Axel's pov:

I was in a fever dream. 

That could be the only possible explanation for the events of the past 24 hours. 

Words can not describe the feeling in my stomach, as well as the rapid beat in my chest. 

Ally and I...

God, I don't think "kissed" is that strong of a word to describe what happened last night. 

I surely was not expecting it either. 

I expected my feelings to be one-sided because I thought there was no chance in hell that a girl like Ally would return my feelings.

Oh, how was I so wrong?

I've never had such strong feelings for a woman like Ally before, which made it difficult to contain myself last night when I knew I finally had her to myself. 

I could have probably kept kissing her until my lips were numb and my organs were deprived of oxygen, but then again, I don't think that would have stopped me from continuing further. 

Last night, when we somehow found enough self-control to separate ourselves, we just laid together and talked until we passed out. 

Now, as I'm standing here in this overcrowded kitchen, I can't help but steal glances at Ally at any chance I get, wishing it were just us for just a couple more hours. 

It was hard to ignore the looks that Bryce and Tanner have been giving me since I stepped out of my room with Ally this morning.

They weren't stupid...

Okay, debatable...

But I'm sure it wasn't hard for them to figure that I'm head over heels for the girl sitting right in front of me.

And they've been making it quite obvious that they are aware of it as well. 

If Ally wasn't already aware of my feelings toward her, I would have them both pinned to the wall, telling them to keep their mouths shut. 

Luckily for them, those measures won't longer be necessary. 

The only thing left to do now is to ask Ally out on a date. 

I want nothing more than for her to be my girl, officially. I want every single person on this campus to know that Ally Elizabeth Sanders is taken. 

By me. 

If my little hands-off rule didn't already make it clear enough; Ally is untouchable.

She's always been, since the moment I saw her. 

"Not a word," I mumble under my breath to Bryce as I swiftly pass him to throw a few eggshells in the garbage. 

I could tell by the look on his face that Bryce was having a hard time containing his smug, looking grin. Just like Dylan, the little shit has been up my ass about my crush on Ally all week. 

I can't even count how many times I've caught those two looking over my shoulder when I found myself unable to detach from my phone while texting Ally. 

Which had been pretty much a 24/7 occurrence these last couple of days...

"I didn't say anything," Bryce says, bumping his shoulder into mine as he walks past to grab some plates. 

One thing both Dylan and Bryce seem to forget is that by the time we get to the ring, I won't be forgetting their little shenanigans. 

I'm just glad that the two of them were able to keep their mouths shut until I was able to confess my feelings to Ally myself. There were some pretty close calls, mostly from Dylan, that nearly had a vein bursting out of my head. 

Speaking of the devil...

"I smell breakfast!" A hungover-looking Dylan emerges from his room. His arms were up in a long stretch, and it wasn't until he was halfway across the room that he finally rubbed his eyes open and saw that it wasn't just us guys. 

"Ladies," He gives a low, whistle to the three of them as he passes by, in a typical Dylan fashion. 

How this guy rolls out of bed and still doesn't miss the chance to be his flirty self will always be a wonder to me. 

"Wow, you actually got out of bed before breakfast this time, new record." Stevie teases as he leans up against the counter in front of Stevie and Ally. 

It has come to my attention lately that Dylan has been staying clear of Morgan and her friends since last weekend. 

Tanner and I had always been the ones keeping our distance from them, whereas Dylan was normally found to be the neutral party. 

And by "neutral party," I mean not close with them, but enough to be his typical flirtatious self. 

But this past week or two, he's been acting weird. 

Very weird. 

Hell, so weird that I can't even remember the last time I saw a woman do the walk of shame out of our apartment, weird. 

Dylan likes to say that I'm the one who keeps a wall around themself when something is wrong, but I don't think he realizes that he isn't any better. 

"I had a feeling that my presence was needed, so here I am." He winks at them, acting as if Tanner and I weren't here standing right behind him. 

The man has a death wish, I'm sure of it. 

"Your intuition must be wrong because the last place you are needed is the kitchen," Tanner says, whacking the back of Dylan's head with an oven mitt when he teasingly leans closer to Stevie to get a reaction out of him. 

Like I said...

A death wish. 

"Ow man, I'm too hungover for this," Dylan says, holding the back of his head while moving his butt into the free seat next to Ally. 

"And whose fault is that?" I ask, before digging in the fridge and placing a water in front of him. 

"You and your water man, it's weird." He says, but he doesn't hesitate to pick it up and chug half of it down, nonetheless. 

"You should start hydrating before bed, it really does help," Ally says, putting a hand on his shoulder to steady him when he starts leaning sideways. 

"Ally, you got to stop hanging around Axel, you're starting to sound a bit too much like him," Dylan says, pointing at me accusingly. 

 As if I was the one who sounded crazy.

Ally only giggles at his statement, patting him on the shoulder, "I don't think that would be such a bad thing," she says, before looking up at me. 

And I'm sure I had to have been giving her heart eyes in return because the way she blushes earns a satisfied, throaty groan from me. 

Dylan just mumbles to himself and continues to drink his water silently as Tanner and I finish up the rest of breakfast with Bryce's help.

I never asked him directly why he and Morgan came back so late last night. I thought about it, but then that would only open the door for him to ask what was up with Ally and I, and why he walked in on us cuddled up on the couch. 

There must have been some mutual understanding that formed between us this morning because I think he knew that bringing it up would lead to me asking questions as well.

After serving breakfast, I motion Ally to follow me to the living room so that we could break off from the rest of the group. She doesn't argue as she grabs her plate and follows me to the couch furthest away from the kitchen. 

"Miss me already?" She laughs when I pull her body closer after she seats herself at an unreasonable distance away. 

And by that, I mean about a foot, which is way too far for me. 

"Always," I say, waiting for her to take the first bite.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" She asks, covering her mouth as she squints her eyes at me. 

"Just making sure you like it," I say, waiting until she swallows before digging into my food.

"It's breakfast, of course I like it." She says, nudging my shoulder with hers. 

"Well, if you wanted me to make you something else, I would," I say, already anticipating the teasing when she shoots me a naughty grin. 

"You sure about that?" She asks, laughing when I narrow my eyes at her. 

"You won't ever let that down, will you?" I ask, watching as she nods her head.

"Nope," she says, shoving a piece of toast in her mouth to hide her continuous string of giggles. But it only results in her cutely giggling while trying to chew her toast. 

Did I mention how crazy I was for this girl? Because I feel like haven't expressed it enough. 

"Stop laughing or you're going to choke," I say, trying to hide the growing smile at the corner of my lips.

"I can't, every time I think about it, I can't stop," she says. 

I let her get it out of her system as I wipe the bottom of her eyes that have become watery from her laughing. 

"I must be hilarious then," I say, once she finally calms down. 

"It was cute." She adds, patting me on the thigh as she continues to eat. 

We fall into a comfortable silence as we continue to eat. There was distant chatter from the kitchen, but I didn't pay much attention to it with Ally sitting beside me. 

It's starting to become a bit concerning, how my attention seems to solely be on her whenever she is in the room. Heck, even maintaining a conversation with Claire at the party as Ally danced with Zoe was one of the most difficult things I've ever accomplished. 

And that's including all the strenuous workouts I've ever been handed to me by coach these past three years. 

Which only concludes the fact that Ally will be the death of me, whether I like it or not. 

"Do you have practice this week?" Ally asks, causing me to turn toward her. 

"A few, starting tomorrow," I answer, pushing a bit of food around my plate. 

"Oh, well hopefully-..." She gets interrupted by Dylan who decides to plop his ass right next to us on the couch. 

I don't think I've ever glared so hard in my life in that moment, and still, the guy didn't seem to care.

I am going to kick his ass. 

"What do you two think you're doing all the way over here?" He asks, bringing his plate to his lap while getting himself comfortable. 

A dead man. 

That's what he is. 

"Getting away from people like you," I say through gritted teeth. 

Ally gasps, hitting me on the arm, "Don't be mean, Axel."

"Yeah, Axel." Dylan mocks, enjoying the glare I was giving him way too much. 

Dead man. 

"You seem to forget, Dylan, that tomorrow is one on one." I say, referring to tomorrow's practice where we partner up and lay a few hits on each other. 

One of my favorite practices, by far. 

Any excuse to lay a few hits on these idiots. 

Dylan gives me an innocent grin, "You wouldn't do that to a man who's keeping your two's secret." 

Both Ally and I share a look, not understanding.

"What do you mean?" Ally asks.

Dylan's grin widens, "Don't tell me you think I forgot."

Again, silence.

"Just say it already," I say, not interesting in his games. 

The sooner he gets to talking, the sooner he will just leave. 

At least that's what I've been telling myself ever since I've met him. 

"Me, walking in on you two nearly sucking each other's faces off? Does that ring a bell?" Dylan asks. 

Ally blushes, hiding her face in her hands, while I just give him a look, "Tell a soul, and consider yourself six feet under." 

Dylan throws his hands up in defense, "Woah, woah, you got to have a bit more trust in me than that." 

I give him a look, letting my silence say enough. 

Trusting Dylan to keep a secret would be the same as trusting a preschooler to keep a secret. 

You just got to assume that by the time you collect your kid back, everyone will be aware of your business. 

That being said, Dylan is a talker...

If that wasn't already obvious enough... 

And he tends to overshare. And by overshare, I mean share other people's business. 

"Really, I won't tell anyone about your dirty little secret." He winks, nudging us both with a smug grin. 

Ally finally removes her hands from her face, and if she wasn't acting so freaking adorable right now, then maybe I could look a bit more threatening towards Dylan. 

Unfortunately for me, Dylan knows this as well, which explains why he is still sitting here with his jaw intact. 

"It's not dirty." Ally says, and I swear, if we were alone, I would have her wrapped around me in an instant from the way she just pouted. 

Dylan laughs, before standing up, "Didn't look like it to me." 

Hey guys!!!

How are you???

Today was my first week of summer break and let me tell you what I did...

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing. 

I literally spent four days just in my room sleeping, so I'm fully convinced I hibernated (lol).

Anyways, I LOVE YOU ALL!!

~juls