Amber's pov:

Running around my house, I throw things together last minute like I do every morning before the bus arrives.

"Amber Rosabella Barnhart, why do you do this to yourself every single morning." My dad says, walking down the stairs as I stop what I'm doing and smile sheepishly at him.

He rolls his eyes but laughs to himself as I continue to throw all my notebooks, books, and folders into my backpack.

"Bye dad!" I call out, when I finish and zip up my backpack before tossing it over my shoulder.

"Bye sweetie! Remember to come to the boxing practice today. I still need your help with filling the concession stand before tomorrow's match!" He calls from the kitchen.

"I promise I'll be there!" I say before walking out the door and heading towards the bus stop that was just a few houses away at the end of the street.

After a minute or two, it pulls up and I take my usual seat next to the same friend I have been sitting next to for years.

"Hey Amber how are you?" Sophia asks, while setting her backpack on her lap.

"Good, oh I like what you did with your hair!" I notice the highlights throughout her hair as she smiles.

"Thank you, I guess I wanted to try something new." She shrugs while I grin.

"Well I like it, and I bet your crush will too-..." I sing, while she covers her face with her hands.

"You are so embarrassing." She mumbles while I laugh.

When we get to the school, I go to find my locker and talk to a few people before class starts.

The thing is, I've actually never been part of a 'clique,' as people may call it.

You know, a group of friends who do every little thing together.

I've always just had friends from different social groups who I would talk to from time to time.

Although I do have a bestfriend who I do basically everything with, I never considered myself "Socially Awkward."

I always found it nice to have friends from different social groups because I didn't feel like I needed to depend on a certain group of people.

And... it was less people I felt like I had to tell about my personal life without feeling guilty.

"So did you do the homework, chapstick girl?" Garret, my usual lab partner, asks pulling out his overly organized and prepared notes.

Oh, and I should mention...

Yeah...

A lot of people know that I collect chapstick.

I mean, I don't go anywhere without it.

It started off with a lot of my friends calling me it because there were three other Amber's in our grade, and then, some of my classmates who didn't really know me would refer to me as 'chapstick girl'

I honestly didn't mind it.

Although, sometimes, it was kinda hard when some of them would ask me why I collect chapstick.

If it was just a simple interest... Or if it had a deeper meaning.

Only very few know about my mother.

I just feel more comfortable keeping it to myself.

And usually, they understand when I tell them it's personal.

"Yes Garret, and yet again, your notes are ten times better than mine." I laugh to myself, pulling out mine.

"I can't help it, I'm an over achiever." He shrugs, brightly smiling at his notes.

"I think I'm good just being an achiever, any more writing and my hand would have disconnected from my body." I hold out my hand while making a goofy face while he laughs.

"You're so dramatic, you should have gotten the most dramatic girl in the yearbook over Mia Glare."

"Are you sure-..."

"Wait I take it back, but you are still over dramatic."

"Hey I'm not that dramatic, and they do that yearbook thing every year. You got most likely to be successful freshman year..."

I draw out while he scrunches his nose, "Yeah, and I got beat last year by Derek Sinhere, but you get kindest girl every single year, next to Damien Black, kindest boy."

I shrug my shoulders, "The yearbook doesn't even matter, remember back when Jason, last year's football captain, got most likely to be famous? Well you can see him at your great old local McDonald's now."

"I guess, but I still think I will be more successful than him..."

"Jealous much?"

"Very." He mutters, while we look up at our teacher walking into the room to start class.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The bells rings as I stand up from my fifth period, awaiting the chance to finally eat lunch and see my best friend.

I hated that we didn't have any periods together in the morning, just lunch and the last two periods.

After getting my lunch box from my locker, I go to the cafeteria and sit at our usual small table near the back.

As I start to unwrap my sandwich, I hear the chair in front of me move causing me to look up at Liam.

"Hey stranger." He laughs, while I grin.

"Just because I had a field trip yesterday, does not make me a stranger. It was one day."

"Yes it does! I had to make......friends."

"You already have friends."

"But I rather spend my time with you." He whines, while I laugh.

And this guy right here has literally been my best friend since we were five.

We do every thing together, from our first show and tell in kindergarten, our first sleep over, his parents divorce, my first hot wing experience, our first school dance, my mother's death, and now, our junior year of highschool.

I wouldn't be where I am today without him.

He was the one who helped me the most to get back on track after my mother's death.

Since he is one of the very few people who knows about my mother's death, I can always count on him for someone to talk to.

Although Liam may always come off as goofy, and literally the sun itself, he can turn that off with a flip of a switch in serious moments.

"So, this Friday, that new movie-..." but his voice slowly faded as I look over his shoulder to see a group of people walking into the cafeteria.

More so... him.

"-.... and you're not even paying attention, earth to Amber?" Liam snaps his fingers in front of my face.

"Hmmmm." I mutter, removing his hand from my face, while he laughs at my confused state.

"You were spacing off."

"Was I?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Yep."

"Are you sure."

"Precisely."

"How do you know," I raise my eyebrow at him, he just rolls his eyes and looks behind him.

"Because your crush since you were a middle schooler going through girl puberty walked in."

"You don't have to put it like that, your voice was the crack of dawn!"

"First off, Hey! And second, you need to stop being so scarred and just talk to him!!" He says, poking my arm.

"Are you kidding? He doesn't even know I exist."

"How could he not?! You guys have been voted as the kindest people in the yearbook since seventh grade! How can he not move his eyes less than an inch to see your school picture right next to it??"

"Trust me on this, Damien could literally have any girl he wanted, I'm not going to force myself on him like some of these girls in our school. You know I'm not like that."

Damien Black.

Straight up the kindest, cutest, and caring guy in the grade.

A lot of girls always fall for his charms, looks, or body, hence him on my dad's boxing team.

But I on the other hand, see past that.

He just, has one of the kindest hearts I've even had the chance to encounter with.

I promise, I am not a stalker, and I don't have a obsession with him. But anyone can see from afar just how big of a heart he has.

I first saw him in the children's hospital a long time ago, when I was waiting for my mother to finish with her job.

He was there, I don't know why, but he was.

I quietly watched from the other side of the room as he played with some of the younger children with special needs.

It first started off as a silly crush, but the thing was, it never went away.

I still sometimes see him at the children's hospital as I help out.

But I've always been too afraid to approach him.

Again, I just simply admire from afar.

Liam instantly knew I had a crush the day after I saw Damien in school.

It was kinda scary actually, he just knows me too well.

For years, he has been trying to get me to at least start a conversation with him, but I resist.

"You need to stop being so afraid, what's the worse that could happen for just saying hi?"

"Oh really? And your romantic life is-..."

"Hey this isn't about me!"

"Sure, and I'm the scared one."

"What do you what me to do? Wave my flag around, 'hey I'm gay, date me!' Everyone is too scared to come out of the closet these days."

"You know you were scarred once, remember?"

"We were in middle school! I had the right!"

"I just hope the guy you meet will be able to survive after meeting you."

"What is that suppose to me?" Liam asks, squinting his eyes at me as I nervously laugh and hold up my hands in defense.

"I'm just saying, you need a guy just as insane as you are to make it through."

"What-.."

"I love you, but you're insane."

"Insanely in the need for a man! I'm going to end up lonely with twenty cats like you!"

"What do you mean like me?"

He smiles at me, "Nothing my dearest child."

I roll my eyes, "Maybe it's better if we both stay single anyways, I don't want to be a third wheel just yet."

"Who says anything about third wheel? We are going to start dating around the same time so we can double date."

"You can't just predict the future of when I will get a date."

"Yes I can." He grins, while I shake my head but eventually grin back.

He truly is my best friend.

Even if he is insane.