Don't Give up Hope

After mine and Ryan's confrontation, I've been distracted. I've messed up the easiest things. My come back, if that's what you want to call it, was suddenly not looking so good...

I sighed in aggravation as I walked over to Tony and grabbed the water bottle he was holding. "You need to relax." He said, rubbing my shoulders.

"Easy for you to say." I mumbled.

"Mel." I looked to the side to see Randy walking over.

"Hey." I said sadly.

"Don't let what happened with Ryan distract you." He said softly.

"He told you?" I asked, half expecting it.

He nodded. "I can understand why you kept everything to yourself, that's fine. But, don't worry. He'll get over it. Don't let it get to right now."

After Randy and Tony talked to me a little bit more, I went back out and gave it my all. I still messed up, of course. This was my first competition in almost a year. But, at the end of the day, I had placed third. It felt good to get out there again and have fun.

"You did good, Kid." Tony said, pulling me into a hug and kissing the top of my head.

"Thanks." I said, still smiling.

"So what're you going to do to celebrate?" He asked, walking me to my truck.

"Sleep." We both laughed as he shook his head. "Nah, I don't know. Probably order in some pizza and chill on the couch."

"Well, you have my number if you want to come over. You know you're always welcome."

I smiled, giving him another hug. "Thanks, Tony."

"Anytime."

The ride home was short. I had left before the traffic could begin, so I didn't have to worry about it.

When I got out of my truck, I heard a car pull down the street, before a car door slamming shut. "Mel, wait up!"

I turned, surprised to hear Ryan's voice. "What's up?" I asked, confused.

"I just wanted to apologize about early. I wasn't thinking straight, and I was being an ass.

I shook my head. "It's fine, Ryan."

"No, it's not fine. It was inexcusable."

I sighed, knowing he wasn't going to drop it. "Fine, you were a total jerk."

He smirked. "There we go. Now you're speaking sensibly." I rolled my eyes. "Well, I also came over to invite you over for dinner."

I laughed. "Is your mom making you?"

"She might have mentioned something... But I really want you to come over. So does Kane."

I groaned. "Why must you always pull the Kane card on me?"

It was his turn to laugh. "Because it always works."

"Get outta here." I said, pushing him away.

"I'll take that as a yes!" He said, before I closed the door.

I ran upstairs to take a quick shower and get ready. When I finished up, I grabbed my phone and keys, before heading over to Ryan's.

Before I could even knock on the door, it was swung up. Kane stood there with a small pout on his lips. "What's wrong, Buddy?" I asked, bending down to his height.

"You didn't tell me you were a pro skater like Ryan."

I smiled, running my fingers through his hair. "I'm sorry. I wanted to surprise you."

"Well you got that one."

I laughed, standing back up, before picking him up and setting him on my hip. "Is everyone out back?" He nodded.

"You are in so much trouble, Missy." Tony said, smirking as he saw me walk out back.

"I can't believe you kept that from us!" Casey said, slumping in his chair.

"Guys, leave her alone." Gretchen said, pulling a chair out for me to sit down with Kane.

"Well I see which one of us you like the most." Ryan said, laughing as he looked at Kane sitting in my lap.

"Jealous?" I asked, joking around.

"Maybe."

I rolled my eyes. "What a great roll model."

"Oh, whatever. I'm an amazing roll model." He said, crossing his arms over his chest. Kane and I looked at each other before laughing. Ryan's jaw dropped as he looked at us. "I can't believe you turned my brother on me!" He said, pouting.

I shook my head. "Go give your brother a hug." I whispered to Kane, before setting him down. He ran over to Ryan, giggling, before jumping onto his lap and giving him a huge hug.

Everyone let out an 'aw' at the little brother moment. "I swear, this kid is too cute." Tony said, laughing.

"Not when he wakes you up in the morning." Shane grumbled.

"But that's what little brothers are for!" I said.

"Yeah... Sure..."

We kept talking about different things, until the conversation got turned around onto me. "So, Mel. Why didn't you want us to know who you were?" Taylor asked.

"It's complicated. But, one main reason was that I wanted to be seen as just a normal neighbor, instead of a skater. It has nothing to do with you guys. I just really wanted to get to know you guys first, before that came out into the open."

"Were you afraid of what we might think based on what happened last year?" Ryan asked.

I looked at the ground, nodding. "It was kinda hard dealing with that whole episode."

Everyone got the hint that it wasn't a subject that I liked to talk about. A few hours later, it was just Ryan and I in his room. Everyone had headed home, or to bed. We kept talking about what had happened earlier in the day, until we ran out of things to talk about.

"Hey, Mel." I looked over at Ryan who was sitting on his bed, while I sat in his bean bag chair. I loved that thing...

"Yeah?"

"Do you have a boyfriend?" He asked, staring off into space.

"No, why?" That wasn't random...

He looked over at me, just staring for a few minutes, before speaking. "You're a really cool girl. You're down to earth, and you even skate! That's like almost any guys dream." We both laughed at this comment.

"What're you getting at, Ry?" I questioned, cocking my head to the side.

"What do you think about going on a date? Just trying it out..." He seemed a little unsure of himself.

I laughed mentally, not thinking that I would ever see the day that Ryan Sheckler would be nervous about asking a girl out.

I got up and walked over to his bed, leaning down so our lips were dangerously close, but never touched. I think that would be amazing." I said, before smirking and standing up. I walked over to his door, before turning back around. "I should really be getting home."

He sat up on his elbows. "You're a real tease, ya know that?" I just laughed, before turning to walk out.

"See you tomorrow, Ry." I said, leaving him hanging.

Did I really just get a date with one of the many heart throbs of the pro skaters?

Maybe this move was a good thing after all...