If we were back home, I know exactly where I'd find him. He'd be in his garage, probably working on his truck. Swearing under his breath as he let his anger build up, waiting until he injured himself in some way to completely lose it. But we're in Coupeville, over seven hours away from home. And I have no idea where the hell he could be. The good news is that the van is still in the driveway, so he didn't drive anywhere. And Coupeville is a tiny town, so he can't be too far away. The bad news is... well, I don't know where to start.

It's the middle of the night now, so mostly everything is closed. The only place I can think that's in walking distance of the house is the beach. So that's where I go. When I get there, I find him sitting on the sand, his back against a large piece of driftwood. He's throwing rocks into the water, watching the ebb and flow of the tide. It's dark, so I can't see him too clearly. But I can tell that he's upset.

"Vale?" I say softly, and I watch as his whole body tenses up. Swallowing hard, I approach him slowly, like he's a hurt animal who could attack at any moment. "Are you... are you okay?"

He shakes his head but doesn't say anything as he picks up another rock and throws it hard into the Puget Sound. I'm not sure if I should sit next to him or not, but I take the chance anyway. We sit in silence for several minutes as he throws rock after rock into the water. Then finally, he sighs and says, "Thought you'd be cozying up to Lucas right about now."

I suck in a breath of air, not sure how to respond. "I... don't want to be with Lucas, Vale." He's midway through tossing another rock into the water when he pauses. "I want to be with you."

He sits frozen for several seconds, smooth rock still held firmly in his right hand. When he speaks, I hear the hurt in his voice. "Did you know I have siblings?" he asks, and this sudden shift in conversation gives me whiplash. I shake my head, and he gives me a sad smile as he tosses the rock into his left hand. "Yeah. Two of them. A little brother and a little sister. My mom had a couple more kids after she left us."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about them?" I ask, trying to wrap my mind around how this connects to me and Lucas.

"Because I knew you'd be pissed," he replies, and my brow furrows in confusion. Why would I be pissed that he has siblings? "I found out through a letter my mom wrote to my dad. It was shortly before graduation. My dad had invited her to my graduation party, I guess. And the letter she wrote back to him basically said that she doesn't think I'd be a good influence on my siblings. You know, because I'm not doing the college thing. She wants them to get a proper education, and seeing their older brother skip college to work on cars in his dad's garage makes me a bad role model. Which basically translates to my mom is ashamed of me."

Okay, yeah. He's totally right. That would piss me off. Rage boils in the pit of my belly, and I suddenly want to go find his mother and slap the shit out of her. "What did your dad say about the letter when he saw it?" I ask, knowing Victor was probably furious as well.

Vale shrugs his shoulders. "He never saw it. I got to it before he did and hid it from him. There have been several times I've thought about burning it. But instead I just keep it. Read through it all the time, trying to see if there's any way I could have misinterpreted what she said. But every time I read it, I just feel so inadequate. Like I'm not good enough. She's so ashamed of me that she wants to hide me from my siblings. Honestly, I don't even think they know I exist. And that fucking hurts, Gen."

And suddenly the connection is so clear. "Vale," I whisper, wrapping my arm around his and resting my head against his shoulder. "That's not... that's not what I'm trying to do."

He groans in frustration and pulls away, jumping to his feet and finally chucking the rock into the water. Then he whips around and says, "Well then what are you trying to do, Gen? Because if you were making out with Lucas instead of me, I bet you anything you wouldn't be trying to hide it from everyone. So why do you want to hide me? Are you ashamed of me? Because if that's the case, Gen, then maybe we need to stop this now. Before it goes any further."

It feels like someone just cracked my heart in two. I get to my feet and shake my head, watching as his eyes fill with unreleased tears. My hands reach up to touch his face, and he doesn't pull away this time. "I'm sorry I made you feel that way," I say softly. "No, I'm not ashamed of you at all. Definitely not. I guess the reason I'm trying to hide it is because... well... it's weird, you know? You and I have always just been Gen and Vale. Best friends. And suddenly we're so much more than that. I'm afraid everyone will look at us differently. Treat us differently. And all those secret moments alone in your car or in your bedroom will be over. I guess I just want to keep you to myself while I still can. Enjoy the sneaky moments before they're gone."

He relaxes a tiny bit, and I feel him press his face against my hand. "So... Lucas?"

I shake my head, a smile forming on my lips. "He tried to make a move tonight. But I pushed him away. Told him I wasn't interested. And... well... he guessed it was because of you. Said he always thought you felt a certain way about me, and tonight basically confirmed it. He actually encouraged me to find you."

Vale blinks in surprise, and then he laughs softly. "Fucking Fowler." He shakes his head, and I'm beginning to see my Vale come back to me. The sweet one. The one who makes me laugh in the quiet hours of the night when it's just the two of us. The one who's stolen my heart. "He's right. Don't know how he saw it when no one else ever did. But he's right. I've had a thing for you since we were six, Gen. You were my first, and only, crush."

A smile tugs at the corners of my lips. "Really?" I ask, surprised.

He nods his head. "Yes. I didn't really understand it back then, but yes. I've never wanted anyone else but you. But I was too scared to ever tell you and ruin what we had. Because you are so important to me. Honestly, you're the most important person in my life. And I'd rather pine for you in secret but still maintain our friendship than tell you the truth and ruin everything. Because I love you, Gen. I've always loved you."

His words stun me. I never in a million years would've thought he had any feelings for me before that first kiss aside from friendship. He never showed any signs. But wait... now that I think about it... there were signs. His jealousy of every boyfriend I've ever had. His need to be close. His desire to know everything about me, from my favorite movie snacks to my desire to go to pastry school. In fact, I don't think there's anything about me he doesn't know. He knows me better than I know myself.

But what about me? These feelings are all so new to me. In all the years he's been in my life, I never considered him anything more than my best friend. But, when I really stop and think about it, there's always been something there. Maddie has tried to get with Vale for years, and every time it's brought up, I can feel myself bristle. Is it because I hate Maddie so much? Or is it because I didn't want anyone with Vale but me?

But it doesn't matter. We're together now. Alone on a sandy beach in the middle of the night, his light brown eyes gazing into mine with a fire so hot it could melt the sun. His stained fingers brush against my cheek, and I feel a roughness on their tips, a combination of calluses and sand. I lean into his touch, giving myself to this moment. His lips slowly brush against mine, warm and sweet, and it takes seconds for it to heat up. Like an unwatched pot on the stove, the passion boils over. Before I know it, my hands are in his hair, pulling hard as he groans against my mouth, tugging at my shirt.

We sink gently to the ground, our mouths barely parting, as he finally slides my shirt off my body and tosses it against a piece of driftwood beside us. This is the first time he's ever done this. But the heat in my heart I so often feel around him shifts down at the action. I've considered this a few times since we got together as his lips trailed along my body, his moans making my pulse quicken in my veins. But I never thought it would happen so soon. Honestly, I didn't think it would even happen tonight. And yet here we are, our bodies pressed against each other, begging to go just a bit further. Just a little more.

"Gen," he whispers into my ear as he slides his fingers through my hair, pulling away slightly so he can stare into my eyes again. He swallows hard, as if the words he's about to say are going to bring him great pain. "I don't want to do this here. Now."

"What?" I ask, panting as he slides off me, his fingers digging into his own hair now. Disappointment floods every inch of my body. I didn't know how badly I wanted to do this with him until this moment. And now I can't believe he's stopping it. "Why? What's wrong?"

He shakes his head and sighs, trying to catch his own breath. "Because it's not right. I've waited so long for this. Like... you have no idea how long. And I want it so badly. But I never pictured it like this. Outside on the scratchy sand. It just seems so... I don't know. Unromantic." I can't believe what I'm hearing. A giggle escapes my lips, and even in the dark I can see a pink blush rise up on his cheeks. "Don't laugh!" he says as he laughs at himself. "Listen, if you were anyone else, I'd probably just go for it. But you're not. And I don't want our first time to be like this. I want it to be special. Because you're special."

God, sometimes I'm blown away by how sweet and thoughtful he is. A soft smile spreads across my lips as I scooch closer to him and rest my head on his muscular shoulder. "Okay," I say, because there's nothing more I really can say. He's right. We've waited too long for it to be a rushed and messy moment in the dirt. It has to be special. Done right.

He hands me back my shirt, giving me a moment to slide it back on before pulling me closer to him. Even though we both agree tonight isn't the right time for sex, we also both agree that we don't really want to go back to the house either. So he leans back against the large piece of driftwood, pulling me between his legs so that my back is resting against his chest. And he just holds me as we watch the tide go out, playing with strands of my hair until I drift off to sleep.

It's not until the sun begins to rise that I feel him gently shake me, waking me from my peaceful slumber. "Hey," he whispers as my eyes flutter open. "It's almost five in the morning. We should head back soon if we don't want to get caught."

I know he's right, but I really don't want to leave. The sound of the water brushing against the sand is better than any kind of soothing noise machine in existence. And if we leave, who knows when we'll get another chance like this? But if we get caught, no one will let us be alone like this anymore. Everything will change. So as much as I really wish we could stay, I decide that he's absolutely right. So I begrudgingly get to my feet and hold my hand out to him, helping him to his as well. We walk tiredly back up the path we both came, our hands intertwined with every step we take. When we get to the house, he pulls me to him one last time and gently brushes his lips against mine. One last kiss to last us until we can get another moment alone.

"Well, well, well," a voice says from just out of sight, and we both jump apart, startled at the unexpected sound. We both look around for the source of the voice and spot Tyler sitting on the porch, barely hidden behind a conveniently placed tree. "What do we have here?"

Author's Note:
Sooo much happened in this chapter. Vale's true feelings about Gen came out. They almost took their relationship to the next level. Annnnnd... they were caught. YIKES! What do you think is going to happen next? Is Tyler going to tell everyone else? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.

Nanowrimo is going well so far! I just crossed the 7,000 word mark, so I'm definitely where I'm supposed to be. Let's hope it stays that way. If you're doing Nano this year, I wish you lots of luck! I know how challenging it is, but you got this! And if you're interested in being my Nano buddy, by username is Hazeli1013. I'll accept anyone who wants to connect.

Okay, that's all from me tonight! Thank you for reading, and I'll be back again next week with the next chapter! Take care until then, my dears!
XOXO,
~Aly