Truth or Dare

Ally's POV

"You want me to what?!" Ally practically screeched.

"Please, bring it down a few decibels," Trish remarked, pretending to retune her ears with her forefinger.
The group of friends, were spending Halloween night at Ally's house. They had planned on making cookies, watching scary movies, and of course handing out candy to the kids that came by to Trick-or-Treat. They had just finished watching The Shining; Cassidy was slowly coming out from behind The couch, and Dez was creeping out from under the blanket he had been sharing with Trish. It was then they decided to lighten the mood a bit with a little Truth or Dare. Harmless fun, or so Ally thought. Until they dared her to do the unthinkable.

"You heard me, m'dear," Cassidy replied nonchalantly. "We are going to crash Kira Starr's Halloween party, and you're going to complete the dare Trish gave you. Don't complain. You could've chosen truth, you know." She grinned like a Cheshire cat.

Ally glared at him. She turned to the others in the room—Dallas, Dez, and Trish—searching for mercy. They all grinned mischievously at her. Ally could not believe they would put her into such a position. She had been so merciful with her truth questions; even when she knew she had it in the bag to get Dallas to finally admit his crush on Cassidy, she opted to let that slide. Even the dares she'd made up were harmless. They were on their fourth rounds when apparently Trish decided to get a little feisty.

"Come on, Ally," Dallas prodded. "It could be fun. You know, this could be a good time for you and Austin to…you know…make amends? Move forward with your relation…er, I mean, uh, friendship?"

"You do not have any inkling of what you are talking about, Dallas," Ally said, matter-of-factly. "There is no reason why Austin and I would need to make amends for anything. He has made it perfectly clear what kind of relationship, friendship, or lack thereof he wants with me. So…that's that." Ally huffed and crossed her arms, taking a cookie from the pile for good measure.

"Girl, you know you're flustered when you can't even use any big words to back up what you're saying'!" Trish scoffed. Cassidy and Dallas exchanged a look that told Ally they sided with Trish.

"Honey, it's okay," Cassidy cooed. "We know how you feel about Austin."

"If you are by any means implying that I still harbor romantic inclinations toward Austin Moon, you are sorely mistaken," Ally balked, upturning her nose just slightly.

"Oh come on, Ally, you know you've liked him since middle school!" Trish snorted.

"While previously accurate, Trish, two years of picking on me have diminished my feelings for Austin considerably," Ally claimed, hoping with all her might they couldn't see right through her.

They could.

"Ohhhh so the way your eyes lit up like firecrackers when he joined Music class was just a coincidence?" Cassidy asked knowingly.

Ally turned crimson red. She felt ashamed for still having a crush on Austin Moon after all these years…after all he'd said to and about her…after all he'd done to make her high school days from freshman year to the present miserable.

"Guys…please…don't make me do it," Ally pleaded. Maybe if she used her small, timid voice they would have a little mercy.

No such luck.

"T-t-t-too bad, Ally. Th-they made me eat bananas w-w-with mustard. Y-y-you know I hate b-b-both of those." Dez said. He was still downing lemonade to get rid of the awful taste in his mouth.

"And I had to prank call Mr. Dawson using animal noises," Dallas cried. "I swear if he finds out it was me, I'll be running for a year…and I can't even run!"

"Ugh, you guys are no fun," Ally pouted.

"Oh, now that's where you're wrong," Trish said. "The fun is only getting started." As she giggled, a look of mischief passed between her and Cassidy. They widened their gazes to allow Dez and Dallas into the circle of conspiracy. They soon dissolved into a fit of laughter.

"Wait!" Ally stopped them. They turned to look at her. "What are we going to do about costumes?" she asked, hoping that they wouldn't have thought about that when planning their little scheme.

But they had.

"Dez, get dressed and help Dallas with his costume," Trish directed. "I'll take Cassidy and Ally, and we'll meet you back in the living room in an hour," she said as she pulled Ally toward the bedroom. Ally looked back to see Cassidy giving Dez and Dallas articles of clothing from a duffel bag that Ally hadn't even been aware enough to notice when they arrived. She then began to follow Trish and Ally upstairs to Ally's bedroom, where they promptly sat Ally down on the bed and locked her door.

"Seriously? You're locking me in?" Ally asked incredulously.

"Y-y-yes," Cassidy said triumphantly.

"Okay, Cass, you're on hair, and I'll do makeup," Trish said. No doubt about it, she knew how to commandeer a situation and take control.

Ally sat still and quiet while Cassidy tugged lightly at her chestnut tresses. Cass reached over her to grab the warm curling iron from Ally's vanity. It felt strangely comforting to have Cassidy running her tiny fingers through Ally's hair, separately pieces to curl.

As Cassidy worked her hair magic, Trish went at her face with different brushes, blushes, and shades of eye shadow. Ally's eyes held steady at the ceiling while Trish put eyeliner on her lower lids. Ally wondered what she would look like when the other girls were finished. She wondered what this night really had in store for her.

"All right, all done!" Trish cried, triumphantly. Ally turned to look in her mirror, as Cassidy grabbed her and turned away from her reflection.

"Not yet, Als," Cassidy said. Not till you have your costume on." Ally huffed and puffed but agreed not to look at herself until she put on her costume.

"Um, what exactly is my costume?" Ally asked warily. She looked at Cassidy and Trish share a conspiratorial glance. Cassidy pulled out an airy piece of clothing and some dark stockings.

"What is it?" Ally asked again, a little more irritated this time.

"Don't worry," Trish balked. "You are gonna love me forever when you get it on." She handed Ally a short white baby doll-type dress with thigh high black stockings and black heels. "Okay, put it on and turn around."

Ally dressed quickly and turned to see her reflection in the mirror. She looked at the costume that fit snugly against her curves; she saw her hair in loose waves; she noticed her makeup was dramatic but not over the top. Then, she realized who she was. She gasped softly as she brought her hand up to her mouth.

"You guys, you made me a Florence Nightingale costume?" Ally breathed. "Oh my gosh…I'm speechless."

Trish and Cassidy shared a good laugh on that one. "Well, that'd be a first, girl," Trish said.

They got their costumes on, Trish as Catwoman and Cassidy as Hermione. They all went downstairs to meet up with the boys. Dez was dressed as Robin Hood, and Dallas was Harry Potter. They both whistled when the girls came into view.

"All right," Dez said. "Let's get this dare started." As they started for the door, Ally stopped them one last time.

"Wait, we don't even have a ride, she smiled thinking this was the perfect excuse not to have to go.

"Relax, princess," Dez said. "That's why Dallas mom is waiting to drive us there." He nodded to the window, and sure enough, Dallas mom's car was parked outside her house.

"Well," she said begrudgingly, "I see you had this all planned from the beginning."

"Yup," they all chorused.

"Fine. Let's just get this over with," Ally said as she stalked past them.

Trish looked at Dez who looked at Dallas who looked at Cassidy. "Oh yeah," Trish said. "This is gonna be good."

Austin's POV

Austin usually loved Halloween. It was a great excuse for chicks to dress a little sluttier than normal with the pretense of "pretending." The music was blaring and everyone seemed to be having a good time, but Austin was just not in the mood to party. He has trying to talk to Elliot when some freshman Cheerleader came over and tried to dance all up on him. Elliot smirked as Austin not-so-gently guided her back to where she came from.

"What's up with you tonight, man?" Elliot asked loudly enough to be heard over the music. Austin glared at him.

"Nothing, dude," Austin said defiantly. But that was a lie. He was upset. He was upset at his whole situation. Ally has been on his mind for too long.

"Whoa, dude, look who just showed up," Elliot said, breaking Austin out of his thoughts. Elliot whistled low. "Dang, Ally sure cleans up nice." Austin whipped his head around at the sound of Ally's name and came face-to-face with the image Elliot had been whistling at.

Ally walked in, albeit a little shyly but still managed to exude some confidence. His eyes traveled from her face which was made up quite nicely, to her hair which was in soft curls that made him want to run his fingers through it all day, to her costume. Wow, and what a costume it was. It was a hot white dress that clung to her in all the right places. Dang, it barely could be considered a dress. It was so short that it barely grazed past her butt and rested at the higher part of her thighs, where her black thigh highs came up to. He dragged his eyes down her legs, the ones that just wouldn't quit. She looked…hot.

Actually, the more he looked at her, he thought she looked so lost. And, all she looked like to him then was human, vulnerable even. Her stance was hesitant, as she looked around, taking it all in. The more he watched her, the more enthralled he became. Ally Dawson really wasn't so bad, he thought. I mean, she talked too much, and she looked at Ethan with goo-goo eyes, but she wasn't so bad, he guessed.

He realized, as he'd been thinking about her, she disappeared from his view. When he looked up again, she was walking right toward him with a look of steel determination and nerves mixed in her eyes. What the heck?

Ally's POV

Ally spotted him from across the room. Do it now, she thought, or you'll never do it, she thought to herself. "Good Girls Go Bad" was playing in the background as she made her way across the room to Austin. How appropriate, she thought as she smirked at the irony. Austin was looking at her now, watching her make her way to his corner. His look was confused and intrigued all at the same time. She reached him, and looked back one time to Trish and Dez who were waving her on.

"Hey, Dawson," Austin said, "Looking good. What are you, a girl from a teenager's naughty dream?" He smirked as he looked her up and down once more.

Just do it, Ally, she thought. "Shut up, Moon," Ally said breathily, as she snaked her arms around his neck and brought his lips down to hers with such force he actually stumbled forward almost toppling them both onto the couch. She kissed him with passion and all the pent up frustration she'd been holding back all these years. She thought he'd pull away when he realized he was kissing her, a freak, but he didn't. He kissed her back…hard.

Austin had no idea what was going on. All he knew was that Ally was kissing him, and he didn't mind. He actually liked it. His arms slid around her waist pulling her flush to his body. He couldn't seem to get close enough to her. She tasted so good. Her lips were sweet, kind of like strawberry cupcakes. He'd have to ask her about that later. Right now, he thought he could get used to kissing Ally Dawson. He grabbed her leg under the knee and hitched her leg up at his hips. He felt her gasp in his mouth, but he just smiled into hers. His hands were all in her hair; it was definitely as soft as he'd thought. Her hands weren't around his neck anymore. They were roaming his chest, touching his cheeks, pulling at his hair. She was driving him crazy, and she had no idea.

Then, all too soon, she pulled away for a breath, eyes wide and panting heavily. He smirked at her. "What was that about, Dawson? Not that I minded, it's just a little…out of character," he said lazily. He looked around the room now, as all eyes were now on them.

Ally looked around sheepishly, "It was…just…um…?" She looked around nervously, but then he saw a flicker of resolve in her eyes. She looked up at him with a cocky grin, "I just felt like it." She turned to flounce off to her friends.

Austin wasn't about to let that happen. He grabbed her arm and whirled her back to face him. He took her face gently in his hands, and she closed her eyes instinctively. He leaned in close to her face as he whispered, "I don't know what it was about, Als, but I'm not going to deny…I liked it, and I want you to kiss me again." Ally's eyes flew open in surprise and shock. Austin chuckled at the look on her face. Her eyes darted from side to side as if she was trying to decide if he was serious or not. "Fine," he said, leaning in so that their lips were super close. I'll just have to do it myself."

Then, he kissed her softly until she kissed him back. Her arms went back to their place at his neck as his moved to her waist. Yeah, Austin thought to himself, I could definitely get used to this.

Trish simply smirked at Dez as she watched the two new lovebirds alternate between kissing and whispering and giggling.

"Mission accomplished."