I Slapped Mr. Popular

25-Ridge's POV

You read correctly!!! Ridge's POV, and go!

"How far out are we going out?" Braelyn asks, confusion laced in her words.

I laugh, "Chill, Cupcake." I know how much the nickname makes her mad, and it brings joy when I hear her huff in anger.

We turn right, and that's when we come to it. Moonlight cascades down onto the creek and the trees around, making everything around us shine. I turn on the lantern that I picked up on the way here, placing it on the ground. I look at Braelyn, who looks around in awe.

The moonlight brings out every beautiful feature about her. Her brown eyes are shining, and her skin looks flawless. She's beautiful. Everything about her is, too.

"You like?" I ask after what seems like forever.

Braelyn sets her eyes on me. "Like? I love it, Ridge. It's beautiful," she says. She moves forward and sits down to take off her shoes.

"What are you doing?" I ask, grinning.

"What does it look like?" Braelyn replies, stepping into the water. She sighs. "The water feels amazing."

She turns to look at me, and her lips move. However, I'm too focused on how beautiful she looks in the moonlight. She giggles, snapping me from my thoughts.

"What?" I ask.

Braelyn rolls her eyes. "Are you getting your feet wet, or are just going to stand there?" she asks.

I sit down on a tree stump. "I'm going to sit here."

She rolls her eyes and steps out of the water. I pat my lap, and she shakes her head. "Nope. I'll take the ground," she says, sitting next to me.

I shrug. "Suit yourself," I say, taking off my crown.

"So, is this another one of your thinking places?" Braelyn asks.

I nod. "I guess you can say that. I found this place when I first came to one of these reunions. I just felt uncomfortable, and I wandered off. This place is more beautiful and calm at night, though."

She sighs, "That it is."

We sit in silence for a minute before I stand up. "To make this moment even more cliche, let's dance."

She motions with her arms. "There's no music, and plus, we danced a lot today already."

"Well, I like to dance," I say, "and we don't need music."

I hold my hand, and Braelyn gives in, taking it and standing up. I pull her to my chest, and slowly, she lays her head on my chest. As she does, my heart begins pounding. Is this what love feels like?

Holding Braelyn to me, I press my cheek against her hair. Although I have no clue what love feel a like, I would like to say that this is what it feels like.

Every touch makes your heart pound.

Every laugh and smile makes you can't help but laugh and smile as well.

Every thought is them, the one you love.

They cloud your mind every second of the day, and you can't change it.You don't want to change it. All you want to do is be near them.

So, yes, I think this is love. I kiss the side of her head. "I love you," I whisper.

She audibly sucks in a breath, but she continues to dance. "I know I said it already, but I'm going to keep saying it. I love you, and you don't have to say it back."

Please, don't say it back, I think. I didn't want to feel more guilty than I already am. Yes, I love her, but I didn't even want to be near her at first.

Almost a month ago this was all just a dare. A two month dare, that's all, but after the second week, I didn't want to leave her. Two months or not, I don't want to dump her. I wish this wasn't a dare, and I wouldn't feel guilty for loving her.

She deserves so much better than me, and I should just end it. But I just can't. I fell in love, and as selfish as it may be, I want to keep the dare to myself. I can't lose her. I just can't.

Braelyn's head comes off my chest, snapping me from my guilt ridden thoughts. "Is it even possible to fall in love in a month?" she whispers.

"I honestly don't know, but I think it's possible."

"I'm not ready to say it, Ridge," Braelyn says.

I gently kiss her, and when I pull away, I say, "I know."

She smiles at me, and she places a hand on my cheeks. "You're a good guy, Ridge," she says.

No, I'm not. I'm going to break your heart, I want to say, but I don't. Instead, I kiss her again, pulling her closer. I kiss her with everything I have. I kiss her, trying to make the guilt leave. I kiss, trying to make her feel what I feel.

Finally, I pull away, and Braelyn looks at me, breathlessly. "What was that?" she asks.

"Thank you."

Braelyn furrows her eyebrows, clearly confused. "For what?"

"For being someone that I finally can be myself around, for being the most beautiful girl in the world, for being the most stubborn girl, for just being you," I say, pushing a strand of hair from her face.

Tears form in her eyes, and she goes to speak. She stops herself, and she just kisses me instead. The guilt is overwhelming, but still, I kiss her. She will never know how sorry I am for the dare, but at this moment, I don't think about it.

Instead, I just think about the most beautiful, wonderful, hilarious, precious girl kissing me.