I get to school and head to my locker. Got it!

Mila meets me at my locker and asks, "Are we still up for tonight?"

"Totally!" I say, excited.

"Is it cool if I bring Tristian? Ella said it was okay, but I also wanted to check with you." Mila asks

"Ooooh... Are you guys dating?" I asked, wiggling my eyebrows.

"Shut up." She says, punching my arm.

I laugh, and the first bell rings. Mila groans and says, "Got to go take a test I didn't study for."

I'm the last to arrive at the lunch table and say, "Hey, guys."

Ashton grins when I sit beside him, and I raise my eyebrow. I sit next to him and ask, "What-" Before I can finish my question, Ella taps my arm.

I turn to her, and she asks, "Since Mila is taking Tristian, can I bring Zane?" Ella asks.

"The more, the merrier," I say, shrugging.

I turn to Ashton and ask, "How's your day been?"

"Better now that I can talk to you without a teacher interrupting us," Ashton says cheekily.

I bump my shoulder against his and laugh. "You annoyed Ms. Parker, the whole class."

"Not my fault! She assigned me to sit by such a beautiful girl. I can't help but talk to her." Ashton says, smirking.

I playfully roll my eyes and say, "You better be more subtle, though. She might move you and make me sit with a better-looking guy."

"You and I both know I'm the best-looking guy in the school," Ashton says cockily.

"Eh. No one else was interested in you, so you didn't exactly have a lot of options." I say.

"I'm a taken man. I wouldn't even notice if someone was trying to flirt with me. I only have my eyes on one person." Ashton says, shrugging.

"This person must be pretty awesome then," I say, letting my hair shield my face.

Ashton smiles and uses his free hand to tuck my hair behind my ear. "She's a total badass." He says quietly.

Ashton and I notice the table goes silent, and we glance at them. "Why are you all staring at us?" Ashton asks.

"You guys seem extra close," Tristian says, shocked.

"I could say the same for all of you," I answer.

"But we're focused on you two right now," Mila adds.

"I'd say we're interested in each other," Ashton says calmly.

Ella squeals with excitement and says, "Adalynn! You haven't been keeping me updated!"

"I mean, I thought I'd update you guys after the date. If this crashes and burns, I'd just take it to the grave." I say with a slight chuckle.

"Don't worry. She is actually into me." Ashton says, placing his arm around me.

"Congrats!" Zane says, patting Ashton on the back.

"How does it feel to be taken?" Ella asks.

"Pretty damn good," I say, leaning against Ashton's chest.

When the bell rings, we all sigh, and Zane says, "See you all tonight." We all separate but Ashton and I stick together in the hallway.

"What's happening tonight?" Ashton asks curiously.

"Every Halloween, Mila, Ella, and I hang out and go to this Halloween event. Are you free to go with me? Zane and Tristian are going-"

"Oh, um... I can't." Ashton says.

"Oh, that's okay!" I say, laughing awkwardly. Ya, but that would be so boring and not worth it.

"I'm just kidding, Lynn!" Ashton says, laughing. "You didn't think I would let you be their fifth wheeler, did you?" He asks.

"Whaaaa?" I ask.

"Would it kill you to have a little more faith in me?" Ashton says, placing his hand over his heart.

"Maybe," I say, sticking out my tongue and pretending to be dead.

Ashton rolls his eyes and kisses my forehead. "I'll see you after school?"

"You bet," I say, walking to class.

"So what exactly are we doing at this Halloween event?" Ashton asks, sitting on my bed.

"Well, we first go to a haunted house and then a spooky corn maze... At the haunted house and maze, we usually have a contest of who screams the least. The winner gets food, paid by the losers." I say.

I change and then re-enter my room. Ashton looks up from his phone, and his eyes immediately take in my new outfit.

"Why are you staring at me?" I ask, confused.

He pulls me onto my bed and whispers in my ear, "Leather looks good on you."

I rest my arms on his shoulders and ask, "Really?"

"But do you know what you would look better in?" He asks, looking down at me.

"What?" I ask, tilting my head.

"Nothing." He says, smirking.

I'm about to smack his arm, but he grabs my wrists and pins me down on my bed. He starts kissing down my neck, and I moan out his name.

He mutters, "Careful, Lynn. You don't want to start something you can't handle."

"Why not? I love shrimp." I tease, gripping onto his hair.

He snorts and places a long kiss on my lips. I run my hands underneath his shirt, and he shivers at my touch. I smirk against his lips, and he mumbles, "Shut it."

I pull away when my phone pings, and he adorably pouts. I reach over for my phone, but Ashton keeps hovering over me.

I read the group texts and said, "They're all on their way now."

Ashton nuzzles his face against my neck and asks, "Do we have to go?"

"Yes. We should get going too." I say, pulling away from him. I glance at his face and hold in a laugh.

He raises an eyebrow, and I drag him to my bathroom. "Woah, you want to take this to the next level? We haven't even officially gone on our first date yet. I don't think-"

He looks at the mirror and stops mid-sentence. "Oh."

I giggle and grab a wipe, wiping away the lipstick marks. "My girl went all over, huh?" He asks, giving me more access to his neck.

I hide my blush behind my hair and stay silent. He tilts my head upward with his finger and kisses my forehead. "Don't worry. I love it when you claim me as yours."

I smile and stop myself from kissing him. "We should get going," I say.

We meet up with the rest of the group, and Ella says, "Someone's late."

I roll my eyes and say, "You did see the parking lot, right? It's hard to find a parking spot."

"Ya, we kept circling for 10 minutes," Ashton says, sighing.

Mila changes the subject by asking, "Where to first?"

Soon, we all agreed to try the haunted house first. Halfway through, everyone screamed except Ashton and me. I lost last year by one point!

After we're done with the haunted house, we walk toward the spooky corn maze. I see someone dressed up as a spider, and it jumps toward me. I shout and stumble into Ashton's chest. He stops me from tripping and secures an arm around me.

"I hate bugs," I complain, thinking of a spider crawling on me.

30 minutes later, we exit the maze. "Winners!" I shout, raising Ashton and I's arms.

"I knew I shouldn't have suggested teams," Mila says, complaining.

"At least you didn't get scared by someone holding a chainsaw," Ella says, unimpressed by Zane.

"The chainsaw was very close to cutting my head off!" He says.

"What kind of food do we get?" Ashton asks.

"Anything from the grocery store! Unlimited." I whisper back to him.

When we step into a grocery store, I immediately grab a cart. "The only catch is, we only have 5 minutes to gather our items in one cart."

"Shit!" Ashton says, starting to run towards the snacks aisle.

I grab some cookies and candy while Ashton grabs some chips, donuts, cupcakes, and ice cream. "We're so gonna get fat," I say, laughing at how full our cart is.

"If it's with you, it's worth it," Ashton says.

"Stop it," I say, feeling my face heat up and punch his shoulder.

"Ow!" Ashton says, holding his shoulder in pain.

"Shit. It was supposed to be light-" I start to say worriedly when he presses his lips against mine.

"Kidding." He murmurs against my lips.

When we get to the cashier, Ella, Mila, Tristian, and Zane look at our cart.

"I'm officially broke," Tristian says.

After they pay for everything, Ashton and I load everything into his car. We say goodbye to everyone and go our separate ways.

When we get to my house, Ashton brings all the bags into my home. "I thought you got some stuff for yourself?" I ask, confused that he's bringing everything inside.

"I did," Ashton says. "But it'll be more fun coming here! I only visit you since you have the best snacks.

"That snack better be me. But then again, I am a three-course meal." I say.

"Of course! Totally not because my parents eat all the food before I can get to it." He says.

I roll my eyes, and he wraps his arms around my waist. He leans down, and I tippy toe to kiss him. But he slightly pulls away and whispers, "We all know I'm the real snack."

"Out," I say, trying to push him away.

He doesn't move an inch, and I sigh. He cups my cheek and softly presses his lips against mine. I don't give in for a few seconds but end up returning the kiss.

When he pulls away, he says, "I should get going."

"I'll walk you to the door," I say, following him.

I unlock the door and let him step out. "I had a lot of fun tonight." He says, grinning.

"Me too," I say.

"Thanks for inviting me." He says, kissing my forehead.

"Text me when you get home, okay?" I ask, worried.

"Will do," Ashton says, walking towards his car.

✨

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