I'm baaaaack! So I didn't get much writing done... I got more reading done. I read 4 books while I was camping, haha. I was only gone 3 full days! xD Anyway, I'm back, but I also start school this week, so updates may not be as frequent on this or Facebook Official. So as always, the shout out to the reviewers - nangelgirl923, thecowgoesmoo29, x0xalexis8, Ace5492, MiiMyselfandTime, and AFlawlessBeauty - thanks for the reviews! :)

12/14 years old - The Nerve

If there was one thing that Zora had learned in the past year of her life, it's that people could change.

When Sonny came to So Random, she was determined to break the rivalry between Mackenzie Falls and So Random. While she hadn't totally succeeded, she hadn't totally failed either. The Falls' lead, Chad Dylan Cooper, had become less jerky toward the Randoms. Of course, it mainly had to do with the fact that he liked Sonny, though he denied it, but Tawni and Zora weren't stupid. If Chad wasn't proof enough that people could change, there was another name that came to Zora's mind.

Shayne Thomson.

Her rival since she was five. Though as of the previous summer, her friend - best friend. She wasn't sure how it happened. After all, he had just pushed her into the lake, but she pulled him down with her. They resurfaced, and laughed about it.

She still wasn't sure why.

For the last nine months though, they had been texting, calling, and video chatting one another as if they had been best friends their entire lives. So much in fact, that it got to the point where it annoyed their siblings and their friends that they spent so much time talking to each other. Zora smiled at the memory of Tawni chewing her out for texting him while she was giving some "important" speech about how Cocoa-Mocha-Cocoa lipstick is better than any other kind.

Being with her friends on set for the better part of the year made her miss her new best friend. Sure, she was best friends with her cast, but she still felt excluded. After all, Tawni and Sonny had become best friends in the last year, scouting out cute boys and shopping together, and Nico and Grady had been best friends since before they worked on So Random. Now that Zora was on break for between seasons, she was glad to be spending time with Shayne.

Just not today.

She's twelve now, only one year away from being a teenager. But with that coming of age came some changes. As in, puberty.

It's not fun. She remembers when it first happened. It was only two months ago, right after she turned twelve. She completely freaked out. It had been embarrassing when Sonny and Tawni told her that it was normal.

So today hanging out around their small hometown with Shayne was not fun in the least. Not with him wanting to compete in all these different activities. One thing that hadn't changed about him was that he was still very competitive, even with Zora.

"Come on! The day's still young!" he complains.

"You know, you're really getting on my nerves." She's getting annoyed with him. The cramps are not helping the situation. "I'm tired and I just want to go home!"

He smiles mischievously. "I'll race you to your house."

"No! I don't want to!"

"Come on!"

"No Shayne!" She turns and begins to walk away from him.

He runs ahead of her, placing his hand on her shoulder, keeping her from walking any further. "I know! Thumb War!"

"Do you not understand the word no?"

He rolls his green eyes. "Do you not understand that I'm bored? Are you willing to just let your best friend die from boredom?"

Zora ponders for a moment. "Can't you hang out with your brother?"

"No. He's helping my mom with some fund-raiser thing." He hangs his head in frustration, his blond locks falling over his eyes. "Come on," he looks at her. "Just one teeny little race. Afraid you're gonna lose?"

"No. I'm afraid that your reputation will be pegged down when you get beat by a girl. Again. Sissy-boy."

She's struck a nerve. "Don't call me that!" he shouts angrily.

"Well you are!" she taunts. "How many times have you been beat up by a girl? Three, four times?"

He glares at her. "Shut up!"

She smirks to herself. She loves how easy it is to get him riled up. She finds his childishness amusing. "Whatever. I don't feel like dealing with this." She turns and takes off before he can react. The cramps are almost unbearable.

He glares after her, not bothering to leave his spot, and crosses his arms. "You may be my best friend, but I hate you!"

Best friends but still fighting... gotta love it :)

Right?

I hope so.

Anyway... thanks for waiting the few days. I hope it wasn't too painful! I'll work on the next chapter of this and Facebook Official and post ASAP :)

Thanks for reading! And reviewing? ;)

Later!