"I guess it's close to midnight" I said, as we heard the sound of fireworks above us.

"Yeah, half hour" Max said, "My dad said he'd put the fireworks on at 11:30"

For the past couple hours Max and I had sat on the deck, talking about everything and anything. Our conversation had ranged from what our favorite food was to how we felt about our parents' divorce.

And now, it was almost the new year. It was the first time I would actually see fireworks on New Years and at the same time, the first year I was with a guy at Midnight. Tonight had supplied me with a numerous amount of stepping stones in my social life.

Max stood up and leaned against the bridge railing, looking down at the water, "So, what are your New Year's revolutions?" he asked, a hint of laughter to his voice.

I stood up, mimicking his actions and taking my spot next to him, "Get out of high school alive" I said, laughing, "Honestly, I don't even know. It's not like people actually end up carrying out their resolutions anyways" I continued, "so what's the point in making them?"

Max chuckled softly, "I guess" he said, "I always tell myself I'm going to work out more and that never happens; I go to the gym for a week and then I quit because I don't feel like getting up early"

I laugh,"But it's not like you need to go to the gym anyway" I said, smiling.

It was too late to take back what I had said when I actually realized what I'd done. I swear, Anna really was rubbing off on me;I was starting to say whatever was on my mind.

But I meant what I said- he was already toned and he looked really good. How he managed to do that without going to the gym, I had no idea.

Max laughed and shrugged, "Thanks, Finn" he said.

I mentally gushed when he called me by my nickname. For some reason, even him saying my name sent the butterflies in my stomach into a frenzy.

I laughed and we stood there for a couple minutes in silence. He was the one person that silence actually worked with; it wasn't awkward between us and if anything, it made things feel even better.

I started wondering then why I had spent so much time fantasizing and obsessing over Colton when there were better guys like Max out in the world. If I had taken a moment to actually look at who he was, I would've realized in a heartbeat he wasn't someone worth my time or energy. It was amazing to see how much I'd come in just the past couple weeks. I wasn't willing to settle for 'hot but a jerk' anymore; I wanted something better. Because nothing, neither the past nor the looks, can shadow the fact that someone has a godawful personality.

"What're you thinking about?" Max asked, moving his gaze toward me, his lips curved up in a smile.

I pursed my lips slightly, running my index finger across the smooth wood of the railing, "I was just thinking about how much I've changed over the past year" I said.

Max nodded, "With you moving back and all?" he asked.

I nodded slowly, "Yeah...I don't know, I guess things just didn't go as I thought they would" I said, "Although a lot of things around here haven't changed, a ton of people have"

"Colton?" He asked, moving his gaze back to the water.

I heard another firework crackle in the sky and I found myself sighing, "Yeah" I said, "him".

Silence settled over us again when he didn't respond, and I really questioned whether I had made a huge mistake in bringing him up. I didn't want to ruin any future possibility of being with Max.

"How'd you guess I was referring to him?" I asked, not daring to look at him.

"You had a thing in 8th grade with him, didn't you?" he said, "I know I didn't go with you guys to middle school, but I still had friends that kept me updated on stuff" he shrugged.

I bit my lip as the level of awkwardness rose, "I did like him" I said softly, "But when I left, he changed. I don't know the Colton I came back too- that wasn't the Colton I had liked so much in the past. And now, there is no way I'd ever be interested in him after what he's said to me" I continued, unconsciously playing with the necklace around my neck.

Max looked toward me again, and I took that as a good sign, "Someone like him doesn't deserve someone like you, Finnly" he said, "Don't ever think for one second that you're not worthy of something better."

I nodded and a small smile spread across my lips, "Thank you Max" I said, "For everything. I feel like you're one of the few people I can actually be myself around."

Max smiled again, looking down at me, "That's how it should be" he said, "You should never pretend to be someone you're not"

At that moment it felt like the heavens were torturing me, as Max and I just stood there looking at one another.

Really, why had I spent so much time chasing after a self-absorbed jerk when I had someone willing to chase after me ?

"I wish you knew how beautiful you were" Max murmured softly, breaking the silence.

If the butterflies were swarming before, there was certainly a tornado in my stomach now.

I grappled for something to say, but nothing came out when I opened my mouth.

Instead of words, my blush spoke for me and Max gave out a small laugh, "And the way you blush? It's adorable" he said.

"T-thanks" I said softly, feeling the heat rise in my cheeks.

Before I could process what I was doing, I looped my arms around his neck and buried my face in his shoulder.

I felt his strong arms wrap around my waist and I smiled into his neck, feeling at peace.

This was how I was supposed to feel around a guy I liked. Things weren't supposed to be chaotic, they were suppose to be peaceful.

After a few minutes Max pulled away just enough so our faces were inches away from one another , "I like you a lot, Finnly" he said, "I didn't want to tell you before incase there was something going on with you and Colton, but now that I know there isn't-"

"I like you too" i said, a huge smile on my lips.

Max's smile widened, and opened his mouth to respond but the sounds of fireworks up above interrupted him.

"It's midnight" I said, shifting my gaze to the eruption of color in the sky, "It's the New Year"

"You know what that means, right?" Max asked playfully.

I looked back down at him and shook my head, "No, what?" I asked, glancing up at him through my eyelashes.

Max pulled me closer, gently moving his hand to the small of my back, "You have to kiss someone at midnight" he said.

My breath got locked in my throat and I blushed a deep shade of pink, "really?" I squeaked softly, pretending to have no clue what he was talking about.

"May I?" He asked, leaning closer to me.

I felt his hot breath against my face and sensed my palms getting clammy, "Uhuh" I said softly.

Max smiled and closed the gap between us, pressing his lips against mine.

Without any protest at all I kissed him back, pulling myself closer to him. 

It was like one of those super cliche movies where the boy and girl share that magical kiss on New Years Eve; it was something I'd never dreamed would happen to me.

When he pulled away my eyelids fluttered open and I gave him a huge grin.

"So what that a 'one time at midnight thing'? Or can that happen more often?" I asked innocently.

Max shrugged teasingly, "I don't know, It depends on what your answer is" he said, a sly smile plastered on his face. 

I cocked my head slightly to the right, "My answer?" I asked, confused. 

"Do you want this to be a regular thing?" he asked, running his hand through his hair, "do you want to go out on dates and do all those 'couple things'?" 

I smiled, "Yeah, I do" I said looking up at him. 

I honestly did. Not to be selfish or anything, but I figured it was about time something went my way. I knew now that things happen for reasons. Colton and I didn't work out because there was someone better for me. Now I guess it was my time to finally sit back and enjoy the things going right in my life. 

"Great" Max said happily, "Are you free next Saturday?" he asked. 

I nodded, "Yeah" I said. 

It was finally happening. For the first time in my life, at the ripe age of 17 I was going to have my first legit date ever.

Max kissed the top of my head softly, "It's a date then" he said. 

I blushed as he took my hand in his, "I'm looking forward to it" I said, tossing him an ecstatic smile. 

'looking forward to it' was a major understatement. This was probably one of the most monumental moments of my love life ever. I was beyond looking forward to it, I was up in the clouds way past cloud 9. 

As I mulled over everything that had happened in the past few hours, I leaned my head on Max's shoulder and watched the fireworks still crackling above us. 

All of a sudden I realized one thing I hadn't realized before this night,  that I was genuinely happy here. Although all the those horrible things had happened with Colton, I was actually starting to believe that moving back to California was for the better. I was happier than I had ever been.

I looked beside me at Max, who was looking up at the fireworks, the light highlighting his jaw line and his hair falling perfectly in place. His dimples were so big from the smile on his lips and he looked genuinely happy too. 

My lips spread into an even bigger grin and my eyes drifted back up to the sky. 

Everything now felt right. I wouldn't change anything that had happened in the past year for the world. 

And now, I was going to start the new year off on a high note. Things were going to go my way ; I was finally going to start living the way I wanted to live.

It was about time. 

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Hey guys! Sorry this is late ! But I hope it was worth it ! :) 

What did you like most about this chapter? I'm curious to see what you guys say XD

For those of you who don't know, I've already started school (which is why I haven't been able to update), so I won't be as active on here as I was over the summer. 

However, I will be doing a lot of editing of previous chapter and updates will still try to stay consistent so try to hang in there :) 

Song of the chapter- Photograph by Ed Sheeran 

Love (as always)- A