My Only Hope

Prologue

The day that my life changed forever was the day that I walked into a run-down diner in the middle of Oklahoma...and walked into my destiny.

I just graduated high school. Gosh, I was so happy to be out of there. Nobody ever understood me, I was kind of a shy girl, and I never fit in with any of the cliques at my school. I'll admit, I was a bit of a weirdo, mostly because I never watched tv or listened to popular music. I didn't even have social media. I didn't think I was very pretty, with my mousy muddy-brown hair and my pale blue eyes that people always thought were kind of creepy. But I was finally out of high school and onto my real life- away from that small town in Oklahoma.

So what was I doing in that diner? I was getting food because I was starving after bus hopping all day. I was heading to LA to start my job working for my uncle at some random concert venue. Whatever. I only listened to classical music anyway.

I walked up to the counter and sat down.

The waitress glanced over at me. She had a lot of makeup on and her hair was huge and bright yellow.

"Can I help you sugar?" She crooned.

I opened my mouth to respond- but someone else spoke first.

"Suga, hey, she's talking to you!"

I turned around to see a group of young men walk into the diner, squinting against the bright Oklahoma sunlight that streamed in behind them. I was momentarily blinded by the light and I couldn't see them very well, but I could tell that they were all here together. Apparently, one of them was called sugar, unless they were just making fun of each other.

"Actually, she was talking to me," I said.

The guy who spoke came forward and took off his Gucci sunglasses. He had a wide, dazzling smile that made his eyes crinkle up tight. It was so... endearing and cute that I felt my jaw drop. He shrugged his black leather jacket off of his shoulders, revealing toned and tanned biceps that made my cheeks warm.

"Oh, I'm sorry, do they also call you sugar?"

I stuttered, flustered by the hot man now leaning on the counter next to me. "Um, I... no. They don't."

"Well they should," he said with a wink. My heart stopped. "I think you're pretty sweet."

Behind him, his friends all laughed and joked around with each other about it. I glanced at them all. They were really hot guys, apparently foreign. And I was sure their outfits costed more than my house.

But for some reason, none of them made my heart do strange skipping things in my chest like the one who sat down in the seat next to me.

He was still looking at me. My cheeks blushed furiously. I couldn't hold his gaze, but he just smiled wider and then turned his attention to the waitress.

"Excuse me," he said, "can I have some chicken noodle soup?"

The waitress giggled. "Sure thing, darling. Anything to drink?"

He flashed her a dazzling grin and set off her giggles again. "A soda on the side, please. Sprite."

He turned back to me and raised his eyebrows. He looked like a playful little puppy!

It looked like he expected me to say something. My mind was racing to come up with something clever to say, but my heart was still pounding Too hard for me to think. "Uh, that sounds nice," I mumbled.

Stupid Lex! Nice going.

He laughed softly, which was the best laugh I've ever heard.

"Will you also get some for my new friend?" He asked the waitress and gestured to me.

I blushed even harder. "Oh, actually I was just going to get a water..." I mumbled. I didn't bring enough money for food, just enough for the bus tickets.

The man grinned even wider, showing his perfect white teeth. "You have to try it! And besides," he twisted in his chair to look at his friends, who were all crammed in a booth behind us in the back corner, laughing and having fun together, "I need someone to eat with now! They didn't save me a seat. Aish."

I hesitated and reached for my wallet to see if there was enough. He grabbed my hand to stop me. "No no, my treat," he said. And just like that, I fell in love. His warm hand over mine... I could feel the electricity between us. I'd never felt this way before. It was scary, and exhilarating, like riding a roller coaster with my eyes closed.

"What is your name, Not-Suga?"

"I'm Alexandra, but I go by Lex."