Ria's POV

I was walking to the lockers, ready to go home. As I closed it, a face looked into me deeply, examining my every move. 

"Can we please talk, Ria?" he begged. 

"Leave me alone, there's nothing to talk about, Lance." I growled as I slammed my locker shut, startling him. Apparently, all the boys had a meeting with their teams because of a team division. It was somewhat like a week of games against school on different sports. 

I was going to wait for them in the library but I think I prefer using the bus despite knowing that Randy will kill me for it. Can you blame me if I want to avoid the guy so badly? I walked away, fuming and clutched my backpack with a tight grip. 

After a few minutes, I was surprised that he didn't follow me and No, I didn't want him to. As if on cue, a car honked beside me and I turned to look and see Lance with his window rolled down. 

"Please Ria." he kept asking. I rolled my eyes and kept walking. Before I was able to cross the street, he blocks my path with his car. I glared at him as he stepped out of the car. I scoffed and walked away from him, only to be held by the shoulder.

"Why don't you understand that I don't want to talk to you. Ever heard of the word boundaries?" I finally had enough and spun around , snapping at him. "Don't you understand how stupid and hurt I felt?! You tore me up but I stayed strong so don't go thinking that you can come back and ruin everything for me. There is NOTHING to talk about," my voice cracked at the end as I choked back on a sob. 

People keep saying that tears are a sign of weakness, but it's not. You show no shame and you aren't scared to show them what you truly feel, whether it is to their satisfaction or not. You show them that you are a human and that you have the capability of showing emotions- That you aren't numb. 

"So please just get the hell away from me!" I scream, pushing him away. He stumbled back a bit, hitting his back on the car. I glared at him through the tears and demanded that he left. 

He did the opposite of what I asked. He walked towards me, cautiously- as if I'll break if he took the wrong step. He wraps his arms around me and pulled me closer, repeatedly whispering apologies into my ear. "I'm sorry, I know that I've been a stupid guy but I regret it all. Just let me explain." he pleads. 

I sigh, clearly giving up on pushing him away and nod. 

"I was doing it for fun at first but I grew to actually fall for you. I was threatened that they'll reveal the truth if I didn't keep you doing our stuff for us. So I broke up with you to keep them away, I really tried." he explains, "Can we please start over, as friends?"

"It's going to be hard to forgive you but I guess we can be friends," I reply, pulling away from the hug.

"Take as much time as you need," he smiles at me, a genuine one. 

"What's the catch?" I mumble.

"None I just feel guilty for what I did, take all the time you need to forgive, and if you can't then guess I'll just have to accept that and stay by your side- as a friend." I stare at him in disbelief. 

"Oh and I talked to your brother about this and if I do hurt you, I'll be dead." he added, grining sheepishly. 

I smiled back. I was bewildered of what was happening, it's BIZARRE.

"Oh" was all I could say, making him chuckle at me. "Still would be awkward about this but I guess you could be a-" I held in my laugh as I eyed him up, "-Brother?"

He clutched his chest, as if it hurt. "Ouch, sibling-zoned."

I glared at him, hiding my smile. This was unusual but it felt great. I stare at him as a laugh erupted from him. 

"You're too cute. Its so hard to be serious and scared when you're mad," he says between laughs, pinching my cheeks.

I raised a brow with as amused smirk. "Getting too comfy?"

He stops and grins, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry, I'm just so happy that we were kind of okay again."

I smile at him and he smiles back, pulling me for another hug. "Thank you, Ria, for giving me another chance."

-•-*-•-

"So prom is coming up and so is your birthday," he smirks before drinking from his mug of black coffee. 

I groaned, annoyed of the topic. 

"Nope, not gonna go." I say, sipping from my cup of cappuccino and distracting myself. I looked out of the window of the coffee shop as cars roared their engines and people passing by. Something catches my attention, I see a little kid dragging his parents into the cinemas and flailing his arms when his mother shakes her head. The father just laughed as the scene unfold. 

"Come with me to prom, Ria," my thoughts were snapped back to Lance when he asks the question. 

I stared at him and he looks down at his coffee. 

"What?" I ask to make sure that I had heard right.

"Wanna come to prom with me?" he asks again, looking away. I noticed as the tip of his ear turned red. A smirk played at my lips. 

"I want to hear it in a more sincere way," I teased. He groans and glares at me but combed through his hair with his hand. He leans over the table and grabs my hand, kissing it. 

"Come to prom with me, Ria," he asked in a serious tone. I blinked, shocked. 

"Y-Yeah, but I don't have anything to wear." I reasoned. 

"I'm pretty sure your mom would love to help with that," he chuckles, settling back on his seat. 

Damn you, Lance