Hey you guys! It's StylishFashionista, and I just finished watching the World Cup finals! Gotta hand it to Germany—they did great! It was a great year. Ugh I have to wait four more years for the next one... ;( XD Anyways that's pretty much it! Off to reviews!

Bonjour10-I had to make Jasmine a fashionista still. It's perfect with Garrett's dad owning a shoe store and everything. The reason I made her unaware of trading at first was because she came from a rich family; she never had to work, and therefore, never had to trade. I'm honestly just happy that America went through the Group of Death (I mean Group G (not really... XD)) and all of the save Howard made. Plus that goal from Green... :D But I'm so sorry for France! I was rooting for them this year; sad that they didn't defeat Germany. ;(

StoryToBeToldAsOne-Well you saw my reactions firsthand! XD We need to watch that dinner date together too! Well, they better record it! Thank you so much girl!

Guest-Thank you so much!

MakeItComeTrue-Thank you so much!

TheMisteryGirl007-Thank you so much!

JarrettorForever-Thank you so much!

Junatina-XD Thank you so much!

Guest-Thank you so much!

*insert disclaimer here*

"Where are we going?" I asked Garrett for at least the tenth time. He seemed to know where we were going, but as of right then and there, it seemed like we were going in complete circles. I didn't know where anywhere was; I didn't live in this part of Gettysburg until Garrett's dad took me in. I knew it existed, but I never went into it until my house was in complete flames and I was left homeless.

"We're going to trade for some clothes first, then some food and writing utensils," he answered. "If we're lucky, then we might be able to trade for some furniture as well."

"If we're lucky?" I raised an eyebrow. If all of their furniture came from trading, then how did they get so many?

He nodded. "We don't usually trade for furniture; it's only when they're willing to take some newly-made shoes for a table or chair that we do."

"So we're not getting that grand piano?" I teased. Even I, with no experience ever at trading, would know that a grand piano is a bit much for a bunch of new shoes.

He laughed at that. "If we're super super lucky one day and the stars are aligned for us, then who knows? Maybe."

He then smirked at me, and I felt like he was flirting with me subtly. The stars are aligned for us? What was he trying to say with that? But I shook my head slightly, trying to forget the idea. He was probably oblivious enough to not even realize what he said oh-so-subtly and I was just thinking too much into it.

"So, how far is it from here?" I asked him, trying to change the subject. "The clothing store, I mean."

"It's right there," he said, pointing at a small building with a small wooden mannequin in its window. I looked at the outfit. A light green puffy long dress with white lace on its bodice. Hmm. Pretty good.

He laughed, snapping me out of my thoughts. "I agree. Their clothes are pretty good and they always trade fairly, no matter what. Some stores rip us off, and we never go to those anymore."

I nodded. "That's cool." I then felt myself blushing. Did I say that out loud?

"Yes, you did," he said. I found myself blushing in embarrassment. I should've really stopped saying stuff that I was thinking. It was really embarrassing.

"It sure is, Jaz," Garrett smirked. I then turned around and pressed my lips together. At that point, I wasn't going to even bother to open my mouth.

We walked in hand in hand. Garrett was carrying the bag filled up to the brim with new shoes. I looked at the young woman who was working at the store; her parents must've owned the store. I sighed in relief. Thank God it wasn't the same person as the one I asked for clothes before I met Garrett's dad...

"Hi Grace!" Garrett called into the store. The young lady - Grace was her name, apparently - smiled at him. Then she looked at me; a flash of confusion went through her face, but then she was beaming.

"Garrett! I'm so proud of you!" she exclaimed. "You finally got yourself a girlfriend. When did you start to court her?"

He shook his head adamantly at that, but I did notice a slight blush appear on his cheek. "Never. At least, not yet."

My eyes widened at that, though I knew that he and Grace probably noticed. Not yet? What did he mean by that? But I tried to regain my composure as I said as calmly as I could, "I'm living with him and his dad for the time being."

She nodded at that, her smile not faltering one bit. "That's cool! Why? Are you his cousin or something?"

I shook my head. "No. It's just a long story." I didn't really want to divulge my life story to her; she was barely an acquaintance to me at the time. But now that I think of it, both Garrett and his dad didn't know the whole story yet. I promised myself that I would tell them it later when we got back home.

She nodded, and Garrett introduced us. "Grace, this is Jasmine. Jaz, this is Grace; her parents own the shop."

She smiled at me and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Jasmine." Then, she turned to Garrett. "How much shoes have you got for me today?"

I turned to Garrett, who shrugged. "Enough for what we need. I only need a shirt, a pair of pants, and shorts. Same with my dad. And Jasmine would love that sea green dress on the mannequin in front."

I looked at him with shock. He remembered that I really liked that dress. Grace nodded. "I have more colors of that style. I have light blue, light pink, and light purple. Do you want those as well?"

I could already imagine me wearing those cute dresses in my head. "Yes, please!"

Grace traded them for only five pairs of shoes, which kind of shocked me. But they both seemed happy with what they got, so I thought it was fair. We then left, without both of us chiming thank you's and goodbye's to Grace. She said the same back to us.

Once we went out of the store, I said to Garrett, "She's really nice."

Garrett nodded. "She is. A pain in the butt sometimes, but she is really nice."

I quirked an eyebrow. "A pain in the butt?"

He laughed and explained to me, "Her parents and my dad are very good friends. When they come over to dinner sometimes, she taunts me over not having a girlfriend yet. She says that I'm good-looking enough to have one, but I'm just too geeky to have one. I don't blame her though. She always tells the cold hard truth, and I respect that about her."

Oh, he was definitely good-looking enough to have a girlfriend. But I comfort him by saying, "Well, you have me. Is that good enough?"

He nodded at that. "Definitely," he smiled. I smiled back as well. He then took me into a small side hug before we walked to where we needed to go next. I felt myself blush but then ignored it.

We got five jars of ink and three feathers from the post office for a pair of shoes, a couple of jars of honey from a beekeeper for a pair of shoes, and a huge bottle of pancake batter and some fresh fruit from the marketplace for a couple of pairs of shoes. At the end of that, we only had a pair left. Garrett asked me what I wanted to attempt to trade for the last pair of shoes. I shrugged.

"I don't know. I don't know this place very well," I told him. "You should decide. You know this place ten times better than I do."

He shrugged. "I don't need anything. You sure you don't as well? If you're sure, I'm going to give this to my dad to sell."

I nodded and said, "Don't worry, I don't need anything more." I looked up to the sky to see the sun setting, and I turned to Garrett. "We should get back to your dad. It's getting late."

He nodded in agreement and opened up his mouth to say something, but then we both heard, "Garry!" We both turned around to see a woman in her late 30s running up to Garrett and I. I was confused, but I tried my best not to show it. Who was that woman and how did she know Garrett?

Garrett turned to me and whispered, "We have to get out of here."

"Why?" I asked him, my eyebrows furrowing in confusion. I got even more confused after he said that. It really didn't make any sense.

"I'll explain it to you later," he whispered harshly. "We just really have to g-"

"Garry!" the woman pulled Garrett into a hug, and I could see Garrett holding a glare. It did make sense now that I thought about it; that girl was way too cheerful for my liking.

"Hi Mother," Garrett spat, trying (and failing) to seem optimistic about the sudden encounter. I refrained my eyes from widening in shock. That woman was Garrett's mother?!

"How have you been?" she beamed at him. Then, she looked at me, and I saw that they had the same hair color and skin tone. "And who could this be? Your girlfriend?" She then eyed me suspiciously. "And are those my clothes?"

I nodded; they were her clothes. Garrett told me that I could wear them if I needed more clothes, and he told me that she wouldn't mind. And it had at least been the tenth time that I had been thought of as Garrett's girlfriend, but I didn't blame them. I suddenly appeared while Garrett was trading and they wanted a suitable reason why. But oh I would love to be his girlfriend...

"You don't deserve to know who she is to me," Garrett said, rushing in front of me protectively. "And she looks way better than you ever did." I hadn't realized until now that Garrett was taller than me. But what did he mean by that? Was he offending me? Her? I would've always blushed from what he had said, but I was too confused with what was going on.

"Come on, Garry, we haven't talked in forever," his mom tried to persuade him. But he rolled his eyes instead, which made her feel irritated and frustrated.

"Yeah, but you're supposed to be in Philadelphia right now!" Garrett exclaimed, flailing his arms for emphasis. Philadelphia was a 3 hour train ride from Gettysburg, so what was she doing here?

She stayed silent at that, and Garrett scoffed in disbelief. He said, "If you really want to go apologize to Father, I'm not going to stop you. But just know that he's not, and probably never is, going to forgive you."

She shook her head at that. "I'm not here for your father, Garry. I'm happy with John."

"Then you should go back home to Philadelphia, because you're not welcome here," Garrett spat. I honestly found myself shocked at this new version of Garrett that I had never seen before now. What did his mom do to his dad that made him so hostile towards her?

"Garry, that is not how you should treat your mother!" she scolded.

He sighed in exasperation. "You weren't even here for the majority of my life! Look, if you're here for me, whatever, we talked. If you're not, then we never had to talk in the first place. I swear, it's better for the both of us that you leave right now."

She nodded in acceptance. "I can't wait to talk to you again, Garry."

"It's Garrett," he started, "and I can't wait for you to disappear off the edge of the earth."

She then left in a huff, showing no true emotion. I was still trying to digest what just happened. She was his mom? Why wasn't she living with him and his dad? What happened between them? I felt slightly guilty as I looked down at myself; I was wearing Garrett's mom's old clothes left in her dresser, and admittedly, she had good taste; I definitely looked good in them. But why would she even leave them in the dresser? Was she ever planning of coming back but just didn't?

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Garrett said, throwing an arm around me. He was back to his old self, his caring and selfless side, and I wondered why his mom only brought out the worst of him instead of the best. All my parents ever wanted for me was for me to be the best that I could be and still be happy. Even though my parents were dead, I suddenly became appreciative of their love and support that they gave me. I should've thanked them for it earlier, but now, it was too late.

"It's fine," I smiled and shook it off, even though I definitely wanted to learn more about the situation. At the same time, however, I didn't want him to feel pressured or anything; that was the least I wanted. But my curious side got the best of me, as it always had. "That was your mother?"

"Yeah," Garrett's face churned into a disgusted expression at the mention of her. "She left my dad and I when I was five."

"Oh," was all I could get out. That was absolutely horrible. Why would she leave him and his dad? They were the nicest people I knew! Even though my curiosity sparked at that, I told him, "If you don't want to tell me anything more, I'm completely fine with that. If it's too personal, I understand."

He shook his head at that. "No. I want to tell you, Jaz. I trust you."

He trusted me. That meant so much to me. "I trust you too, Garrett."

He nodded. "Thank you Jaz. Either way, she just ditched us. She left us for another man. She was just gone one day. Everything was still there. She didn't even leave a note. We always thought that she would come back for us, but she never did."

"Until now?" I asked. I was still confused on why she was here in the first place.

He shrugged. "I have no idea why she's here. I just hope she gets out of her soon."

"You don't want anything to do with her," I stated. Originally, it was supposed to come out as a question, but I was so certain about that right now that I was just confident that it was correct.

He nodded. "Of course! She just left us! We had to figure out from Grace that she was leaving for good. I mean, she left us for another man! How selfish is that?!"

I nodded, taking it all in. I knew one thing for sure: I would never leave my family like that. That wasn't fair. They at least deserved to know.

He sighed, taking a deep breath. "Thank you for listening, Jaz. It means a lot to me."

I smiled and said, "No problem. Anything for you."

We then went for a hug, and it felt amazing to hug him. Even though I had to stand on my tiptoes, it was amazing. Being in his arms felt like I was all his. And I really wanted that; the only thing stopping me was that stupid rule.

When we separated, our faces were a foot apart. I found myself staring into his sapphire blue eyes. He did the same thing to me, and before we knew it, we were both leaning in. Was this what I thought it was? Were we really going to kiss? I felt myself jumping for joy inside as we inched closer.

But, suddenly, Garrett jolted back. My eyes widened at that, but I tried not to show that I was hurt.

"We should really go back," he said.

I nodded, trying to avoid any awkwardness. "Yep."

He took my hand and we walked back, though all I could think about was that kiss-to-be.

Well that was the chappie! The almost kiss, Garrett's mom... Man a whole lot is going on right now! (and of course there's going to be more!) If you guys enjoyed, please make sure that you follow, favorite, and leave a review. Could I have 40 please? Thank you guys so much for reading, and I'll see you next time!