"THANK YOU FOR CHOOSING KFC. What can I get for you today?"

          Wednesdays were usually our busiest days; people ordered even five minutes before the store closed. It annoyed me slightly because this was the time we took to clean up, but somebody had to pull through the drive-thru to order chicken. Once their order was finished, someone tapped me on the shoulder. Turning, I saw Valentine.

          I held in my laugh, still not over the height difference between us. "What's up?" I said.

         She glanced down at her shoes, obviously nervous. Ever since our encounter in Culinary, she could barely look me in the eye. I had to admit I was enjoying her nervousness a little too much.

          "Do you think—And if you want to say no, that's fine," she said, playing with her fingers. "Do you think that—And if you're busy, then forget about it. But do you think that I—And if—"

          I laughed, cutting her off. "Valentine, just ask the question."

          She squeezed her eyes shut. "Can I come over to your place?" she rushed out quickly. Then, she peeked up before focusing on her shoes again. "I wanted to talk to Calum about something."

          "Sure," I simply said with a chuckle and handed her my keys. "Give me fifteen minutes, okay?" She nodded and then quickly walked away. She was too cute.

          I stopped by the manager's office and picked up my check to go towards the car's tune-up on Saturday. Maybe, I should've gone with a less expensive car. With a sigh, I headed towards my car. Val was standing outside of it, and I cracked a smile.

          "I gave you the keys, so you wouldn't have to stand outside," I told her as she handed me the keys.

          "Oh, I guess I didn't catch on," she said awkwardly. I unlocked the car, and we got in.

          "So, do you not drive?" I asked.

          "I don't know how to," she said sheepishly.

          She was almost eighteen and didn't know how to drive? Usually, when kids turned sixteen, they forced their parents to teach them. "How come?" I asked.

          "Safety precautions."

          I just hummed in response when, really, it led me to have more questions, but I couldn't be nosy. So, we rode together in silence. Late September was still pretty warm, so the AC was blasting cold air from this morning, and I was freezing.

          "Are you cold?" I asked her, and she shook her head. Well, I was going to freeze to death. I kept it to myself until I couldn't help but shiver.

          She turned to me, her eyes wide. "Oh, are you cold?" she asked, her voice apologetic. "Sorry. This is your car. You should be able to warm up." She reached for the heat, but I grabbed her hand before she got there.

          Damn, they were soft.

          "I'm fine," I told her, setting her hand back on her lap. She was silent soon after, and so was I. We didn't try to touch the heat again because I was sure we both were burning up.

          In the apartment now, I noticed everyone's shoes were gone and how quiet the space was. Were they not here? I checked in the kitchen and saw a note on the counter from Calum, and it said they went on an adventure. Only they would do this on a Wednesday night.

          "So, Calum is out with Luke and Michael right now," I said to Val as she played with her sleeves. "Did you want to go home?"

          "No!" she said abruptly, standing up. She then cleared her throat and sat back down. "I mean, is it okay if I just wait here?"

          "That's fine," I told her, taking a seat on the opposite side of the couch.

          I never knew someone who didn't want to go home. Then again, Valentine wasn't just someone. I'd been trying to figure her out ever since day one, and the only thing I had was she possibly had a secret relationship with Calum, and her mom was probably an alcoholic. Plus, she could get pissed off quickly. None of this seemed ordinary, but it seemed like a mystery I wanted to figure out.

         Operation: Who Was Valentine Nauru?

         "So, what do you like to do in your free time?" I asked her, unable to stand the silence. "I'm bored, and doing anything else seems better than sitting on the couch."

         "I like to bake," she responded with a small shrug.

          I smiled. "That's perfect because I'm actually pretty hungry." I waved her over to the kitchen. It was a decent-sized space for an apartment; we had an island, so that was something.

          Val stood behind the counter as I browsed the cabinets. Then, she gasped. "Is that a carrot cake box?"

          I held the box and shook it. "No, it's empty," I said, and her shoulders slumped in sadness. "You like carrot cake?"

          "Yeah, it's my favorite."

          I cocked my head to the side a little as she hung her head low. Her voice held a tone of sadness like there was a special memory tied in with it. She seemed like she had a lot of sad memories, in fact.

          "Do you want to make it from scratch?" I asked her, and she looked up at me.

          "From scratch?" she said.

          I nodded. "We have the ingredients. Calum has carrots here all the time, just for you." Calum always asked me to buy them whenever Val might want to show up to our place, and he said she loved carrots. I called him crazy but bought them anyway. I guessed they would finally be put to use.

          A laugh escaped from her lips as I explained to her why. "Wow. Well then, yeah. Let's make it."

          "I'd have to look up a recipe," I said, fishing for my phone.

          "I know one by heart," she said, already moving around the kitchen like she owned the place.

          I never made a carrot cake before, so I followed her instructions. Her previous nervousness faded soon enough, and she could finally look me in the eye. Having her around felt so natural like we'd been friends for years. Her presence was comforting, and while I didn't necessarily feel alone before, she made me feel full of life.

          I reached up in my hair after feeling something land in it and saw white powder. Valentine exploded in laughter when I turned towards her. "My bad," she said, covering her mouth.

          "So, you think this is funny?" I said to her while holding back my smile. I dipped my spoon in the batter and flicked it towards her. She let out a short gasp, and it splattered on her face. Her brown eyes pierced into mine with determination.

          We went back and forth, throwing this at each other until she tossed water on me. She fell to the floor, clutching her stomach, laughing. I grabbed two eggs and cracked them on her head. I grabbed another one and held it to her face.

          "Are you done?" I asked as she stifled her laughter, shielding herself.

          "Okay, okay," she breathed between giggles. "I'm done."

          I grinned in victory and reached my hand out for her to take. While pulling her up, I slipped on the water spill, and we both fell to the ground. We were both in hysterics as we laid on the floor, too weak to stand up.

          My head faced hers as a smile still resided on her face. "I'm glad you're smiling. Sadness isn't a good look on you." She turned towards me with an even bigger smile, lighting up the entire room.

          "Thanks for making me smile, Ashton," she said. Her eyes twinkled like the stars in the sky. "To be honest, you're different than what I've imagined. You're pretty cool and fun to hang with. Damn, I was seriously a bitch before, huh?"

          I chuckled. "I never thought that of you. The first day I met you, I didn't know that you were Calum's friend, so I had nothing to go off. I just assumed that you didn't like me."

          She seethed and chuckled awkwardly. "Sorry about that, I just didn't know you at the time. Calum did say I could be a little hostile to new people."

          "It's okay. You live, and you learn," I said as I faced the ceiling again. "I didn't know you either until I found out that you were friends with Calum. I've heard so much about you, so I knew that your hostility was probably temporary."

          "Calum talks about me?"

          "So much to the point where Luke and Michael were curious enough to want to meet you," I told her.

          She was quiet for a couple of seconds, maybe three heartbeats. Then, "What about you?"

          "Hm?"

          "Were you curious about me too?" she asked, her voice suddenly dainty. "Did you want to know who I was?"

          I faced her again to find her already looking at me. Flour spots were still all over her face, and I probably still looked like a mess too, but the way she was looking at me was mesmerizing. Playing it cool, I shrugged. "Did you want me to be curious?"

          "Crazy how a month ago, I wouldn't have cared," she said, her dimple showing as the corners of her mouth slightly lifted. "But now, something inside me is saying that I wanted you too."

          I hummed in response. "That is pretty weird, huh? But you know what's crazier?" I said as I glanced down at her lips.

          "Maybe the fact that we're openly flirting on the kitchen ground," she replied, not taking her eyes off me. "Or the fact that kissing you doesn't seem like a bad option right now."

          "Wow, that would be crazy. Too bad that all of this is hypothetical," I told her. "But if you want, I'm willing to make it a reality."

          Our gazes were intense, but neither of us moved. Then, Calum's ringtone rang through the air, and we separated like we burned each other, but I knew from her smile this wasn't over.

          "Hello?"

          "Hey, Ash!" Calum's voice cheered through the speaker. "We didn't mean to leave you alone, but there was this specific candy that I just had to look for. But we're coming back now."

           I chuckled. "Don't worry, I found ways to entertain myself," I told him, glancing at Val for a quick second.

          "You sound suspicious," he responded. "Whatcha' been doing?"

          "Nothing, just making some cake with your friend."

          "Val's there!" he screeched. "Oh my gosh, let me say hi!"

          I handed the phone towards Val and pointed to the hallway, telling her I would be back. I walked to my room, feeling light. As cliche as it sounded, Valentine wasn't like anyone else. I had two girlfriends before, but Val was to the point where I couldn't compare her to other women.

          Only a month had passed, and already our attraction burned like wildfire.

          Some knocked on my door, and Val was standing beside it, examining my room. "Ah, so this is what your room looks like," she said and then placed my phone on my dresser. "So, am I going to find your porn stash?"

          "Bold of you to assume I have one," I told her, laughing a bit.

          She put her hands in her back pocket and shrugged. "Just a thought," she said. "Well, I'm gonna go shower in Calum's room. I gotta get this egg out."

          "I hope it's not hard to get out."

          "Don't worry, this isn't the first time it's happened, and it was more eggs than this."

          "Sorry to make it happen a second time."

          She smiled. "It's alright; I had a lot of fun, Ashton. Anyways, I'll be in Calum's room." She gave me a fluttering wave as she walked away. Talk about a tease.

          After a while of playing games on my phone, I hopped in the shower. The flour in my hair was difficult to get out, but I managed. My stomach grumbled as I dried off, and it made me remember the cake. I hoped it wasn't incinerated.

          Valentine was already in the kitchen, cutting the cake when I was finished. She was humming a tune and dancing to herself. Afterward, we decided to watch a movie while eating the cake. I had to get my mind off that she was wearing leggings and a thin tank top with only a flannel.

          Only twenty minutes into the movie, Val was sound asleep on the couch. I wondered if she ever finished a movie before. Chuckling, I got up and tiptoed over to her and buttoned up her flannel. The guys would be here soon, and I didn't want them to see her like this.

          I smiled softly and sat back on the couch, thinking that maybe, just maybe, this girl could be everything I was waiting for.

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Yoooooooo! Sorry this took a long freaking time. I was tapped out on writing and needed a mind break to get the creative juices flowing again.

Anywayysss, be prepared for the next chapter (unless you're rereading, then you know what's about to go down) but yeaaahhh, it's gonna be heavy.

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapterrrr!

See ya, and stay safe my dudes!