PICTURE OF TARA ON THE RIGHT >>>>>

MELODY'S POV

Waking up on a Friday morning with no school and no obligations is awesome. I never would have thought that I would be so excited to watch cartoons in my PJs. I look over to Tara to see her still sleeping. Her hair is all over the place and her mouth is wide open, no doubt drooling on my pillow. I've always wondered if that is how she sleeps when she is with another man. Do they think it's cute? Do they want to hide her face under the covers because it's too horrifying to see? I scratch my head and stretch my body. Meh who knows. 

I skip my way to the bathroom humming my new favourite song "Settle Down" by The 1975 and everything about me just feels lighter. The main reason for this happiness is because of Dean and our eye-opening revelation last night. But regardless I just feel happy. And just like that I start singing "Happy" by Pharrell. Why shouldn't I be happy? Everything in my life is finally going right! I jump into the shower and wash myself with my new body wash, Shea Butter and Almond infusion, a new scent for a new woman. When I'm finished with the bathroom I can hear some movement in my room, so Tara must be awake. Heading into my room I see her walking to her suitcase like a zombie.

"Tare if you're still tired just go back to sleep. We're not doing anything today anyway." She shoots me a glare and takes out her clothes.

"I would love to get some more sleep but I barely got enough last night." She wraps her clothes up in a ball and kicks her suitcase shut. "Oh wow Dean you're so hot! Oh gosh Dean I can't believe you were jealous over Jack! Oh Dean just come to my house and f**k me already!" She mimicks me and rolls her eyes. I giggle at her and her eyes almost pop out of her head. "Wait a f**king minute! Did you just giggle? You're telling me this man is giggle worthy?" She keeps staring at me and I nod my head.

"I know it's a shocker right?" I walk past her to dump my clothes in the dirty bin. "I mean I've had a crush on him for a while now, but that was just a school girl crush... now... he makes everything seem so serious but sexy at the same time." I sigh and put my hair in a ponytail. "You should hear his voice when he's turned on... delicious." I loop my arm with hers and guide her to the bathroom. "Absolutely nothing can ruin my mood." She rolls her eyes and turns on the shower. I head towards the kitchen to make some breakfast.

"Good morning Melody. Are you going to help me with breakfast?" I flash my mom a smile and take the eggs out of the fridge. 

"Wow no fighting me today? What's gotten into you?" She pokes my shoulder with a quizzical look on her face. I laugh at her face because I know that's exactly how I look when I'm shocked or confused. I've been told many times that I am an exact replica of my mom. The same almond shaped eyes, button shaped nose and fulls lips. Her hair is shorter than mine and dyed red and obviously she is a few sizes bigger but we still look alike. I put down the eggs, take out some bacon and look for the pancake mix before I respond. 

"Ok if I tell you, you can't freak out. Fair?" Mom nods her head and remains quiet. I take a deep breath before I answer.

"Dean asked me on a date this Saturday..." I look her right in the face so she knows I'm not lying. She nods her head and makes an "Mhm" sound before she goes back to prepping breakfast. I stare at her dumbfounded.

"Wait that's it? I expected a little more resistance than that." She turns away from the bowl she is mixing the eggs in and smiles.

"Your father and I already spoke about this last night. It was obvious how he felt for you and he didn't make a spectacle of hiding it either. As long as he respects you, your body and your spirit, we're ok with it. Well I am ok with it. I'm still working on your dad." She laughs and hands me a whisk, "Now get to work on those pancakes missy! You know no one can make them as well as you can." She turns back to the eggs and I give her a hug from behind.

"Thanks mom." I find the pancake mix and begin to whip everything together. The first three pancakes I make are perfect, but when I start the fourth one something makes me freeze.

"Multi-Millionaire Jacob Worthington has recently bought the Samsung company. When asked if he thought whether this was a good idea or not he simply replied 'I've only made one dire mistake in my life and trust me I have learned from it. Buying this company is progress.' Jacob Worthington is the only heir to the Worthington Industries empire..." 

My spatula drops from my hand as I run to the T.V. There he is, in all his glory. The reporter is giving a backgrounder on Jake and his success over the years but all I can see are his eyes. Those beautiful eyes that have always been able to see right through me. I stare at the T.V. in shock and wonder at how good he looks. He doesn't look like he has changed at all. He doesn't look like he's been hurting. He doesn't even look like he cares about anything that happened two years ago! His face is still perfect; not a wrinkle in sight, strong jaw, perfect cheekbones, sexy pink lips and a bit of a five o'clock shadow, but damn it it looks good on him. His body still built like an Adonis with his suits fitting like a second skin. He's not wearing a wedding ring so he is still partially single, though I wouldn't be surprised if he was dating a model or something, and his eyes... it's like he's staring right at me and I can't look away and I can't move. I barely register Tara turning off the T.V. and embracing me in a hug. I can't see my parents worried looks pointed in my direction. All I can see is his eyes. Those eyes that I hate yet love so much. But Jake, no those feelings are not reciprocated for him. I hate him so much. I want to pick up the stupid T.V. and smash it so I can never see him again. I want to scream and kick and cry, but I don't do either of those things, I just stare at the blank screen. I hate him. There's nothing in me that can ever love him again. Nothing. 

"Mel how about we go for a walk?" Tare says leading me towards the door. I look at her in confusion before I am woken from my haze to the smell of burning pancakes.

"Oh no!" I run into the kitchen and rinse off the spatula before scraping the burnt remains of my masterpiece and throwing it in the trash. I stare into the trashcan for a few seconds longer before getting back to work. I know the three of them are watching me and I know they must be worried. But there's no need to be... I'm fine. Someone rests a hand on my shoulder and rubs it gently. I don't turn to see who it is, I just enjoy the comfort.

"A mother knows when her child goes through heartbreak. I don't know who he is or what's he's done, but bottling it up inside isn't going to make it any better." I flip the pancake ignoring her last statement. She pats my shoulder and laughs. "You are a stubborn one Melody, but I trust you know what you're doing. Just remember when you hold in all of that pain and hurt it can be transferred to the next person you care about. And I don't know about you... but I for one really like Dean." Her hand leaves my shoulder and she returns to the eggs. I remain silent the rest of the morning fuming over what she said. 

When 4 p.m. hits Tara decides its time to get out of the house and do a little shopping. I'm not in the mood to go anywhere, but when I think of the reason why I jump to my feet and straight to the door. There's no way I'm going to let him ruin my day. We got dressed into shorts and tank tops before she drove us to the mall.

"Are you ok Mel? You looked like you had seen a ghost... but in his case I guess you can call him a demon." She looks over to me and I smile at her comment, she always knows just what to say.

"Yeah I'm ok. It's just, I haven't physically seen him since I searched him up two years ago. Remember that?" I lay my head back against the seat rest and sigh.

"Yeah I remember. You were so desperate to see if he had said anything about you, and when you realised he didn't you almost destroyed my laptop." She cuts her eyes at me before smiling. I close my eyes and smile at the memory.

"Hmph. I was so pathetic." I feel something hit my nose and look at Tara.

"You weren't pathetic Mel, you were hurting. And it's ok to still be hurting. Remember when I broke up with Dustin? We were together for two years during college and then he makes that stupid drunken mistake and everything was ruined. Even though I dumped him, like you... sorta did with Jake I was still a mess about it. I would sit at my computer for hours just reading over our messages or looking at our pictures. And then suddenly I was fine. But it doesn't mean I wasn't still hurt. You my dear are a bad combination of hurting and furious." She laughs and switches lanes. I lay my head back and ignore her last statement too. I do appreciate all of the nice comments I'm receiving from my loved ones, but this is my life, and my heartache and I will deal with it the only way I know how... pushing it away.

We reach Yorkdale mall and park near the movies. Getting out of the car I take another deep breath to relax my nerves.

"I don't know why you always drag me here Tare. Everything is so expensive." I sigh as I wait for her to finish applying her lipgloss. She smacks her lips and fluffs her hair before getting out of the car and blowing me a kiss. 

"This mall is not only filled with designer clothing, but it is filled with makeup, shoes, food, movies and really sexy guys, who happen to have a lot of money." She winks at me, puts on her sunglasses and locks her car. I roll my eyes.

"If you haven't realized I am going on a date tomorrow." She pulls down her glasses to the bridge of her nose and scrunches up her face.

"Oh yeah with that sexy professor right? Well then we need to get you an amazing outfit for that as well. You have to look cute but sexy, flirty yet not over compensating, and finally you need to make his jaw drop." She heads towards the mall and looks over her shoulder to me. "Are you coming or what?" I stick my tongue out at her and catch up. When we get inside it is filled with high school students, tourists, business men and women and casual shoppers. I pick a movie for us to watch later and we start shopping. We go to Topshop, Guess, Holt Renfrew, Mendocino, Zara and my favourite store, Indigo, where I was actually able to pay for my own belongings (because Tara doesn't care for books). Our last stop before getting food was Victoria's Secret because and I quote "You never know if things might get steamy with sexy Deany. You have to be prepared Mel." I ended up choosing a red lace set with a garter, a white lace set, a leopard print set, a black lace set with a garter, five thongs, two pushup bras and a kinky looking thing that they called lingerie but to me it looked like floss. Tara forced me to buy all of that so I could leave without being scolded that it wasn't sexy enough.

"Finally!" I drop my bags into the chair beside me and dig into my Thai food. Tara shakes her head and places her bags beside mine.

"You're being over dramatic Mel, it's only been a few hours." I look down at my watch to see it's 7:48 p.m. yeah only a few hours she says.

"So what are you going to wear tomorrow?" She asks while slurping a noodle. I look over at my bags and shrug.

"Probably a dress. He said I look sexy in them so why not make him happy?" Tara rolls her eyes and slurps again.

"You can't wear a dress again. If anything wear a skirt, you can't give him what he wants so early. You're acting like you've never been on a date before. You always leave the man wanting more." Now it's my turn to roll my eyes.

"You sound like one of those gossip magazines. But I guess you're right. I can wear that outfit you bought me from TopShop, its casual but tight enough for my breasts to look big and my butt to look full." We both laugh and finish our food. On our way to the trash a group of guys start talking to us and I notice Zack is apart of the group.

"Hey Zack." He looks over to me and his smile widens. 

"If it isn't my bride to be! Where have you been hiding all this time?" He throws his arm over my shoulder and pulls me in for a hug. I hug him back and he helps me with my bags. 

"I've been hiding behind books! I've finally graduated." I smile up to him and he sends me a dazzaling smile back. 

"Congratualtions beautiful." He kisses the top of my head and my mind flashes to Jake. My stomach churns and I hit him in the stomach accidentally. 

"Ouch! I thought congrats were due?" He looks at me rubbing his stomach like a child and I give him a sheepish smile. 

"Sorry about that.. Reflexes I guess." He shrugs his shoulders and wraps his arm around my shoulder again. I look behind me to see the other two guys holding all of Tara's bags while she smiles and flips her hair.

"So where are we headed? Your place? Mine?" I make a motion to hit him again and he laughs. "Just kidding. I meant where is your car?" I pat his stomach.

"Good comeback. It's right by the movies." We take the escelator down and walk towards the exit. 

"So... are you going to see a movie? Or are you going home? 'Cause if you're going to the movies... would it be weird if I asked to tag along? Just as friends of course." I look at him warily before replying.

"Just as long as you know it's only as friends. I'm kind of talking to someone and he can get a little jealous." We reach the car and Tara beeps it open. We both place the bags in the trunk but Zack remains silent. I look over to him and he is gripping the side of the trunk.

"Zack?" I touch his arm softly and his face snaps to mine. His eyes look darker than I remember and his face is a little scruffier. His hair looks like he's ran his hands through it multiple times but other than that he still looks handsome.

"Why didn't you give me a chance?" He looks down into the trunk and I keep quiet. "I mean I know it was obvious that you had gone through something and needed a little space, and I gave that to you didn't I? I just don't get what I did wrong?" He grips the trunk harder and the car dips a bit with the pressure he is putting on it.

"You didn't do anything wrong Zack... I just wasn't interested at the time." I look into the trunk as well. I feel the car lift again and he touches my arm.

"Yeah but... what about now? I don't know who this guy is but I really like you Melody. Like a lot. And at first I thought I could get over it..." He runs his hand up my arm gently. I get the courage to look at him and he looks so sad but sincere.

"I like you too Zack. But as a friend. You are so cool, and funny, and quirky and a really good person. But the guy I'm talking to... it's a serious thing with him. Please understand." I take his hand and hold it in mine. He caresses my face softly before taking a deep breath and smiling.

"Well I know when I've lost. Friends sounds good to me." We leave the trunk open for Tara and as we turn towards the mall again we see Tara and his other two friends crouching beside the car, most likely listening to our conversation. I shake my head.

"Real mature you guys." I grab Zack's hand and lead him towards the mall again. Hearing the trunk slam I know they're finished loading the bags and we head inside and straight to the theatre to buy the tickets. When we reach the counter I accidentally step on someone's foot. 

"Oh sorry about that." I look up to see a very pissed off Dean.

"Melody... and friend, what are you two doing here?" He's trying to be civil but I can see his eyes zeroing in on me and Zack's interlocked hands. Zack, completely oblivious to the tension, laughs.

"We're here to see a movie of course. It's cool to see you outside of school Mr. Collin." 

"Collins-" Dean and I reply at the same time. He looks at me for a few seconds and his eyes soften, only slightly.

"Wow... I wouldn't have guessed. If I didn't know any better I would have figured you guys were on a date." He looks at me accusingly and I try to respond but Zack beats me to it.

"Well..." He winks at Dean and shows him our hands. I quickly pull my hand out of his and smile sheepishly at Dean but he doesn't seem to be having it.

"Huh. Well don't let me spoil your evening then." He storms off to his movie without even glancing back. Zack starts laughing and I slap him.

"Hey! What? Come on Mel that was hilarious! He looked like he was jealous or something!" He keeps laughing but I stomp over to the counter and buy Tara and I's tickets. When she arrives Zack is finally sobering up and I pull her straight to the theatre.

"Oh come on Mel! Fine I'll apologize to him! Come back!" Zack shouts as we enter the theatre. I know he's going to follow us here but for now I just want to be away from him. He has no idea what he just did. 

"What's going on?" Tara asks sitting down. 

"Zack and I were holding hands as friends to get the tickets. I step on some guy's shoe and realize it's Dean. Dean it beyond jealous of Zack and basically hates him. Zack tells Dean we're on a date and now Dean is pissed. What do I do?" I hang my head in my hands. Tara laughs and rubs my back.

"Just go and explain it to Dean. I'm sure he'll understand." I look up sulking and nod my head in agreement. I get up and head to the theatre he went into. When I get in there I can't see his face but there's something going on. I recognise Zack because of the shirt he's wearing and I run up the steps to hear better.

"Listen old man you don't have to be such an ass about it. I already apologised." Zack's fists are clenched and his friends are standing behind him. 

"And I said I want a sincere apology not some crap you just scraped off your shoe." I can't see Dean but he sounds pissed.

"I don't care who you think you are old guy but we're not in school anymore and I can't be held responsible for anything I might do." His jaw is clenched now.

"Is that a threat boy? Because I am a man of action." Dean uncrosses his legs and grips the cup holders. I push through the people on the opposite side of the row so I can get a full view.

"What's going on Zack?" His head snaps up to me and he smiles.

"I' tried to apologise to your old teacher here but he won-"

"Call me old one more time kid." Dean stands up to his full height and towers over Zack. His fists are clenched too and his jaw is ticking. If I wasn't so scared we would all get in trouble I would so be turned on.

"You guys stop. Dean, he said he's sorry let it go. Zack let's get out of here before they call security." I pull on Dean's sleeve to look at me and he does. The look he's giving me has a clear message "We're not done yet." He sits back down and stares straight ahead. I give Zack the most menacing look I can muster and turn back to the stairs. I know he's following because I can hear his footsteps on the other side of the theatre. When we reach outside I head back to my theatre without another word. Neither of us buy any popcorn or snack and we watch the movie in silence. Zack and his friends leave halfway through but not before he calls me outside to talk.

"Listen I don't want to hear you yell at me for being stupid I know. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have acted that way. I don't know what came over me... but I just hated him for a second." He hands me a paper with his number on it. "Give me a call some time soon and we can hang out as friends. I'm sorry again." Before he leaves I speak up.

"He's the one I'm going out with tomorrow Zack. I know it must seem weird but we're both consenting adults and I really like him... so please try to be nice. I don't want to lose both of you." He shrugs and smirks.

"Yeah I figured. There's no other reason for the way he reacted." He turns away laughing a bit and leaves throwing me one more smile over his shoulder. I smile too knowing we're going to be ok and brace myself for a very angry Dean. I head back to the theatre to see my phone has five new messages:

8:57 p.m. D.C. - I thought you said you weren't interested in him or was that just for my benefit?

8:59 p.m. D.C. - I hope you know that when I said I wanted you I didn't mean half of you. I don't plan on sharing with children. I don't like to play games.

9:07 p.m. D.C. -  Wow I would have at least thought you would respond by now... is that your way of sealing our fate? Because I don't want this to end when it hasn't even begun. 

9:11 p.m. D.C. -  Please just say something so I don't go crazy in this theatre. I didn't mean to snap like that. It's just... the way he was looking at you and the way he touched you... I really care about you Melody I hope you know that. :(

9:12 p.m. D.C. - Meet me by the elevator for parking lot 2 when your movie is finished. I really want to see you and I can't go home feeling like this. Don't be too mad at me. :$ :/

I smile at the last message which was sent a minute ago. He is so sweet. Much better than Jake when he was upset. I send him a message:

To D.C.: 9:13 p.m. - I apologise for not responding fast enough I was dealing with Zack. I'm not mad. I understand why you were upset. Can we meet now? I want to see you too. :$ 

It takes him a minute to respond. 

9:14 p.m. D.C. -  You know they do have a unisex bathroom... ;) 

My mind flashes through the opportunities he's just offered but I know better and he is most likely joking. 

To D.C.: 9:16 p.m. - Very funny. I'll be waiting outside your theatre. 

"Tara I'm going to speak with Dean. I'm not asking but he will most likely give me a ride home. Are you ok going home alone?" I look over to see her locking lips with one of Zack's friends... how did I not notice that before? I squeeze her leg and exit the theatre knowing she heard me. Dean is waiting outside his theatre door with his jacket on his arm. He smirks when he sees me.

"If I read your message correctly I do believe you told me you'd be waiting for me here. Hmm a little late are we?" I return his smirk and wrap my arms around him. His body relaxes into me immediately and he holds me tight. "I know I overreacted but that kid hits a nerve. I should have trusted you..." He pulls away from me and runs a finger down my face. "You're so beautiful Melody." Dean leans in to kiss me and I go up on my toes to reach his lips. The kiss is soft and sweet not demanding like Jake's. I pull back smiling. 

"Tara is probably going home with that guy..." I look into his eyes and bite my lip again. He groans and grips my body tighter. I can feel his erection growing and so is my excitement.

"Well we have two options, I can take you to my place now, or I can take you to my place tomorrow." He kisses my lips again with a little more force and I mew.

"Mmm as tempting as that sounds I want tomorrow to be perfect. Do you mind taking me  home?" He nods and leans down to kiss me again. His lips barely touch mine before a kid shouts "Get a room!" We both turn to the kid and his friends and laugh.

"Sorry about that." I take Dean's hand and we head to the exit. We reach the parking garage and he opens his car door for me. He drives an Audi... nice. He gets into the driver's side and sits there.

"You know I've always had this fantasy of making out with you in my car... and now that we're here and there's no one around." He leans into me and takes my face. Everything in me wants to kiss him back and fiercely at that, but it's all reminding me of the speed I went with Jake. I want this to be real, not rushed. So I pull back and bite my lip. Dean opens his eyes and sighs.

"I know I can be a little blunt. Sorry. This is all new for me too." He runs a hand through his hair. "Let's take this slow ok? Whatever pace you're comfortable with. I waited two years, I'm sure I can wait a few months." He smiles at me and that something in my stomach stirs again. I jump from my seat to his lap and kiss him with everything in me. Dean wastes no time in responding to the kiss as he groans and bites my lip. He reclines the chair so I'm laying on top of him. I grind against his very present erection and he grips my waist harder. We kiss each other harder and sloppier. The car is filled with pants and the sound of smacking lips as I push against his erection as much as I can. His fingers dig into my hips as he picks up the pace of my slow grind. He throws his head back while pushing up his hips. One of his hands reaches into his jeans to adjust the position of his shaft and the pleasure is increased ten fold. I pull back from kissing him and move to his neck. He practically growls out my name when I bite into his shoulder.

"Damn it! Melody- slow down... I won't be able to- ahh! Yes! F**k!" I keep sucking and biting his neck as he continues to groan. He runs his hands up and down my back sometimes cupping my butt and squeezing it before returning to my waist. He removes his right hand from my waist and slides it down my butt and right to my core. His eyes are squeezed shut  and he is panting when I suck on his ear lobe. His fingers grazes my entrance and I moan his name. He lightly touches it again before slipping past my shorts and thong and slowly entering in one finger. When I feel him fill my entrance my eyes snap open and I jump back and hit the horn. He jumps, pulls his finger out and his elbow hits the seatbelt buckle.

"I'm sorry I just-" I say trying to fix my hair. He sits up and pulls at his jeans.

"No I'm sorry I shouldn't have-" I climb back to my seat and fix my clothes.

"That was so-" I readjust my shorts.

"I didn't expect that to... but it felt so-" He grabs a tissue and cleans his finger. When he's finished he looks at the finger like he's lost. I clear my throat and hand him some Purell. 

"Maybe we should-" He looks at me, still a little dazed from the make out, the lust is still shinning in his eyes, sanitizes his hands and shakes his head yes.

"Yeah let's get going." He starts the car, puts on his seatbelt and reverses out of the parking spot. I put on my seatbelt too and bite my lip. I just said I wanted to take it slow and this is what I do? I would have had sex in his car had I not snapped out of it. I groan and hide my face with my hair. 

"Hey." He moves my hair behind my ear and caresses my cheek. "This wasn't a one man job. You didn't force me to kiss you back. I probably wanted it worse than you."  He laughs and I look up to see we're already on the highway.

"Yeah but that's just it. You've wanted this for so long and trust me I do too... it's just... my last relationship, everything was rushed. I don't want to rush this too. But I know this can't be easy for you." I look towards him and he looks lost in thought. He switches lanes before he looks at me.

"Don't worry about me babe I'll be fine." He pauses and laughs, "Just as long as we don't do that again. I don't think I'll be able to stop myself a second time." He grins and focuses on the road again. I smile too and look out the window. I turn on the radio and switch it to a popular station. He takes my hand as he drives and we sing along to some of the songs playing. At one point he stops singing just to listen to me. I didn't mind it though, he makes me feel comfortable. When we arrive at my house we sit in silence. 

"I can't wait for tomorrow." He looks at me smiling and I return it.

"There's nothing I should be worried about right?" He laughs and pets my cheek.

"Just remember what I said earlier about boundaries and we'll be fine." He takes off his seatbelt and gets out of the car. Coming to my door he offers his hand to help me out. I accept the offer and he pulls me into his arms.

"I'm glad you stepped on my shoe today. I was trying to find an excuse to see you again anyway." He walks me to my door, kisses me softly and then kisses my forehead. "I'll be seeing you tomorrow." I kiss him again before taking out my keys and walking into my house. I look through window to see him sauntering to his car. He drives off, honking the horn once and I melt to the floor. 

Who needs Jake when I have Dean?