TAYA's POV :Our hair, body, and clothes were soaked, but we didn't care.With our hands clasped together, we just laughed at the people who gave us weird looks as we made our way back inside. Not everyone was giving us weird looks though, some people cheered and whistled at us too. Principal Finn had a concerned look on his face, and Judah just flashed him a wink.We were making a dash out of the ballroom, followed by claps and cheers. I wished we could stay for one more dance, but Judah had given me an offer I couldn't refuse.As we made our way out to the parking lot, I caught a glimpse of Hallee's red dress stuck amongst a row of bushes. I couldn't help laugh a little, wondering about that girl and her bushes fetish."After you, my lady," Judah had his hand out to me as we reached his motorcycle."Why, I thought you said chivalry's dead?" I said as I took his hand, and he led me gently up the bike."Not tonight," and that boyish smirk came out again.* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

TAYA’s POV :We had some time to kill before the graduation party, so Gabe, Hallee, Judah, and I piled into Jesse’s truck and we headed to the beach. Still wearing our bright blue caps and gowns, we were standing in the back of the truck with the wind blowing against us. We were laughing, cheering, and hollering at the sky. And I was laughing so much, my cheeks were hurting.A lot of things would change after this summer, so the four of us were to determined to make our remaining days count. In just a couple of days, Hallee would be leaving on a cross-country road trip with Jesse to the east coast. Gabe would be staying in Hawaii until August, and then he’d move to Nashville. Meanwhile, Judah and I were staying for a few more weeks before leaving for California.I was super excited, but also kind of sad. I was feeling hopeful, but also a little scared. It was a strange mix of emotions, and I wasn’t the only one feeling it. I knew my friends were going through the same thing, which was

JUDAH’s POV :"There's something I've been meaning to tell you, and it's been a long time coming..." I paused for a moment to take a deep breath. “And since we’re defying our fears today…”"Judah, what is it?" Blondie gave me a puzzled look as I stretched out my right hand to her."Hi... my name is Jaden... well, it's Judah now, but that's beside the point..." I started rambling."Judah, what are you doing?" she narrowed her eyes at me, but she took my hand anyway."I wanna thank you for sharing your lunch with me. And for the Band-Aids too. And I just wanna say, you're the coolest girl in this entire playground and you have the prettiest eyes I've ever seen..."Those were the exact words that little seven year old me wanted to tell her all those years ago. I had practiced that line so many times in front of my bathroom mirror. Corny maybe, but for a seven year old, I thought that wasn't so bad."I've waited years to tell you that. I've wanted to tell you since the first day we met at

JUDAH’s POV :“One, two, and kick!” I said as I moved my feet. Blondie and I were standing in her backyard on a Sunday afternoon and I was showing her how to do a proper kick. She looked at me for a moment before attempting her own.“Like this?” her feet were wobbly, which meant she had to work on her posture.“Try bringing your right foot higher, and bend your left knee a little,”If you were wondering why we were doing this on a Sunday, well, this was another thing on Blondie’s bucket list. She wanted to learn self defense, and all that knowledge I accumulated from the fighting ring finally could do something good.“Like this?” she asked as she fixed her posture.“No, it’s more like… this,” I said as I held her foot up higher. When I was doing this, I ended up standing a bit too close to her. Our faces were a mere inch away, and I could only gulp like an idiot.“Judah…” she said.“Yeah?”“You can let go of my leg now,” She was blushing a little, and she motioned for her dad and Ka

TAYA’s POV :- - - - - One Week Later - - - - -“Taya, honey,”This morning, I woke up to my mom’s voice calling after me. I felt the bed dip and I stirred and groaned. I slept pretty late last night because I was binge watching Stranger Things on Netflix.And since I’m not a high school student anymore, aren’t we done with this? “Wake up, sweetie,” she said again when I refused to open my eyes.“Mom, what is it?” I sighed dramatically. “It’s Saturday morning… and I’m not in school anymore!”“I know, but you have company downstairs,” she said.Out of curiosity, I peered my eyes open. “Who?”“Who else,” she smiled knowingly. She leaned down and kissed my forehead, saying, “Oh, and happy birthday, sweetie,”That’s right! It’s my birthday today!Mom didn’t say anything else and she walked out of my room with a naughty smile playing on her face. My body jerked up instinctively. There could only be one person crazy enough to show up unannounced and wake me up at eight in the morning on a