Knock knock knock.

Knock knock knock.

"Sweetie, wake up."

I stirred in my sleep when I heard my mother's voice. She was trying to wake me up. Ugh, like I want to be reminded how horrible life was.

"Cat. Wake up."

"What is it?" I groggily mumbled.

"I need to go to work, but there's something in my drive way. I won't really have time to move them and then take my car out. Do you think you can do it for me?"

Seriously? Did mom not remember anything from last night? My God how much does she hate dad?

"Why can't you ask Tori to do it, ma? I'm tired and cranky and I just want to go to bed," I complained.

"Because Tori's occupied at the moment. She's making breakfast for you. Now hurry up. I can't be late for work."

"Ugh, ok fine."

After my mom left my room to gather her things, I slugged out of bed, walked to my bathroom and took a good look at myself in the mirror. Who was this girl staring back at me? She looked horrible. No, that was an understatement. She looked demented. I guess that all night crying didn't do me any good 'letting out the bad' as Tori put it. Whatever. I wasn't going to let Robbie ruin my day, even if it is already a bit ruined since I'm thinking about him now. Ok, I should just stop and go help my mom.

"Cat, baby. Hurry up and open the garage, take the stuff out of the driveway, and get yourself cleaned up. You shouldn't pout all day," Mom yelled from the powder room in the hallway.

I wasn't sure if she was being nice or just straightforward with that comment. Oh well. I walked past Tori in the kitchen before going to the garage.

"Morning, Kitty-Cat. You feeling any better?" she asked as she whipped up the last of the batter of pancakes.

"I guess…"

"Oh come on, smile. Look, I made all your favorite breakfast foods."

"Did you make this food to cheer me up or to get away from cleaning the driveway?" I joked.

"You're better at baking and I'm better at cooking. Remember you burnt water. I figured you'd rather clean the driveway than cook," she smirked.

"What? Hell no, I hate yard work."

"This isn't the yard, it's the driveway. Now go and clean it up before mom gets late for work," she shooed me away.

"Fine, will you at least help me when you're done cooking?" I asked.

"Ok, I'll be there in a minute," she said.

After much stalling, I knew mom would need to be gone in five minutes so I put my shoes on and headed to the garage. When I pressed the button to open the door, boy was I in for a surprise. The driveway was in fact blocked. It was blocked with flowers. So. Many. Flowers. Every inch of our driveway was covered.

"What the?" I was baffled. I went up to the first bouquet of pink and white roses, my favorite, and found a card. It read 'I'm sorry, Cat.'

Whoa, these were for me?

I went to another bunch and read a card. I then noticed that in almost every bouquet there was a card.

'Please forgive me.'

'I just want to see you smile again.'

'You're beautiful.'

The crazy thing was, no two bouquets had the same flower arrangements. There must have been about 20 different flowers around me. This was unbelievable, too good to be true, the work of only one person I could think of – Robbie. When we'd watch those romcoms, I would tell him how cheesy those gestures were but I secretly loved them. He said one of these days he'll surprise me by doing something like that and I laughed at him and told him good luck because we don't really have cheesy moments. I guess he finally found a way to incorporate one by saying sorry. And I was right because by the time I reached the end of the driveway and found the last note, it read 'Pretty cheesy, huh? But I made you smile.' And I admit that last note did make me smile.

"Cat?" a familiar voice spoke.

I looked up and there was Robbie standing in front of me with a card in one hand and a box in another.

I took the note from him and opened it.

'I'm not going anywhere.'

I furrowed my eyebrows and looked up at him.

"You can't get rid of me that easily," he smirked.

All I could do was hug him tightly and close my eyes. I wanted to make sure it wasn't a dream and when I opened them and felt that I was still in his arms, I knew it was real.

"Robbie, this is just…"

"Cheesy?" he chuckled.

"Sweet. But yes, cheesy," I giggled.

"I'm really sorry about yesterday, Cat," he said again.

"Let's just focus on today," I told him. I didn't want to talk about it and if his note was any indication of what I thought, I knew we needed time to talk later. "So, what's in the box?" I changed the subject.

"Oh," he suddenly remembered he was holding something. "What kind of guy would I be if I never listened to you and know that I couldn't just do something awesome like this for you to forgive me. And correct me if I'm wrong but I know you, you're hungry. And you can't eat any of these flowers, but maybe you'll like this one…"

He handed me the box and I opened it. Oh yeah, I'd definitely eat this flower. It was a red velvet cupcake with a red rose frosted decoration on top.

"Oh Robbie, you know me so well," I smiled. "Thanks, but you know my mom is going to get mad that you put all these flowers in her driveway."

"I came here in the morning and explained my plan to her. You know, after she pinned me down and threatened to cut all my hair off with scissors. She's using the truck today."

That said, mom came out of the garage and smiled seeing the two of us had made up.

"Nice work, Robbie," she winked. "Bye baby, see you tomorrow," mom kissed my cheek and left.

"Ok nice plan. But you do you that we still have to take these flowers out of the driveway so she can use her car tomorrow," I reminded him.

"Oh, well I didn't think this plan through, huh?" he scratched his head.

"Come on Romeo, let's get to cleaning," I dragged him by the hand up our driveway. "These really are beautiful flowers, Robbie. But why'd you get so many different ones? Couldn't decide?" I giggled.

"Yep. I couldn't decide the most beautiful ones, but as I kept choosing, I figured none of them really compared to you so I'd show you the most beautiful flowers that you beat," he smirked.

"That's so cute!" Tori yelled from the garage. When the hell did she appear?

"Thanks for ruining the moment, Tor," I laughed.

"I'm sorry but I just wanted to see what Robbie ended up doing. That's adorable. Anyway, breakfast is ready so eat first and clean up later."

"That's actually not a bad idea. I really want that cupcake," I told him.

He intertwined our hands and we walked back inside to have breakfast. I guess today was going to be better than I thought.

Robbie and I spent a good two hours clearing up my mom's driveway. Taking them out of the driveway was easy; placing them elsewhere was our biggest challenge. We decided to keep half of them at my mom's and since she left the van here, we'd take the rest to dad's place since he desperately needed some décor. It was pretty funny when we showed up with about a dozen bouquets of flowers at his place.

"What's the occasion? Wait, baby it's not your birthday today, right?" Dad grew worried.

"No dad," I laughed. "Robbie just got me flowers," I smiled.

"Whew," he sarcastically wiped his forehead.

"Thanks for remembering when my birthday is, dad," I giggled.

Sometime before dinner, Nonna called and asked if I wanted to come over to bake cookies. Uh hell yeah I did. Robbie, being the sweetheart he was, didn't mind and actually wanted to go because he wanted to check out their router problem that they explained to him the night they met him.

"Kitty-Cat! So good to see you again," Nonna said at the door. "And Robbie, aw you're such a gentleman bringing flowers," she gave him a hug. Robbie and I giggled because we decided to bring a bouquet of one of his flowers to my grandparents because dad said he had a bit too much in his 'bachelor pad' and we needed to get rid of some.

"Hi Mrs. Oliver. Thanks for having us over," he hugged her back. "Will you be making your snickerdoodle cookies?"

"It's why he came," I joked.

"Well that and I wanted to check out that router of yours like you mentioned before," Robbie added.

"Oh Robbie, you're a doll. Of course. Grandpa Jack is in the living room right now; go do boy things. Cat and I will bake in the kitchen," Nonna replied.

Robbie flashed me a smile and left. I kind of blushed because we rarely showed PDA to one another, only when it was just us, and we were in my grandparents' house. I know, it was just a smile but I was still embarrassed.

"So sweetie, how are you and Robbie?" Nonna asked while we prepared the cookie dough.

"We're fine. Just getting ready for school in the fall."

"Will everything be ok when you go back to Hollywood Arts and he's still at Sherwood?"

"I don't know, Nonna…" I really wasn't sure if that morning Robbie meant he was staying at Sherwood. And I also wasn't sure about her question either.

"Well I'm sure everything will work out. You two just look so crazy about each other. Just like Beck and your mother when they were your age," Nonna smiled.

After we finished baking, Robbie was able to restart their router and have it work five times faster. He also fixed their hard drive and created more memory on their RAM. What they all mean? Don't ask me, I have no idea. All I know is my grandpa was ecstatic and Nonna was laughing at his excitement. While Robbie explained everything to Nonna, I was eating some cookies and drink apple juice with my grandpa in the kitchen.

"That Robbie of yours is one smart boy," grandpa said to me.

"Yeah, he really is," I smiled.

"Did he ever get into that program?"

"Uh…" I hesitated. "Yeah he did, actually."

"What's the matter, Kitty? Isn't that a good thing?" grandpa asked me.

"Yeah of course it is," I tried to sound as convincing as I could but I guess my 70-year-old grandfather saw right through me. My God was I that transparent?

"Are you scared of change, sweetheart?" he guessed.

For an old man, he was really good. "Maybe…" I muttered.

"Don't be. If you're scared of the future, then you can't do anything in life. If you're scared about your relationship, then what's the point? But if you're scared of losing him, well then sweetheart you should think about what it is that you should do to not lose him."

"Oh grandpa, everything is easier said than done," I sadly chuckled.

"If Robbie is the guy I know him to be, he's probably doing everything to make it work, am I right?" he asked.

I didn't answer.

"And you're happy. But also worried. Being closer may be what you think will keep you together, but what if being happy keeps your closer?"

"So you're saying the only way not to lose him is to let him go?"

"The only way to be happy is if you're both happy. What makes you happy, Kitty-Cat?" he asked me.

"Robbie, of course," I said in a heartbeat. "He makes me happy, especially when I see him so happy. It makes me happier than seeing myself hap-"

That's when I realized what I needed to do.

Robbie and I said goodbye to my grandparents and drove off to our Cliffside before sunset. We wanted to stargaze because it was a full moon – er, I'm sorry – marshmallow moon tonight. I was waiting for the right time to talk to him but as I stalled throughout the night I knew there really wasn't a 'right time' to talk about something like this. So I just spoke up.

"Robbie, how much do you like me?" I asked him while I was in his arms, wrapped in a blanket and sitting on the ground with another blanket on the floor.

"More than you know," he whispered in my ear. My God it sent a shiver down my spine.

"Same here," I smiled. "Do you care about me enough to support any decision I make?"

"Of course, do you with me too?"

"Yeah," I said. "But that's not the case right now."

"What are you talking about?" he grew confused.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, turned to him and said the hardest thing I've ever had to say in my life.

"I want you to go to Malibu."

A moment passed. And then another. And then another. I think it was silent for a good five minutes.

"Robbie, can you please say something?" I begged.

"Y-you want me to go?" he was surprised.

"I-I do," I breathed. I didn't even know I was holding a breath.

"But Cat, I told you, I'm not going anywhere," he reminded me.

"Of course you are. You're going to go far in life because you're a smart guy that deserves only the best," I said. "And you have to support my decision."

"Cat, this isn't fair. I won't do this. I can't be far from you," he replied.

"Robbie, we're young. We have our whole lives to live. We can't let romance keep us from doing our best. If I told you that I wanted to stay at Sherwood instead of going back to Hollywood Arts, would you let me?"

"Hell no, Cat. You're too talented to stay at a regular school like Sherwood. You belong at an arts school," he responded.

"And you belong at that magnet school," I supported his argument.

After a moment of silence.

"What about long-distance relationships?" he suggested.

"It'll be too hard and it might not end well. Plus, I don't want to hold you back," I told him.

"It looks like you put a lot of thought into this, huh? D-do you not want to see me anymore?"

"I care about you a lot, Robbie. I-I really, really like you. That's why I want what's best for you and I know you want what's best for me. I know what we have is more than just a fling, but I'm not sure if it's a relationship yet," I admitted.

"Yeah, same here," he agreed. "But… why does it feel so right yet so wrong at the same time that we're choosing school before one another?"

"I don't think we're choosing for ourselves so to speak, we're choosing each other's happiness."

"Do you think maybe in the future, if the time is right and the stars align, we can try this again? Maybe like… for real?"

"Maybe. I'd like that. But I won't ask for any promises," I told him. I didn't want any attachment so it wouldn't be hard.

"I guess… time will tell, right?" he said.

"Definitely. Time will tell."

"Dad, can I talk to you?" I asked him that night. Tori was at my mom's and I was at my dad's because Robbie and I were closer to his place by the time our date ended. Since I couldn't sleep and my sister wasn't here, I knew my dad would be awake and downstairs reading the script for the next play he was directing.

"Sure Kitty-Cat. Want some hot cocoa?"

"With marshmallows?" I smiled.

"How else do you drink your cocoa?" he said in an 'of course' tone.

After he made our drinks, dad and I sat at the couch.

"So, what's up kiddo?" he slapped my knee.

"Dad, why do people fall in love?"

"Because love is a great feeling. Probably the greatest feeling you can ever experience in your life," he answered then sipped his hot beverage.

"Then why do people break up?" I followed up.

He looked at me and sighed. "Oh," he breathed. He set his mug down and turned to face me. "Is this about a certain problem?"

"Kind of," was all I said. The thing I loved about my dad was that he wouldn't interrogate me. He waited until I was ready to talk.

"Well, kiddo, sometimes we love so much that it hurts. Kind of like when you once got a cavity. You loved eating those licorice sticks but they gave you a sweet tooth and you ended up with a cavity. And the only way to feel better is to fix that cavity and pull out that baby tooth of yours. Sometimes it's necessary to get rid of what you love so much so it doesn't hurt you, at least not intentionally," he explained.

"But daddy, how can something be so… so magical but tragical at the same time? One minute it can be the most beautiful feeling then the next it's the saddest, emptiest feeling you've ever had." I set my mug down and brought my knees to my chest, sitting at my father's side and leaning my head on his shoulder blade.

"Cat, let me tell you a story about me and your mother. Once upon a time your mom and I were really in love. Jade, well she was just my breath of fresh air. The funny thing was, like your Nonna said, your mom was pretty much dark and scary. The things that woman can do with just a simple pair of scissors – I tell ya, don't get on her bad side when she's near one," he chuckled. It made me laugh too. "Anyway, your mom was my light. That's the ironic thing. And I was hers. We lit each other up in ways we couldn't do by ourselves. I brought out her soft side-"

"Mom has a soft side?" I was shocked. Mom was tough as a cookie.

"Everyone has a soft side, Kitty-Cat," dad said. "And she brought out my rebellious side, but in a good way. After all, grandpa Jack did say I threatened to leave them one day."

"Yeah, mom said she never knew that happened."

"That's because I never told her. My parents were bugging me to the point that I couldn't take it anymore and when I threatened to leave, they gave her one more chance and from that day forward they got to know the woman that lit an eternal flame inside of me. But the thing is, you can't just rely on the flame to stay lit, you need to keep your spark going by showing it. And I guess as time went on, we just got too caught up with everything else to show it, let alone say things to each other. Before you know it, we just had nothing to say and it was too late anyways," he said dejectedly.

"It's never to late, dad. That's what you always tell me," I reasoned.

"Yes, that's true, kiddo. But when you love someone, you just want to see them happy."

"Did you ever think that mom needed you to be happy?" I asked.

"Sometimes we mix up our priorities in life. But when you love something, let them go. If it comes back, then it's meant to be."

"That's what mom said."

"That's where I heard it from. It's what she said to me before we filed for divorce."

"So she still loves you?"

"Maybe not the same way anymore," dad said.

"And you?" I wondered.

"Honey, your mother can marry my another man, erase me from her memory, and move to Antarctica, but yea kid, I'll always love her. The same way I've loved her for 27 years," dad shared.

"Then why don't you tell her that?" I stated.

"Because we've come so far with so many things left unspoken, what's the point of bringing back ancient history?"

"But you love her, dad."

"And I want her to be happy. That's why I'm respecting her wishes. And that's why you told Robbie to go to that school, didn't you?"

I looked at him. How did he know?

"You're sister told me," he said like he was reading my mind.

"Yeah but I'm barely just starting things with Robbie, if we can even call what we have a relationship, dad."

"Of course it is. And I know that you're having a hard time coping, but honey you're doing the right thing. Just like me."

"That's the problem. I'm just like you," I sighed.

"Um, is that a bad thing?" he chuckled.

"No, I didn't mean it in a bad way, dad. I love you. But you let the best thing that ever happened to you go. And I'm afraid that Robbie's like mom to you," I sighed.

"Whoa, Cat. Not every relationship is like your mother's and mine. Don't think that just because we didn't work out that you and Robbie or any future relationship you'll have is doomed to failure. Sometimes things just don't work out," Dad said.

"But things are working out for me and Robbie. It's just this school thing that's messing up our happiness," I said.

"Cat, take it from me, let him go because you know he'd be happier if he went to Malibu."

At this point, I wasn't even thinking about Robbie and me. I just couldn't. It was too painful. So I tried channeling my mind towards my parents instead.

"Maybe, daddy, there were some things that you two left unsaid that you should have told one another."

"What makes you thing that we needed to say any of those things we didn't say?"

"Because if it was better left unsaid, then right now at this moment you'd be happier… with mom."