I learned something about Chanel  very quickly while we were shopping, something I already expected by her amazing style.

Shopping with Chanel, was intense. She made it an event. We ended up going to the mall, and she dragged me around to almost every store in a very impressive time frame.

My hands actually hurt from all the shopping bags I was carrying, but they didn't hurt quite as bad as my feet. As much as Chanel  was in her element, I was out of my comfort zone. I never went shopping all that often back in Denver,  either.

I did have to admit though..we got some pretty cute things. Or should I say, Chanel  got us some pretty cute things.

"Chanel, thank you for today..but I told you that you didn't have to pay for my clothes. I certainly wasn't expecting all this." I let out a very exhausted breath as Chanel and I loaded all the bags in the back of her car. I had managed to survive my first 'Chanel Shopping Extravaganza,' and now it time to head back to Meadow Hills.

"Yeah, well you knew I wouldn't listen when you said it." She grinned as she shut the trunk and we got in the car. "You are going to look so hot tonight it's insane!" She squealed excitedly, clapping her hands together as I buckled my seat-belt.

"Speaking of which, am I allowed to know where we're going?" I was very nervous, because last time I tried going out it ended with me making a dramatic exit after slapping Phoenix  across the face in front of everyone.

"Word is there is another party on the beach. Now before you say anything, it won't be like last time." She was concentrating on backing out of the parking spot in the very crowded mall parking lot, so she missed the eye roll I threw in her direction.

"How can you promise that for sure?" I was very skeptical, what with Meadow Hills being such a small town all the same people will be there. It sounds like it's in the same place, too..what's so different?

She let out an annoyed grunt and gave me the side-eye, seeming frustrated with my reluctance. "First of all, we aren't going to let Phoenix or Charlotte ruin our entire night this time..are we?" She glared at me as she waited for the road to be clear to turn back on the highway. It was clear when she said we  she meant me.

"Second of all.." She continued as she pulled out on the highway, not giving me time to respond. "..everybody is going to want to talk to you tonight." Even though she kept her eyes on the road, her grin gave away she was more excited than I was about that. Personally, I was pretty sure she's exaggerating.

"Why would anyone want to talk to me?" I asked curiously. I didn't mean it as pitiful as it probably sounded. I just didn't understand what the big deal was.

She laughed very loudly, too loudly for the small space of her car. I looked at her as she wiped tears off her face, seriously thinking she had lost her mind.

"Why wouldn't they want to talk to you? Gia, literally nothing happens here. You're the most exciting thing about Meadow Hills right now." She said it matter of fact, but I had trouble processing what she had just said.

"Why me?" I wondered out loud, Chanel responded by scoffing like I was a moron. She shook her head in disapproval, but kept her eyes on the road.

"No offense, but you're super naive." She observed. Ugh, I hate when people say 'no offense' right when they say something offensive. To be fair though, it wasn't entirely untrue. Which is kind of why it got on my nerves so much.

"You're the new girl in town, you slapped the infamous Phoenix Santiago across the face, and I'm sure people have already found out about what happened today with Charlotte." She counted all the reasons on her fingers and after hearing it all out loud, I had to admit she had a point. "Not to mention you're going to look fine as hell." She snapped her fingers and flipped her hair back, seeming proud of herself for a job well done already.

"You're not serious about the whole making Phoenix jealous thing, right?" I could hear the dread in my voice, mixed with a hint of hope that it was just a joke. I just didn't have faith it would get the results she's hoping for, and I didn't want her trying to pimp me out all night.

She nodded excitedly and sat up in her seat, like I had foolishly just reminded her of her plan.  Ugh, why I do have such a big mouth?

"Oh, this is going to be so awesome. Just wait until you show up looking incredible and then he sees other guys flirting with you." She rubbed her hands together like an evil villain plotting some crazy scheme.

I raised one eyebrow and looked at her with judging eyes. "What makes you so sure guys will be flirting with me?" The question was both obvious and reasonable to me, but it seemed to frustrate her.

"Oh my God, I..I can't even with you right now." She shook her head and wiped her brow as if she was stressed. "It's like you have never seen a mirror in your entire life. How do you explain to an attractive person that they're attractive? They don't teach this kind of crap in school." I laughed, though she didn't seem like she was joking. She looked utterly exhausted, but I couldn't help but wish I had met her sooner.

"So..tonight's the party. But what's the plan right now?" I asked curiously, looking at my surroundings and noting we were almost back to Meadow Hills.

Her smile widened and she wiggled her eyebrows. "Now, we're going to do one of my favorite pastimes. Eattttttt!" I chuckled at her as she danced in her seat, once again proving she makes every normal, daily activity a grand affair.

"Just out of curiosity..is there anywhere to eat in Meadow Hills besides the diner?" I was coming to find I really liked the diner, but I was curious to explore more of Meadow Hills. I hadn't really seen much else so far.

Chanel  laughed and nodded her head in agreement. "Girl, I hear you. The diner is cool but, not for every meal. I have somewhere else we can go."

I was intrigued, and waited for her to elaborate about where that 'somewhere else' was. But she just winked at me and kept driving past the diner.

"Relax, have I steered you wrong so far?" She asked, cheerfully. I shrugged, accepting that she had a point.

I just hope that didn't change after tonight.

Chanel  took me to a pizza place across town called Willie's Pizzas  and I have to say, I was relieved they had a pizza place nearby. The pizza was amazing, a little bit of crust with a whole lot of cheese just the way I like it.

"Go inside and take a nap. You're going to have quite the interesting night, and we need you on your game." Chanel's  voice sounded mischievous, as if there was a double meaning behind the statement.

We were outside my house and had gotten all the shopping bags out of the car, and I somehow managed to carry all the bags in both hands, and under my armpits.

Chanel  closed the trunk down and smirked when she took in how many bags I was carrying, as if trying not to laugh.

"You should really let me help you with those inside." She offered, reaching out her hands. I shook my head in protest, determined to do it myself.

I don't know what it is about getting all the bags in one trip that makes me feel so accomplished, but I should probably set my goals a tad higher if I'm ever going to get anywhere in life.

"I'm fine, but you know..you could open the front door for me." I suggested, already out of breath. Hey! I'm a strong, independent woman..not a miracle worker.

Chanel  laughed as she ran towards the front door to open it up for me. I trailed slowly behind her, balancing all my shopping bags..silently chanting 'mama didn't raise no quitter'  over and over again in my head.

I scurried inside the door once she had it open, trying to ignore Chanel's  laughter as I passed her. My mother got up off the couch and put the book she was reading down on the table when she saw me.

"Oh, wow!" She said as she saw all the shopping bags in my hands. She came to help take some of it off my hands, and I turned around to say goodbye to Chanel.

"Thank you so much, Chanel. Really..I had fun today." I smiled at her, noting how nice it was to have a friend..a real  friend. I would never want to spend the day like this with any of my 'friends' back home.

"Hey, no problem. I had fun, too! Tonight will be even...better." Chanel's  voice trailed off as she made eye contact with my mom, who was studying us inquisitively.

"Tonight?" My mom asked curiously as she set the shopping bags down on the floor by the stairs. Great. Thanks, Chanel. You don't think you could let me warm her up first?

Chanel  looked at me remorseful while seeming to decide to make a quick getaway. "Well, I'm going to get home. I'll text you later, Gia. Bye Ms. Asher!" She then ran like a coward to her car. I rolled my eyes and shut the door with my foot before turning to face my mother.

I almost laughed when I saw my mother studying all the shopping bags. She looked like she was trying to do the math in her head, to see how much of my college fund we were taking out to pay for this stuff. 

"Don't worry, mom. Chanel paid for some of it..but I made her promise to let me pay her back once I start getting paid." I said trying to ease her mind. She exhaled a deep breath, seeming relieved. Until she remembered what Chanel  had said before she left.

"Do you have plans tonight?" She seemed suspicious as she started looking through the bags to see if they passed the 'mom inspection.'

Here we go. I may not have to worry about Chanel's  crazy scheme to make Phoenix  jealous. My mom might pull a plug on the whole thing. "Well, there's a party at the beach tonight. Chanel and I were hoping to make an appearance." I rushed out, anxious to rip it off like a band-aid.

She seemed surprised, but not exactly upset..just cautious. "Another party?" She stopped searching through the bags and examined me. I tried to shrug like it wasn't a big deal, but I hadn't really realized how much I wanted to go until I thought I might not get to.

Truth be told, I think part of me was just excited at the possibility of seeing Phoenix. Which I also found super annoying.

"All the kids in town go to these things..and I didn't really get to stay too long last time." Because I smacked Phoenix Santiago in the face and stormed out the party, but moving on. "Remember what you said about me growing up, too." I added, hoping that would inspire her to say yes.

She sighed, seeming defeated. "I did say that, didn't I? Me and my big mouth." I laughed as she connected her palm to her forehead. After thinking for a moment, she finally nodded.

"Well, I suppose that would be alright. Nadine and I were going to meet up with a few of our other friends from school to see a movie, anyways." I smiled, this making me happy to hear. My mother didn't really have friends in Denver. Not ones she could actually hang out with. I suppose we weren't that different in that sense.

"But you have to promise to be careful! Also..you have not been great with communicating so far, and that really needs to change." I winced as I was suddenly struck with guilt. My mother did have a point, I sucked at communicating. In fact it just might be my greatest flaw, and I had several.

"You have my word, mom. A party guest won't be able to fart without you hearing about it as it happens." She shook her head and laughed at my sarcasm, but seemed to accept it as an answer. "I'm going to take this stuff to my room, if you don't mind." I gestured to the shopping bags I had managed to gather in my hands again.

She started to offer to help me but I was already halfway up the stairs chanting 'mama didn't raise no quitter.'

It took me a while to unpack all of the various items of clothing, shoes, accessories, etc. from the shopping bags. But once I had, I stood there surveying my walk-in closet. It was now about three quarters of the way full, and looked a lot less pathetic than before.

I yawned and checked the time on my phone. I still had a few hours before I had to start getting ready for the party. A nap actually didn't sound like a bad idea.

I quickly changed into more comfy clothes to sleep in and threw my dirty clothes in the laundry hamper.

While plugging my phone on the charger on the nightstand by my bed, I noticed there was a text message I hadn't noticed before.

Satan's Butt hole
Sorry I had to take off earlier.

I laughed at Phoenix's  contact name on my phone, and reluctantly changed it to 'Phoenix.'  I thought it was nice he thought to apologize, but I also noticed he was still being tight-lipped about where he went.

I decided to reply back with 'That's okay, I've had a busy day anyways.' Not a lie, but also a bit tight-lipped. 'Busy day'  could mean a number of things.

As I got myself comfortable in the bed, I was startled to hear an incoming call come in my phone. Checking it, it said 'Incoming call from Phoenix.' I laughed, wondering if my subtle 'busy day' ruffled his feathers a bit.

I waited a few rings before answering it, not wanting to look too available. When I answered, I tried to sound as casual and indifferent as I could possibly manage. "Hello?"

"Playing it cool by not replying right away. Impressive, blue eyes." He observed, his voice playful and flirty as usual.

I rolled my eyes, slightly annoyed he saw through my 'playing it cool'  act."Maybe I just wasn't sure if I wanted to talk to you, did you consider that?" I sassed, making him laugh.

"No I didn't actually, because that's impossible." He teased in his usual cocky tone.  As much as his arrogance gets on my nerves, I was coming to find it was part of his charm. Not that I would ever, ever admit that to him. "So, what do you mean by busy day exactly?"

He tried to make his voice sound casual, but there was an edge in his tone that honestly amused me. It was good to know I could at least aspire a certain level of jealousy. Maybe Chanel's  plan will be fun after all.

"Oh, I've had quite the eventful day. Getting ready for the party tonight, and all that." It was really my way of asking if he was planning on going, without actually having to ask of course.

"Party, huh? The one on the beach?" His voice perked up as he sounded intrigued. I felt excited at the possibility of him going, but annoyed at the same time..because it meant Charlotte  would probably go, too. I didn't want a repeat of last time.

"Maybe. Why do you ask?" My pathetic attempt at being coy made me roll my eyes, but I think he might have actually bought It.

"Oh, nothing. I just wanted to know if it was worth making an appearance or not. But if you're going to be there..I guess I'm going, too."  His playful and obviously flirting tone made me blush. I just had to be grateful he couldn't see me over the phone, or I'd never hear the end of it. But I once again pushed my feelings aside and tried to play it cool, something that was becoming quite the habit of mine.

"Huh..cool story, bro. Maybe I'll see you there or you know, whatever." I was really quite impressed with my ability to sound nonchalant on that one. Instead of being hurt or offended, he just laughed..seeming to understand my sarcasm.

When I was dating Tyler, one of my least favorite things about him was his lack of sense of humor. He always took everything literally and personally. Phoenix on the other hand seemed almost impossible to offend, which I had to admit I was learning to really admire about him. Ironic, because it's also the thing that gets on my nerves at times.

"Oh..you can count on seeing a whole lot of me, Gia Pet." His voice curled off his tongue like it was honey, giving away his double meaning to his words. I rolled my eyes and he chuckled. "I can almost hear you rolling your eyes. Stop interrupting my flirting, it's very rude." He scolded playfully, making me laugh.

I shook my head still laughing, until a sudden thought occurred to me. He hadn't actually told me where he went earlier when he left the diner suddenly. Yes, I realized he wasn't obligated to tell me anything..but that didn't mean the curiosity wasn't driving me crazy. 

As my attraction grows stronger for him, so does my need to protect myself from getting hurt like I have been in the past. It might sound silly but in a way..I think part of me looks for excuses to not trust him, so I have an excuse to distance myself.

The whole thing was scary. Because the more we hung out or spoke to each other, the more I find I actually enjoy his company..not that I am prepared to admit that to him. God forbid my intense attraction develops into real, actual feelings.

"Hey, I was going to ask you..is everything alright? You left kind of suddenly earlier." I decided to try to remain casual so it didn't sound like some kind of accusation. Of course the thought crossed my mind that maybe he had left to see another girl, but it wasn't my place to ask that. Besides, I wasn't entirely sure I was prepared for the answer. So instead I just gave him an opportunity to tell me where he went, and hoped he would take it.

He suddenly sounded awkward and stuttered a bit, which wasn't a promising sign. "Oh yeah..everything's cool. I didn't know you cared, blue eyes." He attempted to hide the awkwardness with flirting but it came out feeling forced, making it that much more awkward. "Hey listen, I need to go. But I'll see you tonight."

With that he hung up the phone before I had a chance to respond, leaving me with more questions instead of answers. What are you hiding, Phoenix Santiago?

author's note: If you enjoyed this chapter, please don't forget to vote! :)