About an hour into our date, we were laughing and had our fingers laced together. My phone would go off every two minutes, and I knew who it was, but I just let it buzz. I was having fun, I didn't need to talk to Mitchie. We were at the beach, but we hadn't gone in the water. We didn't have swimming suits. So, we rolled up a pant legs a little bit, and let the waves run over our feet.

Ariana pulled her hand away from mine and put her hands in her back pockets, "Having fun?"

I smiled, "Yeah...a lot of fun."

She smiled at me, "Good, but now it's time for you to answer that dang phone."

I laughed and shook my head, "It's just Mitchie."

"Here, let me answer."

I tugged my buzzing phone out of my pocket and handed it to her.

She tapped answer and put it on speaker, "Hellooo?"

"Uh, who's this?"

"Alex's date, who's this?"

She paused, "Um...I'm Mitchie...where's Alex?"

"Right here, but she's busy."

"With what?"

Ariana smiled, "Doesn't matter, but you need to back off, kay?"

"What's your name?"

"Ariana. Remember me?"

Mitchie sighed, "Are you fucking kidding me? You're trying to steal my girlfriend?!"

"She came with me voluntarily."

"Whatever," then she hung up.

Ariana handed me back my phone and smiled. She looked so cute. Her red hair flowing with the wind, her little smile, her everything. I stepped closer to her and pulled her in for a hug. She hugged back, resting her head on my shoulder. I was happy, but at the same time, not. This didn't feel right...It wasn't my Mtchie... Ariana didn't hold me right. She didn't look at me right. She didn't talk to me right. She just wasn't Mitchie. I wanted Mitchie...but at the same time, I didn't. Mitchie cheated and broke my heart...but I love her...I love her...how come I didn't realize this before?! I am in love with her! I slowly pulled away from Ariana and smiled casually...but on the inside, I was screaming. I wanted to bolt away from her, off the beach, and straight to Mitchie. I wanted to kiss her and tell her how much I love her. Why didn't I, though? I was afraid. I didn't want another broken heart and I didn't want to break another person's heart. I already crushed Mason, more than once. I crushed Mitchie, even though she crushed me, too...and now...I'm going to crush Ariana. She's so sweet and nice, I can't do that to her.

"Alex? Are you okay?"

I snapped out of it and smiled, "Yeah, I'm perfect."

She smiled and interlocked her fingers with mine, "Come on, let's go get something to eat."

"Where?"

"Pizza Parlor work for you?"

So many memories at that place, "Yeah, sure, I love that place."

She smiled, "Me too."

***

We were nearly done eating, when I familiar car pulled up into the parking lot. My eyes widened as I watched Mitchie get out of her car. Why did we have to pick the window table? Mitchie saw me within two seconds flat.

I quickly stood up, "Hey, Ari, maybe we should go."

She shook her head, "I'm not done yet."

Mitchie burst through the doors and walked over to us.

Ariana glanced up at her, "I now see why you wanted to leave."

I sighed, "Mitch, go order your food, we were just leaving."

Mitchie placed her hands on my shoulders and made me sit down in the booth, then sat next to me. She stared across the table at Ariana. Ariana only laughed and took a bite of pizza.

Mitchie spoke, "You should go, before I slap you."

She rolled her eyes, "I think that's Alex's decision."

They both looked at me, expecting an answer. It was too much pressure. I had two hearts in my hands, and I didn't want to break either one. Mitchie noticed what was racing through my mind, somehow, and looked back to Ariana.

"You can't just put that much pressure on her, she's not good under pressure."

She looked to Mitchie, "I wasn't putting anything on her, it was a simple question. Does she want me or does she want you?"

I stood up on the seat, stepped over Mitchie, and jumped onto the ground, "I know exactly what I want...but I just don't want to hurt anyone."

Ariana smirked, "I'm sure Mitchie can take it."

I glanced at her, "I...I'm...ugh!"

I ran out of the building and to the park. I sat under the slide, my knees hugged to my chest. Mitchie and Ariana were soon to enter my line of vision. They saw me right away and bolted over.

Mitchie was out of breath, "Damn, you run fast."

I nodded, "Yeah...I know..."

Ariana spoke, "Please, Alex, just pick one of us and get this over with."

"I can't just pick one of you. You guys have no idea how hard this is for me. I hate hurting people, but I always end up doing it."

Mitchie sighed and sat next to me, "Well, I understand, because I know how painful it feels when you hurt someone..."

She was referring to when she cheated on me. She hurt me, then later she hurt her ex. Ariana sat on the other side of me.

I sighed, "I already picked...I just cant say it..."

Ariana whispered in my ear, "Whoever you pick, we'll understand. Don't worry about it, okay?"

I glanced at her, then looked to Mitchie, then stared up at the sky.

I mumbled, "I'm in love with you, Mitchie."

We all just kind of froze. Mitchie was in shock, Ariana was crushed, and I was just...everything. Ariana just stood up, brushed off her pants, and walked away. Not saying a single word to me. I looked to Mitchie, she was staring at the ground, processing this.

She mumbled, "Say it again..."

"I'm in love with you..."

She nodded, "...was just checking..."

"Well...are you going to say it back?"

She slowly smiled and looked up at me, "I love you, too, baby."

She scooped me up, ducked out from under the slide, and spun me in circles. I laughed and pecked her cheek. She gently sat me down, but wrapped her arms around my waist and pulled me close. Her lips crashed down onto mine as she pulled me in closer. I wrapped my arms around her neck and started to smile. She slipped her lips away and smiled.

She whispered, "I've missed you like crazy."

"I've missed you, too..."

"I really am sorry for everything. I just love you so much...when you didn't say it back...I was beyond crushed-"

I pecked her lips, "Shh, babe, you're forgiven."

She lightly kissed my neck, "Come back to my house with me?"

I bit my lip, "Okay..."

***

We pulled up into her driveway, then got out. She laced her fingers with mine and gently pulled me inside. She half waved at her little sister and her babysitter. She led me to her room. She closed and locked the door behind us. She plopped down onto her bed, pulling me on top of her. I sat down on her stomach and laced both my hands with hers. I leaned down and slowly kissed her. Her hands traveled up my legs and gripped my waist. It was like we were picking up where we left off. I slipped my lips away from hers and brushed them down her neck. Her breathing picked up as my lips crashed down along her neck. She flipped us over so she was sitting on my stomach now. She slipped her hands under my shirt and slowly started tugging it off. Once mine was off, I did the same to hers. Her warm lips brushed along my stomach as I let a small moan escape my lips. Her shaky hands found their way to the button of my pants, but she paused.

She took a deep breath, "Want me to stop?"

I shook my head, "No."

She smirked and continued.

***

The next morning, the sun shining brightly through the window woke me up. I crawled out of bed and yanked the curtains closed. They were only cracked open a bit, we made sure they were closed last night. I tossed on my clothes and checked myself in the mirror. I dragged Mitchie's brush through my messy hair, then returned to her. She was slowly waking up.

She mumbled, "What time is it?"

I glanced at the clock, "Almost two in the afternoon."

She rubbed her face and sat up, "We should go check on Maddie. She's never been alone for this long before."

I stood, "I'll do it, you wake up."

She grabbed my wrist, "Kiss first."

I smiled, leaned down, and pecked her lips, "Love you, angel."

She smiled, "I love you, too, beautiful."

I slipped my wrist away and walked into the living room. Maddie was sitting on the floor, coloring in her book. I walked to the kitchen, where my mouth fell ajar. I see Maddie tried to make herself some breakfast... There was sugar sprinkled all over the floor, flour powdered all over the counters, chocolate syrup spilled on the table, and the fridge was wide open. I quickly shut the fridge, then jogged off to Mitchie's room.

She groggily mumbled, "How is she?"

"Oh, she's fine, but it's your kitchen I would be worried about."

She sat up and stared at me blankly, "Oh no..."

I nodded, "Yeah..."

She tossed the blanket off of her, threw some clothes on over her underwear and brushed past me. As she did, she lightly ran her fingers over my stomach. I smirked and followed her. She groaned when she entered the kitchen.

She yelled, "Madison Torres!"

Maddie slowly walked into the kitchen, her hands stuffed in her pockets. Mitchie glared at her, and she instantly knew what to do. Maddie grabbed to broom and started cleaning up. Mitchie brushed some hair behind her ear, grabbed a washcloth, and started cleaning up the chocolate syrup. I figured I should help, too, since it was half my fault Mitchie didn't get up on time. I grabbed some paper towel and started cleaning up the flour.

Mitchie glanced at me, "You don't have to help, babe."

I shrugged, "It's kind of my fault."

"How?"

I smirked, "I kept you up all night."

She laughed and winked, then went back to cleaning.

Maddie asked, "Why'd she keep you up?"

My eyes widened and I looked to Mitchie. Mitchie was staring at Maddie, trying to think of a response.

She scratched the back of her neck, "We were up talking all night."

"Talking about what?"

Mitchie kind of panicked, "Politics."

I let a small laugh escape my lips, so I quickly covered my mouth.

Maddie nodded, "Oh, okay," and went back to cleaning.

Demi playfully glared at me, I innocently smiled back.

***

Once we were done cleaning, Mitchie sent Maddie off to her room. As soon as we heard her door close, Mitchie pressed me against the wall.

She shook her head, "I can't believe you put me in that situation."

I laughed and shrugged, "I thought it was funny."

She licked her lips, "It wasn't, I need payback."

"What kind of payback?"

She smirked, "Dinner with your parents tonight."

My smile fell, "Mitch...they don't know..."

She pecked my lips, "It's about time they find out."

I shook my head, "N-no, babe, I can't!"

"You love me, right?"

I nodded, "Yeah, of course, with all my heart."

"Then it's time they know."

I sighed, "I don't know..."

She laced her fingers with mine, "I'll be there the whole time. If you get scared, just pretend I'm the only one there with you."

I looked down, "O-okay..."

She softly kissed me, then pulled away from me, "Go home and get ready, don't forget to warn your parents."

"Okay..."

She kissed my forehead, "I love you, Alex."

I gazed into her eyes, "I love you, too, Mitchie."

***

My mom was making dinner with my dad and little brother. In the mean time, I was freaking out with Justin. He kept trying to calm me down, but nothing was working. I needed Mitchie. I needed her to hold me and rock me. I needed her to kiss me and tell me it was going to be okay. I needed my angel. Justin was my substitute. He held me close and swayed us. Just then, the doorbell rang, sending my heart flying out of my chest.

Justin pulled away, "It's going to be okay. Take a deep breath."

I shook my head, "No, I can't do this!"

He placed his hands on my shoulders and looked in my eyes, "Yes, you can."

I heard the front door open and my mom greet Mitchie.

My mom said, "Oh, you must be Mitchie! Well, don't you look lovely!"

I could hear the smile in her voice, "Thank you, ma'am."

My mom chuckled, "You don't have to call me ma'am! Come in, come in!"

The door closed and my heart rate picked up even faster. I squeezed Justin's hand, and he flashed me a reassuring smile. I stuffed my hands in my pockets and Justin left. I sighed and followed after him. My dad and Max were setting the table, while my mom and Mitchie chatted. Mitchie's eyes shifted over to me as she talked. This made my mom turn around.

She smiled, "There's my girl! When did you meet Mitchie? She's such a lovely girl, she seems like a great friend."

I mumbled under my breath, "Oh, trust me, she's great."

"What was that, sweetie?"

I looked at her and smiled politely, "Nothing, mom."

"Well, let's go have some dinner."

My family disappeared into the kitchen, so I quickly kissed Mitchie. She smiled and followed me into the kitchen. My dad sat at one end of the table, my mom at the other. Mitchie and I sat next to each other, Justin and Max sat across from us. My parents had made tacos.

Once we were done eating, the chatting started. Justin kept flashing me this expecting look. I couldn't tell if Mitchie was, I didn't even look at her.

My mom looked to me, "So, is this the girl you've been spending all your time with? Or has that been Mason?"

I flickered my eyes down at the table, "Actually, Mason and I broke up a while ago."

She gasped, "What? Why? What happened?"

I sighed and looked at her, "He just wasn't the one for me. I wasn't happy, so I left him."

"Well, are you okay?"

"I'm perfectly fine, trust me."

She nodded, "So, Mitchie is the one you've been sleeping over at, then, right?"

I played with the tablecloth, "Uh, yeah."

I felt Mitchie's hand land on my knee and squeezed, trying to comfort me. I glanced at her, then looked back to my mom.

My mom smiled at me, "You two already seem like sisters."

I shook my head, "No, please, don't call us sisters."

"Why not?"

I bit my lip and glanced at Max, "Max, sweetheart, go play."

He nodded and ran off.

I looked back to my mom, "Because sisters don't fall in love with each other and...sleep with each other."

My dad chocked on his water, Mitchie kind of jumped at the information I shared, my mom stared at me with wide eyes, and Justin just watched me. A silence set over all us, it was a painful silence. I glanced around at everyone. My mom was in shock, Justin was neutral, Mitchie looked kind of worried, and my dad...he was between confused and pissed.

Justin broke the silence, "I'm happy for you, Alex."

My dad glared at Justin, "Happy? Not only is she not a virgin, but she's a homosexual!"

I added, "I think, maybe, I'm just bisexual."

My dad ignored my comment and looked to my mother, "Do you agree with this?!"

My mom didn't say anything, she was just kind of frozen there. I looked to Mitchie, who was already looking at me. The next thing I did, I probably shouldn't have done, but I did. I cupped Mitchie's face in my hands...and kissed her. It wasn't a little kiss, either. No, it was a passionate and long kiss. I slipped my lips away, but kept my face against her's, and looked at my family. My dad's jaw was hanging open, my mom looked like she was about to faint, and Justin was showing me two thumbs up. Something tells me things are just going to spin down from here...

I spoke loudly, "I'm utterly and completely in love with her."

My mom stood, "Well, I'm full, help me with the dishes, girls?"

My dad glared at her, "Sit down, Teresa, we aren't just dropping this."

"What are we going to say, Jerry? Huh?"

He stood and his eyes flickered me to, "I will not lose my daughter to this."

Justin scoffed, "You say that like it's a fucking disease! Grow the fuck up, dad!"

He slammed his fists onto the table, "You will not speak to me like that, Justin Russo!"

I broke in, "Um, he already did, and he's right."

My mom yelled, "Everyone needs to just quiet down! We are right next to each other!"

Max ran in, "What's everyone yelling about?"

We all yelled back, except Mitchie, "Nothing!"

He jumped and ran away. My mom sighed and chased after him. By now, we were all standing, including Mitchie. I'm pretty sure she was about to leave, but could you blame her? Justin faced my father again.

Justin spoke, "As I was saying, you need open your fucking mind to this! She's your god damn daughter! She's still the same person, she just fell in love with a girl!"

"It's just not natural! She's not natural!"

I blurted out with tears streaming, "Fuck you, dad!"

I kicked my chair away from me and bolted out of the house. I, of course, bolted straight to Mason's house. Reflex, I guess. I burst through the front door, only to be confronted by Mason, Zeke, and Harper. The second Harper saw my tears, she engulfed me in a hug. Mason was soon to join the hug.

He whispered, "What happened, Lexi?"

I sobbed, "I-I came out...a-and..."

Harper rocked me, "Shh, we get it, you don't have to say it."

Mitchie and Justin ran in the front door, out of breath, and joined the hug. I heard Zeke sigh, then felt him also join the hug.

After a few minutes, everyone pulled away, and Mitchie pulled me securely into her arms. I glanced at Mason, who was eyeing us. He saw me looking and flashed me a small, but honest smile. I looked away and buried my head into Mitchie's shoulder.

Justin spoke, "Mom and dad are arguing up a storm...Dad wants to kick you out, mom just doesn't know what to think, but she doesn't want you out."

I sighed and mumbled, "He can fuck off, if he doesn't want me, I'll disappear from his life. But I'll be damned if I disappear from your, mom's, and Max's lives."

Justin asked, "Well, what are you going to do?"

I pulled away from Mitchie and sighed, "Not move out, that's for sure. I can't just drop my family because I'm not 'daddy's little girl' anymore."

Mitchie reached over and took my hand, "I'm sorry, babe...this is all my fault..."

I shook my head, "No, it's not. You were right to want me to do this, I just approached it in the wrong way. Don't you even dare to think it was your fault."

She sighed, "I should get going...I have some stuff I need to do at home..."

"I'll walk you out..."

I led her out and started walking her to my house, where her car was, but stopped us.

"I know you don't have anything you have to do at home."

She looked up at the sky, "I just feel so responsible."

I placed my hands on her warm neck and gently pulled her down for a kiss. After a few seconds, her hands were on my hips, pulling me closer. In the distance, we could hear a group of guys cheering. Mitchie started to pull away because of it, but I wasn't going to let some immature assholes take my Mitchie away. I pulled her in tighter and deepened the kiss. I felt her begin to smile, which made me smile. I slipped my lips away and gazed into her eyes. Her eyes are so beautiful. They just make me melt. Everything about her makes me melt. I just love her so much. Her eyes flickered over to the chanting boys. Her right hand slid off my hip, lifted up, and stuck up the middle finger. They laughed and started running over. They surrounded us, smirking.

Mitchie rolled her eyes, "What do you freaks want?"

One laughed, "Awe, come on, beautiful. Can we get a name?"

"Why would it matter?"

Another spoke, "So we can give you a shout when we see you around."

One winked, "That way we can, ya know, hook up."

Mitchie pretended to gag, "Lesbian here, pal. Go off somewhere else."

"Well, what about your little friend?"

"She's my girlfriend. She's completely mine and you will back the hell off."

One reached over and put his hand on my lower back. Mitchie pulled away from me, grabbed the guy's arm, and twisted it until he cried out in pain. The rest rolled their eyes and stormed off, muttering angry things. The guy who she twisted the arm of, glared, then made off with his friends. Mitchie returned her arms around my waist and sighed.

I spoke, "Babe, they were just messing around..."

"I know...but you're mine...I don't like it when people touch you..."

I laughed a little, "You can't stop that completely, baby."

She sighed and nodded, "Yeah, I know, but if some pig comes up and touches you...well, he might lose his hand."

I softly kissed her, "I love you."

She smiled, "I love you, too."