You know what the worst part about hating Lucas Fowler is? He's impossible to really hate. I mean, the guy is pretty much perfect. He's nice, athletic, smart, and has a promising future ahead of him doing pretty much whatever he wants. But the way she looks at him... the way she's been laughing with him all night... I fucking hate Lucas Fowler. It's taking everything in me not to choke the life out of him as his fingers inch closer and closer to Gen's. And I know... I know he's not intentionally trying to make me rage. But I swear to God, if his fingers actually make contact, I might lose my shit. I can't do this again with her. Not after spending several months trying (and failing) to play nice with Nate. I can't... no, I won't do it again.

Maddie keeps leaning into me, and no matter how much I scoot away, she somehow manages to find her way into my shoulder. She's been trying to hook up with me for so long, but there is no way it's ever going to happen. Sure, she's a gorgeous girl. And she's even kind of funny, when she's not being a total bitch. But I don't know if it's possible for me to be with anyone. Not until Gen leaves for Boston, and maybe not even then.

That has been weighing heavily on me for a while now. Gen leaving for Boston. We've never been apart, at least not for longer than a few days. And she's going to move to the big city, which, by the way, is 2,734.6 miles away from Coeur d'Alene. Yes, I actually Googled it. How I'm going to survive the distance, I have no idea. We've been best friends our whole lives, and I've been in love with her since we were six. Literally everything she does drives me crazy in the best possible way. I think about her pretty much every second of every day. I even dream about her. And they aren't even R rated dreams. Well, most of them aren't, anyway.

Lucas's fingers twitch and inch just a tiny bit closer. Don't do it, Fowler, I think to myself as I move away from Maddie again. I need to look away. I have to look away. It's torture, but I made my choice a long time ago not to pursue Gen. I might be in love with her, but she's also my best friend. If I made any attempts with her, and failed, it would probably ruin our friendship. And I would rather pine for her in secret than lose her completely. God, I'm so pathetic. I've thought about getting a girlfriend, but it's so hard when no one else compares to the person I want.

"Ugh, this party is so lame," a girl I've never met before says, and yes, I couldn't agree more. It's almost 2am, and I'm seriously considering grabbing Tyler and Gen and getting the hell out of here. But pulling Gen away from Lucas right now would be so uncool. I love her so much it hurts, but I need her to be happy. And the way Lucas has been looking at her all night is definitely making her happy, even if it's making me want to rip his head off. What I wouldn't give to have her look at me the way she looks at him. But that will never happen. "We should play a game or something," the girl suggests, and I fight off a wince. Can't we just leave?

"What kind of game?" Maddie asks beside me, and her voice sounds tired. Is it possible she's deflating finally? I hope so. But just as I think it, she brightens up and says, "Oh, I know. Let's play Truth or Dare!"

Fuck. I just want to go home. Playing Truth or Dare sounds awful. And apparently I'm not the only one to think so, because Maddie's brother Dennis groans and says, "Truth or Dare, Maddie? Seriously? I played that game in the fifth grade."

Maddie is smiling as she says, "Which makes it a party classic. Come on, guys. What do you say?"

The whole room falls silent as everyone contemplates whether they should stay for the game or leave the party. Tyler's phone breaks the silence, and he leaves the room to answer the phone. Maddie looks around at everyone else, and when she's met with no objections, she claps her hands, sits up straight, and says, "Okay, who wants to go first?"

No one really wants to play, and it's painfully obvious. But, of course, fucking nice-guy Fowler pipes up and says, "Okay, I'll go first." He turns to face Gen, and her cheeks burn under his gaze. Bastard. "Gen. Truth or Dare?"

"Uh, truth," Gen replies, and I have to hide a smile. Good, at least she's not going to choose dare. Not that Fowler would dare her to do anything stupid, but he's drunk enough that he might dare her to kiss him or something. Truth is easy. Truth is safe.

Lucas grins. "Okay then. If a genie granted you three wishes, what would you wish for?" See what I mean? Nice guy. Asshole. I jump as someone slaps the couch in annoyance, as if they're already bored of this game.

"Oh jeeze. Okay. I'd wish for money so I could go to the school of my dreams. I'd wish for my mom to see me as much as she sees my sisters. And I'd wish for... good health for my friends." She makes eye contact with me across the room, and my heart flutters in my chest as I smile at her. God, she's perfect. The whole package. Smart, talented, hilarious, and so goddamn beautiful. I would absolutely kill to run my fingers through her honey blonde hair. Would die to kiss her. I wonder if I could make her moan against my mouth. The thought gets me all wound up. Yeah, I definitely need to get myself a girlfriend.

"Oh my God, that was super lame," Maddie says as she leans her body into me again. I try to subtly scoot away, but really, she's getting on my nerves. No means no, Maddie. Stop it already. "Who wishes to be seen? So pathetic. That's like, next level boring, Genevieve. Stupid question, Lucas. I expected better of you."

Maddie is such a bitch. She makes me want to jump to Fowler's defense. But Gen is faster than me. "Okay, my turn," she says as her ocean blue eyes lock on Maddie. She smiles, and I know she's planning something. "Maddie, Truth or Dare?"

"Dare," Maddie says confidently as she sits up, and I relax as she moves away from me. Finally. "Duh."

"Great," Gen says, and I see the smirk playing across her pink lips. "I dare you to give up on Vale. It's not going to happen, Maddie. Quit being desperate."

I burst out laughing, as does the rest of the room. Maddie's face is burning with embarrassment as her eyes turn to her brother, who just made a comment about her being thirsty. A glare crosses her face like a dark shadow as she says, "My turn. Dennis, Truth or Dare?"

Her brother is like her twin as he sits up confidently and says, "Truth."

Oh shit. Maddie's evil smile is so bright that I can tell she's about ready to get her revenge. "Why don't you tell everyone why you really got kicked out of school?"

The room tenses up as Dennis's face goes pale. The girl sitting with him on the couch looks at him, a mixture of confusion and hurt on her face. She's a pretty girl. I wonder how long they've been together. Dennis glares at his sister as he growls, "You bitch." He hesitates for a second as Maddie just gives him an innocent smile. "I got kicked out when I lost my scholarship for doing drugs. Happy?"

The girl beside him blinks in surprise as her mouth falls open. She shakes her head, gets to her feet, and leaves the room. Dennis bows sighs and bows his head. A few seconds of silence goes by, and I think for a moment that the game is over. But then Dennis lifts his head up, and I see that same spark of revenge in his eyes that Maddie had just a few moments ago as he turns to look at me. "Vale," he says, and there's anger in his voice. "Truth or Dare?"

I'm hoping like hell he dares me to move away from his sister. Or dares me to tell his sister to fuck off, which I would happily do. I smile at him as I say confidently, "Dare."

It's very clear that this is exactly what Dennis was hoping I'd say. He sits up straighter, looks me directly in the eye, and says, "I dare you to kiss Gen."

What? I blink in surprise, because I'm sure I just imagined those words coming out of his mouth. But based on the look Maddie is giving her older brother, I know there's no way I misheard him. My ears start to ring, and I squirm in my seat as Gen looks at me from across the room. Fowler seems a bit anxious now. Yeah, join the club. My heart is racing in my chest suddenly as I try to think of a way out of this, while at the same time telling myself to seize the moment.

Gen laughs out loud, and I feel like I've been struck by the most pleasurable lightning at the sound. "Please. Vale and I swap spit all the time. We literally shared an ice cream cone today. This is nothing." She's not wrong. And yet, she's so wrong. This is very different. She gets to her feet and walks to the center of the room. I'm frozen in place, unsure of what to do and too scared to move. Is this happening? Are we really doing this? She looks at me, and her eyes are insistent. And I know her. There's no way she's going to let herself lose to Maddie. Oh baby, there was never a competition, I think to myself, and I have to fight the heat in my face.

Gen continues to stare at me. This is fine. Totally fine. I get to my feet and approach her, and as I do, I tell myself that I'm only going to give her a quick peck on the cheek. It's still a kiss, right? But as I get closer, I change it from a peck on the cheek to a peck on the lips. That way I can still feel her lips, but it'll be innocent. Nothing with change, and she can go right back to flirting with Lucas.

But then she stares at me, waiting for me to make the first move. I step forward, place my hand on the back of her neck, and pull her gently toward me. Our lips are just centimeters apart when I hesitate, weighing my options. She blinks and looks directly into my eyes, and I press my lips against hers.

Two seconds. I'm pretty sure that's how long it takes for me to go from a peck on the lips to coaxing her mouth open with my lips to slide my tongue inside. Every nerve ending in my body has come to life at once as my fingers bury themselves in her soft hair, pulling ever so softly. She gasps into my mouth as her hands pull me closer, and it takes everything I have not to tear her clothes off her body and take her right here in the middle of the living room. I should stop this. I should pull away. But it's like I'm physically incapable of removing my lips from hers.

There are so many stories about near death experiences and how people swear they see their whole lives flash before their eyes. I'm having a similar experience, only it's like her kiss is breathing life into me, forcing me to envision a future with her where we could actually end up together. A future with me joining her in Boston. A future with us tangled up together in bed, her making the most delightful sounds as I taste every inch of her body. A future with us getting married and having a family and just being in love. I see it all, and it's so fucking clear that it's like I'm living it all at once.

Someone coughs, and it's like the spell has broken. I finally pull away from her, and I look into her eyes, hoping I'll be able to tell if she felt what I did. Praying that she did. Her chest is heaving, and her pupils are so dilated that it's like she's just taken a hit off the most powerful drug. I feel like I've been living with blurry eyesight my whole life, and someone just gave me glasses. Everything is so clear. Clearer than they've ever been. Gen continues to stare at me, and then she blinks, and it's like she's only just remembered she's in a room full of people.

She quickly takes in the rest of the room, her eyes stopping for a second on Lucas, and then on Tyler, who has just rejoined the party. When her eyes fall on Maddie, I see her lips curve up every so slightly. And then she looks at me again. She seems so confused. I'm the exactly opposite. I feel like I've just found my purpose. There's another cough, and I force myself to step away from her before I go back to my spot on the floor next to Maddie. I watch Gen take her seat next to Lucas, who looks crestfallen all of a sudden. My heart soars.

"See? Told you it wouldn't be that hard," Gen says as she laughs, but her voice is higher pitched than it normally is. I slide my tongue across my lips, hoping a little bit of her is still on them. We weren't kissing for very long, but it was so good that I want more. So, so much more. I'm a man who's been forced to eat bread and water all his life and has just been given chocolate. Already I'm craving more.

"That's it," Maddie growls beside me, but I barely hear her. I'm so wrapped up in that kiss. My ears are ringing again as the blood tries to rush back up to my brain. I close my eyes for a second, trying to put myself back in those visions of the future as Maddie says, "Party's. Over."

Yes. The party is over. But I have a feeling that whatever just happened between me and Gen is only barely beginning. I'm lost in the moments before as Gen looks at me from across the room. And it's like someone has just flipped a switch in her brain, and she's seeing me for the first time in her life. She touches her fingers to her lips, and I know she's remembering what it was like. What it felt like. And watching her do this unlocks something in my brain.

I swear, if it's the last thing I do on this earth, I will get her to see me. I've spent my whole life wanting her but never having the courage to try. Now that I've had a taste of the girl I'm in love with, I swear I'm not going to rest until she tells me she loves me too.

Author's Note:

I don't usually do these bonus chapters. But I've had Vale's perspective of their first kiss in my head for far too long, and I had to finally put it down on paper. I hope you enjoy reading this moment in the eyes of Vale Morgan.

I'm not sure if there will be any more bonus chapters. Maybe I'll end up writing the whole story through Vale's POV, which would be SO FUN. But I think one thing is very clear: I am not ready to let these two go yet. So you might see more in the coming weeks.

Thanks for reading! I'll be back very soon with more chapters of something haha! Take care until then, dearies!
XOXO,
~Aly