Dedication to Joseph M. & Alanis D. for always being there when I needed them most. <3
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Chapter 1: Rebecca
"Ready to go?"
I could recognize that voice anywhere. My best friend, Sarah. "Just a minute!" I yelled from the upstairs bathroom of my two-story house. Hurrily, pulling on some dark-washed jeans and pairing it with a pink and white floral top, I was ready. We were going to go to the airport to pick up her cousins then, head to the mall afterwards. "I'M DONE!"
"Took you long enough!"
"You said you'd be here in ten minutes, not two!"
"Well, my cousins are already waiting for us."
~
"Over here!"
Sprinting over to Sarah, my gaze was met with a girl about 16 years old. She... was beautiful. Stunning even. She was a brunette with long wavy hair reaching down to her waist. She had highlights, natural ones. Light brown, streaking her hair. She was even flawless, natural-faced, no makeup. Not even one tiny little zit. Sun-tanned skin, the kind you see on tv. Her eyes were a unique shade of grey, a color that I've never seen in my life. They were beautiful. They were surrounded by long curled lashes and shaped brows. She was skinny to, with toned arms and legs. Even her wardrobe was stunning. She wore light blue, jean shorts reaching mid-thigh. On her, they didn't look trashy. Fashionable. Her top consisted of various colors, blue, red, pink, white, black, a floral top. Just like mine.
"Hi, I'm Holly Scholfield." She said to me, grinning.
"Um.. Hi. I'm Re-Rebecca. But, everyone calls me Becca. Nice to meet you!" I replied, flashing a smile towards her.
"This is my little brother. " Holly said, pointing to her left.
How did i not notice him!? He was tall, muscular, and eyes the same shade as Holly's. Yet they sparkled in the sunlight. They were dazzling. He- "Sam Scholfield." The gorgeous boy said to me, interrupting my thoughts.
"Hello, I-I'm Rebecca Bryan! Everyone calls me Becca." I replied, embarrassed.
He smiled, revealing two rows of perfect, white, straight, teeth. It was breathtaking.
He wore a black hoodie and some dark washed jeans. Simple clothing that still made him look like a guy you would see in a magazine. He looked about fourteen, my age. He had a mop of messy brown hair that tempted you to tousle it. I resisted the urge to.
~
After they settled into Sarah's four-story house, we all went to the mall.
"We all meet back here at four o' clock, got it?" Sarah informed Holly, Sam, and I.
Sam went to buy a couple of CD's and Holly went into a designer clothing store that Sarah and I had never even been in.
We were waiting on one of our friends, Crystal Mist, to give me a CD she had borrowed.
Going into Hollister, I asked Sarah,
"Hey Sarah?"
"Yeah...?"
"How come you never told me Sam was so... gorgeous?!"
"Because he isn't... GROSS." Sarah replyed, scrunching her nose to make it even more dramatic.
"Is he going to our school?" I asked, suddenly interested in him.
Overlooking a blue cardigan, she nodded.
"Wanna... you know, hook a friend up?" I replied, winking.
She ignored me, suddenly to interested in a pair of plain black sandals.
"Oh! I never told you, Holly is seventeen and Sam is fourteen, our age. Holly won't be with us much."
This was going to be an interesting year.
Chapter 2: Becca
I woke up to my alarm clock blaring music. The sun rays shining in through the blinds. 6:30 a.m was the time my clock read. Then it hit me, Summer, was over. It was the first day of school. The first day of eighth grade. One year before highschool. I would finally get to see Sam again. Yeah, we texted and called each other but, it was nothing compared to seeing him in person. I... was excited.
~
"Hey!!" I greeted Sarah as we embraced in a bear hug. The first time seeing her in three weeks. She had gone on a camping trip along with her cousins. It consisted of canoeing, hunting, swimming, hiking, and climbing. Not my sort of thing.
Sarah had waist-length, dirty blonde hair, always up in a bun and bangs pinned up. She was the type of girl nobody hated, the one who was pretty, got good grades, went to parties, and was liked by everyone. Including teachers. The average fourteen year old.
We immediately ran inside the school building, checking our classes, seeing if we got paired up. Sadly, we only had one class together. English. Our favorite class. Our teacher was Mr. Lapham, known as the best teacher at Roewood Middle School. RMS. He was easy with work, funny, and pretty amusing. One of the older teachers.
Bio, lit, math, world history, art, and english were all the classes that Sam and I had together. I was going to be seeing a lot of him... The whole year.
"Heyyyyy." Sam said, winking at me. "Did you miss my handsome self during the summer?"
"Oh yeah Sam, I was dying to see you!" I replied, grinning. "We have six classes together!"
"That means I get to dazzle you with my smile even more." He winked.
"We'll see!" I replied, laughing.
~
First period, biology with Miss Fontana. She was one of the younger teachers, the kind who let you mess around, talk, eat, listen to iPods. But, the one you would actually learn something from, even though she was enjoyable. Rarely giving assignments.
Everybody picked seats, some in the back, some in the front, and some stuck in the middle. I preferred the middle and so did Sam. We were slowly becoming very good friends. From this class, I only knew about ten of the fifteen people. Abigail Washington, Daryll Pyther, Bryan Campbell, Phillip Horsche, David Chung, Henry Pes, Crystal Mist, my best friend, Dawn Lepur, Sasha Pink, and Marquisha Mannings.
"Today, we'll start off with an experiment."
The class groaned.
"Don't worry, don't worry! I would never do that to my students!"
The class applaused.
"Many of you know me but some don't, my name is Amanda Fontana. Complying with school regulations, you all have to call me Miss Fontana."
"We will be doing many projects so everyone, please partner up."
The minute she said that, my head turned to Sam who was facing my direction. We grinned, knowing we were gonna be best friends.
Chapter 3: Bec
"Hurry up! We're late, Becca!" Sam screamed, front the front door of my house. Eighth grade was having a Homecoming Dance. The kind they only have in highschool. But, RMS was different. They had dances for eighth graders, only. This was going to be my first dance. With my best friend, Sam.
"You clean up good!" I said, grinning. Sam was wearing a black tux with a silver tie. For a minute, I had been a little taken back. He looked... gorgeous.
As if reading my mind, he chuckled and said, "You look gorgeous, as always!"
I giggled back.
I was wearing an ocean blue strapless dress. With a sweetheart neckline, sequins, and a black bow tied back in the middle. Sarah had picked it out for me. It made my eyes stand out. They were a boring light brown, caramel color.
My hair was in spirals, and with my new highlights, they glistened in the light.
The first time in my life, I realized, I was beautiful.
As if on cue, Saw said, "You know you're beautiful, right?"
I couldn't help but smile.
~
When we got to the dance, we were accompanied by Sarah and her new boyfriend, Henry Pes. He was the exact opposite of Sam, I have no clue what Sarah could see in him. He wasn't even nice.
He was a scrawny thing, unlike Sam, skinny AND no muscles. He was the definition of nerd. Except, he wasn't smart. He was in the chess club, no hand eye cordination whatsoever, glasses that weren't adjusted for his sight, making him squint through the lenses, tall, and walked his own little walk. Consisting of kicking in the air and jogging. Everyone called it the N-Walk. Nerd Walk that is. The nerdiest kid in our school. Sarah could do MUCH better. Land a different guy like, Bryan Campbell.
Bryan Campbell was one of the jocks, Sam's best friend. He was pretty much the guy that went our with cheerleaders. On the football team with Sam, track all-star(not as fast as Sam though), and played baseball. Considered "popular" among some students at RMS. To me, he was a player and complete jerk. He dated girls off and on. Then, after the relationship failed, within a few hours, he would get a new girl. Sam was a jock and popular also, but dated very few girls. One of the many things I respected about him. He didn't judge a girl on their looks. Rather, he would get to know them through their personality.
The DJ announced one of Sam and I's favorite song, OUR song. A slow song.. I was a bit perplexed by it all but, from what I remember, Sam asked me to dance with him. The lights dawned. Sam placed his hands on my waist and mine around his neck. We danced until the song was over. Then, he kissed me on the cheek. That's right. KISSED ME.
All these years of feeling like an ugly duckling, the hottest guy in school, my best friend, KISSED ME. I couldn't believe it.. I actually kind of enjoyed it. We stared at each other in amazement and I kissed him back. On the LIPS. Yes, my first kiss... I pulled away but, he leaned in closer and kissed me back. A sweet one, not the kind that make you want to gag. I enjoyed that one, no lie. We kissed for about two minutes 'till I heard Sarah calling my name. I pulled away quickly, blushing. WHEW! That was close, she almost saw me kissing her cousin.
That was the night I realized... I was in love with my best friend. Sam Scholfield.
~
The next day, I chatted with him on an Online Messenger.
Sam: SOOO... how about last night?;)
Becca: Idk what you're talking about..
Sam: Oh you... you remember that kiss we had.;)
Becca: OH! That... that was.. nothing. So whatsup?!
Sam: Don't change the subject Bec.
Becca: I gtg, talk to you later!
Sam: Alright.. whatever.
That was weird... I thought. Did he enjoy the kiss as much as i did? I would never tell him I truly loved him. I couldn't. Couldn't bear him rejecting me. I would have to wait until he felt the same.
Chapter 4: Sam
"I think i love her." I said to my best friend, Bryan Campbell.
"DUDE. Just ask her out!"
"But... what if she doesn't like me. I don't want any tension between us two. I wanna wait 'till she asks me if I like her."
"Girls aren't that brave. Sam, just ask her. Wait, who's her best friend? Ask her to ask Rebecca for you!"
"Her best friend is my cousin... Sarah. There's NO way, I'm going to tell her I like Becca!"
"Good luck then. You need to get her before another guy does" He said, winking.
With my face full of fury, I said, "She doesn't like you. She called you a jerk. Anyway, if you do get her somehow, I'll-"
-Ahem- "Is there a problem here boys?" Mrs. Dune, our technology teacher asked us.
Immediately, I turned back around and started to work on some homework. This was the one class I didn't have with Becca and the one class I thought about her the most. She was in my head all the time. My realization after that dance was... I loved Rebecca Bryan. All I needed to know was, did she love me?
Chapter 5: Rebecca
"OMG, you like Sam Scholfield?!" My friend, Crystal Mist asked.
"Only a little! Abd be quiet!" I said, hiding the fact that I loved him.
"Whatever! Hahaha, you two should date!" She replied, winking.
"He's my best friend." I said flatly.
"Date him. He's HOT!"
"We'll see!" I said giggling.
~
The next day, Sarah told me some news that broke my heart.
Crystal Mist was dating Sam Scholfield. That TRAITOR!!
"What?! ME?" Sarah asked,
Whoops! Did I actually say that out loud?
Blushing and full of embarrassment, I said, "No! Sorry, just thinking..."
"About...?"
"Um... Who asked out who?"
"OH! Crystal asked Sam! Aren't you happy for them?!" Sarah asked, smiling.
"Oh... No-I mean yeah, of course I'm happy for them..."
~
Finally, lunch was here. I was going to confront Sam.
"Hey Sam?"
"Yeah..?" He asked, questioningly.
"When did Crystal ask you out? And why didn't you tell me?!"
"Uh, yesterday. After school. Sorry! I was busy, on the phone with Crystal... for like an hour." He said, grinning.
"Oh... you were supposed to call ME. I wanted to talk to you about something...."
"I'm sorry. What is it?"
"Nothing you're interested in.." I replied, saddened.
"Hey Crystal! Come sit with us!"
"Sam... I wanted to talk to you." I said, hurt.
"You said it was nothing! Anyway, we can talk about it later!" Sam replied, giving Crystal a quick peck on the lips.
I was hurt. I thought what we had... was special. Crystal Mist, you're officially, not my best friend anymore.
Chapter 6: Sam
"Hey baby." I said to Crystal.
"Hey honey. Still on for the movies?" She replied.
"But tonight is our movie night! Sam... you promised." Becca said, interrupting.
"I'm s-"
"Save it. I'll invite Sarah. Goodbye Sam." She said, tears forming in her eyes. Running away.
"Can you say.. DESPERATE?" Crystal said, laughing.
"Crystal... that's my best friend." I replied, sternly.
"But look at her! It's hilarious!" She said, laughing.
"I can't go tonight. I'm sorry." I said, sprinting towards Becca.
~
"Bec... I'm sorry. I canceled it. Can i still come over?"
"Of course." Becca said, smiling.
"You know I love you." I said, winking.
"I love you too Sam. I love you too.." She said, blushing.
~
"AHHH!!! Sam!" Becca said, screaming her ear piercing scream. Burying her face into my chest.
"This movie isn't scary!" I said, chuckling. Still holding Becca in my arms. Enjoying every minute of it.
"So you're saying a girl having her head chopped off with a saw and toes and fingers chewed off by a meat cleaver, isn't SCARY?!" She said, whimpering.
"I'm sorry. Let's turn it off."
She suddenly looked up and I was staring into her beautiful light brown eyes that made you swoon just by looking at them, caramel colored eyes. They sparkled in the moonlight and her smile beamed by the sunlight. It was breathtaking.
"What...? Do I have something on my face?" She questioned, anxiously.
"No. You're beautiful." I replied.
Blushing, she said, "Th-"
I leaned in to kiss her, disrupting her sentence. Before kissing her, I quickly texted Crystal. "It's over." I said. I would have to explain later. All I wanted right now, was to be with Becca. The girl I was in love with.
Chapter 7: Becca
I couldn't believe it. Right before my eyes, was Sam. Leaning into kiss me. What would I do? Wasn't he dating Crystal? Oh, who cares.
I let him kiss me. His lips grazing against mine, luscious, and sweet. My arms around his neck, his hand behind my head. It was a long kiss and I enjoyed EVERY minute of it. Crystal Mist, you deserve this.
We gazed at each other, our eyes hinting our amazement.
Sam Scholfield, I wanted to let you know, I love you. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me.
"Rebecca Maria Bryan, I love you." Sam said, interrupting my thoughts.
"Sam Michael Scholfield, I know." I said, giggling.
"I'm just kidding, I love you too." I said, in a serious tone.
Then, he kissed me again. Hugged me and had to go home because it was already ten. Just like that. Kissed me and left. It was like a dream. A dream come true. It was as if he read my mind. As if he knew I loved him. What if he loved me? I would never know. I would never ask. I wasn't brave enough. All I knew was, I loved him. Beyond infinity. I had fallen for him when I said I wouldn't. I had fallen for his good looks, his charm, his humor, his sweetness. I had fallen... in love.
Chapter 8: Sam
"Hmm.. let me dwell on that thought. You cheated on me with my best friend, Bryan. I caught you two and you blamed it on him. We never hung out once outside of school. You tried to ruin my friendship with Rebecca! More questions?" I replied to Crystal, extremely angry.
"But-"
"No buts, that's the reason I broke up with you. I'm in love with someone else. Crystal Mist, I'm NOT in love with you. I'm sorry." I interrupted.
"Rebecca Bryan likes you."
"WHAT? No she doesn't. She would tell me, wouldn't she?"
"She told me."
"I don't believe you."
"Whatever. Good luck Sam." Crystal said, quickly kissing my cheek.
We had dated only for about three weeks. That was enough for me. Enough of Crystal Mist. I had to get Becca now. I loved her. I wanted her. I needed her. I wanted her to be mine.
~
I decided to invite Becca somewhere so we could talk. I wanted to let her know I loved her.
"Hey Becca?"
"Yeah?"
"Can we... maybe go somewhere this weekend? Like dinner?"
"Umm.. sure. Are you asking me out on a date?" She asked, grinning.
"Yes." I replied, smiling.
"Okay."
"Pick you up at six."
Chapter 9: Rebecca
Oh my, Sam Scholfield asked ME on a date. I couldn't believe it. When I got home, I quickly took a shower, I only had an hour and a half to get ready. I was, in one word, excited.
Staring back at me in the mirror, was a beautiful girl. She had dark brown hair with light brown highlights that glistened in the sun and under the moonlight. Slightly waved hair. Beautiful eyes that stared back at me, sparkling under the light, light brown. The color of caramel. Long curled eyelashes surronding them, with a thin coat of mascara. Eyelids lightly packed with grey eyeshadow. Lips a light bubblegum pink and coated with a bit of nude lipgloss. A bit of blush swooped over her cheek bones lightly. Straight dark-washed jeans that enhanced her long legs and a grey and white v-neck. That girl was me. I realized, I was gorgeous.
knock. knock. That must be Sam. I opened the door. He gasped in amazement.
"You...You're beautiful." Sam said, taking it all in.
"Thanks! Not so bad yourself." I replied, winking.
~
Sam was taking me out to Legends, one of my favorite restaurants. It was a buffet and had a variety of several different food choices. There was crab, lobster, cheesecake, sushi, soup, fried rice, french fries, spring rolls, ice-cream, and many others.
Once we had settled into a table and had gotten our drinks and food. Sam suddenly asked me if I wanted to talk. I said yes.
"So...You know I like you, right?" He asked, his cheeks flourished in embarrassment.
"Um... no..." I said, stammering.
"OH! Well, Becca, I like you. A lot." Sam admitted.
Oh my gosh! Sam had just made a confession. Sam Scholfield liked me! Out of all the pretty girls at RMS, he had picked me to crush on. Rebecca Br-
Interrupting my thoughts, Sam said, "Actually, I don't like you. I-"
"What?" I stared at him in disbelief.
"Are you done? We can go to my favorite place."
"Um.. Yeah. Let's head out." I said, a bit confused.
~
The ocean was a cool deep blue and the tide was just washing up. We walked along it. So this was Sam's favorite place. I could see why.
At night, it was quiet. You could hear the seagulls, smell the strong salty water. The wind blowing in your face, like all the worries in life would just dissapear, following the wind. I loved the tide. It washed up little treasures ashore. It was like toys sent from the ocean. I looked down, where the tide had just washed up, there were several seashells. I picked one I had noticed stood out from the rest. This one was medium-sized, about the size of my palm. It was white, with a black stripe running around it. It was shiny too. It had been abandoned so I took it with me.
"Becca?"
"Yes Sam?"
"You know how at dinner when we were talking? You never let me finish what I said..."
"Oh, I'm sorry. Go right on ahead." I replied, blushing for my outburst in the restaurant.
"I was going to say... I don't like you. I'm... I'm in love with you." He said, meeting my gaze as he said it.
"Sam... I-"
"If you don't feel the same way, it's okay." He said, suddenly looking down.
"Sam. Let me finish."
"Oh, okay. Sorry." He replied, embarrassed just as I was.
"Sam... I'm in love with you too." I said.
"Oh." Was all Sam said. He pulled me by my waist, making our faces closer. He leaned in. Then, asked me if he could kiss me. I nodded.
Pulling away for a little bit, I told him, "You're not Crystal's, you're mine." I said gazing up at him, smiling.
"You're mine." He replied, smiling with that gorgeous smile of his. Then, he continued to kiss me. Sam Michael Scholfield, was mine. And I, Rebecca Maria Bryan, was his. Forever.
~
Following the Sequel, All You Need Is Love.