Then & Now [OMB || Cesar Diaz]

now - 8

"Hello Mr. James," Layla hears Ronnie say at the door. "Im Ronald. I'm hear to pick up Layla to go on our date."

"Where are you going and when will you be back?" She hears her dad say just as Layla comes out in a nice day dress and heels. "You look gorgeous sweetie," he smiles, pressing a kiss on her cheek.

"Thank you dad," she smiles. "Yeah Ronnie, where are we going," she looks up at him.

Ronnie smirks at her. "To you, it's a surprise. But to you sir, I'll tell you," he leans in to whisper in her dad's ear. She saw a surprised yet excited look on his face and it's the most happiest he's ever seen. He steps back and her dad shakes his hands.

"Glad to meet you Ronald," he states. "You kids have fun now," he lets them go. "Be home by 12."

"We won't be gone that long Mr. James," Ronnie reassured as they walked out to his expensive looking Lexus.

"Nice ride," she comments as he opens the door for her. This was better treatment than what she was used to.

"18th birthday gift," he winks before shutting the door behind her. Of course it was...

"Are you gonna tell me where we meet going now...?"

"Nope," he laughs. "Just sit back and relax and let me show you a good time," he assures.

She sighs and just lets him do him. If there's one thing she learned about Ronnie, it's that he's spontaneous and unpredictable.

Layla finally decided to listen to Danna and give someone else entirely new a chance. She was gonna meet a lot of new people in college anyways, she might as well get used to it now.

They ended up at the Santa Monica pier and had a great time together. She hadn't been to the pier since she was ten so she was delighted to be back. They played games, ate, and overall just had a good time. They walked on the beach for a bit, just talking and getting to know each other.

Ronnie at some point held his hand out, indicating he wanted to hold hers and she was hesitant for a moment before smiling and firmly grasping it. It fit perfectly.

"So I️ have a question for you," she asks a couple minutes later as they sat on the grass on the beach, watching the sun set.

"Shoot," he answered. She looked up at him as the wind softly blew his hair, the darkening sky making his jawline look sharper, his silhouette making him look dreamier in her eyes.

Oh god was she falling for him???

"Would you wanna be my date for my homecoming?" She asked.

"Sure," he said, looking down at her. "As long as you're the date to mines."

She playfully holds her hand out to shake his. "It's a deal," she nods, laughing.

After watching the sunset, he finally drops her off home. But before she got out of the car, he stopped her. "Hey I'm, I️ had a good time with you too," he tells her. "You're really cool. And really pretty," he adds, making her blush.

"And here i thought you were some asshole jock," she jokes, making him roll his eyes.

"I am but that's not all I am," he scoffs. "I'm multifaceted. I can do both," he nods at her, making giggle. "So...is it cool if I️ get a goodbye kiss?" He asks.

Layla thought about it for a moment before leaning in and pressing a kiss against his lips. "Goodnight Ronnie," she whispers before giving him one last kiss. She opens the door and heads inside.

Just as she walked in, she was stopped by her dad who was waiting for her in the living room. "Hey! How was your date?" He asked excitedly. It was the first time she'd ever seen him happy about a guy in her life.