I Wanna Be Free, I Wanna Be Loved

Ch. 16: Shooting Stars Watch Me Fall Apart

RYAN'S POV

Why couldn't I bring myselft to ask her out? Just because she was beautiful and sensitive didn't mean I had to let my status as a tiger evaporate! I laid down next to the pool with my hands behind my head and wished on every star in the sky, hoping that one of them would be my savior. I wondered if she was asleep, maybe she and Rachel were having girl time, maybe she was just sitting in bed with one of her word puzzles and a concentrated look on her pretty face. I just could not get her out of my head and I needed to do something about it.

"Ryan, honey, it's late. You should get to bed" mom said quietly through a window.

I got up off the ground and went back into the house. Hannah had her door closed but I could see the light from her lamp slipping through the crack. I really shouldn't disturb her but I just wanted to say goodnight. I pushed the door open and found her asleep, guess she forget to turn the light off before passing out. Her arms were stretched out on her pillow and she had her hair up in a messy ponytail. I stood there watching her sleep until she moved and I ducked out of the room. I went up to my bed but I couldn't sleep; my imagination was running wild with thoughts of her laying next to me in my bed, her head resting on my chest as she breathed gently. These thoughts were causing a stirring in my stomach and if I didn't think of something else quickly, I'd be hard. I settled on it: I was asking her to winter formal. After I made the decision, I stripped down to my boxers and laid down.

HANNAH'S POV

The entire school was buzzing about the big dance comig up; school dances hadn't been too big of a deal at my old high school but here people kept asking if I had a date or what color my dress was. I wasn't quite sure if I was even going, maybe if Rachel or Ryan went I would go to hang out with them. Rachel and Brendon both implied that Ryan wanted to ask me but I didn't believe them even though I hoped it was true. As I spent more time with him, the small case of butterflies I had turned into sparks and I found myself daydreaming of him. I still held onto the memory of when he kissed me in the hospital; the feeling of his lips on mine, the way he was gentle, and how it drove my senses wild. All my bruises had healed from Rachel's beating but I still had wrist pain that doctors thought would be permanent. I had ended up moving up to Rachel's room which Ryan was both happy and pissed off about. He didn't like that she and I would stay up past midnight giggling or listening to music. I was so glad she was over her hatred of me; she had even started dressing differently. There was still a lot of red and black in her wardrobe but they came with a new accesory: a smile. I hugged her goodbye before we parted for our first period classes.

"Hey Bren!" I smiled. Brendon was one of my favorite people now. I loved how close he and Ryan were and how he always managed to make everyone laugh.

"Hey yourself!" he said.

"Asked Rachel to the dance yet?"

"Nope, I'm too nervous. Anyone asked you yet, specificially a certain best friend of mine?"

"No" I replied "But if you want help snagging Rachel, I'd love to help"

"Oh you really don't have to do that, it's not like she'll say yes anyway"

"Aww Brendon don't psych yourself out like that. Trust me, with my help she'll be yours"

"You really think so?"

"I know so"

I watched him excitedly prance off to his English class and I smiled again; he really likes her and they'd be so great together. I'm just going to be the little push that they both need. I walked off to my class and began to formulate my master plan. Who knows, maybe I'd ge to invested in hooking them up that I'd forget no one wanted to go with me.