Unfamiliar Feelings - An Emblem3 Fan Fiction

Chapter 1 ~ The Meeting

Riley POV

*Car Alarm Sounds Loudly*

"God DAMN! That is the third time this week!" I glance over at my alarm clock. It is only 7:30 AM. Between the insane amount of caffeine I had yesterday and my nightly dose of horrible dreams, I only got about 4 hours of sleep.

I walk into my severely neglected bathroom and glance at myself in the mirror. Between my bed head, the tell tale bags under my eyes, and the ever present scar across my right cheek, I am a complete mess.

"Well I guess the bright side to being up this early is empty beaches and killer waves," I mutter to myself. I peel on my old wetsuit, grab my surfboard, and head out of my tiny apartment. The hallway smells strongly of Vodka and cigarettes and the sketchy guys from 3B are hanging out on the front steps. I wasn't scared of them...I'm not scared of anything anymore. If I go down in one of the weekly drive bys in this terrible neighborhood, no one would notice.

I unlock my bike, fasten my board into place, and head toward the beach. Surfing is actually one of the few things I still enjoy doing, not that you could read the excitement in my face behind all the pain. It's a 15 minute bike ride to my special surf spot and the waves look amazing.

I spend about an hour surfing before the insomnia catches up with me and I need to take a break. I find a sunny spot and lay out, hoping to catch a little bit of sun. I apparently dozed off because the next thing I know, a Frisbee hits me square in the chin. I pull off my sunglasses and look around for the Frisbee owner, ready to yell at whatever idiot can possibly have aim this terrible. I spot the culprit to my left and to my surprise, my stomach clenches up and I'm unable to say anything. What the hell? I bitch people out all the time...why can't I speak.

The particularly toned culprit sits down next to me. He has these amazing brown eyes, damp hair, and is wearing nothing but a low hanging pair of board shorts. "I'm so sorry! My brother doesn't have the same epic Frisbee skills I do!" he says with an infectious smile. "It's fine" I reply with a giggle. What am I doing? Why am I giggling like an idiot? "I'm sure you tell that to all the girls you accidentally hit with Frisbees" I sneak in quickly. There we go. There is that wall I put up. He looks taken aback but recovers quickly, "I'm Wes by the way." "Riley" I reply curtly. I try to keep a straight face but I can't help but smile looking at him...what IS this?

Wes POV

"Keaton! Drew! Wake up! I just ran past the beach and the waves look baller!" I hear grunts from my brother's room and Drew wanders out of the bathroom looking like hell. "Rough night?" I ask. "I was up writing all night. I have a killer new song to jam later," Drew replies. "Sweet. Grab your board dude". Keaton finally emerges from his room about 15 minutes later. "Dude we're going in the ocean, why does your hair have to be perfect?" Drew teases. "Shut up!" says Keaton as he punches Drew on the arm. "Ladies. If you're done. I would like to surf before the beach is packed."

We pile into Drew's Jeep with our boards and make it to the beach by about 8:30. I don't see anyone at first but then I notice her. This chick is hot. She has long brown hair, a killer body, and the crappiest surf board I have ever seen. I grab the Frisbee from Drew's trunk and walk toward this attractive stranger. "C'mon guys let's toss the frisbee around." Drew looks at me like I just pledged my love to the Jonas Brothers. "You practically dragged us out of the house to go surfing and now you wanna play Frisbee?" Keaton asks incredulously. Then, Drew notices her too. He laughs, grabs the Frisbee, and throws it toward the girl. "Dude what the HELL?" I practically scream in Drew's face. "Oh c'mon. I gave you a reason to talk to her and you can just blame Keaton!" He laughs back.

The girl takes off her sunglasses and looks around...she looks pissed. Keaton and Drew split for the water, leaving me to explain. I jog over quickly and manage to blurt out some excuse for my brother being an idiot. Now I actually get to look at her up close. She's gorgeous. Her face is absolutely perfect except for a purple welt across her right cheek and dark circles under her eyes. Her eyes dart to my abs and she seems to let me off the hook at first. "I'm sure you tell that to all the girls you accidentally hit with Frisbees" she snaps back. Woah. This is kinda hot. I'm not used to girls calling me out like this. They mostly just giggle at everything I say and stare at my lips until I kiss them.

I manage to get her to tell me her name is Riley and she seems to soften up a bit. "The Frisbee didn't leave that mark on your face did it?" I ask, the thought suddenly entering my mind. Her entire body tenses up and her face seems to twist in pain at the thought of some invisible memory. "No. That's from some other idiot a long time ago," she answers through clenched teeth. Oh crap. I crossed a line. My stomach flip flops and I instantly feel bad for Riley. Like I want to protect her from whatever is obviously still torturing her. Wait why do I care? I just met this chick. "Oh...I'm sorry," I manage to respond, not breaking our intense eye contact. Her blue eyes widen and she looks down in shame. "I've gotta go..." she whispers softly as she turns to grab her stuff. I instinctively reach out to grab her hand. "Do you have to?" I reply sadly. She flinches at my touch and I pull back immediately...shit I did it again. This girl has issues. But why do I wanna know about them? "I've gotta work at 11:00 but maybe I'll see you around Wes," she says as she starts to walk away. "Same time tomorrow!?" I shout after her. She turns around for a beat and I swear I see a smile on her face. Well I know I'll be back tomorrow...this can't be the last time I see Riley...crap I don't even know her last name. I manage to surf for a bit with Keaton and Drew but my mind is elsewhere. My mind is on a pretty girl with an ugly past.

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So do you guys like it?!? This is my first fanfic so go easy. Please follow me on Twitter (brkfldgoalie06) and participate in my E3 fan video! http://www.twitlonger.com/show/k43evh I will put up the next chapter as soon as I can if people like the story!