My sister Linda jumped from the couch when the doorbell rang. "I'll get it!"

"That's for me."

"I know! I can't wait to meet your date!" She rushed down the entrance hall, feet padding loudly against the hardwood floor. I tried to stop her but she beat me to the door and threw it open. "Hello!"

"Hi." There Flora was, looking like a celebrity in a slinky green dress. Not just gorgeous but sophisticated too, like she was going to a movie premiere, while I was immaturely chasing around the house with my kid sister.

Flora's eyes rested on Linda first. She extended a hand. "I'm Flora. You must be Linda."

My sister stood gaping at her, rooted to the spot like she just turned into stone. Flora was the opposite of Medusa, however, with dark hair cascading down past her shoulders deliciously like a chocolate fountain. Her hazel eyes appeared larger than usual, and behind them there seemed to be endless tales of adventure. I couldn't look away either.

"Oh my God you're so pretty," Linda croaked, having finally found her voice.

Flora smiled. "Thank you. You're very pretty too!"

She flicked her gaze and our eyes met. I was sucked right into them, those sparkling ponds of excitement and splendor.

"You look amazing," I said. My initial resolve of not getting involved with her had crumbled like soft cookies when she confronted me at Raymond's party. At first it was just a major boost of ego, and I was a shallow teenage guy after all. Having the most beautiful girl in school stare right at me and declare that she couldn't stop thinking of me was not something I could let slide easily.

It'd be much easier if she was just pretty. She was charmingly straightforward, and a phone call turned into a coffee date into a car ride into a full-blown make out session. Now she was at my house, standing in the foyer and radiating like a chandelier. I couldn't resist her even though my gut instinct told me that she wasn't right for me.

She was too popular, too flirty, out-of-my-league and highly unstable.

"Do you want to sit down for a cup of tea?" Linda offered as if she was eighty. "Or maybe have a tour around the house? I can totally take you!"

"Yes, I'd like that," Flora replied. "But I'm thinking I should say hi to your parents first."

"Of course, of course!" With that Linda dragged her away to the backyard, where my parents were barbecuing hamburgers. Some of my dad's friends were coming over later.

I was relieved that at least my parents were better at hiding their astonishment as Flora introduced herself. My dad glanced up from his grilling and grinned, said his hasty hi and warm welcomes, and turned his eyes back to his precious burgers. He took his task at hand very seriously. My mom conversed with Flora over the living room decor. I couldn't detect any trace of nervousness leaking out of Flora's perfect composure.

"I noticed a piece of artwork hanging over the couch," Flora said as if she had been here lots of times. She dressed like a Hollywood star but she was as chatty and confident as the red carpet show host. "Is that by Murakami Takashi?"

I wasn't sure any of my friends knew who that was, and the said artwork was only a poster of grinning flowers. My mom's eyes widened. "Yes it is. We just got it." She was very proud about this recent purchase.

Flora nodded. "I like his work too. He collaborated with Louis Vuitton and designed some handbags. That's how I know about him."

The two of them talked about handbags happily for a while, until my dad interrupted by asking if anyone wanted a burger.

"I'll have one," Flora volunteered, and to my horror my dad handed it over right between the barbecue clamps.

"Let me get you a plate," I offered, but Flora waved me off with a smile. I was pretty sure she wouldn't want to get her hands dirty, but she took it with grace and started munching immediately.

"This is really good!" Her eyebrows rose in approval. "You make a mean burger, Mr. Foster."

"I know what I'm doing," my dad said.

"Would it make me look really greedy if I ask for another?" Flora asked. We were fully stacked and she noticed, her eyes flicking over the bags of buns that were enough to feed at least two soccer teams.

She shared the second one with me as she kept up a comfortable chatter with my dad about sports and my mom about animals, and as she wiped her hands on a napkin, she turned me and told me that she almost wished we could stay here all night, and possibly have a beer.

Linda was acting ridiculously overexcited as she hung around Flora like her personal assistant, gushing over her dress and makeup, and of course to live up to her perfect manners she had to go as far as asking if she could look inside Flora's purse.

"I'm not being a snoop. I just really want to know what high school girls carry around in their clutches," she said in a rush, eyes darting around like she was on crack. She would be going to Riverside High next year and it was an impending fear for me.

"For real, Linda?" I glared at her. I turned to Flora and was just about to ask her to ignore this rude request when she said no problem. She opened the clasp and handed over her tiny gold purse.

I hoped Linda didn't find a condom in there.

She fished out a lipstick and squealed. "Oh my god is this the new YSL lipstick? The limited edition?"

Flora arched an eyebrow. "Someone has been doing her homework on the latest beauty trends."

"My friends and I are all dying to get one by it's sold out everywhere. Where did you get yours?"

"You know what?" Flora picked up the lipstick and placed it in Linda's palm. "You can have it."

"Seriously?"

"Of course. I have so many of them sometimes I don't even remember what I have. I'm sure it'll be in good hands."

The last thing Linda needed was more encouragement. She could be so unbelievable sometimes. "Can you please come to my room and give me some pointers about my makeup collection?"

"Linda, we have to go," I said.

Flora smiled at me. A very pretty smile. "I don't mind." She excused herself and disappeared into Linda's room, like a green butterfly flapping its exquisite wings and flying away.

As soon as she left my parents both turned to me and set free their barely conceived excitement.

"I'm impressed," my dad said, flipping over the patty. "I don't know why we never see you home with girls."

My mom seconded her approval and asked me to invite her to dinner sometime. I nodded noncommittally. To be fair I didn't exactly bring Flora home. She was only here to pick me up and say hi but somehow she was stranded because no one could get enough of her.

The smell of barbecued meat filled the air as my parents tried to wring a confession out of me. They were curious about exactly what kind of friend Flora was and how long we'd been seeing each other, why I never mentioned her before and whether they'd see more of her. I could see a big cloud over their heads and it read "where have you been hiding her all this time?"

When it seemed like a long time had passed, I headed to Linda's room to see if Flora was ready to go.

"...You're so nice..." my sister's voice drifted out. "I hope you can visit more often."

"Me too. But your brother has to like me," Flora said. My fist paused over the door and I stopped myself from knocking. "We just started getting to know each other, and already I'm so crazy about him."

I waited for that moment of delighted embarrassment to pass before I knocked. "Can I have my date back now?"

Linda flung open the door and I saw that Flora had been helping her put on makeup. "You should have introduced us sooner," Linda said. "I like her so much!"

Flora winked. "There's nothing like bonding over mascara."

She stood up and we headed towards the living room. We were saying bye to my parents when out of nowhere my dad suggested we take a photo together. And you had to ask why I never bring girls home, dad. I wasn't five and getting ready for my first trick-or-treating.

"What a great idea," Flora agreed as if my dad came up with a new approach to battle cancer. I wondered where she stored all her enthusiasm. She tugged on my arm and led me over to where the fireplace was, casually leaning against me. She glanced up at me and smiled before she turned back to the camera.

That smile was more dazzling than the flash. I was suddenly glad we took that photo.

***

"Sorry that took so long," I said when we were seated in her Mercedes. It was already an hour and a half into the dance.

"Actually I don't mind at all. I like your family and your sister is adorable."

"You're really cool. You didn't have to give Linda your lipstick, you know. She was just being bratty as usual."

"I like giving it to her."

Flora stepped on the pedal hard and we thrust forward. I swore I could hear my neck snap. At the next red light we stopped at the absolute last second.

"Whoa. Where did you get your driver's license?"

"What makes you think I have one?" Flora turned to me, and her face broke into a grin after seeing my expression. "Gotcha. I'm fully licensed and extremely skilled. What's the fun in driving if you can't speed a little? I bought my Silver for the gas pedal." Silver was the nickname of her beloved vehicle.

I smiled. "I think you mean the engine."

"Yes. Can you feel it?" She gunned the engine again. She held up her right hand and her voice dropped dramatically. "Quality."

I laughed. "Yes, and I have a spinal cord injury and a bruise on the side of my body to prove it."

She chuckled and slowed down slightly in my honor. I watched her steering the wheel recklessly and felt myself falling fast. She was graceful but impulsive, considerate and headstrong all at the same time. It was a little unreal, like a modern fairytale. Instead of a pumpkin carriage I was sitting inside a silver Mercedes next to the most beautiful girl I had ever seen, who for some reason had decided that she was crazy about me.

"So do your parents like me? I'm sure you talked about me while I was doing Linda's makeup," Flora asked.

"Of course. You won everyone over completely."

She snuck a playful glance at me. "Oh? So does that include you? I think you're the toughest one to please."

"Especially me."

She sighed. "That's great to hear."

***

Once at the gym we engaged ourselves in a slow dance immediately. We kept our pace regardless of the music playing overhead, and Flora didn't seem to mind my lack of skills. She was soft and warm against me, her hair tickling my face. I never knew dances were this interesting.

We might've danced through five or six numbers straight already when Dylan and his on-again-off-again girlfriend Sydney swung by us. "Hey man, you've been hogging her all night," Dylan said. "Wanna switch dance partners?"

"Sure," I said, but I felt Flora's arms tighten around the back of my neck.

"No, I don't want to switch," she said. "I'm not done with my partner yet."

Sydney rolled her eyes. "Let's go somewhere else to puke," she said as she and Dylan glided away.

"We can take a break if you want to dance with other people," I said.

Flora lifted her head and looked right at me. "I don't want to dance with anybody else. Unless you want to."

"I don't either."

"Great." She smiled, resting her head back against my chest. I placed my chin against the top of her head. She smelled lovely, like jasmines. I wished we were somewhere more private.

After a few more dances, we watched Sandra Jenkins and Raymond Corbett elected junior homecoming king and queen again. Every year it was the same.

"It's funny how they're always crowned together," Flora remarked, "considering how much Sandy hates Ray. It's the only thing that keeps her from being completely happy."

I really had no interest in the people on stage. My hand slid off her waist to take hold of hers, and Flora's cool fingers curled around mine.

"How come you never run for homecoming queen?"

"I don't really need that title." She shrugged. "Besides, don't you think the crown looks really cheap? I know the diamonds are fake but still, they could make some effort."

I smiled at her honesty. Apparently looking good ranked higher than some token of popularity in her world, although she certainly looked the part of homecoming queen. Not to mention she was so much hotter than Sandra was.

"Hey." Flora tugged on my hand and leaned in. "Do you want to take a walk outside and get some air?"

***

We strolled around the empty campus holding hands, until Flora had an epiphany and suggested that we break into the locked swimming pool.

Breaking and entering wasn't my specialty, but I only hesitated for one second. "Only if you promise you won't push me into the pool."

"I promise. It's too cold now."

She led me to the pool and we climbed in over the fence. She pretended to swoon when I pulled her up and remarked on how strong I was, fingers sliding over my biceps.

Thank god I worked on them the day before.

"Isn't it nice? Like our own private pool party," she said as we sat down near the water. Her eyes sparkled in the night. She was stunning.

"It's very nice," I said, looking at her.

"So I guess you're not mad that I drag you away to isolated places all the time?"

"Actually I want to thank you. For waiting for me to come around."

"Ah, don't mention it." She gave a little careless wave. "You know I've only crushed on you for two years. I got used to waiting for you. Not that I didn't keep myself busy," she added.

An image of all her guy friends flashed through my head. I knew Flora was very popular. Even Jake had been out with her once. I knew about the rumors people said about her too, although I chose not to believe any of it.

"This is probably uncool to ask," I said, "but are you still dating other people?"

"Define dating."

"Hanging out with a guy one-on-one."

"That's called dating?" She looked genuinely surprised. "In that case, yes, but they're just friends. We might flirt a little, harmlessly, but that's it. Why, do you mind?"

Can I be so honest so early? I wondered and decided to be clear about it. "Yes, I do. I don't like it when you go out with other people, whatever you call it."

"Even if we're completely innocent?"

"Yes. I don't like to share."

She was silent for a second, then a sly glint presented itself in her eyes. "You mean like you and Janet?"

I didn't see that coming. I did hang out with Janet sometimes, but I had known her all my life and I honestly thought of her as one of the guys. "Well, yes, but Janet and I grew up together. I've known her since I was three...but if you don't like it I'll stop going out with her alone."

"No, I don't mind at all," she said generously.

At the risk of sounding like a control freak, I felt I had to say it in the beginning, just so she knew what she was getting into. She had the right to choose whether I was the kind of person she wanted to invested her time on. "I'm not comfortable with the idea of you being alone with another guy. I know I don't have the right to ask, but if we were to become more...I want you to know how I feel and hopefully you'll consider it."

All through this conversation she was smiling when I expected her to be a little pissed or even defensive. She took her time, and eventually she said, "You know what? I think it's kind of sexy when you're all serious and bossy."

She really knew how to make me feel embarrassed.

"I like how you said 'I don't like it when you go out with other people'," she continued, "and because I really like you, I think I'll let you have your way on this one."

I stared at her, this beautiful and irresistible girl who kept saying she really liked me. "Okay, Flora. I'd really like it if you could stop all your complicated social activities and from now on only date me."

She smiled. "As you wish. Wait, let me try it out." She gestured towards me as if introducing me to someone. "This is Sean Foster, the guy I'm exclusively dating. Hmmm. I like how that sounds."

I laughed. "You really are wonderful. Crazy, but wonderful."

That was the moment when I passed the point of no return. The inevitable happened. I got involved with Flora Morgan against all my better judgments, and it would lead to a lot of pain and misery later, on my part. But let's not jump ahead.

We made out until the dance ended, then she drove me home. We kissed some more in the car. "Can I see you tomorrow?" I asked, completely smitten, still holding her hand.

"Of course. You have to fill in all the blanks of my would-have-been dates."

"Movie tomorrow night?"

"Sure." She smiled and it lit up something inside me. This felt so different from all the so-called relationships I had since I was twelve, and as I got out the car I thought of what she said before about the possibility of us hitting it off.

I had never fallen so fast for a girl before. Our chemistry was undeniable, and I couldn't figure out why in the world she had chosen me. I felt lightheaded and lucky.

***

Dedicated with love to @tangles- for entering my KITEP one shot contest x