As Jesse and I stroll down the road, I feel slightly nervous. I don't know why though. I should be used to talking to him now.

"The sky looks good tonight" Jesse says, startling me.

I was so preoccupied with my thoughts that I almost jumped at the sound of his deep voice.

"Um, yeah" I reply, shaking off the nervousness. "It's beautiful."

We walk silently down the street. The cool air blows through my ponytail, leaving it frizzy. Jesse looks at the ground most of the way, not wanting to talk about what happened.

To avoid things being even more awkward, I decide to say something. I take a deep breath before speaking.

"Thanks for coming out tonight. You didn't have to. I know you're still feeling down" I say to him, letting him know I appreciate it.

"Hey, it's not that I didn't want to" he replies, shaking his head at me. "I needed this walk, to clear my head and all."

"Oh" I mumble, tucking my hair behind my ears. "Thought you were doing it to save me from embarrassment."

"Embarrassment, huh? Oh you mean when I would've turned you down and you'd have that little frown on your face and stumble all the way home? Hilarious!"

"It's not funny! That's not even what I meant" I try to justify myself, only making Jesse laugh more.

"It so is what you meant. No point in lying, Rose" He tells me.

We sit on an empty park bench just opposite Milky's - home to the best milkshakes in town. I curse at myself when I touch my pockets and don't feel my purse.
Being this close to Milky's makes me want to get something to drink.

"Wait here" Jesse tells me as he walks across the road, heading into Milky's.

I sit uncomfortably for about ten minutes before he reappears, two large milkshakes in hand.

"Here" He says as he takes a seat, handing over the large cup to me.

"Jesse. ..I... I --"

"You can't accept milkshakes from rejects?" He cuts me off.

"What? No. You're not a reject. Gimme that" I reply, reaching for the cup. I want to laugh at him calling himself a reject but I hold it in.

"Oh, so good" I say after my first sip.

"I'm glad you like it. It's double chocolate, my favorite, I wanted you to try it" he says, smirking at me.

I smile at him in return. This did taste good.

While enjoying my shake I try to think of a topic we could talk about. Even though I want to talk about school, since it's been a tiring week, I push it aside. It's kind of the last thing Jesse would want to talk about right now.

"Hey, I just noticed something" Jesse pipes up, causing my brainstorming to come to a halt. I look at him with an amused look, hoping it's actually something useful.

"Yeah? What's that?" I ask.

"We were friends once upon a time, why didn't we remain friends? Did something happen? Because I--"

"It's a long story and I'd appreciate it if we didn't talk about it right now" I quickly cut him off.

"Okay. Yeah, sure, didnt mean to upset you. I'm sorry"

"It's alright. I'm sorry for snapping at you" I tell him, feeling stupid.

"It's cool" Jesse replies, standing to his feet. "No wonder you have no friends."

"Hey!" I exclaim in disbelief, standing as well.

"I'm joking" Jesse responds, clutching his stomach as he laughs out loud.

I stand there smiling like an idiot for a few seconds before laughing as well.

"Come on, let's head home" He says, after the laughter died down. "It's getting late."

<>×<>

We walk back slowly, talking as we go. Jesse tells me more about himself. Turns out he's always hated being called 'Golden boy', especially infront of his dad. It's mainly because his dad didn't think of him that way. Jesse would always have to prove himself. Prove that he's capable of achieving what his dad has set out for him.

Listening to his stories makes me feel horrible for judging him all this time. From the outside he looked like a showoff, someone who thought of himself as perfect. Little did I know, he was also insecure about alot of things.

"Okay, this is me" I speak up as we near my driveway.

"I know" Jesse replies, smirking.

"So, guess I'll see you at school?" I ask him with a small smile.

"Of course" he responds, walking me to my front door.

"Great! Okay, see ya" I say, giving him a small wave.

As I walk up the stairs, Jesse calls out to me.

"Rose, wait!"

I turn slowly, wondering why he loves to say things when I'm about to go inside. I fold my arms and give him an uninterested look.

"Yes?" I ask.

"Um. .you wanna walk with me to school tomorrow?" He asks with hopeful eyes, rocking on his heels.

I give it a thought for a few seconds then shrug, eh! Why not?

"Yeah, I'd love to" I reply.

"Great. See you tomorrow then" Jesse says happily, giving me a dashing smile which I return.

I slowly open the door and slip inside, careful not to make a sound. Just as I shut the door, the living room lights came on.
I close my eyes and hoped it was mom and not dad.

"Oh please! Anyone but dad, anyone bu--"

"So. . . Went to Chloe's huh?" A loud voice cuts me off, giving me a fright.

I turn around slowly and see dad folding his arms and narrowing his eyes at me. I let out a nervous laugh and look down, deciding to accept my fate.

Yikes!