I turn my head and see the nerd girl standing beside our table with a pencil and pad of paper in her hand. I quickly turn my head so she can't see me. Luckily, Nick starts to rattle off his order, so she doesn't see me. That feeling of relief lasts for about two seconds.

"Maya?" Alli asks, shocked.

I slowly turn my head and flatly say, "Hi."

"Wow, I never expected to see you here. Though, I'm glad I get to see you again before school on Monday. I want to ask you a question. Before I do that, what would you like to eat?" she rambles.

I give her my order, and she leaves to give the order to the kitchen. Nick gives me an amused look, and I just scowl at him. He laughs at my scowl, making me scowl even more. Alli comes back with our drinks and then leaves again.

"So," Nick starts with amusement in his tone, "I didn't realize that you had a very cheerful friend. How could you keep that a secret from me?"

I roll my eyes. "Please, I met her about the same time I met you. Plus, I didn't remember her name until she just today when she introduced herself."

"Maya Walker has a best friend who is completely opposite from her. Who would've guessed that you hang out with the cheerful and optimistic people?" he teases.

I take a piece of ice out of my cup with a spoon and then throw it at him. "One more word, and I swear you will die."

He just laughs and wipes the ice off him. "I'm paying for your food, remember?"

I sigh with exasperation. "Whatever."

Throughout the meal, we bicker back and forth. I can tell he's enjoying the bickering, which makes me even more irritated. But, I soon find myself sort of enjoying it too, and I have no idea why.

"And here's your bill. I hope your meal was satisfactory," Alli says at the end of the meal.

"Thank you very much, Alli. How, why don't you ask Maya what you wanted to ask her while I figure out the bill," Nick replies cheerfully.

I scowl at him as Alli excitedly says, "Definitely! Okay, Maya, I was wondering if you want to come to a party I'm having next weekend. It's going to just be a few people, and there will be lots of food and good conversation. It'll be extremely casual, too. Plus, you're welcome to bring your boyfriend."

"He's not my boyfriend," I immediately answer.

She looks at me and then Nick, and then back at me. "Oh, I'm sorry. I really thought y'all were together. Whoops."

I kick Nick's leg because I see him trying to hold in his laughter. "Yeah, and I don't think I'll be able to make it to the party."

Her face falls for just the slightest second before she replies, "Maybe some other time."

I'm about to say that that will never happen, but Nick steps in and mischievously tells her, "Actually, Alli, Maya will be able to make your party, and boyfriend or not, I'll gladly tag along with her. Where will this party be?"

She smiles widely and tells him that it's at her house at six o'clock. He tells her ones again that we'll definitely be there. When she leaves, I kick Nick again and scowl even harder at him before getting up from my spot and walking out of the building.

"Maya, what's wrong?" Nick calls after me.

I stop at his car and turn to face him. "Do you honestly think this is funny? There's a reason why I said no, and there's a reason why I'm always hesitant when I talk to you and other people. Please stop trying to run my life, especially when I've only known you a couple of weeks."

He finally sees that I'm serious and goes serious. "I'm sorry, Maya. I didn't know that you were going to be this upset."

"Will you just take me back to my uncle's house, please?" I ask him.

He nods his head and unlocks the car. I get in and turn my back. The car ride is silent. He doesn't bother trying to come up with something to talk about, and I'm relieved. I stare out the window and feel myself calming down slightly.

We're back in Clearwater Bay in just a few minutes. He stops at the house and softly says, "I'm sorry, Maya. I really am. I can tell her that you can't go."

I don't turn to look at him. Instead, I reply, "Thanks for lunch." I then hop out of the car quickly and walk up to the house without looking back at Nick.

~•••••~

"Maya?" Emma's voice interrupts my thoughts at dinner.

As soon as I left Nick behind in his car, I had walked into the house and hurried up the stairs without stopping to let anyone know that I was back at the house. I had laid down on my bed and closed my eyes, trying to drown some of my feelings in sleep.

Once again, Emma came up to my room and woke me up. She led me downstairs to eat dinner. That's how I find myself at the dinner table in another awkward meal with both my uncle and Emma glancing at each other awkwardly.

"Yes?" I ask tiredly.

"How'd that super long tour go?" my uncle asks in a tone that tells me he knows that I did something after the tour.

"Fine."

"Must've been a whole day tour. I didn't realize that your school was that big," he pushes on.

I set my fork down with a clatter and look at him with exasperation. "Why do you insist I tell you what happened when you already know? Yes, Nick took me to lunch. Are you happy now?"

He doesn't back down at my outburst. Instead, he replies, "Where'd y'all go?"

I finally lose all my 'cool' and stand up. "We went to some restaurant outside of town. Would you also like to know what I ordered?"

"Maya," Emma warns as she gestures for me to sit down.

"What?" I demand as I turn to look at her. "I'm sick and tired of you both. First, you try to get to know my 'deep' feelings, and second, you both insist I sit down for horrible meals. Lastly, I'm still being treated like a little girl. Oh, and I forgot to mention that when y'all argue, please find a way to do it places where I can't hear you."

With that, I walk out of the dining room and out the French doors leading to the deck. I slip my shoes off and set them on the deck before walking toward the beach. Once I get on the sand, I walk up and down the shore. I think about everything that's been happening for the last couple of weeks, and I decide that everything that has happened, has all been happening too quickly.

"Maya?" a voice calls from behind me.

I turn around and see Nick walking toward me. How does he always manage to show up after I've had an outburst or when I'm not in the best of moods?

"Leave me alone," I shout back.

He doesn't stop coming toward me, and I sigh. There's no way for me to walk away from him, so I just stand and face the ocean with my eyes closed. I feel him stand next to me because his arm brushes mine. He doesn't speak, and I don't open my eyes to see whether or not he's looking at me.

After a few minutes, he asks, "Are you okay?"

"I'm at the beach. You're a good observer; tell me what you think," I whisper.

I hear him cluck his tongue. "You're obviously upset about something. You're either upset about what I did at lunch or something new happened between you and Mr. Erickson. Then again, it could be both things."

I open my eyes and turn to face him. He looks me in the eye with his warm blue eyes as I say, "How do you manage to know all of that? You barely know anything about me."

He gives me a slow and steady smile. "Like I said, I've learned to pay attention to details."

"I pay attention to details," I find myself saying back to him.

"Prove it," he challenges.

"How am I going to do that?"

He looks at me mischievously. "Use me as your example."

I stare at him, and he smiles. "Don't smile," I order him.

His smile drops, and I look at him for a second. I even tilt my head slightly as I try to figure out something about him. The whole time he just stands and allows me to look at him without saying anything. He begins to fidget under my gaze after a few more minutes go by.

"Well?" he finally asks.

"You're hiding," I state.

He raises an eyebrow in curiosity, but he fidgets again, letting me know that I'm on to something. "Please elaborate."

"Well," I begin, "I'm not exactly sure why you're hiding, but you're hiding from someone or something. Firstly, you don't randomly announce you're going to move to a small town in the middle of nowhere because you're seeking inspiration when you have enough money to live in Europe or something. Secondly, you're hesitant for anyone to know who you are, and you act like a nervous wreck when you see someone look at you. Lastly, you got really afraid that I was going to tell someone you're sexist and that something would go wrong if you backed out of the school tour."

His eyes widen at my words. "Wow. You do pay attention to details."

"So you are hiding!" I exclaim.

"No. I'm just stating that you remember a lot and pay attention to almost every little detail. Oh, and by the way, how'd you know what I said about moving here?"

I smirk. "Some girls were talking about you a couple of weeks ago during lunch."

He just nods and turns back to face the ocean. I continue to stare at him while he's focused on the ocean. His brown hair is slightly messy from the wind, and he looks to be about two feet taller than I. He's wearing a hoody and a pair of joggers, completely oblivious that I'm staring at him; at least I thought he was. 

"Checking me out?" his teasing voice asks interrupting my thoughts.

I immediately stop staring at him and roll my eyes. "No."

He laughs, sending a warm feeling throughout me. I chastise myself for thinking his laugh can do warm me because it's so cheesy, but I know deep down inside, it's true.

"Maya?" he asks.

"What?"

"Look at me," he commands gently.

"Why should I? You're not my father," I shoot at him in a slightly teasing tone.

"Maya, look at me," his voice commands even more gently.

I almost begin to turn my head to look at him, but I command myself to stop. There's no way I'm going to let him tell me what to do so he can study me even more. If he was able to see my eyes, he would see something, and I don't want him to know more than he already knows.

I suddenly feel his hand on my arm, gently making me turn to face him. I turn my head down so he can't see my face. He drops his hand from my arm. We stand like that for what seems like an eternity. We're facing each other, and my head is down, and I can hear him breathing softly.

After awhile, I find the courage to look up and ask him in my usual demanding tone, "What are you doing?"

He looks at me with kind eyes and says, "I can tell Alli that you can't go to the party next weekend. I dragged you into it, and I can drag you out of it."

I give him one of my rare smiles and reply, "I guess it's fine. Though, do you want to tell me why you told her yes in the first place?"

He runs his fingers through his hair and hesitantly tells me, "I thought it would be fun. I want to get to know more people, and I thought it might help you."

"Help me with what exactly?" I ask as I cross my arms across my chest.

"Um," he stammers. "I just thought that you might enjoy hanging out with more people."

"That I might find more friends and be less of a loner? Look, I don't need you trying to 'fix' me or whatever you're trying to do. Have you ever thought that there's a reason why I don't like going to parties or hanging out with people? There's more to me than you think Nicholas Caldwell, and I'm not going to let you uncover it all," I tell him before walking away from him.

Instead of letting me go like he usually does, he runs after me and says, "You're going to have to let go of the past at some point in your life."

I turn my head just long enough to give him one of my hardest glares. "That's true, but I certainly don't need someone like you trying to help me like I'm some sort of charity case."

"Maya! Maya!" he calls after me.

"Shut up and leave me alone, annoying idiot!" I yell over my shoulder as I run into the house.

He doesn't bother saying anything else.
I rush up to my room and throw myself across my bed. This day couldn't have been more horrible. I got dragged into going to a party, I had another horrible dinner with my uncle, and Nick got on my last nerve.

My life stinks.

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Hey guys! Firstly, thanks for reading :). Secondly, I'm going away for a trip tomorrow, so an update may or may not come next weekend. I'll do my best to update, but I can't promise :(

Please comment and vote if you like it :)

I have an Instagram if you want to see what's up with my life and stuff: CGirlyGirl