Hey! First I want to say thank you to Wesfanemt333 for telling me I put the story under a Cinderella story category. I meant to put it under another Cinderella story, but I was so exhausted yesterday I totally forgot there was such a thing (which is weird since my fic is about another Cinderella story) and put it under the wrong category. I can be such a doofus sometimes! Anyway, please enjoy this second chapter!

Chapter 2: Paparazzi and Nate?!

I groaned as I walked down the sidewalk, my brown hair flying behind me as gusts of wind blew along the road. I juggled the eleven library books with difficulty, cursing myself for breaking my bag just a week ago.

I hated being clumsy. It was just so… inconvenient. I nodded at the shop owners as I walked by. They all knew me and I knew them. I was, 'Mary, the little girl that lives down the block,' and I liked it that way.

"Do you need help, Mary?" Mrs. Winderly, the flower shop owner called. "No thank you, Mrs. Winderly. I think I'm fine. Bianca and Breah wanted me to bring them to the library myself." I rebalanced the books and almost tripped over my own feet. "Dang it," I muttered. Sometimes I wished I could trade my clumsiness with someone else for a day. Or at least right now.

The books were stable again and I sighed. Today was going to be a record. So far I had only returned nine books to the library at a go, and that was with a bag. Today I was returning eleven books, and with no bag.

Suddenly, I heard a voice shout "Watch out!" I turned my head around to see if the voice was coming from behind me but apparently I should have been watching out for what was coming in front of me.

I felt two strong hands grip mine and suddenly I was falling to the sidewalk. The books flew everywhere and knocked me very, very hard as I fell. "Ouch!" I shouted and looked up to see who had run into me.

And a freckled face clouded with brown hair and hazel eyes stared back at mine. "I… am so sorry!" The boy apologized as he picked up my books, glancing nervously around his shoulder. I felt a jolt of electricity shock through me. I wondered if he felt it too.

I stared at him. He seemed uncannily familiar. I moved slowly, trying to remember where I had seen his face. "Oh… it's fine. Really."

When I had picked up some books he offered me a hand and helped me stand up. I tried to stack up the books again but it didn't work too well this time. The boy continued to glance nervously behind his shoulder.

"Hey, are you okay?" I asked as I took the remainder of the books from his hands. He looked so familiar it was driving me nuts. His head snapped back to mine. "Yeah… yeah I am."

"You don't look it," I said skeptically.

Suddenly, the street was ringing with squeals and cries. "Nate! Nate! Nate!" I leaned around him and saw a big group of girls start running towards us, some even spilling onto the streets.

"Oh no," He muttered. "They found me!" I raised an eyebrow. Nate seemed awkwardly familiar as well. "Who found you?" Well, that was a stupid question. It was obviously those girls, who were getting extremely close to us.

I clutched my books tightly, praying that I would not get run over by the crazy mob. The boy, I mean Nate, seemed more scared than I was. "They've seen you too, this is bad…bad…" He shook his head. Me? I didn't do anything wrong, did I? What did he mean, 'they've seen me' ?

He turned back to me. "Put those books down." I clutched them even harder. "Why?" His browns eyes burned into mine. "Please," He pleaded. I loosened my grip. The girls were getting extremely close. I would have expected them to have already reached us but…

I studied Nate. He was panting pretty heavily. I guessed that he had been running away from them for quite a while. I looked into the flower shop and quickly set the books down and shoved them underneath a table.

"Mrs. Winderly, can I—"

But Nate had already grabbed my hand and was running. "Mrs. Winderly, I'm leaving my books at your shop!" I shouted as Nate pulled me away. He ran down the sidewalk and turned back to the park.

"What's going on," I shouted at him as I ran. "Crazy fans, and paparazzi," he said as I tried to catch up with him. "This way," he yanked me into the park courtyard. "Fans… paparazzi? Who are you," He hesitated for a moment and didn't reply.

We stopped running and stood in the empty open air courtyard, hearing the screams get louder and louder. Fans were really very scary.

"Do you know where you're going?" I panted. He obviously didn't seem like he knew where he was. "I think so…" He gasped and pulled my hand towards the trees. "No you don't!" I pulled on his hand, which was still holding onto mine. "What?"

"Follow… me," I grunted as I struggled to pull him. "I… know… this… place better than you!" The mob suddenly appeared and started running right at us.

They were so close that I could hear distinct voices shrieking—at me—'who is she' or 'she's with Nate!' or even 'I hate her!'."Hurry," Nate breathed. I dragged him to the middle of the park and sure enough, there was a big maze that grew right in the center of it all. I grinned and ran towards it. "We'll get lost!" Nate shouted.

"No we won't Nate!" I laughed back at him as I pulled him into the greenery. And then we were both running, the air whipping our hair everywhere. And for the first time in as long a time I could remember, I felt free.

I listened to the steady beat of our feet running on the cobbled floor, the chorus of screaming girls and the uneven panting of Nate behind me. And his laugh that rang through the air like wind chimes, blending into mine. For a brief moment, I closed my eyes as I ran, listening to the music that I wanted never to end.

I could hear him laughing as I pulled him along and I joined him when we heard the distressed cries of the girls calling 'Nate!' outside the maze.

I suspected that they would run in, after all they seemed like they were hardcore fans of him. And then I heard heavy footsteps and the girls were following us. I grasped Nate's hand even harder and sprinted.

But the strange thing was, these hedges didn't have any flowers or anything except leaves, and the maze that I remembered had gorgeous flowers growing in the bushes. Suddenly, the place that we were running didn't seem too familiar to me.

And then we were at a dead end.

I could hear the screams and footsteps coming closer.

"Oh no—I am so sorry Nate… I thought we were in the park near my house… I am so sorry," I choked out the words as I struggled for breath. Nate patted my back gently. "It's okay… it's okay we'll just… they won't find us… I don't think," And then I heard the footsteps a few lanes away.

We stared at each other in horror.

"Uh oh." I muttered.

So how was it? I know it wasn't that good, but please, review the story! I would love feedback! I got just one review and I went CRAZY, I think my mom almost sent me to an asylum! Tell me more of what you wanna see! More descriptions… more mary and nate… more mitchie? Haha. Next chapter will be out soon! Please review!