Chapter 22- She Doesn't Fall

Ok, guess what? I'm NOT DEAD! I am so sorry guys! I haven't updated in so long because I was literally stumped and out of ideas. But, I didn't give up. I always look at all your amazing reviews to give me inspiration. Now, I'm officially back and my creative juices are flowing like crazy! Yeah, that's a horrible excuse, but you'll forgive me when you read this chapter… or you'll kill me. We'll see!

Enjoy!

Austin's POV

I watch anxiously as Ally continues to pace back and forth in my kitchen. Sometimes, she stops and thinks for a second until the bright flashes explode through the curtains and she is moving again.

And I have been watching her do this for the past 10 minutes. And honestly, I don't feel any better. But, it's not because of the paparazzi. It is because of the petite brunette in front of me. I have been trying to hide it, possibly since the first day I met her, but Ally is invading my thoughts, day and night. All I can see is her bright smile, brown orbs called eyes, her creamy skin and her curvy body. Especially when she is like this: her eye brows slightly pulled together and her lower lip turning darker as she bites down on it.

I suddenly sit up straighter on my chair; I'm feeling something that I haven't experienced in a long time. Ever since Ally's hospital incident, I have slowly lessened my fangirl base. Well, at Marino High. I had started to pull away from the cheerleader table, feeling weird when they tried to flirt with me. And, I no longer felt anything when every girl threw themselves at me. It's like I've matured… no, I physically changed. It's like my attitude did a three sixty and I started noticing every girl individually and how they hung on my every word if it was about my career, but they ignored me when I was trying to talk about myself. But, one girl didn't care who I was from the start. She had liked me when she got to know me. And this girl was still pacing, her hand resting casually on her hip. But, not casually enough. Ally Dawson was making me hard.

I gulp and suddenly stand up. She doesn't like you that way I say to myself. Ally's dark brown eyes meet mine when I start walking to the kitchen door. I freeze for a moment, seeing something flicker behind her eyes. It seemed familiar but I couldn't think much of it because my pants were… tightening, and it would be utterly humiliating having to explain to Ally why he was here.

"Where are you going?" Ally curiously asks, the stressful situation seeming forgotten at the moment. She tilts her head to the side as she waits for me to answer and just this little action seems to turn me on even more. I couldn't help it, though. This girl was driving me crazy. But, even if I craved for her, she would never feel the same way. I was sure that Ally wanted to just be friends, and I wasn't going to try to take advantage of her niceness either. But, as we continue to stare at each other, I feel my legs fight to move closer to her. I clench my jaw.

"To my room," I lie, my voice hoarse. "I'll be right back." And then, before I can embarrass myself or Ally can say anything, I escape out of the kitchen.

Ally's POV

I stare after Austin as he speeds out of the room, his position ram- rod straight. When he is out if sight, I sigh and collapse onto a chair. I flex both of my feet, my body relaxing as the aching decreases. I am stupid. I wasn't brave enough to take over this situation and talk to Austin so instead, I occupy myself by pacing around. Then, Austin leaves and I am left alone with my confused thoughts. Actually, only one: I like Austin. The full truth of the statement hits me and I gasp, my eyes widening. I don't know how it happened; Austin is just sweet, caring, and after getting to know him more, I finally understand that I've been labeling him wrong. Sure, in the beginning, Austin was an arrogant, cocky jerk with a pretty face, but now, I know that was just some façade. Actually, he has been extremely humble and under the radar these past months. It's really amazing to see the real Austin come out. So, why did I always push him away? Thinking about it, I guess that it's because I am used to being right. Maybe I've known that Austin's cocky side was just a cover up all this time, but I've pushed it away, for fear that I was wrong all along. But, it had come full circle. I now accept that I was completely wrong about Austin. He is pretty amazing.

Just as I think this, I hear a lot of shuffling coming from somewhere outside of the kitchen. For a split second, I think that the paparazzi have broken in, but then, I hear a familiar grunt and I laugh. Whatever Austin is doing, it must be frustrating. After a moment of hesitation, I decide to follow the sound and figure out what he's doing. I make my way to the living room and see that it's empty, so I continue to walk straight. Too bad, I realize after I've walked for minutes, that Austin's house is so big! I stop short as I walk past a room labelled pool and turn around to see nothing familiar. Everything was branching into more hallways and doors. I had no idea where I was! Thinking that that rule to "stay put when lost" didn't apply to this particular situation, I picked a hall at random and walked down it. Then, I was stopped at a large staircase, something that should belong in a grand entry room, not a mere hall. It was times like these where I suddenly remember that Austin is a huge teen pop star and had heaps of money.

I look over my shoulder and am not surprised to see that I don't recognize anything. Sometime while I was walking, I made it my mission to find Austin. Obviously since I can't navigate this house on my own, my best bet is to find Austin. I start ascending the stairs, thinking even if I get lost, I can just go down. I make it to the top floor, or maybe it is the second out of who-knows-how-many, and find that this floor is more complex than the first, if that's even possible. There are more than a dozen doors wrapped around the room and I'm betting that half of these doors lead to another series of doors. I sigh in frustration, wondering how I had possibly made found the bathroom earlier today. Then again, it was just a hall down from the kitchen…

I quickly snap out of my reverie when I hear a sound coming from one of the doors. Hope surges through me as I quickly locate the door. It was the farthest one to the left. Without reading the sign, I burst in and then, I gasp.

Austin was standing with his hands on the counter, staring into the mirror. His hair was disheveled, as if he combed his fingers through it in frustration. But, he looked normal, exactly like when he left the kitchen. Except… there was a tent in Austin's pants. And he was aware of it.

"Ally! I can explain!" Austin says quickly, as if the sight of his boner will scare me off. And it might've, if I wasn't smart. But, I know what happens when guys get turned on. The only question was who is turning him on? Austin slowly approaches me, and I suddenly blush madly as I realize my gaze is still locked on his pants. I raise my eyes and when they meet Austin's, it's like every emotion is written on his face. I see fear for what he's afraid I'm thinking, humiliation for being caught in this situation, and finally, lust. His whole body is radiating with desire as he continues to look at me. And I share it. I know that this Austin standing in front of me is my Austin. Not the one with the cover up, not the one concerned with anything involving his career, but the Austin that cares for nothing more than me and my feelings. And what we do next, I think we've both been waiting for it for a long time.

Austin rushes forward just as I do, and we both crash into each other, our bodies pressed tight. I immediately find my hands running through his soft locks, and Austin's hands travel down my back, making me shiver. We stare at each other and lean in.

"Ally, I've always liked you, since the first day we met," Austin starts, his gaze burning right into me. "I'm changing. I will never be that obnoxious player I was the first day I met you. Please, will you be my girlfriend?" My eyes grow wide as does my smile.

"Austin, I'm sorry for being so horrible to you. All you have ever done was try to get to know me, and I do know you're changing. If you weren't, I wouldn't be saying… I like you too, and yes!" Austin's perfect smile grows until he's practically shining with happiness.

His eyes captivate me and he starts leaning in. My heart beats out of my chest, and I lean in too, my eyes closing. Finally, I feel soft lips close over mine, and I part mine automatically. Austin's sweet, unique breath washes over me and I feel strong hands pull me impossibly closer to him. Austin and I are sharing our first kiss.

Then, everything goes black and I collapse.