A/N: the picture above it actually a piece of my art that I randomly felt like sharing on this story part. I'm honestly so happy with how it turned out and that I'm finding my own style!  Hope you all like it and this next story part! ❤️

It's been almost two months since Peter and I first started dating, and I can easily say this is the happiest I've been—even if no one but Rosie knows. Of course, all of our friends know we're seeing someone; they just don't know who.

That doesn't stop them from trying to find out who it is though, or it being the topic of every conversation I'm in. Of course, it doesn't help that the town council decided to close down the greaser's school because of 'safety reasons.' Truth is, they just wanted to save money by refusing to fix the place up.

If I'm being honest, I don't really care that much. All I can focus on is that I'll be going to school where we actually get taught instead of ignored all day. Well, that and seeing Peter doesn't hurt.

"You ready?" MJ asks as she walks up to me with a grin. "You know today is gonna be one heck of a train wreck. Five dollars says one of the townies ditches as a form of 'protest.'"

I let out a laugh and nudge her, "I'm not making a bet I know I'm gonna lose. Now if you wanna bet that one of the townie girls is gonna turn as red as a tomato or make me wanna rattle them, I'll go in on it."

"Pretty sure all that stuff is gonna happen before lunch. So, I'm gonna pass." MJ pauses and looks at me as we near the entrance. "Did you tell him? You know, that you'll be going to the same school and all?"

I shake my head and shrug, "I kind of wanted it to be a surprise. Not to mention, it'd probably make it obvious if he didn't react the same way as everyone else."

"Do I get to know who he is? Or any details of your summer love?"

"You're not gonna give up until I do. Huh?" MJ just shakes her head at the question, and I let out a sigh, "Fine. If you must know, we met at the diner. Rosie pretty much played matchmaker the whole summer, and after our first date, she convinced me to let him walk me home. He was—he was so sweet."

"And? You gotta tell me more. What happened after that?"

"We kissed." I mumble and walk a little faster as MJ processes what I just said.

"You what?!" She screeches. "He must be special to have been your first kiss."

"He is. Why do you think I'm trying to keep the guys from finding out who he is? I don't want them to scare him off."

"Your secret is safe with me." I let out a sigh of relief as she nudges me on, "Now go ahead, you should go find your guy and tell him the good news. I'll keep everyone distracted."

"You're the best, MJ." I grin at her as we head inside. "I swear, the only thing that's gonna get me through today is knowing that we'll actually be taught for once."

"And your boyfriend." She teases and nudges my shoulder as we head inside. "How much do you wanna bet I'll figure out who it is by the end of the day?"

"Again, not gonna make a bet against you. 'Cause the second I do, you'll start spying on me, or do your silent observations until you got it pegged."

"Does that mean you'll tell me if I guess?"

"We'll just have to wait and see. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find my locker." She waves goodbye as we head our separate ways, and I weave through the slowly filling hallways in search of 1307.

All the way, whispers and glares follow me, which I had already expected. It feels so much more hurtful knowing that I'll have to deal with this and worse everyday. If they ever find out about Peter and I, the gossip and venom they're throwing at me now will be nothing compared to it.

I shove my backpack into my locker and grab my books for first period while making sure to hold my head up as I go about my day. Luckily, by second period, I run into the one face I've been waiting to see. His gaze follows me as I settle in the seat next to him with a devilish smirk. "Surprised?"

"Y—yeah, I'm very surprised." He shakes his head as if to dispel the shock. "I can't believe you're here. I had heard people saying that the greaser school was getting closed, but I thought it was a rumor."

"It wasn't. They made some dumb excuses as to why, but we're here." I shrug and have to resist the urge to grab his hand. "I'm glad at least someone's happy about it; this is the warmest welcome I've gotten so far."

"Wait," Peter stops and grins as his arms wrap around my waist, "you know what this means. I officially get to take you to the dance."

"Only if you ask nicely." I tease. "Of course, if you do, everyone's gonna know that a townie's stepping out with a greaser."

"I can live with that." He grins and lets his hand brush mine, which makes both of us blush and smile. "Hey, maybe this means we can also work on the application for the September Foundation together."

"Please, I could use a second opinion on the layout of the circuitry."

"I'm sure it's perfect." I roll my eyes at the comment, which makes Peter smirk in satisfaction like he always does when he gets a reaction out of me. Although, I don't get the chance to respond before the teacher arrives and immediately dives into the lesson.

The entire time and every other period we have together, Peter and continuously pass notes and make faces at one another. It helps the day seem brighter and go by so much smoother than I had thought it would.

At the end of the day, once everyone's filtered out, I lean against the locker next to Peter's as he packs up his books. "You sure I can't convince you to come with me? I know it's not your usual scene, but it could be fun. Not to mention, it might make telling them a little easier if they know you a bit more."

"I'd love to, but I promised Aunt May I'd have a movie night with her."

"Fine, but you'll have to tell May I said 'hi.'" I smile and watch the way he moves with fascination. "It's not gonna be as fun without you, but I'm gonna work my trademark magic to talk to you up a bit—even if they only know you as my secret boyfriend."

"I'm excited to finally be able to do this—" he pauses as he pulls me closer to press a kiss to my lips, "—in public."

"You're not the only one, dream boy." I reply with a lopsided grin as I notice the streak of red on his lips. It takes me a moment to suppress my laughter enough to wipe it and say. "Red looks good on you."

"I think it's more your color." He laughs and presses a hasty kiss to my lips before linking our hands. "Oh, I meant to ask, there's a new movie coming to the drive in this tomorrw. Any chance you'd wanna go?"

"You're no fair. You know I can't say 'no' to that face. Plus, I'm always up for a date with you."

"Awesome. I'll see when I can borrow the car from May and let you know." He replies, and I have to stop for a second to admire the way the sunlight makes his eyes glow. It takes everything in me to not kiss him until we're both breathless.

"I'll be there." I smile and press a kiss to his cheek. "This is where I leave. Bye, dream boy."

Peter clearly tries to hide his smile at the nickname, but I still see it as we go our separate ways. There's just something about him that makes everything seem a little bit brighter. Not to mention, he makes me want to be better and disprove the stupid stereotypes and expectations the townies have for greasers. He makes me believe I can actually be someone.

I shove my hands into my pockets as I near the scrap yard at the edge of town. It's already pulsing and alive with music and chatter, with the party in full swing. "There she is." Flash shouts when he spots me. "What no boyfriend with you?"

"Not tonight." I reply and brush him aside. "And don't even pretend to be disappointed. I know you'd just be hard on him if he had come."

"She's not wrong." MJ chimes in as she approaches and hands me a soda. "You guys can't just get to know someone. It's always hazing, pranks, and cruel jokes."

"It's only cause we wanna make sure whoever it is, they're worth hanging around us." Brad butts in with a grin as he slings an arm over my shoulder.

"Yet, that same rule doesn't apply to you guys when you pick a townie up to show the wild side." I retort and slip out of Brad's reach. "And he is worth it, even if you idiots won't realize it. I care about him and that should be enough."

"Not if he's some snotty townie." Flash tries to argues, but I only roll my eyes. "I'm serious. They all think we're just stupid soon-to-be criminals."

"They're not all spoiled brats." I snap, "Or did you forget Ben? You know, the one who came around and told us we could be more than anyone expected, that we could make something of ourselves and even change the world."

That makes a hush fall over the group, and I scoff realizing they did forget him—whether by choice or not. They, just like the townies, choose ignorance to support their own biases. "Yeah, but he's gone. And surprise, surprise, they still look down on us day after day."

"But hopefully, tonight we can make a few bucks out of it." Charlie quips as she ties up her bright pink hair.

My stomach twists as I realize what's going to happen tonight. "You've got to be kidding me. I thought we all agreed we weren't gonna do that crap anymore." I snap and watch as the rest of the gang either shrugs or shamefully avoids my eyes. "Screw this. If you wanna get yourselves arrested or killed, fine, but don't expect me to pay your bail or help bury you."

"C'mon, Y/NN. We need you to check the car and make sure it's gonna run well. None of us know that stuff like you do. You're the mechanic." Flash calls as he grabs my arm to stop me.

"Did you miss what I just said? I'm not helping you start running races again." I snap and tug my arm away. "I wasn't happy with it before, and I'm not gonna start doing it again. You're on your own this time."

"We'll pay you double the normal rate." Charlie calls, which I'm ashamed to admit makes me pause. "You're saving up for college, right? This could help."

I glance over at MJ, who has a scowl painted on her face. We both were happy when everyone agreed the racing had to stop, especially after Brad nearly got killed the last time we had one. It felt like things were finally gonna turn around after that. Everyone started finding better things to do with their time like hang out at the rec center where Ben helped out.

Now, they wanna take thirteen steps back after taking two forward.

MJ moves to stand beside me with an understanding look on her face. "Do what you think is best. Okay?"

"They're gonna do this either way, huh?" I ask, and she nods remorsefully.

"Fine, but after this, the only way you're getting my help is by coming to shop." I grimace and end up bumping a few shoulders as I head to the car. "And just to be clear, I don't wanna know if I'm fixing something for one of these stupid races."

"Thank you, doll." Brad grins at me as he tosses me the keys to the car. "You're the best."

"Don't thank me. I'm only doing this so you don't blow Betty up." I retort and start going through my routine check. The entire time, I can't stop feeling guilty and wrong. I shouldn't be doing this, but here I am, getting paid double my average rate to help my friends hold an illegal drag race. It makes me feel dirty and gross, which isn't just from the grease covering my hands.

"So, how's she looking?" Flash asks as he leans against the car.

"She's in as good of shape as she can be considering everything you put her through and the crap parts you insist on using." I wipe my hands, wishing that I could scrub away the awful feeling in my gut as easily as the grease. "Pay me by Sunday, and remember, this is the last time I help you with this."

"We know, and we're sorry for asking you to do this." Charlie tries to soothe me with her soft smile, but it doesn't help at all.

"No, you're not. If you were, you wouldn't have offered to pay me double."

"That's not fair. We just have no one else who can do this for us." She tries to reason, but I shake my head as I walk away from the other oblivious greasers. Although, now, they're being joined by oblivious jocks wearing their varsity jackets like polished armor.

Knowing what they're all here for makes my stomach churn. Especially considering if the sheriff were to find this party, it'd be the greasers getting arrested while the townies walk away without so much as a scolding.

I try not to think about is as MJ and I leave. "I still think you did the right thing." She pipes up after a long moment of walking along in silence.

"It really doesn't feel like it."

"Yeah, but if you hadn't and something was wrong with that scrap heap. They could've gotten themselves killed. I think that counts for at least something." She smiles softly and nudges my shoulder. "Plus, that money could cover the rest of your applications."

"Yeah, but at this rate, I'm never gonna be able to afford to actually go anywhere that might accept me." I sigh and shake my head. "Right now, all I'm focusing on is working at the garage and keeping my grades up enough to beat those townies to the scholarships."

"And you will, as long as you get some rest." She scolds. "Promise me you'll sleep in tomorrow."

"Fine, I promise." I sigh and nod my head to her house. "Now you go do the same. I'll see you later."

"Night." She calls as she heads inside, and I continue on my way, caught up in my own thoughts. All I can seem to think about is how different things are as of today. It was so much simpler back in New York. I never worried about friends getting arrested.

It's not until I hear a scuffle that I realize I'm by the rec center. "You're gonna pay for that!" I hear someone shout, and as stupid as it is, I find myself running towards the commotion. When I get there, I see one of the thugs from the grungy outskirts of town fighting someone in what looks like an old sweatshirt and sweatpants.

Although, by the time I near them, the fight is over, with the thug on the ground unconscious and the other one standing over him huffing. It's not until he turns around that I realize why something about him seems so familiar. There's a sliver of light that makes my heart stop. "Peter?" I question and stumble back as his head snaps up at the sound of his name.

"Y/N? What—what are you doing here?"

"I left the early—wasn't much of a party." I mumble as he gets closer with a fresh bruise developing on his cheek. "What are you doing here? I thought you were having movie night with May?"

"She—she went to sleep early." He sighs and scratches the back of his neck like he does when he's nervous. "I usually sneak out and patrol the streets."

"You know what, never mind. Just—just go home, Parker."

"What? Why? This is—it's important to me. I need to do this—"

"I know, and I'm not arguing with you about that. You need to go home, cause you and I are gonna start early tomorrow morning." I reply and offer him a small smile. "Meet me here at eight."

"With—with what?"

"Training. If you don't know how to rattle someone up, you'll never make it out here." I pause and look at my boyfriend, my fingers trailing over the blooming bruise. "Plus, I think you've got some explaining to do."

"Yeah, I guess I do." His fingers wrap around mine as he gently holds my wrist. "So you're not mad?"

"What that my boyfriend is so caring he goes out of his way to protect people? I could never be mad at your for that." I smile and press a gentle kiss to his lips. "It just makes you even more deserving of my calling you 'dream boy.'"

"Says the practically perfect biker girl." He smiles back at me. "C'mon, I'll walk you home."

"Only if you let me put some ice on that bruise." I reply, and he nods. "It's a deal then."