"Luanna, I think I might have to take you in my car from now on because you keep cutting off my circulation," Demetri deeply exhaled as I withdrew my arms.

"I think that's the first good idea you've had all day," I told, stepping off his motorcycle.

"I'm pretty sure I had a couple of great ideas today," Demetri defended. "Some of which you agreed to."

We started walking along the grassy area until I recognized the thicket of oak trees huddled near the pond.

"Come on idea man, this is my favorite spot," I dragged him by the arm.

The sunlight danced and glittered on the waters ripples that were being created by a family of ducks. The nostalgia was really starting to kick in as it usually did whenever I'd come here. This used to be the spot I'd go to as a kid with Mason, and feed the many ducklings and turtles. While Mason and I fed the lovely creatures, my parents would sit on the only bench that was in the area right in front of the pond.

This bench had seen better days. It's starting to resemble old driftwood with its somber brown color. The wood was less smooth than it had once been.

Demetri and I sat down and stared over the peaceful sight. I'm surprised not many people come to this side of the park. They usually hang out by the playground areas or venture off into the woods. But this right here, was the definition of serenity.

Demetri let out a light chuckle, ruining the peace of mind I've just achieved.

"Dick, do you know the definition of peace and quiet?" I asked.

"You mean boredom?" He quirked an eyebrow. "I was just thinking, this might actually be my favorite spot in the park too. I always thought yours would be the old giant tree back there we used to climb as kids."

Within the thicket of oak trees huddled by the pond, laid a giant tree. By far the tallest in the area.

"That's my second favorite," I reminisced. "I remember the climbing competitions we used to have. I'd always win."

"You'd always win?" Demetri scoffed. "Please, I remember you throwing bitch fits every time you'd lose."

I placed my hand on my chin and pretended to think.

"Hmm, I don't seem to recall that," I hummed. "I'm pretty sure I was the one always winning."

"Let's prove it then," Demetri's dark eyes glittered.

I groaned loudly and slouched back into the bench seat.

"Why do you keep saying that? I don't do anything sane when you say shit like that," I frowned.

"On the contrary," Demetri grinned. "You become way more fun."

I sighed and smacked my tiny hand over his large face.

"Alright, what do you want to do?" I asked.

"You anf me, climb thaf tree, right now," he told.

Demetri licked my hand and I shrieked loud enough to scare the ducks. I smacked Demetri's shoulder and wiped his saliva onto his sweater.

"If I get STD's because of this," I pointed my finger at him.

"Then people will believe you finally got some action," he stood up. "Come on."

Demetri grabbed my wrist and dragged me all the way to the ancient looking tree. The edges of the wide trunk had fresh moss growing. And the pale green leaves were gradually started to show some yellow.

"Ok, if I win," I began. "You have to tell me what happened between you and Danny."

The hesitation hit Demetri instantly. What could've happened that was so bad to make him actually hesitate?

"Fine, whatever," Demetri finally agreed. "It's not like you're going to win anyways. Let's see, if I win..."

The pest contemplated for a while until he finally looked satisfied with what he decided.

"If I win, you have to write a song about me."

My eyeballs practically popped out of their sockets. The tiredness completely faded like somebody just threw a gallon of black coffee on my head. Now without further ado, let the screaming inside my head commence.

EU TENHO QUE O QUÊ?

"Are you serious?" I blinked. "That's what you want? There's no way I'd ever ever write a song about you."

"Why not? I think I'd make a great song subject," Demetri stated cockily.

"You know what Demetri, you're right," I glared at him. "You'd make for a great hate song."

I leaned against the tree, itching to get this over with.

"Ah ah ah, it can't be a hate song. It has to be about how you really feel about me."

I stared at him like he was the dumbest person on the planet. And that he was.

"Yes, which is hate. I hate you," I told bluntly. "I don't know how much more clearer I can be about that."

He leaned against the tree right next to me and cocked his head to the side. Those eyes of his were looking weirdly into mine that made me want to snap my hair tie against my wrist repeatedly.

"If you really hated me, why did you agree to skip detention with me today? Why did you agree to the deal we made that'll help keep me out of trouble?" Demetri smirked at me. "Huh?"

I bit my tongue, frustrated about what we was insinuating.

"Don't flatter yourself," I told. "I skipped detention with you to get away from Danny. And I agreed to that deal more for my benefit, not yours."

"Yep, a deal where we'd have to spend more time with each other than we ever had," His smirk grew wider at my annoyance.

"Alright! I'll write a not completely hate song about you," I frustratingly raised my voice. "Can we climb the damn tree now so I can get my prize?"

Demetri whistled at me with a grin on his face.

"Look who's getting cocky all of a sudden."

"Yeah yeah yeah," I waved him off. "Ready? On your marks, get set, go!"

We both practically pounced on the poor tree. I can definitely say hippies wouldn't approve. I was climbing from branch to branch at a rapid pace but apparently not rapid enough. Demetri was taking the lead. Panic began to rise in my stomach but I wasn't going to let it consume me.

He had an unfair advantage, his height. We were both around the same height as kids, but now, he's like a whole foot taller than me. Puberty made him a tall strong, good-looking giant, while it made me get stretch marks, occasional acne, excess skin in places I don't like, and overall left me to stay a dwarf like midget.

I tried so hard to go as fast as I could possibly go, but it was no use.

"I win!" Demetri exclaimed as we sat on the last long sturdy branch of the tree. "So what was that about you always winning?"

Meeting him up to his level panting, I shoved at his bulky broad shoulder.

"No fair, you're a literal foot taller than me! You were able to skip a couple branches!"

"Doesn't matter, a deal's a deal. Blame god for making you munchkin sized," Demetri mused. "Guess you're going to have to write a song about the awesomest guy on the planet."

"Chris Hemsworth?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Make all the sarcastic jokes you want but you're not getting out of this."

I scoffed loudly at him.

"Fine, I already know what the title's going to be," I stated. "Ego of an Asshole."

He shot me a look before he grabbed his phone out of his pocket and turned on the camera app. Demetri pointed it at the two of us and I flinched as I saw my bland tired face with eye-bags deep enough to fit groceries in.

"Um, what're you doing?" I asked as I eyed my appearance in disgust.

"Taking a picture," he grinned. "Smile."

I have a permanent grimace on my face that will be staying there for life. Also, ew. I don't like taking pictures of myself nor would I want to take one with the toad sitting right next to me right now.

Demetri scowled at me when he realized I wasn't going to comply. Then he did something I'm going to get him back for later. He wrapped his arm around my waist and poked my squirming ticklish sides until I couldn't help but laugh.

I heard the picture snap and yanked Demetri's arm right off of me.

"You're a menace," I stated with the annoyance clear in my tone. "Post that and you will die in your sleep tonight."

"I'm shaking," he mocked as he continued to chuckle. "That's too bad. You have a pretty cute smile for somebody that looks depressed all the time."

Only he can turn a compliment into an insult with that much ease.

I turned my attention away from the toad and to the direction of the sun shining down on the rest of the park. The warmth gleaming on my skin felt good, but I'd always still prefer a cool night under the moon.

Maybe I'm a vampire, that'd explain a lot.

Suddenly in this great moment away from the harshness that is my life, reality decided to come and kick me in the face.

"Shit, what time is it?" I asked frantically.

Demetri pulled out his phone again and his eyes widened.

"Fuck," he cursed. "We have thirteen minutes to get back to detention."

What?!

"Thirteen minutes?! We're never going to make it!" I panicked.

"Oh yes we are, I'm just going to have to drive a lot faster," he began to climb down the tree. "Try not to freak out too much."

"I don't like the sound of that," I dreaded as I climbed down after him.

We both didn't just lightly jog to Demetri's motorcycle, we ran like our lives depended on it. Because it did, well at least mine did. This would just be another thing to add to his long list of mischief.

Now when Demetri said he was going to drive fast, he really meant it. So just to let you know, I would like there to be white and pink azaleas at my funeral. I also would like to rightfully apologize to Demetri's poor bones right now. I'll be surprised if I haven't fractured one by the end of this ride.

I squeezed Demetri tightly all the way until we were finally in the school's parking lot. When we got off the bike, we ran like hell inside while accidentally bumping into some left over students. We definitely earned some questioning looks from the rest of our classmates as we zoomed down the hallway and back into the detention room.

With two minutes to spare, we sat back down in our seats.

Stevie raised an eyebrow at us before putting her letter opener back inside her backpack. Danny was glaring bullets at us. Everybody else was just fucking around in the back.

Demetri and I were panting as we slouched back into our seats, avoiding everyone's gazes.

"Took you guys long enough," Stevie commented.

The very second the bell rang, Mr. Hawkin's eyes flew open.

"You're all dismissed," He groggily said as he stretched his arms.

Demetri and I couldn't help but snicker to ourselves as we walked out of detention. Stevie trailed behind us for a moment.

"So, did tiny girl here manage to not flip her shit?" She asked Demetri.

"Eh, she did ok," Demetri stared at me with a little smile. Almost like he was looking at me with pride.

"Nice," Stevie nudged me. "See you around Martinez, Garcia."

"See you Stevie," I said as she walked away.

Demetri and I walked back out the front doors of the school. The air was getting cooler, and the sun was going to start coming down in a few hours.

"See, not so bad right? And nobody got in trouble," Demetri said with contenting ease in his voice.

"It was alright," I bit back my grin. "I might actually just survive this little deal with you."

As we walked back over to his motorcycle, I brought out my phone to see if Mason called to check up on me like he usually did if I was anywhere other than next to him. My grin dropped straight off my face as I scrolled through so many messages from Hazel, Serena, and Kendall asking where I was.

Hazel's dinner is at 6:00, and it's already 5:30.

***

"Step on it!" I yelled as Demetri drove a little faster.

"I'm going as fast as I can Luanna!"

"Well apparently not fast enough!" I whined. "I need to go home and somehow get ready in five minutes and then get over to Hazel's!"

The intensity of ridding this fast wasn't twisting my gut as much anymore. I'm starting to get used to the wind slapping in my face and the adrenaline coursing through my veins as we drive past the slow cars.

"Do you need me to pick you up?" Demetri asked.

Is he actually offering to do something nice for me?

"No, I'm good. If things turn out as catastrophic as I'm expecting, I'm probably going to sleep over," I told.

Like there's any actual chance of me leaving Hazel after a disastrous dinner.

"How the hell do you not have your license yet though?" Demetri asked. "You're almost seventeen."

I stiffened as he asked his question. I really wished my hands were free right now so I can use my hair tie or at least pinch at my skin with my fingers or something.

"I don't know," I gulped. "Will you just go?!"

Lots of sixteen year olds don't have their license. But I don't think I'll ever get one... I wouldn't even want one anyway.

"We're almost there," Demetri mentioned.

And in no more than three minutes we pulled up slowly, almost too slowly into Demetri's driveway. I can tell why he was being extra cautious while parking, there's a new paint job on the garage doors.

I ran into my house with Demetri running along behind me. Mãe was in the kitchen with Victoria laughing about something they saw in a telenovela. They both had weird white sheet masks on that made them look like possessed demons.

"Hey kids," my mom spotted us.

I kissed her hair and quickly gave Victoria a hug.

Victoria Garcia is Demetri's mother and practically my second mother. I've known her forever and she's always treated me and Mason like we were her own kids. Her gorgeous long straightened soft brown hair was currently thrown up so it wouldn't get caught in her slimy face mask. Those dark brown eyes of hers had slight wrinkles on the sides, but she could definitely pass for being in her early thirties.

"Why do both of you look like aliens?" Demetri asked after he hugged his mom.

"They're sheet masks," Victoria replied as she ran her hand over Demetri's cheek. "It looks like you could use one, your skin feels dry mijo."

Demetri backed away from his mother with a not too happy look lingering on his face.

"Mason's not home mi amor," Victoria told her son.

"I know, I'm not here for Mason," Demetri awkwardly scratched the back of his head.

The excited beaming looks both women began to sport made me want to dip my head in acid.

"He's just giving me a ride to Hazel's," I told abruptly before they could make any assumptions. "I still hate him, and he's just doing me a favor."

"Oh I've been waiting for the day the two of you would finally start getting along," Mãe clapped excitedly

"Does that mean we can start the wedding planning?" Victoria glowed.

Both Demetri and I made gagging sounds.

"I think there's a better possibility of Kendall and Anthony getting married," I grimaced.

Mom and Victoria both looked at each other, communicating with their eyes before they looked back to me.

"Well..." Victoria spoke.

"I'm surprised you haven't noticed," Mãe commented.

"Noticed what?" Demetri and I asked at the same time.

The way Demetri asked sounded a lot angrier than when I asked.

"Oh you'll figure it out," my mother waved us off and snickered to herself.

I stared at them in confusion before shrugging.

"Stay," I pointed at Demetri and instructed him like he was a dog. "Make sure he stays," I instructed the two women."

Demetri rolled his eyes as both women nodded.

I ran up the carpeted stairs and rushed straight to my closet in my room. I went through as many of pieces of clothing as possible, throwing piece after piece on the ground. The struggles of trying to find something to wear.

I finally settled on a flowy white sweater top with my usual lack leggings. I managed to fix up my horrendous hair into a side braid and conceal the tiredness on my face with a little makeup. Then I swiped a little vanilla flavored lip balm on and took a look in my full length mirror that sat on my floor.

I sighed as I eyed my reflection.

"It could be worse," I told myself.

My gaze drifted down to my scabbed hands that I completely forgot about. I quickly grabbed some concealer and tried to make the marks look as invisible as humanly possible.

When I was satisfied with the overall result, I went back downstairs to get a second opinion.

"Well, do I look presentable enough for Hazel's parents?" I asked and did a little twirl.

"Hermosa," Victoria smiled.

"Love that top, don't be surprised when it goes missing," Mom chuckled. "Call me as soon as you get there fia."

I checked my phone for the time and winced.

"Shit, it's 6:05," I blurted.

"Luanna!" Mãe shouted.

"Desculpe," I apologized quickly as I grabbed Demetri's wrist. "Let's go."

I dragged Demetri out the door before my mom could get her wooden spoon out, and almost stumbled against the sidewalk.

"Move it Garcia, I'm already late and if I don't make it within the next five minutes," I paused. "Hazel will have my head on a dinner plate."

"You're beyond dramatic," Demetri commented as we sat on his motorcycle.

"And you're beyond irritating," I said while wrapping my arms around him.

"Well someone's already getting used to this," he said with a smug look on his face.

I'm really going to intentionally throw up on him one day. Next time I have the stomach flu, I'll make sure to spend more time with him.

We finally made it to Hazel's house a couple of minutes behind schedule, but we got there nonetheless. Her house stood out from the other ones on her street. The whole thing was painted stark white except for the accents which were navy blue. Out of all my friends, Hazel had the largest house, but ironically enough, she doesn't like to be home often.

I lifted myself off of Demetri's motorcycle and saw Serena watching us intently from the porch.

"Thanks for the ride idiot," I tried to say as nicely as possible.

"You owe me lunatic," Demetri told.

"I'd never thought I'd say this, but I think I actually prefer you calling me Luanna."

"In that case, I'll be sure to keep that in mind