(A/N: I am soooooo beyond sorry! Ugh I must be the world's worst updater! But, the good news is..... it's a new chapter! Sorry it's so short, but it really moves the story along, so I think I might update tomorrow night. So..... I know I will update faster is I get a lot of reviews! So please, do so!)


The cafeteria felt sickeningly quiet after our little argument, even though you could hear thunder crashing wildly outside.

As Chad inched away from me, I began to feel lonely. No one was protecting me from the storm raging outside. My knight in shining Abercrombie "Fierce" cologne was mad at me, and I didn't know what to do.

I took a deep breath and blew my bangs out of my face, angrily. Moments ago, I had thought me and Chad were possibly more than friends (were we even friends to begin with?) but now I could see that, if anything, he hated me more than before.

Why did I have to bring up the thing with Jake?! I could have just said something about us moving too fast, but no! Something stupid just had to pop out of my mouth.

I groaned loudly into the dark, and in my peripheral vision, saw Chad glance over at me.

"Look, Sonny…" I turned my head in his direction, trying hard not to let him see the tears filling my eyes.

"Yes?" I responded, my voice wavering a bit and a tear spilling down my cheek. Chad looked at me, frustrated, and raised a hand to my cheek. I flinched away from him, and I could see the hurt flash in his eyes.

"Sorry," I mumbled leaning back towards him. He looked down and sighed loudly.

"I'm, uh… I just wanted to, well, you know…" Chad mumbled awkwardly. I rolled my eyes, shedding more tears as I did so.

"You mean, apologize?" I sighed. Chad nodded. Then he looked into my eyes.

"I'm sorry," he began, in the most sincere voice I had ever heard from him. "I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. I could stand that I was being compared to that jerk, but I guess I'm just as bad. I mean, look at you!" he cried. As if to prove his point, he swiped a finger across my cheek.

He held up my tear, which glistened as the lightning continued outside. I looked down and he continued.

"I'm no better than that, that….. That bastard!" he roared. I gasped at his language. He grinned sheepishly, though the smile didn't reach his sparkling eyes.

"Sorry, there was no other word for it. Come on, even you were thinking it!" I giggled and nodded, agreeing with his accusation.

His smile faltered as he took a deep breath. "I didn't mean to make you cry. I love you way too much!"

We both froze as we realized what he had said. He closed his eyes, and I could tell there was a deep blush forming on his cheeks. I was too stunned to say anything. But I could feel.

I felt a great warmth pooling at my belly button and spreading throughout my whole body. You know when you drink tea on a cold, winter day and it warms your throat, then your chest, and then the rest of you? Well, that's how it felt. Except it only took half a second.

My palms were tingling, and I felt like I was going to explode. But see, I would have been happy to explode. That's how I felt.

Chad looked back up at me, to judge my reaction. I couldn't think, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't even focus. So I did the only thing I could.

I kissed him.


(A/N: I know it's a cliffie, but at least they aren't at square one!! Haha please review!)