Jemma's staring at me and my heart's fucking banging around in my chest. The thing is, I'm not going to take no from her. What do I expect from her? Honestly, I don't know, but what I do know is that I hate I have no idea what she's been doing the past four years. I hate that whatever it was, we didn't do it together. There's something between us and there always has been, and it's not something I can explain. It's just this sense of belonging.

My entire life was spent chasing that girl right there, why stop now? She's stubborn as shit, but the thing is, she's always been mine. Always has. Always will. Now, I just have to convince her of that.

Shaking her head, she sighs and shoves me away from her. "You're annoying, you know that right?"

"And you're short," I smile. "Which is why I call you titch."

Her brown eyes narrow. "I always hated that."

"At first, but you started to like it." I grab the remote. "You got Netflix?"

"No." She snatches the remote from my hand. "And you just thought I liked it."

"Your memory has gone to shit." I stand up and make my way to the entertainment center on the far wall. "I vividly recall the first time I called you 'babe.' You snarled and said you didn't like it."

"I didn't."

"You said it was weird."

"It was."

I turn around and smile at her. "You said you liked being my titch."

A slight smile shapes her lips, and I can see a tiny piece of her wall break down. "I said a lot of things to you, Tyler."

Spinning back around, I scan over the DVDs. "What the..." I grab Never Say Never and laugh as I turn to hold it up to her. "What the fuck is this, Jemma. Justin Bieber? What happened to the girl who liked Slipknot and Lincoln Park?"

"That's Heather's. She has a thing for him. I don't know."

"Sure." I put the movie down. "Hmm, none of my movies I see."

"Really?"

"Too soon?" I laugh, stopping when my eyes land on one specific title. "You..." I snag the DVD of Howard the Duck, pop it open, and walk to the TV. I press open and slip the disc into the DVD player before making my way back to the couch.

"If you just put Bieber in, I'll choke you."

"No, just wait. It's way worse than the Biebs."

"You did not just call him the Biebs."

"Yeah," I nod. "I did."

The old-school Universal emblem comes across the screen, and I smile.

"What did you put in," she asks.

"Stubborn and impatient..."

Seconds later the theme music starts, and the title flips across the screen. She’s smiling. Really big.

"God," she laughs and flops back against the couch. "I haven't watched this movie in ages."

"Yeah, me either."

This movie is shit. It's awful, but for whatever reason we used to watch it over and over when we were kids. We both sit, staring at the screen and there's this nervous energy, just like there used to be between us when we both got to the age where we realized boys and girls could do a lot more than be friends. I remember that moment, and the thing is, it was when we were watching this very fucking film. We were in her basement, sitting on the couch like we always had every other time we'd watched this horrible film, but, this time, every few minutes, I'd scoot a little bit closer to her. A little closer. And closer—until our legs were touching.

I glance over at her and this feeling—like I said, she feels like home…

Halfway through the movie, my hand is on her thigh and she’s stiff as shit. “Want me to move my hand?” I ask.

Before she can answer, the lock clicks and her roommate walks in. The second her eyes land on me, she scowls. “What the…”

I stand up and stretch. “Just leaving,” I say, glancing back at Jemma. “Thanks for letting me take a piss.”

She smiles. “Thanks for the ride.”

“Sure thing. See you later.”

Her roommate shoots me an evil glare as I move toward the door so I wink at her. I shut the door behind me and drag in a deep breath. This is a start.