Friday can't come soon enough. I find myself running scenarios in my head of what Jared might say when he returns. It's a fight to remind myself to live today rather than worry about what will happen tomorrow...literally.

On this Thursday morning, Symphony and I sit together in the coffee shop in town, an iced coffee grasped in my cold hands, the ice melting to create small puddles on the surface of the table.

"You know, I genuinely believed that I did you a favor." Symphony sighs, sipping her hot chocolate. Her choice of beverage is puzzling to me considering it's broiling outside today.

"I'm not mad." I sigh, "I'm just wondering why in the world you thought it was a good idea to leave me and then not answer my calls. What if Dakota left because he knew I came with you and then I was just left there?"

She considers this, her eyes darting to the side as she purses her lips in thought, "Well I knew he wouldn't leave you."

"How could you possibly know that for sure?" I ask.

Symphony peaks at me over the top of her cup, "Dakota is a good guy. Plus he cares about you too much to not make sure you got home safely."

Although I know she's probably right, I scoff. "Whatever. You still owe me for leaving me and then hanging out with my friends."

"Our friends." She corrects, "If you can't beat them, join them, I always say." She shrugs.

"Can you at least admit you like them so we can move past the whole jealousy thing?" I ask her, stirring my coffee with my straw.

My best friend scoffs from across the table, "Jealous? Me? Please. But yes, of course, I can admit that they're really cool and I like them."

"I knew you would." I smile, "I'm glad you understand. Anyway, I've gotta head to Books and Bagels before Sam gets there. She keeps arriving before me and now everyone is comparing me to her because I'm always late." I roll my eyes.

"No one compares to you, my dear." Symphony tells me with an overly sweet smile, "Now go be the lovely bookworm that you are."

"I'll do that." I laugh, fixing my white cotton high waisted skirt. I figured a breathable material might be the best way to go on a hot day like today. Which is why I also chose a cotton baby pink top to match.

"Bye. Love you." She grins as I pick up my cup, placing my lips on the straw.

"Love you too, see you later." I reply before shoving the door open, the humidity of summer sticking to my skin as soon as I step outside.

My feet hit the pavement as I start on my way down the sidewalk, enjoying the light warm breeze and the sound of cars driving by going their own way. Tucking my loose hair behind my ear, I throw my braid over my shoulder, the hair grazing my back as I walk.

My cheeks feel flushed as I make it to the store, my breaths shallow as I finish the last of my coffee, tossing it into the bin outside. Pulling the door open, I smile at the comforting sound of the bell overhead.

"Hey!" I hear Sam chirp to my left. I look over with a grim so expression as she holds out my usual bagel with strawberry cream cheese.

"I thought I finally beat you here." I groan, taking the food from her, "Thank you."

"You're welcome." She laughs, "And it's okay that we're different in that way. You like to take your time and sleep in, and I like to be on time. That's perfectly fine. We compliment each other." Sam bites into her own bagel with a grin.

"I know." I reply glumly, "But if you set the bar of expectation, then I'm going to be hated for my tardiness."

She gives me an unamused frown before shaking her head and laughing lightly, "Fine. I'll come in five minutes late so your fifteen minutes doesn't look as bad."

"Maybe ten?"

"Lillian."

"Okay five it is. Thank you." I smile cheekily before laughing and walking past her, "So what does Amelia have for us today?" I ask her, pinning my name tag to my top.

Sam sighs, picking up a clipboard from the counter with what look to be a list of some sort pinned to it. "Well...she's actually not in today. Something about babysitting her granddaughter. So she left a list of things to do in her place."

"Of course she did." I mumble, taking the clipboard from her grasp and scanning it briefly, "What? These are all the janitor's jobs." I say, confused.

My friend shrugs, her french braided pigtails moving up as she does so, "Beats me. Maybe he had to be let go because of all the changes?"

"No." I shake my head, "I just think that she doesn't want us to sit around and do nothing like normal employees. Ugh why couldn't I work somewhere where I can be lazy like...I don't know, a bike shop or something. Who actually goes to bike shops?" I grumble mostly to myself, feeling bad for myself that I have to do all of these chores. I do enough of these at home.

"Oh well." Sam chirps, "We might as well just get them done quickly so we can have some free time. Other than customers coming in of course. We'll have to take turns watching the front." She tells me sadly.

"So we'll be separated." I say dramatically, "How tragic."

"Nah I need a break from you." She jokes dryly.

"Ha-ha." I muse, "For that, you get to clean the toilets." I smile, satisfied.

Her face scrunches up in disgust as she shakes her head vigorously, "Please don't make me."

"I'm kidding." I laugh in amusement, "We can just conveniently forget to do it." I whisper with a sly grin.

She chuckles, "Who is this new rule breaker?"

"Who knows." I shrug, crossing clean toilets from the list, "But she is very necessary."

"Indeed." Sam nods, "So...I'll take half of the list and you take the other?"

"Sounds good."

✰✰✰

"Dad?" I holler as I step inside the house after work, stepping out of my shoes.

"In here!" His reply is shouted from the kitchen. I follow his voice with a wide grin. When he told me that he would be off early today, I was thrilled to come home and have someone there with me. It's not exactly ideal being alone until late at night.

"Hey." I smile, wrapping my arms around his waist and giving him a tight hug.

"Hey Lillybug," He rubs my arm, "How was work?"

"It was good." I sigh, pulling away and plucking a slice of cucumber from his cutting board, "Amelia wasn't there so we basically just did pointless chores all day."

"Granddaughter?" He asks, knowing the usual drill.

"Yep." I nod, "She's obsessed with her but it's kinda sweet. It would have been nice to have a grandma growing up so I guess I understand." I shove the snack into my mouth, enjoying the small crunch.

"Well I'm sorry my mom died." My dad says lightly, looking over at me with a smirk.

"Stop it." I roll my eyes, "You know I didn't mean it like that."

"I know, I'm just pulling your leg." He chuckles deeply, "How's that new girl working out?"

"Sam's doing great. We've become good friends." I smile, taking a seat at the table as I watch him chop vegetables.

"Good, I'm glad. Has Symphony met her?" He asks me with a raised brow.

"If you're wondering if she got jealous, yes she did." I say, earning a low laugh from him, "But, in her defense, she really likes them now."

"Them?" He inquires.

"Oh." I exclaim, "Uh...Winter and Dakota. Winter is Sam's boyfriend and Dakota is the one who came over for dinner." I explain.

"Right." He smiles, "I remember Dakota now. The one you stayed with until late?" He ducks his head down as he works so I can't see his expression.

"Stop it." I hold up a finger, "This conversation is over." I begin to exit the room, avoiding further questions.

"You should invite him to dinner again!" He speaks loudly before I'm out of earshot.

"No way!" I holler back.

"Why not?"

"Because!" I say, trying think of a valid excuse, "He...wouldn't like salad."

"I'm making ribs too." He says as I stop at the bottom of the stairs, "Everyone likes ribs so invite him. I'd like to see him again. Playing pool with him is an easy win."

"Dad." I whine as a last resort.

"Invite him." He demands, making me throw my head back and groan.

"Fine!" I march up the stairs, pulling my phone from the waistband of my skirt and pressing Dakota's contact.

The FaceTime screen appears as I stare at my annoyed expression mirrored back at me. As soon as he picks up, I spot the grin on his lips. I watch him prop his phone up on something as he shakes a towel over his wet hair, a white T-shirt thrown on lazily. "Oh I'm sorry." I rush, "I didn't mean to bother you."

"What?" He laughs, "You called at the perfect time. I was just about to call you." My heart flutters without permission at his words. I fight a smile.

"You were?"

"Yeah." He tells me, picking up a jar of hair putty and placing his fingers inside the container, rubbing it between his palms, "I was going to ask if you wanted to do something. My parents took Sam to get a laptop as her late birthday present since she does everything on her MacBook and she broke her old one."

"That's nice of them." I say blandly, trying to hide my shock. I've never been able to just go to the sore and buy an electronic simply because I broke my other one. Sam is extremely lucky, I'll say that much.

"Don't worry, they set the money aside." He laughs, "Trust me, I freaked out at first. Like, why not me too? Hello, we're twins."

"Wow." I laugh at his childish behavior, "But no, it's cool that's awesome. Also...I actually called to invite you to come and eat dinner with me and my dad again."

I wait as he finishes his hair, his usual messy look locked in place. I always figured he rolled out of bed looking like that, I never would have guess that he actually tries. "Is he okay with you inviting me?" He asks me, picking up the phone. The angle gives me a good view up his nose but I hold back the laughter.

"Uh..." I hold my phone out self consciously, "Actually, it was his idea."

He pauses, setting his phone down somewhere in his room and sitting on his bed with a small spring, "Wow, and here I was thinking that you wanted to see me."

"I do." I defend with a light laugh, "It's just weird seeing you and my dad together. It's like two universes are clashing. My home universe and my outside world universe." I explain dumbly.

He raises a brow at me, "You're extremely weird but I forgive you. I'll see you in ten." His hand reaches forward and hangs up before I can reply, my mouth open as if I've been paused.

After informing my father that Dakota is indeed coming over, I change into a salmon pink sundress with white elegantly embroidered flowers across the fabric. I don't bother putting on shoes since I'm home but I do hook a small half moon necklace around my neck.

"Lillian! A white Jeep just pulled in the driveway, is that him?" My dad asks from the bottom of the stairs.

I smile, biting my lip to contain it. I'm not sure what it is about Dakota that raises my spirits so much but it seems to be something I can't control, "Yeah that's him." I reply.

Hesitating for a moment, I grab a peach lipgloss from my vanity and unscrew the lid, sliding it across my lips. Rubbing them together, I jog downstairs with my phone in hand.

Spotting him through the window, I rush to meet Dakota at the door. Opening it, I step outside just as he walks onto the porch. I close the front door behind me, smiling in surprise at the single white rose in his hand.

"Wow." Is all I say, feeling more shy of my appearance as he looks at me.

"Lillian." He greets me with a crooked grin, "You're looking ravishing this evening."

I roll my eyes at his comment but can't force the smile away, "Thank you, Dakota. Is that for me?" I ask, referring to the rose.

"No, it's for your dad. I'm hoping it'll make him go easier on me during our game of pool." He jokes, stepping closer.

"You're the worst." I laugh as he chuckles at my reaction.

"I'm just kidding." He holds the rose out, "Of course it's for you. But now I feel a little stupid." He confesses, rubbing the back of his neck with a shy expression.

"What?" My brows furrow, "Why?"

Dakota looks at me, his eyes taking in my dress and running over my hair. "I don't know. I was thinking about saying something stupid to make you uncomfortable like how I got you a rose because it's beautiful like you but now that I see you...it doesn't even come close." He says openly, his rich green eyes watching me closely.

I press my lips together as my stomach swirls nervously, "You're right," I grin, "That would have made me cringe uncomfortably."

"Just open the door, Lilly." He rolls his eyes, his cheeks tinted red as he chuckles at my teasing banter.

My brows raise at the nickname but I say nothing, worried that if I mention it he'll never call me that again. "Fine. Let's go."

"Ladies first." He says as I push the door open, stepping inside.

My dad greets us instantly, a huge smile on his face when he sees Dakota behind me, "Dakota! How are you?"

"I'm doing good, sir. How are you?" He replies. I smile to myself when I don't hear any uncertainty or nervousness in his voice.

"I'm fine. Just ready to eat these ribs and play some pool." My dad winks.

"Just go easy on me." He laughs, his eyes meeting mine.

"No promises." My father jokes, "Well I'd better get back to the kitchen. Can I get you something to drink?" He offers.

Dakota shakes his head, "No, I'm good. Thank you though."

"Okay sounds good. I'll let you two know when everything's ready."

"Thanks Dad." I tell him with a thankful smile.

As soon as he's gone, I turn to Dakota. "Want to teach me how to play pool?" I ask him, realizing that I might somehow get snaked into playing when I have no understanding of the game. I've always managed to escape my dad's obsession but now might be the day where I fail to hide away in my room until he's done playing.

Dakota's lips pull up, "Sure."

"Okay." I chuckle, making my way to the basement door and descending the staircase. I usual don't go down to the basement considering it's only half finished and being down here by myself has always creeped me out.

I stop in front of the pool table, gripping one of the sticks as I watch Dakota rub the blue chalk over the tip.

"Okay so...I think eight ball would be easiest to play with you. Do you play that on iMessage?" He asks me and I nod once, "Okay it's literally the same thing except in real life." He tells me as I pretend to pay attention.

I watch as he leans down and demonstrates the correct way to poise your hand and stick over the table and how to aim and angle.

"You try." He tells me, standing back.

I say nothing as I copy his previous stance and movements, aiming for a striped ball. The white ball misses it by a mile, hitting the side with a quiet thump.

"Nice." Dakota laughs, "Try again." He encourages me.

"Fine." I sigh, walking around to the ball and aiming again. This time, if misses only by an inch and I smile victoriously.

"Good job." He smiles, setting his stick against the wall, "Here, I'll help." I remain where I am as he stands on my left side and puts his arms over me, placing his hands on the pool stick and hunches over, his chin hovering above my shoulder.

I squint my eyes as I watch him guide my hand to the tip of the thin wood and pulls it back, hitting the white ball and sending is straight against the striped ball, hitting it into the left corner pocket.

"There you go." He steps away. I look back at him, grinning.

"I did it." I say happily before he frowns.

"I think you mean we but I'll let it slide." He shoves his hands into the front pockets of his jeans as he rocks back onto his heels.

"You're just jealous that soon I'll be better than you." I joke with a teasing smile.

"Lillian, food's ready." My dad's shouts down the stairs.

"Okay, we're coming." I laugh as I reply, grabbing Dakota's forearm, "Let's go."

"Can I have your ribs?" He asks me as we trek up the stairs.

I look back and give him a weird look, "That sounded odd but to answer your question, no you may not."

"Whatever I'll just steal them when you're not looking."

"No you most definitely will not."

✰✰✰

After dinner, my dad was eager to play a game of pool and, apparently, he found it more fair to team me and Dakota up against him because he's just that good. Long story short, Dakota and I lost but not because my dad is good but because I'm literally that bad.

After we've lost, my dad offers us both ice cream but I decline for the both of us after noticing how stuffed Dakota looks, his face scrunched in a painful grimace.

"Thanks, Dad, but I think Dakota and I will just go out on the porch and sit on the swing if that's okay." I kiss my dad on the cheek once he agrees and Dakota follows me outside.

Once the door is closed, I don't bother turning the porch light on since I'm especially fond of the stars in summer time. It's warm enough to sit out and stare at them without having to brave the chilly air. Mosquitoes are the only thing I hate about summer and, even then, it doesn't stop me from loving the season.

Dakota takes a seat next to me on the white swing, hesitating before placing his arm along the back and pushing us off with his feet.

"Are you one of those girls that's obsessed with the stars or are you just trying to look mysterious as you stare off into space...literally." He asks me with a light tone, hanging his head back.

I roll my eyes, "I just like the stars. They're interesting but I definitely don't have an obsession. Why? Are you one of those girls who's obsessed with them?" I smile teasingly.

"You're hilarious." He deadpans, "But yes I am, how did you guess?" His lips spread, revealing his straight teeth.

"Stop." I nudge him before laughing slightly. "You're so weird."

"Me?" His eyes widen, "Take a look in the mirror, Perkins."

I look down at my hands in my lap as I shake my head while I simper, "No one could possibly be as weird as you. Not even me."

He throws his head back, laughing at this. "I'll take that. At least you still want to hang out with me so it must not be a horrible thing." His eyes meet mine.

We swing in silence for a moment before I allow my head to rest back against his arm, my eyes closing slightly as I smile softly, "I have to admit that I have a soft spot for you." I tell him quietly as I listen to the crickets and the sound of the swing creaking under us.

My eyes remain closed as I wait for Dakota to reply but he says nothing as he shifts next to me. "Lillian." He finally says.

"Hm?" I hum comfortably.

"You know how much I care about you, right?" He asks me.

My eyes flutter open and my head lulls to the left against his arm to see him already look at me, his gaze fixated on me. My lips perk up, "Yeah. At least I think so." I tell him. What I don't tell him is that my uncertainty of his seriousness towards me is what confuses me and brings my own feeling to a halt. I also don't tell him how much relief those words bring me.

I watch him smile a little as he left hand moves up the tuck the hair behind my ear before it falls to his lap again, "Good."

My hands move away from my lap over to his swiftly, grabbing his as I scoot a little closer. Laying my head on his chest, he squeezes my fingertips before I feel a kiss being placed on the top of my head.

"I'm glad I know you." I tell him as his arm curls around me like a protective blanket.

"I'm glad I know me too."

"You couldn't help it, could you?" I laugh in amusement.

"Nope."