"For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness." – 1 Thessalonians 4:7

Cole collapsed on his bed with a loud groan. He let his body flop into a random position, his feet hanging over the edge and his arms resting haphazardly on the pillows behind his head. He glanced down at his backpack, which was still lying on the floor from where he had dropped it. The corners of his mouth turned down in a frown.

Finally, finally, the first week of school was over. Over the summer, Cole had been a mixture of nerves and excitement for the upcoming school year, but his optimism had been shattered the second he stepped into his first class. The biggest factor of attending Ventura High, other than his reputation, had been his social status. He was used to stares, gossip, giggling girls with crushes, and feeding off his over-exaggerated "bad boy" image. But all that had changed in just five short days.

Going into senior year, Cole knew things were going to be different. He was a Christian, after all. Then there was the situation with Taylor. He still shuddered when he remembered how she used to manipulate him. Though Cole hadn't yet told anyone specifically why he had broken all ties with Taylor, it was clear the two had separated for good. That meant separation from Taylor's friends, too.

While Cole had been expecting that, he wasn't prepared for an entirely new set of problems revolving around his changing image. Already, a few of his old "friends" from parties and Taylor's crowd had deserted him. Girls who tried desperately for him to notice them were either confused or offended when he didn't return their flirtations. The Cole Anderson everyone knew—students and teachers alike—was gone.

The most obvious shift lay in Cole's acquaintances. Because he no longer swore, cheated, gossiped, or lied—at least not as much as he used to—many kids from the cool crowd deserted him. In response, Cole felt drawn to some of the people had gone to school with for a good part of his life, but had never actually befriended: people like the nerds, the kids who dressed out of style, the unpopular students, and the outcasts. Cole was genuinely trying to be nice by reaching out to these people, but in the meantime, the ones he thought had been his friends became distant.

The gang was the only exception, of course. They would stand by Cole no matter what. But as Cole reflected on his new social position, he still felt dismayed. He had hoped this year would be as fun and crazy as the rest. Obviously, there would be no more sneaking into R-rated movies, going to wild parties, making out with Taylor, and drinking underage. He knew those things were wrong, and though they still tempted him, he was disgusted at the thought of returning to his old habits. But what could take their place in the meantime? Cole craved adventure and adrenaline. It just seemed unattainable at this point.

For now, there was only one thing—person, actually—that gave Cole the thrilling rush he needed, and that was Alana. Just thinking about her made his heart beat faster and the color in his cheeks grow darker. And to think that she liked him back, too! Cole was sure of it. He just didn't know where to go from there.

Suddenly, a knock came at his door. "Cole?" Blaine called. "Hey, Dad's back, and you'll never guess what he brought!"

"Food?" he mumbled.

"Just come out and see!"

Cole reluctantly rolled off his bed anyway and headed to the living room. To his surprise, he walked in on his dad and brother kneeling on the floor.

"Uh...what's going on?" he asked uncertainly.

Just then, a blob of gray-and-white fur jumped out from behind Blaine and streaked across the carpet, pausing at Cole's feet. The latter suddenly realized he was staring into the wide blue eyes of a kitten. Its ears seemed to be too big for its body, and its unmoving tail was forever pointed straight up in the air.

"Dad?" Cole asked warily. "Whose cat is this?"

Mr. Anderson grinned. "One of my customers had a large litter of kittens and decided to give them away for free. I thought it would be nice to have a pet around the house."

Cole gingerly squatted down and gave the kitten a light stroke behind the ears. "So it's ours?"

"Yeah," Blaine said, "which means we need to come up with a name for it."

The creature shied away from Cole's touch at first, only to lean back and lick his fingers with its warm, rough tongue. Cole picked it up by the excess of skin on its neck and held it close, surprised at how light the little thing was. Almost immediately, the kitten started purring—a soft, garbled sound that resembled a broken disposal rather than a cat's purr.

"Wow," Blaine said, mildly impressed. "It actually likes you."

"Hey, animals like me," Cole said defensively. He stroked the kitten a few more times. "This little dude is proof."

A few seconds went by, and then a lightbulb went off in Cole's head. He looked straight into the kitten's blue orbs. "Your name is going to be Dude."

Blaine snorted. Mr. Anderson looked amused. "Only you, Cole," he said with a shake of his head.

"Well?" he demanded. "How about it?"

He held out the fluffball for them to see. Its little paws curled around Cole's fingers while its head cocked to one side, as if silently asking them their opinion.

"He totally looks like a Dude," Cole added.

Blaine glanced at their dad, who shrugged. "Dude it is," he said.

Cole passed the newly-christened kitten to his twin and took a seat on the couch. He pulled out his phone and dialed Alana's number. A few moments later, she picked up on the third ring.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Hey, wanna come over and see our new kitten?"

She gasped. "A new kitten? How cute!"

"I guess."

"I can't wait to see him! Okay, just let me finish my homework, and I'll be right over."

"See ya."

"Oh, and Cole—are you still interested in driving down the coast to meet up with Trevor?"

"Of course," he said automatically.

Alana asked if he and Blaine were free the following weekend, and Cole replied in the affirmative.

"Awesome," she gushed. "Alright, I'll see you soon."

They said their goodbyes and Cole ended the call, but not before glancing down and seeing Dude playing at his feet. The kitten wiggled its haunches before attempting to jump up on the couch. It only made it up halfway, automatically sinking its claws into the leather.

Cole leaned forward and peeled Dude off the couch, causing an audible r-i-i-i-p. He winced, glad that his dad had already left the room and couldn't see the upholstery being ruined.

As soon as Cole let the kitten go free, it immediately climbed into his lap. Blaine chuckled and remarked, "He's really taking a liking to you."

"Yeah." Cole attempted to sound indifferent, but in reality the little guy was already starting to grow on him. Maybe his dad's spontaneous idea to adopt a cat wasn't such a bad one, after all.

It was Friday evening, and Maya's aching fingers were scrubbing the last empty table before her shift ended. As soon as she was done, she retired to the kitchen at the back of Scottie's Surf Shack, where she untied her apron and let down her messy bun.

"Thanks for all your help tonight," said Nikki as she waltzed in with a smile. Her fresh-smelling clothes and cute, styled hair were in stark contrast to Maya's disheveled appearance.

"Yeah, no problem," she said tiredly.

"I still have another few hours to go," Nikki added, her smile dimming a notch. "But at least the dinner rush is over."

"Will you be fine by yourself?"

"Oh, yeah. I can hold down the fort."

Suddenly, Maya's ringtone blasted from the inside of her purse. She reached over the counter and fished inside for her phone. When she saw the caller ID, her exhaustion seemed to melt away. "Jake!" she exclaimed after holding the device up to her ear.

"Hey hey, how's my favorite girl?"

"Tired."

"Ah, you're at Scottie's, aren't you?" he asked.

"Yes, but my shift is over."

"Well, that's no way to spend a Friday night. I was wondering if we could go out."

Maya smiled and drummed her fingers against her lips. "Well..."

"I mean, if you need to get some rest, I completely understa—"

"I'm just messing with you," she laughed. "Of course you can take me. I'd love to go. Just...promise there will be food?"

"I promise," he chuckled. "How does eight o'clock sound?"

"Fine, but my curfew is nine, so we won't have that much time."

They finally agreed that eight was the best they could do, since it was already past seven and Maya had to rush home to get ready. When they ended the call, Maya glanced up to see Nikki still standing a few yards away.

"Jake?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "He's your boyfriend, right?"

Maya nodded. "Spontaneous date night," she explained.

"How fun! I wish I had a guy like that."

"I'm just blessed to have known him for a long time. Before we dated, we were best friends."

Nikki nodded. "You seem really close with the friends in your Bible study."

"Well, we all love God and surfing, so that makes us practically inseparable."

Nikki adjusted her apron and tucked a few stray strands of hair back. She seemed ready to say something, but fell quiet instead.

"You're always welcome to hang out with us, you know," Maya said, remembering Koa's same invitation.

A smile forced its way onto Nikki's lips. "Thanks, but I wouldn't...I mean, I don't think I could."

"Hey, you know me," Maya said reassuringly. "We're great coworkers. We bring out the best in each other, and my friends are the same way. You would get along with them fine."

Nikki nodded, but her thoughts were obviously elsewhere. "You better get home before your date arrives," she said.

"Oh! Right." Maya hurriedly grabbed her purse and pulled out her keys. "I'll see you tomorrow afternoon."

"Have fun on your date."

Maya winked. "Maybe we can set you up with a date next week, too. Got any boys on your radar?"

To Maya's surprise, Nikki flushed pink. "Maybe."

"Good!" Maya grinned and waved before heading to the parking lot. The sun was just starting to set by the time she pulled into her driveway at home. Despite her exhaustion, she was excited for spending some quality time with Jake soon—even if it was only for an hour.

"Mom, I'm home!" she called as soon as she stepped through the doorway. She headed upstairs to get changed without waiting for an answer. Though she wouldn't have time to shower, she freshened up the best she could and hurried back downstairs with five minutes to spare. Her stomach growled.

From the living room came her mother's voice, speaking loudly into the phone. Maya peeked around the corner and saw Mrs. Mallory pacing the room, the phone pressed tightly to her ear.

"What do you mean you can't come? We've been planning this for weeks. You promised...No, she won't mind." She sighed. "I guess that would work. But she has a part-time job, you know...Yes, she enjoys it."

Maya frowned. This didn't sound like one of her mother's friends. They all knew about her job at Scottie's since she first started. Was this someone from church?

"Okay, I'll talk to you soon...No, I haven't brought it up with her yet." She pressed a weary hand to her forehead. "I'll do it when the time is right." After a brief silence, she added, "I'll call you soon, Daniel. Bye."

Maya paled. She turned to head into the kitchen, but her mother had already glanced over her shoulder and spotted her. "Oh, hon—I didn't know you were there," she stammered.

Maya wasn't quite sure what to say.

"Well, you look...nice," Mrs. Mallory offered. "Where are you going?"

"Jake is picking me up in a few minutes," she explained.

The strange tone to her mother's voice vanished immediately. "Oh, good," she said. "Though I wished you had asked me first. Are you going with friends or is it a one-on-one thing?"

"One-on-one," Maya said with confidence. "But please, Mom, it's fine. You know Jake."

"Yes, but I'd rather you go with a group all the same. Especially at this time of night." She set her phone down and walked over, pressing a hand to Maya's cheek. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks," she said, ducking her head.

The doorbell rang, but neither moved to get it. Mrs. Mallory pressed a kiss on her daughter's forehead. "Jake is lucky to have a girl like you. Just...don't grow up too fast, okay?"

Maya couldn't help but laugh. "I can't help being a senior, Mom!"

"I'm not talking about that," she said with a small smile. "Do you have your phone with you?"

"Mom, of course—"

"Don't do anything rash." She wagged a finger in front of her face. "I trust you and Jake, but I was a teenager once myself, too."

Maya groaned.

"Okay, okay, I'll let you go." She gave her daughter one last kiss before walking away. "Be safe!"

Maya smoothed out her summer dress and shook out her curls, trying to shake off her mom's words at the same time. She flung open the door and immediately stood face to face with Jake.

"Hey," he said, smiling goofily. His eyes flitted down the length of her body before snapping back up to her eyes. "You look great."

Maya quickly shut the door behind her. "Thanks," she said quietly.

"Is something wrong?" he asked, placing a hand on the small of her back and guiding her to the car. As he held open the door and let her step inside, Maya mulled over her thoughts. She finally decided the mixture of school, work, and her mother's advice was just overwhelming her.

"I'm good," she said finally after Jake had slipped into the driver's seat.

He smiled and clasped her hand. "Then I'm good too."

They sped off into the sunset, heading directly into the blinding light before turning south towards the ocean. Jake finally pulled into a parking spot next to the Promenade and dropped a few quarters into the meter. He glanced down at his wristwatch. "Well, we have forty-five minutes. Wanna find something to eat?"

Maya's stomach growled in reply, causing both of them to laugh. They strolled hand-in-hand towards the nearest street vendor, where they ordered a huge turkey drumstick and ice cream to share. With turkey grease dripping down their chins, they headed partway across the pier to a vacant bench, where they sat down.

After eating in comfortable silence for a few minutes, Maya handed the rest of the drumstick to Jake. He finished it off while Maya slurped at the melted ice cream contentedly.

"You have a little something right there," he said, holding back a laugh.

"Where?" She licked her lips, but apparently the spot of ice cream was just out of reach.

Jake reached out and flicked it away, but he kept his hand on her face. His smile only grew wider. Maya felt the warmth in his fingers and suddenly wished they didn't have to keep it this way. They had been dating for a little over a month, and Jake had only kissed her once.

She parted her lips, and their eyes met. Below them, the sound of crashing surf pierced the silence.

"What are you waiting for?" she finally asked.

Jake's smile slowly vanished as he leaned in close and pressed his lips against hers. Immediately, Maya's knees felt weak. She had missed this.

Jake moved his other hand up to her face and cupped her chin, drawing her even closer. She felt her heart pounding.

Don't grow up too fast...

"Jake," she said, breathlessly. "Jake, wait."

He reluctantly pulled away, only to see the confusion written in her eyes. "Oh, Maya...I'm sorry. I thought—"

She scooted backwards, unwilling to meet his gaze. What had she been thinking?

"Gosh, Maya, and I'm really sorry," Jake stammered. "I don't know what came over me."

"It's not you," she said. I started it. Her cheeks flushed.

The distance between them was now a few feet, and Jake awkwardly folded his hands in his lap. "We're trying to move too fast, aren't we?" he finally said.

She nodded.

They sat in an uncomfortable silence while waves rolled and swelled beneath them. Maya thought back to when they had went on their first date—unofficially—and sat on the sand, watching the sunset. The memory warmed her like a golden sunrise.

But this—this night felt very different.

"What should we do?" she asked helplessly.

Jake sighed. "I don't know," he admitted. "I've never done this before. Maybe we shouldn't...you know...kiss. Until later."

Maya blushed fiercely.

"But holding hands is okay, right?"

She nodded.

Jake abruptly stood up, as if to rid himself of the awkwardness that had descended on their date. "I guess we should start over," he said.

"No," Maya countered. "We start from where we are, but just in a new direction."

"That's right. We already have a whole month behind us."

"Almost a month and a half," she pointed out.

Jake smiled. "And just think, if we stick together for another year, we could be going to the same college."

"That's right!" she gasped, her mind suddenly switching tracks. "Jake, we need to start on our college applications!"

He glanced down at his watch. "We should get going before you miss your curfew."

They stood up together, Maya chattering excitedly about potential colleges. Part of her wanted to get rid of the discomfort regarding their previous conversation, while another part was awakening to the realities of college. This was their last year of high school, and then it was time to make a choice for the future.

Jake gently reached out and wrapped his hand around hers. Maya knew she was lucky to have someone like him.