Brighter Side

Rough Start

"Tori! Will you come out already?!" my friend Liz yelled. "There is no one out here. I'm sure you look fine."

It was mid day around four thirty. We had just got to the mall and already Liz had me trying on a new dress for the winter fling. I couldn't complain though, she had excellent taste in clothes. She picked out a sparkled out short tight black dress. It was the only one in the store and just my size. It had no zipper and long sleeves. I had to say though, I looked hot in it.

"Okay! Okay. I'm coming out." I whipped the curtain back and flung myself to the post. I made a face acting like a Victoria Secret model. Joking of course. I removed my plastered body from the post and giggled until I saw Liz's face. "What? Is there something wrong? I knew it looked silly. I'm just stick with the yellow one my gram made me last year." I turned around attempting to make my way back into the dressing room when I was pulled back.

"Are you kidding!?" Liz had a shocked look on her face as though she just saw Brad Pitt. "You look absolutely amazing! If you don't get this dress, I am."

I changed my gaze to the mirror and took a final look at myself. my figured looked quite nice in it. I gritted my teeth thinking whether I should get the dress or not. "Fine," I said with a smile. Liz looked more excited than I did.

I started to make my way back into my dressing room when a guy from the men's dressing room walked out. He had dark chocolate brown hair to match his gorgeous twinkling brown eyes. I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck as I he looked at me. He gave a smile that made my toes curl under my feet. He started towards me but stopped to grab his shoes. While he wasn't looking, I through down my dark red and brown hair. The mixture of my caramel skin tone and brown eyes didn't make a good mixture, so I was pretty proud of my hair.

"Hi." He smiled, and walked past me out of the dressing rooms. I dipped my head down to hide my blushing cheeks. He was magnificently beautiful. Imagine Jake T. Austin only slightly taller. I tried not grin too much making me look crazy as he peered back at me.

At that cue, I walked slowly back into the dressing room to change back into my red paisley jumper and sandals. Even though it was "winter", it was still seventy five degrees outside.

Liz and I made our way back to the front of the store to check out when I realized who was in front of us in the check out line. It was the gorgeous guy from the dressing room. He turned around with his twinkling eyes.

"Hi again." His teeth shined from the light as he smiled. "I really liked your dress back their. What is it for?"

I stuttered trying to get the words out of my mouth. Thank the world that I had my best friend their.

"It's for our winter formal," Liz interrupted slapping me in the arm.

"That's awesome. What school do you two go to?"

Uh oh. I didn't want to tell him I was only fifteen he looked like he was maybe seventeen. Telling him what school could lead to other questions. "Um we go to Lighthouse High," I managed to spit out.

"Awesome. I go to the high school across town. Spindle High School." He had this special charm about him that made me want more.

"I...," I had started to say until the cashier asked who was next and he walked away leaving me with only the memory of his glowing eyes.

"Smooth." I sighed knowing just what Liz meant.

I had never been speechless before in my life. Except that time in English when I forgot to write my paper on the Trojan war. I got to the front of the class moving as slow as possible trying to contemplate an idea of getting out of this mess. I stood in front the class of thirty people for ten minutes until I thought of a genius plan. And just like that, I fainted. I didn't actually faint, but dropping to the ground in a quick motion causing a disturbance in the class room was probably the best idea I ever had. I played it off pretty well until my mom came to get me. She stared me down knowing very well my lying face. I tried my best to have minimal eye contact with her, afraid that her laser eyes would burn through my brain causing me to tell her what was really going on. Instead she took me home and fed me soup. I had to pretend to be sick for two days just so I could finally write my paper and keeping my grade.

This moment right now, was far worse than that. A sinking feeling came to my stomach like someone had fed me poison.

At last we were out of the store. For as long as I knew Liz, which was eight years too long, I had never known her as the one to pass up an opportunity to get food. And before I knew it we had found our way to the food court.

"All I'm saying is that you should have asked him out. A girl has every right to ask out a guy." Liz had a point. She always had words of wisdom coming out of her mouth.

I chuckled lightly at her comment, "Okay, Liz, if I see him before we leave the mall I will ask him out." Of course I was being sarcastic, but that didn't matter to her.

We approached the doors to leave the mall and walked out. Before my eyes stood a dark haired boy leaned against a post just fifteen feet away from me. I could just see him coming up to me, grabbing me by the waist, and giving me the most passionate kiss him or I had ever experienced. Of course Liz saw him too and interrupted my day dream.

"Here's your chance! Tori, just walk over to him and ask!"

"Well technically we have already left the mall," I began, but that didn't matter to her because before I finished my thought, she was pushing me in his direction. "No no no no no no." I struggled to get loose from her grip but it was too tight, and I was forced to speak. "Hey..." I tucked my hair behind my ear trying to act like being in his presence wasn't a big deal.

"Hey." He grinned and stood up right to face us. "I don't think I ever got your name earlier."

"Tori. It's Tori. Just Tori." I gazed at him like someone hit me on the top of my head with a bat. I could see Liz in the corner of my eye shaking her head in her hands.

"Well, Just Tori, I'm Bryce."

Bryce.. Bryce. Mrs. Just Tori Bryce. It had a ring to it.

He put his hands in his pockets and smiled at me. "So, Just Tori," My arms turned to jelly when my name came out of his mouth. "Do you maybe want to go out sometime? My friend is having a party this Saturday that I was thinking of going to. Do you maybe want to come?"

I couldn't believe it. I really couldn't believe it. He asked me out. I didn't have to do a thing! "Sure. I'd love to." I wasn't lying.

"Great. Well here's my number. You can text me your address later and I can pick you up Saturday at seven. Okay?" And with that, he grabbed my phone and entered his number. "I'll see you soon," He paused as he walked off, "Just Tori." He gave me a final wink and left. Seeing him drive off made my whole body turn to jello.

"You did it Tor. You got through a whole conversation with him without throwing up," She cocked her head and raised an eyebrow, "sorta."

Liz and I hopped into her Jeep Wrangler and drove off. It still made me upset that Liz got her license before me. I still had two months to go before I turned sixteen and could finally drive. That was the hitch, I don't think he realized I was only fifteen. Practically still a baby if you ask me.

We finally arrived at Liz's house, only to find a cop car in front of her house. I saw a worried look come upon her face as she jumped out of the car. Be both ran into the house, shocked by what lied on the floor. The house was wrecked. There were vases broken on the floor and water from inside them. Clothes and kitchen supplies were sprawled on the living room floor. On the couch were Liz's two younger brother being calmed by one police man. She ran over to them to make sure they were alright and walked back to me. We walked into the kitchen to see Mrs. Brown with two other police men. Well one was a police women. I could see she was shooken up by whatever event had happened here.

"Mom! Are you alright? What's going on here?!" She tilted her moms head and revealed a bruise on her neck. This then moved the hair from her face showing a cut going do the left side of her face. "Oh my God! Mom..," She was interrupted the the police women sitting across from her mom.

"It's alright sweety. You might want to sit down. Something happened.."