I'm halfway through the stupid wall. I'm sweating like a pig, my arms and legs are shaking and I'm this close to let go when Mark asks, "so, what happened with your ex?"

Bloody hell. Is he freaking kidding me?

My whole body freezes and I can't even turn to look at him because I'm pretty sure that if I do, I'll let go of the wall and I'll try to punch him.

I ignore him. I take a deep breath and reach out for another nook while clenching my jaw.

"Because I don't know what happened, but I do know you haven't dated ever since."

I push myself harder because I want to reach to the top as fast as I can.

What does he care?

Scott is still a sore subject. I don't want to talk about him. Especially not with Mark. He'll make fun of me. He'll smirk and tell me that I'm too closed up and too bloody rigid. And the worst part is that he's probably right.

Groaning, I grab on to the next rock and keep going. In silence. All the way to the top.

As soon as I reach it, I crawl to get away from the ledge. I can't really walk. My legs are wobbling like jelly. I lay flat on my back, closing my eyes, feeling the warmth of the sun over my face.

"Water?"

I press my eyelids tighter. My whole body feels warmer and not in a nice way. I don't even have the strength to stand up and tell him to fuck off. Instead, with a trembling hand, I raise my hand showing him how I feel. I hear his chuckles as he sits next to me. His body shields the sun and he grabs my hand and places the water bottle on it.

"I'm sorry." His voice is rough and deep and naughty at the same time. It stirs something deep inside me. My heart starts to race as I exhale.

I sit up, clenching the bottle he gave me and without looking at him, I take a sip. "You seemed like you needed a sort of incentive to keep going and it was the first thing that came to mind." I take another sip. "And you have to admit that it worked."

It did.

And I'm pissed because he seems to be fucking right all the fucking time.

"Why did you want to do this?" I gaze at him. Despite the fact that we've been climbing for God long knows how long, Mark looks impeccable. He's not sweating or blushing from the effort or anything. His hair looks too perfect, his hands are not trembling and the way the sun rays are shining down on his hair, make his eyes stand out more and the pinkish hue on his lips make them appear inviting...

What the fuck am I thinking!

"You make everything more interesting." My lips part at his words. They feel like hot rocks on the bottom of my stomach. "Look, I didn't know that your ex, Shawn, or whatever is his name, was such a touchy subject. I'm sorry if I offended you in someway."

My lips tug up. "It's Scott." I'm pretty sure that he knows this, but the fact that he's trying to make me feel like it's unimportant makes me feel better. "And I'm just exhausted. And obviously overreacting." I turn to him and there's a hint of a smile playing on his lips, too. "And just so you know, I suck at climbing."

His grin widens. "You don't! You climbed up that wall in an hour! That's impressive for a beginner."

"An hour? That's all?"

Mark gets up. "Just an hour." He looks behind me. "I'll bring everything here because I have a feeling you can't really move."

I laugh at that. I can't.

He brings his backpack and takes out a blue blanket. He lays it on the floor and takes out a couple of sandwiches, a plastic container with grapes and a large thermos. "I made this myself, so don't make fun of me."

I grab one of the sandwiches and take it out of the plastic bag. "Peanut butter and jelly?" I look up with a slight smirk on my face.

He shrugs. "I made them myself." He plops next to me and passes me a little plastic cup with something warm inside.

I take a sip before putting it down. It's tea, not coffee, but I don't know if it's the fantastic view of the fields and mountains or the cold breeze nipping at my cheeks, but damn, it tastes like the best tea ever.

"Wait a moment. You made me climb up that wall for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?"

Mark's lips quirk. He starts chuckling. "It's the best I can do. Trust me."

I roll my eyes before turning away.

I'm trying not to think much about it, but it does feel like the best gesture anyone has ever had with me for the longest of times. And when I think about it, that's all what Mark has been doing lately. Despite his stupid jokes and annoying usual comments, he's been really nice to me. More than nice. He's been exceptional. 

"Thank you." Her tone is soft and sweet and I really want to smack the thermos on my head because I'm turning into such an emotional mess. 

If Scott could see me, he would laugh at me. Hard. An then he would bring it up whenever he wanted to screw me over.

I clear my throat. "Don't mention it." My tone is rough, trying to appear more manly than what I'm feeling right now. Kate smiles before taking another bite of the sandwich made.

The sandwich I made. I honestly don't ever feel like cooking. At all. But I wanted to do something for her. So I tried to make a nice breakfast. My first idea was to make omelets but I didn't know they were so hard. The thing stuck to the pan and I ended up making something that resembled like scrambled eggs. I thought about making a sandwich with that but it looked gross. So, I went the easy way. Peanut butter and jelly was a universal liked sandwich. I figured that I couldn't go wrong with that.

She finishes the sandwich in no time and drinks my tea. It's stupid, really, but I feel proud that she's enjoying something I made with my own hands. Sheesh. I almost snort at myself. Kate's turning me into a complete and utter softie. And the worst part is that I can't say I'm not liking it.

"So, you don't want to talk about your ex." Her heads whips to me and she presses her lips together. I raise both hands in mock surrender. "Can I ask you about your father then?"

She grabs the thermos and after filling my mug, she fills hers. "What about him?"

"There's no pictures of him in your mom's house."

Kate grins. "I think she has one stacked on the back of her closet in her room." She shakes her head before glancing at me. "He's dead."

"I'm sorry." Shit. Shit. Shit.

First I bring up her ex-boyfriend and now her father? Is there any other subject that I can screw up with? If there is, I'm sure I'm about to mention it.

She sits up, crossing her legs. "It's okay. I didn't know him. He died when I was really young." She shrugs. "Besides, I never knew him in real life. From what I've heard, when my mother told him she was pregnant, he pretty much bailed on her." She blinks before grabbing a grape with her hand. "A couple of years later, he gets cancer and feels terrible for what he's done, so he makes a will and leaves me his pub." She plops the grape into her mouth and chews it.

I smile. "I always wondered why your mom ended up running a bar."

"Yeah, she was an accountant before that." Her eyes turn to me. "Which came in handy while keeping the books. And she enjoys it. Granted, it wasn't easy when she moved here because it was a small town and everyone knew Brandon, my father, so she was sort of an outsider, but she won everyone over."

Nodding, I lean back. "So the pub is yours?"

"Yeah," Kate sighs. "I wanted to grant the ownership to Mom but she said that there was no point since she'd leave it to me again."

"It makes sense." I lay on my back, glancing at the blue sky and comparing the shade to Kate's eyes. "I can't see you running the pub, to be honest."

I hear her chuckle and I feel something weird on the pit of my stomach. "You and me both!"

We stay quiet for a moment.

I want to ask her about Scott. I couldn't forget the bloke's name because it's the same as my brother. I roll my eyes. That stupid trend to name boys after us. I once heard that when our parents chose our names, they were considered trendy. Still is. Because it's related to royalty. I think it's stupid. Like the way people buy those magazines to read about our so-called adventures. If only people knew that we led a pretty boring life.

Still, I really, really want to know about Scott. Her reaction spiked my curiosity. I don't know what he did but it's clear she's still affected by it. Damn it.

"I won't ever ask about Stan but I'm all ears if you ever want to talk about it."

She snorts. "Yeah, Mark. Like I want to talk to you about my ex."

Narrowing my eyes, I sit up. "Why wouldn't you?"

"Are you going to talk about yours? If you remember their names?" She raises an eyebrow feeling like a know-it-all.

"I don't have a problem. I could answer anything you want to know."

Kate doesn't buy it. She laughs at me but I know she must be curious know. I'm trying not to smirk when she shifts on her seat, brushing an invisible fluff of her sweatpants.

"Okay." She looks up. "What are all their names?"

I chuckle before crossing my arms. "Oh. I'm not saying anything if you don't let me ask anything back."

She rolls her eyes. "We're not playing a game, Mark."

"Aren't we?" I taunt her.

She licks her lips and I can't help but follow the movement with my gaze. She rolls her eyes again before turning away. I do notice how her left foot starts tapping against the floor.

"What would you possible want to know about?"

Oh, you have no idea, Kate.

I shrug. "I don't know, the fact that you don't want to talk about it is making me more curious."

Annoyed, she huffs. "Fine, fine. You'll get one question if you answer mine."

Suppressing a smile, I grab a grape. "Deal." I chew the grape deliberately slow. I know she's probably getting irked, but I can't help myself. "Is that your question?"

Kate narrows her eyes. "Yes. I want to know all their names. All of them."

Laughing, I reach out for another grape. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Mark. I'm sure." She rolls her eyes once more.

"Fine, but you owe me one question. Whenever I want and whatever I want." She looks uncertain but I raise a palm. "You made a deal, Kate. You can't back out."

She brings her thumb to her lips. "Okay," she says before nibbling on her thumb.

My lips curve as I lean forward. Slowly, I reach out for her hand and move it away so she stops chewing on it. "Unlike what everyone thinks, I've never had a girlfriend."

"Oh come on!"

"Sorry." Not really.

Kate raises her voice. "You've never had a girlfriend? You've never been on a date? Not once in your whole life?" I know she doesn't believe me and I get it. I've always been around different girls, but I've never had the desire to see them more than once. Until now.

"Never."

Her shoulders slump and she looks away. "That's cheating."

"Hardly!" She gazes at me and I can see disappointment written all over her face. "I did ask you if you were sure about your question." She presses her lips in a tight slash. She looks so darn cute. "I'm saving mine for later, so you can stop sulking."

I offer her more grapes and begrudgingly, she takes one. I plop one grape inside my mouth too as I stare at the distance. 

Kate's going to be my first date. I don't know how I'll make that happen, but it's the first time I want a date so bad. 

Oh. My. Gosh. 

You have no idea how much I've missed you guys! It's insane. Between edits and a bunch of cakes I spent all December working like crazy. I still have work next week but I missed this. I missed you. I missed reading your comments. And damn, I missed Mark and Kate. 

And I'm sorry for my last chapter. I was so tired and stressed that I didn't notice how short it was!! 

THANK YOU SO MUCH for being here for me!!

Thank you @@Avylinn for sprinting with me! If you haven't read her stories, you need to. Her new story, Don't wake the f'cking Dragon, dude is doing pretty amazing!! If you like paranormal, go check her story out!

Also, Perfectly Imperfect is out in less than two weeks! Two weeks! so excited for you guys to read this! I'll be giving away a few free copies to my subscribers, so go to my websie and subscribe!