Haley stood, staring at herself in the mirror, mind whirling around the coming afternoon. Three days. That's how long she had had to call this farce off. Three whole days. It wasn't like Jordan was particularly difficult to find to do it, either. She would see him pass by in the hallways, but neither acknowledged the other. Maybe it was out of pride, maybe embarrassment. The whole thing was stupid, so stupid! What did either of them really have to prove? Was it even worth proving? Haley was supposed to be bigger than this. She felt like her brother, doing stupid things in the name of romance. And yet, here she was, looking at herself in the mirror, trying to pretty herself up for a not-date.

The rest of the house did not know of her coming rendezvous with Jordan. For the sake of not having to hear Mike guffaw at her choice in boys (though it's not like she CHOSE Jordan), she kept it all to herself. This little secret wouldn't last long, as her mother, older and wiser, knew better and figured something was up when she saw Haley going over outfits in her closet. She said nothing then, as it was merely a hunch, but now her daughter had been spending an awful long time staring at herself in the mirror. The mother korat gave the door frame a little knock. Haley jumped at the sound, having been lost in her own thoughts about the coming afternoon.

"Sorry sweetheart." Her mother said with a little smile. "I didn't mean to scare you. Big day today?"

Her daughter, as she predicted, blushed deeper red and turned away to look back at the mirror, however this didn't obscure her mother's knowing gaze from her like she'd hoped. Haley stiffened up and replied. "I'm just going out for a while to see a movie. That's all."

"Mhm." Her mom mumbled, seeing the cracks in her daughter's closed off exterior. "And what's his name?"

Haley felt a fire in her face at the question. There was no avoiding it now, her mother was too smart. Now it was a matter of keeping it from her brother… "I don't want Mike to know…"

"Too late!" Mike called from his bedroom. Thanks to his ultra sensitive hearing, he could hear the quietest whisper, and definitely a normal conversation happening right next door to him. "I've already heard everything."

Haley groaned and rubbed her face. Mike stopped doing what he was doing to come lean on the other side of the door frame. "Who is it, Haley?"

The girl glared at her brother, more hesitant than ever. "I don't wanna deal with you laughing."

"He won't laugh, right Michael?" Their mom said, smiling at him.

"I promise!" Mike held up his right hand. "So who is it?"

Haley looked back and forth between the both of them and looked down to mumble. "Jordan."

Mike had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. It wasn't enough to keep a small 'snrk' from escaping him. Haley shot a death glare at him, trying to remove his mouth with her mind. "Don't you dare!" She growled.

Her mother interrupted her. "That's wonderful, sweetie. I hope you have a good time. Jordan seems like a nice young man."

Mike swallowed his laughter, painful as it was, so he could speak. "Jordan?! Why? You can do better than that!"

"I didn't ask for YOUR opinion, MICHAEL!" Haley sputtered. It was already embarrassing enough that she had to go on this stupid date, but now her annoying brother knew too. "Go back to your fake girlfriend!"

It was time for their mother to intervene. She could see Mike inhaling to retaliate. "Kids, be nice! I'm happy to hear about your date, Haley."

"It's not a date!" Haley hissed, seeing the look of glee on Mike's face.

"Picking out a nice outfit and putting on makeup so you can go see a movie with a guy isn't a date. Got it." Mike gave an overexaggerated wink and finger guns.

"Don't let Michael make you feel bad about who you like." Their mother said, putting a hand on Mike's back to usher him away. "We'll let you finish up."

Haley turned back to the mirror and frowned further, continuing to stew in her regret. She thought about Jordan and his stupid smile. By the end of the day, she'd prove how much of a dweeb he was and wipe it right off. That gave her a stirring of hope that this wouldn't be all for naught as well. The teen stood up a little straighter and took a brush in hand. She'd show him how to look your best for a date, too.

Meanwhile, a khao manee teen was holding her side. Not from pain, well, a little from pain. She was laughing so hard she could barely breathe. Not only was the situation ridiculous, but her brother LOOKED ridiculous. Her brother, who was currently standing with his arms crossed in a wrinkly button up, looked on unamused. This was a far cry from his usual jersey, and being that he just got home from some basketball earlier that morning, he looked all sorts of messed up as well.

Lucy looked up with tears in her eyes, trying to catch her breath, but one glance at Jordan's big frown sent her into another laughing fit. "Laugh all you want!" Jordan growled, trying to salvage some of his dignity from his disheveled state. "At least I have a date!"

"Goodness, Jordan!" Said an older voice from behind. It was their mother. "You're not thinking of wearing that shirt on a date are you? It looks like it's been run over by a car!"

Jordan was a little stunned at her comment and opened his mouth to respond but Lucy managed to inhale enough air to beat him to it. "You'll never guess who he's going out with!"

"Lucy!" Jordan groaned.

"Oh? Who?" Their mother asked.

"You tell her!" Lucy said to Jordan, whose face looked like it was stuck in a permanent frown. He already regretted telling Lucy, and he knew full well his mother would be all over him, making sure he was dressed to the tee and looking his best when she found out who it was.

The boy lowered his head and spoke softly. "Haley. I'm going out with Haley."

"Haley?" The mother asked. "As in, Ellen's daughter, Haley?" Jordan nodded a little, feeling the pressure mounting. He had his mother's full attention now, and she went about fussing over his appearance. "There is no way I'm letting you wear that wrinkled old thing to a date with her! Oh, and your fur is all disheveled!" The mother held Jordan's head in one hand, going over his face. "You've got dirt all over you!" She said, rubbing at one, stretching his face. "Did you even shower?" She sniffed the air around him and scrunched up her face. "You did not! You march to the bathroom right now and clean yourself up!"

"MOOOOOOOOOM!" Jordan groaned again. "You never get this upset when I go see Tiff!"

"Sweetheart…" Their mother stepped back from him, finally letting him breathe a little. "That Tiff girl is no good! She just uses you for a free meal."

Jordan folded his arms and looked away, ears pinned back. "You sound just like Haley." He mumbled.

"Well good, because she's right!" Their mom said. "All the more reason to look your best! Now hurry."

Lucy looked at Jordan with the biggest grin she could muster. Jordan just continued his frown and went to look for a new shirt, and to get showered and brushed. Lucy had to tell Mike, she ran back to her room, laughing, and noticed that her cell phone was blowing up with notifications from the aforementioned boy. 'Ah.' She thought to herself. 'He must have heard too.'

Lucy grabbed the phone and answered the call. "Hey Mike!" She said, trying to contain her laughter.

"Lucy! You won't believe-" Mike started, but Lucy cut him off.

"That Jordan and Haley are going on a date? Yeah, I know." She said.

"Who would've guessed?" Mike asked.

"Mmm…" Lucy responded, laying back on her bed, laughter subsiding. There was a moment of silence between them. Who WOULD have guessed?

Downstairs at both their houses, both of their siblings were headed out the door.

"Bye, mom!" Haley called.

"Have a good time, sweetie!" Her mother called back, "Remember to smile!"

Haley put on her best, biggest, fake smile. "Sure thing, mom!" And the moment the door shut behind her, her face fell into a frown. 'Well.' She thought with an internal sigh. 'Let's get this over with.'

Similarly, Jordan bid farewell to his mom, who left him with a, "And I better not hear anything bad from Ellen about this, young man!" To which Jordan smiled sheepishly and promised her he would do his best. As he slipped out the door, he could see his sister grinning at him, still on the phone. He rolled his eyes and got on his way.

"I think Haley just left." Mike said into the phone.

"Yeah, Jordan's gone too." Lucy said once she was back in her bedroom. "Wanna bet this thing doesn't last the whole movie?"

"Yeah!" Mike said.

Jordan ran as fast as his feet could carry him, not wanting to be late. Haley would for sure chew him out for that, and he was not about to be taking the first hit. He was going to prove that he was a gentleman, and then win… Jordan slowed down. Win what? Bragging rights? Was all this effort really worth it to prove that he was right? He looked back from where he came. He could just go home if he wanted.

'But would you really stand her up like that?' A small voice in him asked. 'Even if she wants to prove you wrong… You're just gonna leave her there by herself?' Jordan shook his head, frustrated by the fact he was guilt tripping himself. He had to resign himself to his inner voice. Not showing up would be horrible, and his mother would surely ground him for eternity after an hour long lecture about respect.

With a sigh he continued forth to the theater. It didn't take him long to get there, and standing in the crowd of moviegoers coming and going was Haley. She was wearing a casual green dress that matched her eyes, and before Jordan could register the fact he was noticing that small detail, the girl saw him coming down the path and put her hands on her hips with an unamused look. Jordan's face fell, expecting her to give him grief over being late.

"Let me guess." He said once he was standing in front of Haley. "I'm late?"

Her face didn't change. "No. But it took you long enough."

"Can you at least give me a point for not being late?" Jordan asked.

"A point for the bare minimum?" Haley asked as they walked to the front doors. "I sure hope you weren't showing up late for your…" She paused and put up her fingers to make quotation marks. "Dates… with Tiff."

"I was never late." The boy said, annoyed at her for deflecting him. "Sometimes Tiff might be, though…"

Haley laughed. "Imagine that. Wanting to be on time for a date with you!"

"Hey!" He grumbled. "She's a busy girl! It's understandable if she's a few minutes late… Or if she is unable to show up…"

"You really are pathetic." Haley chided. Winning this bet was going to be too easy.

When they reached the doors, Jordan stopped her and pulled one open for her. "After you." He said smugly with a gesture for her to enter.

"Don't look so proud of yourself." Haley said, entering. "I still consider this to be the bare minimum."

"Wasn't the bet on whether or not I knew how to put on a proper date? Seems like I'm winning so far." Jordan smiled. As he went to follow her through the doorway, he looked at all the passersby on the sidewalk in front of the theater. Something caught his eye, and he wasn't really sure why. There was someone standing a few feet away wearing a dark hoodie with the hood pulled up and a pair of sunglasses, just staring at them. Jordan did a double take but the person was gone by the time he looked back. He shrugged and entered the lobby.

Haley was looking dully over the movies they had playing that day. There was nothing out she really cared to see, as it was a slow part of the year for releases. She put a hand on her hip and clucked her teeth. "What do you wanna watch?" She asked Jordan.

"Mmm…" The boy said, squinting at the sign. Nothing really stood out to him, except… "OH! Court Brothers!"

Haley blinked in confusion. "What?"

"Court Brothers! It's a new basketball movie!" Jordan said excitedly.

Haley frowned, not much liking the idea of it. On a ranking of movies she'd want to watch, a basketball movie wouldn't even be on it. Jordan didn't hear a response from Haley so he went forward to buy tickets for them. The korat furrowed her brow. "Hey! Where are you going? We haven't decided on a movie yet."

Jordan stopped and turned around. "We're going to see Court Brothers, right?"

"I never agreed to that!" She huffed, putting her hands on her hips.

"You asked me what I wanted to watch, and this is it! Besides, you didn't say no…" Jordan pointed out.

Haley was quite offended by his interpretation of things. This was SUCH a guy thing to say. "Just because I didn't say NO doesn't mean yes! Ever heard of consent, idiot?!"

Jordan frowned, regretting his decision to come more and more by the minute. If he had just gone home and not cared about proving anything to this girl that he probably wouldn't talk to again after this, he could have caught up on schoolwork, gone out to practice, played some games, anything but this. Lectures and groundings be damned. He regressed his negative thoughts and walked back over to the girl. "Okay then. What do you want to watch?"

Haley looked back up at the showtime screen. "I don't know… these all sound lame! Whatever is fine."

Jordan shook his head in frustration. Girls were so fickle, especially this one. At least Tiff never cared what they did. Come to think of it, she never really cared about anything when it came to him. "Then let's just go see-"

"No." Haley said firmly, knowing what he was going to say. "Any of them but that."

Was this part of a test to see how much she could push his buttons? Jordan considered himself a patient guy but even this was becoming too much. "Why don't we just close our eyes and point, then?" He suggested sarcastically.

Haley pondered the idea for a moment and nodded. It was unique. "That's not a bad idea."

Jordan opened his mouth to rebut but this was the first thing she'd said to him that hadn't been negative. "Fine. Eyes closed."

They both closed their eyes and pointed up at the board. People walking by gave them odd looks, but neither Haley nor Jordan ever saw them. "Okay, open your eyes." Haley said.

Upon gaining sight of the world again, they saw they both pointed at the same movie by the title of Love Forever and Ever II. Both of them groaned, but the die was cast. They went up to the box office, and requested the tickets. As Haley went for her purse Jordan stopped her. "I've got this." He said with an air of superiority, pulling out his wallet.

"I'm sure you're used to paying for everything by now." Haley jabbed, smiling innocently.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." He said, getting the tickets. "Isn't the guy supposed to pay?"

"Yeah, I just think I can pay for myself too." Haley said. "I'm independent."

"And that's why you wanted to go on a date with me." Jordan grinned, thinking he'd really got her with that one.

Haley rolled her eyes. "I didn't WANT to go on a date with you. I just wanted to prove you wrong."

For someone who was totally indifferent she sure seemed to have put in a lot of effort into her appearance. She even made him feel underdressed. "Oh really? Is that why you got all dressed up and groomed and smell nice?" The khao manee asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"No!" Haley said defensively as her cheeks were going red. "And what about you, you're all dressed up and - wait… did you just say I smell nice?"

Jordan's eyes went wide. "I mean, you know, it's hard not to notice…"

"Whatever weirdo, stop sniffing me. Let's get some snacks." Haley said, wanting to brush the unintentional comment under the rug. But if she was being honest, she was a little flattered by it.

When they got to the snack counter, Jordan once again insisted on paying, but Haley turned him down. "You've already proven how much of a dweeb you are, I get it. I'll be paying for this, though."

Jordan thought it best not to argue. He looked around the lobby as he waited and noticed the hooded person he saw earlier just… staring at him. Or were they staring at Haley? Or the both of them? He didn't have time to think because Haley tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey doofus, the fries are gonna take a few minutes. Come grab this stuff, we have to wait over on the other end of the counter."

Jordan broke his trance. "I'm not a doofus." He grumbled stupidly, picking up their drinks and snacks.

"You still haven't tried to make any real conversation with me." Haley pointed out, still looking for anything to deride him for.

"Well…" Jordan started out slowly, racking his brain. They came to a stop at the food counter. "So Coach thinks I could get a scholarship through basketball. I'm really good at it, despite my size."

Haley folded her arms and sighed. Jordan looked around confused. "What? What?"

"Really? You're gonna just talk about yourself?" Haley huffed, not sure if she was more annoyed by the fact he went straight to talking about himself or he went straight to talking about basketball.

"You asked me to make conversation." Jordan said flatly, equally as annoyed. "So I did."

"Girls don't wanna hear you talk about yourself." Haley rolled her eyes. "Is this all you talked to Tiff about?"

Jordan paused for a moment, trying to think of any conversation he started that wasn't about him or basketball, but couldn't. All he could mumble back was, "She was a really good listener…"

"She wasn't listening, idiot." Haley poked Jordan on the forehead with her index finger. "She was too busy stuffing her face."

"Okay, well then… have you been to any of the games recently?" He asked. "Maybe you should think about becoming a cheerleader."

Haley facepalmed. This boy just wasn't getting it. "You're still talking about-" But she paused as something stood out to her. "You… think I should be a cheerleader?"

Jordan went a little red, realizing the implication of what he said. "Well, yeah. Y'know, I just think you'd, um… be a nice fit for it…"

Haley tried to hide her encroaching blush. This was now twice Jordan had complimented her. Maybe he meant it, maybe it was unintentional again, but guys never paid her any mind, let alone compliment her. She never was looking for their attention, but hearing these things from Jordan felt… nice. She regressed and looked the other way as to not see his dumb anxious face. "Maybe I'll think about it." She mumbled.

"ORDER UP!" Called a concessionist, pushing a large bag of fries. Both jumped at the voice, so engrossed in each other they weren't paying attention to the employee who was saying order up for the last minute. "And you kids better not start making out in the theater, either." He said with a scowl.

The two teens became even more embarrassed than they already were. Haley sheepishly nabbed the bag of fries from the counter and both walked awkwardly away. "Who does that guy think he is?" Haley huffed as they walked down the carpeted corridor. "So what if we make out, we paid to be here!"

Jordan stiffened up. "You'd… want to do that?"

"What? No!" Haley got flustered at her slip up. "I'm just saying… if we wanted to, what's it to him?" Jordan kept silent, but smiled a little.

When they reached the theater room, Jordan got the door for Haley again, and this time she gratefully accepted it with a little, "Thanks."

The room was packed with couples coming to see Love Forever and Ever II during its opening weekend. They eventually found an empty pair of seats in the theater after climbing over a sea of legs and got comfortable. The movie started with a garish pink title sequence with cursive text. There was a montage of beautiful couples spending time together, holding hands and wistfully looking into each other's eyes.

"Euch." Haley stuck out her tongue in disgust. "This is already too cheesy for me."

"I agree." Jordan said, looking just as displeased. "But we're here now, we should try to make the best of it."

"I'm gonna watch it as a comedy." She grinned at her brilliant idea. "Gonna make this way more fun."

"Shush!" Scolded a moviegoer behind them. Both Haley and Jordan turned around to see who it was, and saw a middle aged dog looking down at them. Haley turned back around and sunk into her seat with a scowl. Everyone was being so stuck up today. Jordan turned back around too and sighed. It was going to be a long movie.

And so it was, but slowly the two were pulled in by it. It followed two people at odds with each other, and calling each other out for their shortcomings. They set out to prove the other wrong, and each starts to slowly appreciate the other more. It was not lost on Jordan and Haley that this setup felt familiar. At one point, their hands accidentally touched on the armrest and they jumped apart.

"I'm… gonna go get some more candy." Jordan whispered hurriedly. "Want any?"

Haley was thankful the darkness of the theater hid the massive blush on her face. "I-I'll just have whatever you have."

Jordan nodded and got up, squeezing past the line of legs between him and the aisle. Outside the room he was able to collect himself as he walked to the lobby. This wasn't a real date. This was just to prove Haley wrong, nothing more than that. Jordan felt like he was doing a pretty good job at that so far. He got the candy from the concessions stand and headed back to the theater.

When Jordan returned, there was a particularly bright scene as the couple watched a sunset. He could see every face in the theater, and some of them weren't dry. He smirked as he went up the stairs, but as he reached his row he stopped. There he was again, that hooded figure, just two rows up from where they were sitting. Only this time there was only Haley there, and he was staring intently at her. Now there was no doubt, the guy was definitely stalking her. Jordan weighed his options. If he told Haley, would she even believe him? What if it caused a scene? Maybe it would be better if he kept it to himself so she didn't worry. Besides, as long as he was there, nobody would dare mess with her, right?

Fortunately for Jordan, he didn't have to choose. The person looked his way and got up, heading for the opposite side of the theater. He headed down the aisle and left. Jordan breathed a sigh of relief, the creep finally got the message. He shimmeyed along the row of legs to get back to his seat. He had totally forgotten about his and Haley's accidental hand holding by now.

"What took you so long?" Haley whispered under her breath. "Did you have to make the candy?"

It was good to see she'd moved on from it too. "Sorry… there was a line." He lied.

"Well gimme some." Haley snagged the box from him. She didn't need to, he would happily give her the whole box if she wanted it.

Jordan and Haley kept their hands in their laps for the remainder of the movie. Once it was over, the audience clapped and cheered while the two teens took this as their cue to leave. Once they were free of the noise of the theater, they could hear each other speak.

"That movie was soooo lame!" Haley groaned. "Probably lamer than that basketball movie you wanted to watch."

"Hey, you shoulda listened to me." Jordan shrugged, a little vindicated. "Perhaps next time we go out you will."

"Yeah!" She scoffed as they crossed the lobby. "As if! I'm picking the movie with my eyes open next time."

"I'll have to do the same." Jordan agreed. "Otherwise I'm watching the movie with my eyes closed." He added with a chuckle.

"Oh wow, that was truly awful!" She laughed at Jordan's corny joke. "Watch it with your eyes closed? How long have you been waiting to pull that one out?"

"I just came up with it." Jordan said with a smile, applauding himself for his quick wit. He got the door for her. "And you laughed, so it couldn't have been THAT bad."

"I'm laughing AT you, not with you, you dweeb!" Haley said as she exited.

They both had a good laugh on the sidewalk before simmering down. There was an awkward silence between them as they tried to figure out what to do next. They'd done it. They'd gone on the not-date. The sun was beginning to set on them, and dinner would be ready soon.

"So. How did I do?" Jordan asked.

"Huh? Oh, right." Haley had nearly forgotten this was all to prove if Jordan knew how to put on a proper date or not. "I suppose you did whatever… I… didn't hate it. For the most part."

"That's... good?" Jordan raised an eyebrow. He definitely felt like he deserved a better review than that! Not like SHE was the queen of dating. "I mean, you were alright too… a bit mean at first…"

"Yeah, well you're not perfect, either!" She replied. "It's like you took dating advice from the nineteen fifties! Hold the door open for her, pay for her, try to hold her hand! And you're still talking about yourself! Not even asking if I enjoyed myself, it's all about how you did!"

"Well at least I tried! All you did was complain!" Jordan frowned, the goodwill he had towards her quickly draining away. "What's wrong with being chivalrous? At least I tried to be nice to you, you didn't even deserve it!"

"You're a dork and a JERK! Just like every other jock!" Haley said, raising her voice. "And you just let Tiff and every other girl walk all over you!"

"And you're a bitch!" Jordan said sternly back, furious she had the gall to say any of this after how much he put up with from her. "It's no wonder no guys want to date you!"

"Well if they're all like you then I'm glad they don't!" Haley said back, her voice cracking. Deep in her eyes, Jordan could see a newfound hurt. "I'm going home!"

"So am I!" Jordan fired back. "Don't talk to me at school!"

"Forget about talking to you!" Haley cried as she stormed away. "I'm never even going to look at you again!"

Jordan scowled at the korat as she left him there. He shook his head and walked the other way. The sooner he could put this whole day behind him, the better. His feelings of frustration stewed in him as he put distance between them, and he looked behind to see what Haley was doing. She was still walking away, hugging herself as she did so. He sighed and turned his head back around, but as he did, some movement across the street caught the corner of his eye.

Jordan jerked his head back around and saw someone walking down the sidewalk, on the opposite side of the street that Haley was walking next to. It was him… the guy in the dark hoodie. Jordan looked back down his sidewalk, the one that would lead him home and away from the gray menace, but something ate at him. He couldn't just leave her alone, what if that guy did something to her? And he would have known about it. He had to make sure Haley was okay, even though she wasn't going to be happy to see him.

Jordan turned tail and chased after Halet, calling out to her. "Haley! Wait up!"

"Go away!" She called back angrily.

"I'm sorry! Really!" Jordan said, hoping this would convince her to wait for him. It didn't work.

"I don't care." She stated firmly, looking away as he caught up next to her. "I'm never going to look at you again, remember?"

"Fine, but…" He lowered his voice so that only she could hear. "Just… let me walk you home, okay?"

"I don't want you to and I don't need you to!" She said stubbornly. "I hate you."

"I don't care." Jordan said, keeping up with her increasingly longer strides. "I'm coming with you."

"Why?" Haley demanded to know. "I thought I was a bitch."

Jordan bit his tongue. She WAS being bitchy, but he didn't want her to worry. "Because I just think I should."

Haley spun to finally look at him again. "I'm not even going to CONSIDER it unless. You. Tell. Me. Why!" She jabbed a finger in his chest each word. "After everything you said to me!"

"Be-because…" Jordan stuttered.

"Yes?" Haley tilted her head and leaned in, staring into his heterochromatic eyes. "Hmm?"

Jordan really didn't want to worry her, and definitely didn't want to bring any attention to the stalker, who was most definitely listening in, waiting for her to push him away again so he might be able to make his move. "It's just…"

"Speak!" Haley hissed at him through her teeth. "You sure didn't have an issue when you were yelling at me earlier."

Jordan looked around in time to see the hooded guy step behind the cover of an alley. He lowered his head and pulled Haley close, who protested at his touch, but Jordan ignored her. As quietly as he could, he spoke. "There's a guy that's been following you since we met up the theater. He was in the parking lot, and in the lobby, and two rows back in the theater, just staring at you, and right now he's hiding in that alley across the street - don't look." He added quickly, and to his surprise, Haley heeded his advice.

"Now I don't care if you call me a white knight, or a dweeb, or a dork, or bastard or whatever name you can come up with." The white cat continued with all seriousness. "But I'm making sure you get home safe."

There was a moment of sobering silence between them, and Haley took a step closer to Jordan, to the point where they were practically pressed up against each other. "This guy… does he have a dark hoodie with sunglasses?" She asked shakily.

"Yeah, why?" Jordan asked.

And for the first time, Jordan saw Haley show something other than arrogance. There was no fighting spirit, no fiestyness, nothing. Instead, this was replaced with fear, and she hugged his arm and whispered. "He tried picking me up on the way to the theater. He wouldn't leave me alone, but I threatened to call the police and he left… I didn't know he… why didn't you tell me?"

"I-I didn't know what was going on." Jordan said, surprised. "I thought he was just some guy there to watch a movie. It wasn't until I saw him staring at you when I came back with the candy… I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"It's okay." Haley breathed, closing her eyes. "Is he still there?"

Jordan looked back at the alley. The guy was peering around the corner, but quickly pulled back when he saw Jordan looking. The boy looked down at the girl clinging to him. "He's still there."

He could feel Haley tighten her grip. "Please… come with me…"

"Of course." Jordan smiled. "It's time we got you home. We can tell your parents, and they can help."

Haley nodded. They started walking off, and she let go of his arm, but took his hand instead. Jordan was okay with this, he thought her hand was really soft. The sunset ended their day in beautiful fashion, elevating the underlying romantic feelings the two were beginning to harbor for each other. They walked in silence while Jordan remained vigilant of their unwanted third wheel. He had abandoned his pursuit long ago, seeing that Jordan was not going to leave her side.

The two teens arrived at Haley's house in silence. They stood on the stoop for a moment, looking awkward, unsure of what to say next. Truth be told, despite their angry words, they both really had enjoyed the date. Not date? Whatever it was, it was fun. Now, all that was left was to say goodbye. What was the takeaway? Jordan was the first to shift his gaze from the flowery bushes that lined the front of the house to his counterpart. He noticed her cheeks were slightly tinged red. In the setting sun, she glowed a radiance that he couldn't describe. The best word he could use was, "Beautiful."

He'd been thinking it, but somehow the word escaped his lips. Haley's heart stopped and she blinked. Slowly, she looked up at the boy, and when she did, their eyes met. She… wasn't entirely sure she'd heard him correctly. "Wh-what?"

He was caught now. No backing down. Time to commit. "I… I said you were beautiful." The boy said quietly, expecting her to start chastising him.

But the chastising never came. Haley opened and closed her mouth, surprised and shocked, at his boldness. No guy had ever called her beautiful before. "I… you… I uh… w-well…" Haley stammered, trying to find a steady ground to speak on. Now that they were in the evening glow, she saw how handsome he was, and it made it harder for her to form a cohesive comeback. "Well, that's good." She sniffed. "That's a good example of something you should sa-"

"No." Jordan interrupted, feeling himself get more confident with the situation. "I really meant it. You look pretty."

This only made Haley turn a deeper shade of red. So, this is what it was like. After all this time. She couldn't let him see how much she appreciated it. That stupid, dweeby, handsome, cute… gentleman. He wasn't so bad… a little rough around the edges, but nobody was perfect. Hell, she wasn't. But when she heard him call her beautiful, pretty, she sure felt like she was perfect. It made her heart race, and she couldn't help but crack a smile in her blush. Jordan tilted his head a little, trying to figure out what was going through her mind. "Haley? Are you okay?"

She was brought back to reality. The korat cleared her throat and looked up at him. "Yes. Thank you. You… you're really handsome too."

Jordan smiled at her. "Thanks."

They stood there, but now the awkward air was cleared, and in its place was a calm passion between the two. "Tiff is stupid to treat you like she does." Haley said, breaking the silence. "You deserve better than her."

"Heh, well…" Jordan started, remembering he was supposed to be dating Tiff. Now, he was starting to rethink that choice. "You can be the better, if you're interested."

It was such a horribly corny thing to say. Haley once thought it was a fault, but now she realized it was a strength. It showed how much he cared, that he tried flirting, even if it was in an unconventional way. But springing the question on her now… so soon… the date had been nice… but she'd never had a boyfriend before. Was Jordan boyfriend material? He certainly had potential… but was she ready? Was she good girlfriend material?

Jordan took notice of her hesitation and felt a little self conscious. He'd felt like he'd pushed it with his comments about her looks, but it had worked out. Asking her to be his girlfriend may have been a step too far. He sighed internally, but he understood if she wasn't into him like that. This date was supposed to be more platonic, to show her he wasn't such a loser. "Hey, no pressure, haha. I shouldn't have-"

"Wait." It was now Haley's time to interrupt him. "I've just… never been asked that before. I don't know if I'm…" What was the right word? Ready? Interested? Worthy? No, she had to be more confident than that.

"It's alright." Jordan said, not having expected her to go for it. "I'll see you at school." He turned to leave, but Haley stopped him by grabbing his hand. Jordan turned around to ask her what was wrong, but he was stopped when her lips met his.

It was a quick kiss, lasted for mere moments, but Haley got her point across. Before he even knew what was really going on, Haley let go of his hand, stepped back, and said, "That's for walking me home." With that, she went inside, leaving Jordan alone on the stoop. It took a few moments, but he smiled. Girls. He'd never get a straight answer from them, but he felt like Haley had given him something definitive. He turned and took his leave, walking down the sidewalk to his house as the sun set sank on the horizon.