy why you messing with my head? Don't we have something? Don't ya love me? Boy…Why you messing with my head?" Stella had walked back over to her spot but Dylan only saw her eyes. He'd hurt her. He could tell that much at least.
The song shuddered to a halt. The entire band was staring at Dylan. He stood up, sweating bullets. "You need to work on the end. Don't have it stutter out." Feeling disturbed he turned and left the room. Did Stella really feel that way? Was that why Lemonade Mouth had estranged him?
"Dylan!" Stella came barreling out of the room looking angry. "Why are you leaving?" Dylan smiled slightly, noticing movement in the doorway. Only Stella had come out of the room but the rest of the band was crowding around the doorway.
"You guys obviously don't want me there" Dylan stated as if it was obvious. "I don't like being were people don't want me." Stella scowled grabbing his head in her hands. Dylan was vaguely glad that she didn't have her guitar.
"I want you there Dylan! Stay. For me" She was pleading with words but Dylan could tell what she wanted to plead with. Already she was leaning forward. Gently he tried resting his hands on her neck.
"Convince me" He whispered. Just before her lips slammed onto his, he added "I'm sorry." Then they were kissing. Several sighs and gasps came from the doorway but the only thing Dylan was focused on was the kiss. It was nothing like Dylan had ever done before. It was like combining the thrill of his favorite rollercoaster and the taste of his favorite food.
When Stella pulled away breathing hard, Dylan licked his lips. "That was pretty good convincing Stella but I have somewhere I have to be. I forgot about it earlier." Her face fell so Dylan cupped her cheek. "I risked being late by coming here babe but I came anyways. For you. So tell me if I'm still messing with your head?"
Stella gasped, blushing. She opened her mouth but Dylan stopped her words with a finger. "Tell me later. I really have to go." Stella nodded before dragging his head down for another kiss, this one quicker than the other.
"You owe me a few months' worth of kissing." She muttered. Dylan chuckled, hugging her close. Stella smiled before gently pushing him away. "Go. Or you're going to be late." She turned to walk back in the room and Dylan fought the desire to grab her.
"I suddenly have the urge to stay." He said loudly. A chorus of laughter echoed out of the room before Dylan turned away. He was smiling as he ran to his car.
Dylan checked the time on his radio before backing out of Olivia's driveway. 5:15. Crap He thought speeding through the streets. Kyle is going to kill me if I'm late for practice. Dylan knew he'd also have to explain where he had been and that was something he really didn't want to do.
Despite not getting caught by the police for speeding, Dylan was still late to practice. He ran into the Rebels' practice room swearing loudly as he clutched his guitar. Kyle appeared next to him, his face like thunder.
"Where were you?" Kyle hissed pointing at the clock. Dylan flinched away from his friend trying to figure a way to lie quickly. My lies are piling up He mused turning to Kyle.
"I was kissing my girlfriend. Sorry I lost track of time." Kyle's face softened. Out of all the Rebel band members, Kyle was the only one who knew how Dylan felt about Stella. It helped his case a little that Kyle wanted this relationship to succeed.
"First kiss with her?" Kyle asked softly. Dylan nodded sheepishly making his friend smile widely. "Hey guys!" Kyle shouted putting an arm around Dylan who groaned. He knew it was going to be another one of Kyle's announcements. "Dylan's girlfriend is no longer a kissing virgin!"
Dylan looked at his friend, wishing he could hit him as the band cheered. The only words the band had most likely heard was 'no longer' and 'virgin'. Most of the Rebels had dirty minds to begin with but to add to that they were high a lot of the time too. Only Dylan and Kyle didn't get high—too much.
"Alright alright!" Kyle called. "We got GroundBreak in a few days and I want at least one of our songs ready for then. Got it?" The band nodded its assent as Dylan slipped on his guitar. Working with two bands was hard, but he was glad he could slip into the music.
Dylan waited for the three taps of the drum before sliding into the music. The angry music of the Rebels was attuned to Dylan's dark side. It let him deal with all the rage and frustration that built up during the day.
Practice ended a little too soon for Dylan. Stella's song had gone both ways for him. It brought the two of them closer but that frustrated Dylan. Stella still didn't know who he really was. Kyle walked up waving a few of the band members off.
"Can I get a ride?" Kyle asked. Dylan raised an eyebrow at him. Kyle had a nice car he'd outfitted for street racing and it was in almost perfect shape. Unless Kyle had finally wrecked it. "I got my car impounded." Kyle admitted under Dylan's questioning gaze.
"I'll give you a ride." Dylan led Kyle out to his car. Kyle made a surprised noise when he got in making Dylan smile. His friend had a right to be surprised. Stella had made Dylan clean out his car so that the only thing left was a few pictures on the dash. Remembering the pictures, Dylan began to panic. One of them was Dylan standing with Lemonade Mouth.
"Who are these guys…?" Kyle asked holding up the photo. Dylan groaned as he slid into the driver's seat. It wouldn't take Kyle long to figure things out. "This is Lemonade Mouth! Dude you're hanging with our competition!"
Dylan flinched away, snatching the photo. "I couldn't help it Kyle. My girlfriend is one of them." As soon as the words came out of his mouth, Dylan regretted them. Kyle's face turned an ugly shade of red.
"You' He snarled "are dating…one of our enemies?" Dylan returned the sneer on his friend's face before nodding. "How could you do that Dylan? We've been friends for forever! How could you just throw away the Rebels?"
Dylan laughed suddenly realizing why Kyle was mad. "I'm not joining them Kyle. I'm just dating one of them and the others are temporary. You know how the cycle goes for me." Kyle nodded, his rage spent. Both of them knew the day was coming soon. Dylan had messed with Roy a little too much over the last months.
"How long do you think you'll be in the hospital for?" Kyle asked quietly while Dylan started the car. The guitarist shrugged backing out of his parking space.
"I don't think they'll do too much damage but I'm worried for some reason. A doom seems to be hanging over that moment for some reason. I can't figure out why since I've never had that feeling before." Kyle smiled morbidly, watching Dylan's face closely.
"It's because of that girl." Dylan jerked reflexively and Kyle smiled. "You actually genuinely like this girl. You're afraid that when she finds out who you really are she won't want to be together any more." Dylan nodded stiffly, uncomfortable with how well Kyle could see through him.
Dylan dropped off Kyle then went to pick up Stella. He had an overwhelming urge to spend as much time with her as possible. "How's Sophia doing?" Stella asked as she climbed in the car. Dylan smiled when she kissed his cheek.
Sophia was a few weeks overdue with her baby and it was scaring quite a few people. Sophia herself wasn't worried saying the baby would come when it would come. In addition she refused offers of help insisting she was fine.
"She's ok. I'm just worried for the baby. It will never hear Sophia's voice." Stella placed a hand on his shoulder. Part of their time dating had been spent with Stella trying to dig into Dylan's past. It hadn't been successful but he had told her about Sophia.
"But it will have a mother that loves it so thoroughly that it'll be smothered. Not to mention the amazing uncle and aunt it's getting" Dylan turned to steal a quick kiss from her before they set off to his house. Stella smiled, relaxing against the back of the seat.
They spent the ride in comfortable silence, Stella sometimes reaching over to take Dylan's hand. She stopped after he almost wasn't able to stop for another car and wasn't able to maneuver well with one hand. Still the ride was comfortable for the most part. Dylan kept glancing over at Stella to wonder: How long is this going to last?
When they got to his house, Stella looked out the window. "Is there somewhere we can go for some private time?" She asked quietly, a blush rising in her cheeks. Dylan chuckled shaking his head. She is really set on making up for the months of kissing we missed. He thought to himself.
Stella had turned around and her face fell when she saw his answer. She opened her mouth to protest but Dylan halted her words with a finger "I know what you'll say and no I don't want to make up for the time we missed. I can't handle you by myself yet Stella and I don't want to go as far as you think we can today" Stella shut her mouth to think about his words before getting out of the car.
Dylan smiled at her enthusiasm to further their relationship as he got out of the car. When he saw her leaning against the hood, Dylan felt a flicker of annoyance. "What now Stella?" She smiled reaching into his pocket to pull out his keys. He felt stupid while she kissed him quickly. "Sorry. I'm a little tired"
"You have a right to be" Stella stated taking his hand. "Sophia requires a lot of attention so I understand if some of my allotted attention is gone." Dylan groaned, guilt welling within him. She always knew just what to say when she wanted him to feel guilty about something.
"Alright you win!" He cried. Stella looked at him innocently. Dylan scowled as he pulled her flush against him. "Don't give me that look. You know exactly what I mean." Trina suddenly appeared, punching Dylan in the arm. The two of them jumped apart, looking at Trina guiltily.
"Sophia says no making out on the front lawn. If you're going to do that," Trina gestured inside "do it where we can video tape you" Stella looked at Dylan with a horrified expression. Dylan shrugged. It was normal for his family.
As Trina provided their escort inside, Stella shimmied up to whisper into Dylan's ear. "They wouldn't really do that would they?" Dylan laughed drawing Trina's attention. She glared at the two of them, waiting for them to walk ahead of her.
"Yes they really would do that" He answered before leading Stella inside where Sophia welcomed them with open arms. "Sophia. How are you?" Sophia waved away his concern. She felt fine for the most part.
Stella stepped up, glancing at the couch. Dylan never liked the long black thing that seemed to be a blot but he could see the look in Stella's eye. "Sophia would it be alright if we stole the couch?" He asked grimacing at Stella's choice of furniture. He would have been more comfortable with the chair tucked away in the corner.
Sophia shook her head pointing at the ground. "What?" Dylan cried stepping back. Stella gave him a curious look. She hadn't quite gotten the hang of Sophia's sign language. Sophia smiled at her while insistently pointing at the ground.
"She wants our first um session to be right here. In front of her." Dylan said apologetically. Stella chuckled as Trina popped up again.
"And me too!" Sophia sighed shoving the protesting thirteen year old from the room with some help from Dylan. Stella watched the entire exchange with an amused look on her face. When Trina was barred from watching, Dylan turned back to his girlfriend.
"So…Are you alright with Sophia watching?" He wrung his hands nervously until Stella laughed moving to take his hands. Dylan could see the acceptance in her eyes and he smiled. Stella would do anything to have make up for the months lost.
Before their lips touched, Sophia bent over with her lips open in a silent scream. "Sophia?" Dylan said worriedly. "Sophia what's wrong?" She mimed quickly and Dylan paled. "Stella I need you to start the car!" Stella nodded dashing away as Dylan crouched next to his sister.
"Breathe Sophia. Breathe" He instructed thinking about the irony of the situation. Right before Stella could get her wish, Sophia got contractions. He heard the car start in the driveway and he carefully got Sophia to her feet. It was time to go to the hospital.