Winning Aylee Ruan's Heart

One-Shot

by IncapableDreams

A smile appeared. "I think we belong together."

Aylee Ruan didn't slow down her power-walk. "I don't."

Jace Reynold's smile didn't falter. If his smile didn't falter when Aylee threatened to run over him with her car (and almost followed through with it), his smile wasn't going to falter now. He was determined to make her his girlfriend. But she is one damn hard to get girl.

For the third time this week, he asked, "How about a date?"

The answer came right away. "No."

"Why not?"

"I don't like you."

That shot an arrow through his heart.

But he wasn't going to give up that easily. He liked this girl way too much. Why? It couldn't be her crooked smile or small ears. It especially couldn't be because she kept rejecting him---it bothered him that this girl wouldn't even give him a chance. His friends even advised him to give up on the girl, that she was just going to keep rejecting him. But he chose to ignore them all. He didn't know why he liked her, but whatever the reason, he just wanted to be around her; loved being around her.

"Really?" Jace tapped his chin thoughtfully, thinking back to two days ago (Tuesday), when they were both in their second period class. He eyed the blue spiral notebook in her small hands. "Because I'm pretty sure I saw you doodling hearts around my name in that notebook of yours."

He eyed her carefully for her reaction. He wanted to see the blush creep onto her cheeks, the tremor of her body, the nervous habit she had of fiddling with her fingers. He waited for a few more seconds. No blush. No tremor. No fiddling. No nothing. He frowned to himself.

"I was stabbing the picture I drew of you," Aylee flatly replied.

Jace couldn't tell if she was serious or not. He sure hoped she wasn't.

Not saying another word, Aylee speed walked away, heading towards her first period class.

"You again?"

"I knew you'll be happy to see me."

Aylee shrugged the arm off her shoulder and proceeded to speed walk to her second period class. She didn't know how to get rid of this guy. This morning, she said she didn't like him, she said she was stabbing a picture of him, and yet, he keeps coming back. He was persistent and quite frankly, she was getting annoyed. And when she saw that he caught up with her speed walk and started walking side by side with her to class, she let out an audible groan.

"Stop following me," Aylee said.

Jace casually stuffed his hand in his pockets. "Following you? Don't flatter yourself. I just have the same class as you do."

Aylee wanted to bang her head against the lockers to her right.

She entered her second period class with Jace right behind her. She felt herself dreading this class as she remembered that he sat right behind her. But when the class started, Jace didn't even attempt to talk to her like he use to. She was surprised and felt uneasy because of it. Of course, she wasn't going to strike up a conversation with him.

Jace yawned slightly, feeling sleeping. His eyes felt tired and heavy as the teacher got distracted from teaching and began to drone on about how his ex-girlfriend is the one for him and that he was very upset that he was dumped. The teacher emphasized very over and over again. Jace dropped his head onto his desk, his eyes half close and staring at the back of the girl that wouldn't go out with him.

He was just about to fall asleep when he caught sight of something. His eyes opened and he spotted the corner of Aylee's blue spiral notebook. He noted that she was writing or drawing something in that notebook of hers. It brought him back to Tuesday, where he swear he saw her doodling hearts around his name.

Jace inched forward in his seat, trying to get a better view of her notebook.

"You are doodling hearts around my name," Jace said to Aylee with a grin on his face. He was practically out of his seat right now, so close to be considered standing up. His words seem to caught Aylee off guard because she let out a small squeal before slamming her notebook shut in an instant.

"No I wasn't," Aylee quickly said without even turning to look at him.

"Yes, you were." Jace didn't hide the smugness in his tone. The girl does like him.

By now, everyone in the classroom was listening to their conversation except for the teacher, who still seemed to be trying to reason with himself in why his girlfriend dumped him. The students tried to make it not obvious that they were eavesdropping but with the amount of students leaning out of their seats to hear better, it was obvious.

Jace didn't mind. Let them listen.

"No, I wasn't." Aylee's tone was more stern this time.

"Yes, you were," Jace stated clearly.

She stood up from her seat and announced clearly, "I need to use the bathroom."

Aylee bounced out of her seat and ran out of the door. The teacher, who was too self-absorbed in his state of depression because his girlfriend dumped him, didn't even say anything. But when Jace got up, attempting to run after her, the teacher got out of his depressed state and commanded he sit down.

Jace grumbled before sitting back down in his seat.

His brain began squeaking as it started working.

He was sure the girl liked him. But then why would she refuse to be with him?

"You've been avoiding me since yesterday," Jace said knowingly.

A sigh escaped from Aylee's lips.

It was Friday, making it officially three weeks since Jace first asked her out.

She was starting to think this boy was really never going to give up.

Aylee was plotting an escape but before her feet could even move, Jace took another step forward. She had succeeded in avoiding him all day long yesterday but it seems she was failing at that this morning. She shifted her books to her other arm before taking a step back. He took another step forward. She took another step back. And when he took one more step forward, he had succeeded in forcing her back to press against the wall. She was trapped in a corner and couldn't escape.

"You like me," Jace said but he didn't have a grin on his face. "You like me a lot."

She didn't say anything.

"So, why do you keep rejecting me?" He was truly curious.

Aylee shifted slightly and darted her eyes left and right. When she saw that there was absolutely no escape, she decided to answer his question. "Being with you is like…being with a balloon." Did she just compare him to a piece of plastic on a string? "It's temporary. It'll eventually pop. Break. Disappear. And I'll be wishing I never got the balloon in the first place. I knew it wasn't going to last."

It took him a while to understand her metaphor, especially because he missed half the words she said for he was distracting by that serious yet extremely cute look on her face.

"You're temporary. The relationship is temporary. I knowit," Aylee finalized.

Jace didn't even hear what she said. All he knew was that he wanted to kiss the girl.

So he did.

Aylee didn't kiss him back. Actually, she didn't do anything. She was frozen in her spot, her hands shaking, and her eyes so wide that it hurt. Even when Jace pulled away, breathing against her face, she seemed to be stuck in a state of shock. As the chuckles coming from Jace entered her ears, she began to fidget with her fingers.

"I can'tbelieve in love. My parents got divorced, both my grandparents got divorced, both my great grandparents got divorced. Divorce runs in the family. So, I plan on never getting married and living with forty dogs because I dislike cats very strongly," Aylee said so quickly that he almost didn't understand her. "My first encounter with a cat ended up with me getting stuck in a tree…"

Jace has never seen her so nervous before, but he liked how he was the one making her nervous.

"--the firefighters came to save me while the cat watched me. I don't think the cat called the firefighters though…Oh, I also got a cut from the cat. I still have the scar. It's white and clear. I've been told, at least--and I'm rambling. Ah...Point is: You should really just give up on--"

"No," Jace said, smiling. "I like you too much to give up on you."

With that, Jace walked away, leaving her standing there with her mouth slightly agape.

He was going to make this girl his. Nothing's going to stop him.

"For you." Three red carnations appeared in her view.

Jace could hardly believe in himself. He had never tried so hard to get a girl before. He usually would've given up on the girl if she rejected him once (though, he didn't get rejected often). But Aylee was different and he was determined to get at least a date with her soon enough. And to get her to do that, he was going to have to take advantage of every chance he got to make her consider him as a potential boyfriend.

Aylee eyed the flowers carefully before saying, "You picked those flowers from the school garden, didn't you?"

Jace felt a tinge of upset when he saw that he wasn't making her nervous like he did earlier today. He liked seeing her ramble and fidget. It was cute and it proved to him that she actually does like him. But as Aylee's words progressed in his mind, all he could think was 'Shit, I've been caught.' He did pick those flowers from the school garden. He thought she wouldn't notice but then he remembered that she was part of the gardening club and grew the flowers that he held in his hand.

He decided to lie anyway. "No."

"Liar," she immediately pointed out.

The friends that were sitting with her for lunch giggled.

Jace turned his smile into a grin. "Don't I at least get credit for picking out the prettiest flowers for you?"

Knowing that he wasn't going to leave unless she accepted the flowers, she threw him a quick 'thank you' before gently taking the flowers out of his hands. She expected him to get up from his seat and walk away. He didn't. She waited for a few more seconds. He still wasn't moving.

"What do you want?" Aylee said, moving her gaze onto her notebook that was out laid in front of her. Instead of stuffing her mouth with food like what people do at lunch, she was focused on getting her homework done for her next class. And the only thing distracting her from doing her homework was none other than the boy who was seated across from her.

"For you to be my girlfriend, of course." He could hear Aylee's friends letting out another string of giggles and 'aw, how sweet'-s. Before Aylee could say anything, he spoke again. "But I wouldn't mind a date with you first."

"No," Aylee said.

Jace ignored her. "It's settled than. I'll pick you up at six tomorrow."

"Wait--" she started.

He continued to ignore her. "Wear anything you like. Though, I wouldn't mind if you wore nothing."

She blushed when he sent a playful wink her way. Before she even got the chance to say anything else, Jace stood up from his seat. With one warm smile directed at her, a wave goodbye and a 'see you later' to her friends, he headed over to the other end of the cafeteria where all his food filled mouth friends were located.

Saturday night, at precisely six o'clock in the evening, Jace found himself walking up the path towards Aylee's house. He was trying to keep his face serious as he recited the words that would make Aylee give him a chance in his head. This was it. And if he failed today, he would give up on her, he decided. The moment he reached her front door, he rung the doorbell and began waiting for someone to answer the door.

When no one answered, he took a couple of steps back, staring at the balcony on the second floor. Through the glass sliding doors that lead to the balcony and into the room, the lights were on.

Jace picked up a small pebble he found and prayed to the people above that that window belonged to Aylee's room. And with one throw, the pebble gently tapped the window. No one came to the window. He picked up three more pebbles and threw them at her window, one by one.

Aylee pushed her sliding doors open and stepped onto the balcony. The light of her room behind her allowed him to see her clearly. Her hair tied up in a messy ponytail, her grey sweats on, and nothing to cover her black bra. Jace could only stare at her curves and the speech that he had memorized had flew out of his head. Her bra was black and lacy and Jace had the sudden urge to leap on her and feel her up. Aylee looked at Jace and then at her attire before she let out a squeal and rushed back into her room

There was some rustling that he could hear before she back on the balcony, Aylee now wearing a loose fitting t-shirt.

She cleared her throat. "What are you doing here?"

Jace imagined this moment a hundred times before he slept yesterday. He was suppose to know say what he had spent all yesterday night memorizing. The words that would allow Aylee to see that he is potential boyfriend material. The words that would, hopefully, make her melt. The words that would make her believe in love. But he couldn't remember any of it.

He would just have to improvise.

He took a deep breath before smiling. "It's six."

"I didn't agree to go on a date with you," Aylee said.

"Then you can agree right here and now. How about dinner?"

"No."

"Hear me out at least."

"Just leave."

Jace was stubborn. "I'm not leaving until you listen to what I have to say."

"Then you can stay there all night," with that, Aylee pulled the curtains over her window.

For a long while, Jace just starred at the balcony. Without even thinking much about it, he sat down on her lawn. Seconds began to pass and soon it was minute. Before he knew it, an hour had passed and there was still no sign of Aylee. But he continued staring up at her balcony anyway, hoping that she'll come out.

And she did. Thirty minutes later.

"What do you want?" Aylee said softly this time. The sun was setting and it was getting darker, but she could see him clearly.

"Dinner," Jace said.

"How many times do I have to say no?" Aylee said. "And even if I said yes, it won't work out. It'll end eventually."

"If this doesn't go well, I'll leave you alone," Jace said with his eyes vacant of emotion. "I won't ask you on another date. I'll stop being persistent. I'll give up on you. I promise. I'm not asking you to fall deeply and madly in love with me, Aylee. I'm asking you for a chance. Just one chance."

Aylee didn't say anything for a long time.

The look on her face registered in his mind.

He failed. He failed. He failed.

But before he could get up and walk away in shame, she smiled slightly and said the three simple words that changed everything.

"I am hungry."

Author's Note: Yeees. My first one-shot :D. Spelling or grammatical errors? Let me know, please and thank you. And feel free to give me some constructive criticism on this :). I'm thinking about changing the title of this one-shot but I don't know to what. So, if you would like, throw your ideas over to me. Now, I must go shrink the pile of homework that I've been avoiding all day. Ugh…

Copyrighted September 2009. IncapableDreams (Fictionpress ID: 622211). All rights reserved.