"Amber!" Trey shouted, rolling down to me on his skateboard. My left leg had twisted under my body in a grotesque position. I clutched it, breathing heavily and blinking back tears. I felt my blood drain from my face as inconceivable pain shot through my leg—it was killing me like a sledgehammer fell on it!

"Amber, Amber, are you okay?" All my friends rushed over and crowded around me. Cassie got down beside me, holding my shoulders.

"What happened, are you hurt?" She asked anxiously. I nodded, my tears falling fast now with the excruciating pain.

"It hurts... I can't bear it..." I sobbed. Haruko pulled out her phone—she was the only one who brought her phone among us.

"I'll call your mom—or a taxi if it's faster, we need to get you to a hospital—"

"Stand back!" A loud voice shouted. We all turned and saw the pro skateboarder from earlier running toward us. He took off his helmet and flung it to the ground, revealing the face of—Pierce Hartman?!

"Pierce?" I breathed in utter amazement. Oh, my gosh, that pro skateboarder was my sister's ex-boyfriend?! HOLY SMOKES, I did not expect that. And he was here—running straight toward me?!

"Everybody get back, give her some air," he said, getting down on his knees beside me. "Where does it hurt the most?" He asked, looking straight at me. I pointed to my ankle.

"My left ankle... I'm not sure if it's broken..." I blubbered through the pain. He tenderly felt my foot with his fingers, examining it like a real doctor. Whoa, no guy has ever gotten that close to me before. And he had such a soft touch...

"It's not broken but there might be a mild fracture..." Pierce observed. "Come on, I'll take you to the hospital, my car's right here." Before I could prepare myself, Pierce had scooped me up in his arms, cradling me to his chest! I gasped, suddenly finding myself pressed up against a strong, sexy torso... Freaking fruit loops, what is this strange flapping going on inside my chest? Felt like a bird was in there, tryna get out!

"Will we all fit?" Cassie asked Pierce anxiously. Pierce shook his head.

"No, my car is a coupe, I'll take her myself—"

"Hey, you can't just take our friend like that!" Trey argued. "You're a stranger!"

"Monte, what is wrong with you, the guy's tryna help!" Haruko defended, and I was eternally grateful to her.

"And he's not a stranger, I know him!" I argued too, feeling extremely annoyed with Trey right now. He was the reason I was in this condition in the first place, he had no right to open his yap trap now! Pierce began walking rapidly with me in his arms, making everybody hurry after him to keep up with his long legs.

"There's no time to debate this, every minute wasted is a further risk of damage," he said. He took me straight to his shiny red car, strapped me in, and got in beside me.

"Don't worry Amb, we'll catch up with you at the hospital soon!" Cassie assured me through the window.

"Stay safe, okay?" Juno called out. I nodded at them all and gave Trey a glare before Pierce speeded off.

"Amber, breathe," he suddenly said while he drove. I then realized I'd been holding my breath because of the pain with my lips folded between my teeth to keep from crying out—wait, holy smokes, did Pierce just say my name? Whoa, it sounded so... enticing when he said it... no one's ever called my name like that...

"Do you want me to call your mom for you?" He asked. I shook my head in a panic.

"No, Mom would flip out if she found out I got hurt enough to end up at the hospital!"

"But I gotta call someone," Pierce reasoned, "you can't avoid going home forever either, sooner or later, your mom's gonna find out."

"I pick later," I said, wincing as a bolt of pain shot through my foot. "Mom's gonna ban me from skateboarding ever again if she finds out I got hurt at the new park! Can you call Thea for me instead, please? It's better if she comes." Pierce gave me a momentary stare that spoke volumes before turning to his phone with a quiet sigh. I knew I was asking a lot of him by making him call Thea... it was obvious that the wound of his breakup with her was still fresh and raw even after all these months. But I really didn't want to face Mom in this condition just yet, she'd roast me alive.

The phone rang aloud on speaker and after four rings, Thea picked up—guess she had reservations about taking his calls.

"Pierce, is that you? Is everything alright? Kinda surprised to see your call..."

"Relax, babycakes, I'm calling on business," Pierce drawled. He still calls her that? Guess he had a harder time letting go...

"Oh, really? What kind of business?" Thea asked in confusion.

"Your sister is sitting beside me in my car quite possibly with a fractured leg. Just thought you should know," Pierce said casually like he was discussing the weather. Thea gasped.

"Wait, what?! Amber's with you? She has a broken leg?!"

"Fractured, yeah, it's a possibility," Pierce replied, glancing at me. "We're on our way to Brentwood Hospital, meet you there. And don't tell your mom, a request from Amber." He hung up with that, not giving Thea a chance to say another word. I leaned back, so deep in thought that I forgot about my pain for a minute. Pierce still kept my sister's number... I knew they had broken up ages ago but it was so obvious that he was not over her. I felt really sad for him—he was such a great guy from what I saw that he deserved better... he deserved someone who would love him and only him all the way... someone who wouldn't break his heart like my sister did...

"Looks like you won't be skateboarding for a while after this," he stated conversationally, breaking my train of thought.

"Yeah, bummer for me," I replied mournfully. Pierce smiled.

"Hey, soon as you're back on your feet, I could give you a few extra lessons in skateboarding—not that you need them, you're pretty good as it is... just a little sketchy on the safety aspects..." I giggled.

"Yeah, those would be helpful... Can you teach me how to skateboard like a pro like you?"

"Mmm, sure, as long as you follow my safety regulations..." Oh, I'd follow anything you say, Pierce...

"Come on, let's get that leg of yours fixed up," Pierce said when we arrived at the hospital. He got out of the car and came to my side and just like earlier, he scooped me up in his arms, cradling me to his chest.

"You okay? Comfy?" He asked, kicking the car door shut behind him. I nodded. Oh, I could be carried in your arms all day long...

Pierce took me straight to the ER where a doctor examined my leg and pronounced a hairline crack on my ankle—huh, Pierce was smart enough to be a doctor, he'd already diagnosed it like one.

"You'll wait for me, right?" I asked him anxiously as they wheeled me along in a wheelchair (what a different set of wheels from mine) to get a cast fixed on. I knew he wasn't obligated to but I still wanted him to wait for me. Pierce patted my shoulder with a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry Tony Hawk, I'll be waiting right here for you." I smiled back at him, feeling much calmer. He was so sweet, agreeing to wait outside for me... we weren't even close, and yet... he didn't even treat me like we had that gaping three-year age difference... was it because of Thea? Was he doing all this because he still loved her? No, something told me this was just his heart doing what it did best. I was pretty sure he was the dashing, rescuing type.

I thought back to the love notes and gifts he'd given Thea that I'd pilfered a while back while my cast got put on... and something flapped in my chest again. Sheesh, what was that? My cheeks suddenly felt too hot too, like I was running a fever...

"Don't be scared dear, this will be over in a minute," the nurse wrapping my foot told me. I nodded, barely paying attention to her. I wasn't afraid of a silly little cast, I was going through a range of other foreign emotions! What were these strange new feelings I was feeling?

"There, all done," the nurse said, wheeling me out on a wheelchair. Sure enough, Pierce was out there, waiting for me, slouching against a wall with his arms folded and one ankle crossed behind the other. I half thought he'd have gone. He smiled at me when he caught sight of me.

"That was quick, welcome back," he said. I smiled at him.

"Thanks for waiting for me," I said bashfully. "I thought you'd have left by now."

"No way, I can't leave without leaving my mark," he said, winking at me. Huh? What did he mean by 'leaving his mark'?

He suddenly got down on his knees in front of me, uncapping a pen. "I'd be honored to be the first to sign this," he said, his pen hovering over my cast. Oh, that's what he meant. I gave him two thumbs up.

"Have at it," I said, freely giving him my permission. He laboriously wrote something before capping his pen and standing up.

"What did you write?" I asked. He smiled furtively.

You'll find out... eventually," he teased me. I pouted and he laughed, taking a seat beside me.

"Wait, don't I have to pay for this—thing?" I asked him, pointing to my cast.

"That's okay, I already took care of it," he said, dusting off his nails. I blinked. Pierce paid the bill for me? I had a feeling he was the generous type but this was just... Wow. Just, wow.

"No sign of your sister yet...or your friends for that matter," he said while we waited, tapping his foot on the ground. A little pang of disappointment hit me—was he in a hurry to go somewhere?

"Do you want to leave?" I asked in a small voice. He gently shook his head.

"No, no, not at all," he reassured me with a smile. Relieved, I relaxed into the chair. Thea must've been out on a date with Matteo which meant she'd take a little time getting here—oh well, more time with Pierce for me.

"So, you excited to start Bellfort in the fall?" He asked me. Was he actually tryna make conversation with me? Like, with actual interest?

"Yeah, sure," I replied.

"It's a great school," Pierce continued, "just don't get involved with the newspaper club," he whispered furtively, making me giggle. I suddenly remembered that Pierce would be there too for his senior year.

"Okay, I won't. Will I see you there?" I dared to ask with an inexplicable hope inside. Pierce shook his head though, crushing that hope.

"Nah, I graduated early, I'm heading to Harvard in the fall," he replied. Aww, dang...

"Really? That's seriously cool, you must be a prodigy to have already graduated," I said with awe, hiding my disappointment. Pierce chuckled softly, rubbing his neck.

"That's not something I'd call myself..." he mumbled.

"At least you'll still be around here in Boston, right?" I asked earnestly. Crap, I hope I didn't sound too desperate. Pierce turned to me.

"Of course, gotta keep you out of trouble once in a while," he said, smirking. Sweet marshmallows, was this guy flirting with me or was he just naturally a turn-on? My face felt like it was in flames!

"Hey looks like that sister of yours is here," Pierce said, glancing at the crowd. Thea was weaving through it toward me, followed by Matteo. They definitely had been out on a date—now they came to pick me up. Aww dang, I wasn't ready to say goodbye to Pierce yet...

"Hey, Pierce?" I dared to call his name. He immediately turned to me.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for everything," I said, and I leaned over, screwed up my courage and kissed his cheek. Gosh, for some reason, that made my face a thousand times hotter. But how would Pierce take it?

He grinned without a trace of discomfort in his face. He patted my head lightly—not in a condescending manner but more affectionately.

"You're a cute one, aren't you?" He said playfully, that unwavering smile still spread on his face. Eeek! He called me cute!

"Don't get into too much trouble or I'm gonna have to come bail you out, okay?" He said, getting up and withdrawing from me just as Thea and Matteo arrived. Oh, I'll look forward to that, I said in my head. He waved at me before strolling off through the crowd. I gazed after him for one more minute, heedless of Thea's frantic questions until I couldn't see him anymore.

"Amber Genevieve Gardener, what did you do to get that cast?!" Thea screeched in my ear. I groaned inside. Ugh, time to face the music. Still, that encounter with Pierce was so worth it. Because deep down, in a part of my heart unknown even to me, I knew; I had fallen in love. And Pierce was the one... he would forever be my first and last love.

💜

That's it, after this we'll be fast-forwarding 3 years into the future, where love is ready to bloom and awaits a golden prince. Getting medieval here lol😂. Hope you enjoyed, the very first proper meeting of our new lovers. Don't worry, she'll grow. And things are about to happen, this is only the beginning.😉💗