"Literally every time I go to do it, the drumline is always nearby. I swear they never leave one another alone!" You softly hit your head against a locker while looking down at the ground.

"Would you... want me to give him a hint? Let him know you want to ask him while he's alone?" She suggests softly and you shake your head furiously.

"No. Please don't. I... have to do this." You sigh, and she pats your back.

"Fear of failure will always hold us back from our potential, Y/N. Just go for it. If he says no, maybe he's not everything and a bag of chips like you think he is." She shrugs, trying to lighten your mood. You shrug, and the two of you continue to your first classes of the day, discussing other mundane topics to help get your mind off of your current predicament.

At lunch, though, you are reminded once more of your failures.

You decide to sit by yourself today, pulling out a book and almost go to put your earbuds in before someone else joins you at the table. With a whisper of a sigh, you look up and see the piercing eyes of Aaron. "Is it alright if I sit with you?" He asks before sitting down.

"Uh." You blank for a second, regaining your composure in a snap, though. "Sorry, of course." You sit up and set your earbuds and book to the side.

"You've been acting weird lately." He states as a matter of fact, looking down at his food.

"Weird?"

"This morning?" He looks up, raising a brow. "You wanted to ask me something. Then the others walked in and you ran off." You inhale sharply at his observation and sigh in defeat. "No one else is here, so you can ask now. Unless a lunchroom full of people is still too scary." He teases with a smirk and you cross your arms.

"It's not that it's--ugh." You close your eyes and massage the bridge of your nose anxiously. "I wanted to ask what--um." You stumble on your words and then just blurt it out: "yourhomecomingplansare?"

"Jeeze, if I hadn't known any better I'd think you were speaking an entire different language." His playful smirk still spread on his face. You take a deep breath.

"What are your homecoming plans?"

He blinks without a word at first, and his silence is eating at you. "I wasn't planning on going,"

"Oh." Well, you got it out of the way, at least. You wouldn't have to worry about asking anymore. Now you can worry about the total utter rejection for the next few weeks. "If you don't want to go, that's fine."

"I didn't say that." He continues, "I'll go with you, if that's what you're getting at. Too scared to go alone without a date, huh?" His playful smile returns and you exhale with a huff.

"No."

"That's totally what it is " He leans his cheek in his hand.

"Is not!" You hide your flushed face in your hands and he chuckles. "This was a mistake." You mutter softly, but he hears you.

"You're stuck with me. I'll tell everyone you only asked me because you were to afraid to go all by yourself." He starts to use a pouty baby voice near the end of his threat with a mischievous smile.

"Fine! You win!" You stuff your face with the remainder of your lunch and rush off to your locker, hoping to calm yourself down after what you just experienced.

Like always, Cadence is waiting for you and she sees that you're in distress. "Hey, everything okay?"

"I finally did it." You lightly hit your head against a locker, closing your eyes.

"Yay! How did it go?" She congratulates you with a quick hug and an excited hop.

"He said yes." Your voice betrays your relief, and Cadence notices.

"You don't sound too happy about it, though."

"I'm relieved he said yes, but what now? What if I mess up?"

"Oh, Y/N." She gives you a big hug and trues to get you to look at her in the eyes. "You don't need to worry about 'messing up.' You should be celebrating! Why don't we go get ice cream after school today? Your section doesn't have sectionals, and I don't have any drum major responsibilities to deal with." The thought of hanging out with Cadence does relax your mind a bit. So you agree. "Great! I'll see you after school then. Let's get going, before we're late." She tugs on your sleeve and the two of you walk together back to class.

The ice cream date with Cadence definitely helped ease your worries. Not fully, but you felt much better afterwards. Cadence had a way of encouraging and boosting everyone's spirits; which is probably why she was a great leader. Some of her advice kept ringing in your head on your way home.

"You seriously just need to be yourself. I'm not super close with him, but I know that he likes it when people are honest."

Be myself... That can be so hard when you really want someone to like you.

After pulling into the driveway at home, you realize you're going to have to break the news to your parents. They're going to flip. Your grip tightens on the steering wheel before you sigh and head to the front door of you house. The key stays in the lock for a moment longer as you gather your thoughts and swing the door open. "I'm home!"

You can hear your dad cooking in the kitchen as Mom is vacuuming the living room. When she sees you walk through the door she gives her usual warm smile. "Welcome back, sweetie. How was school?"

"Good. I, uh, got a date to homecoming." You mention casually, kicking your shoes off by the front door. This sudden news causes your mom to gasp very dramatically and she nearly drops the vacuum to rush over to you.

"Really? That's great! Who is he? Or she?" She adds with raised brows, guiding you with her arm around your shoulders to the kitchen where Dad is whipping up something delicious for dinner. "Honey, Y/N has a date to homecoming!" She exclaims, squeezing your shoulders.

"Oh yeah? Who's the lucky fella?" He asks over the sizzling of food in the pan.

"Um, his name's Aaron. He plays snare in band with me." You bite your lip, hoping your nervous energy dissipates soon. "You've probably seen him before at our performances."

Mom nods. "Ooh, I remember. He's a handsome young man, I can see why you said yes."

"Oh, well, I asked him, actually." You laugh awkwardly.

"Good on you, Y/N! That's a very brave thing to do." Dad chips into the conversation as he focuses on cooking your guys' dinner.

"Are you going to want a new outfit? Or do you want to wear the one from last year?" Mom is obviously ready to take you shopping if you want to. You have a casual conversation with Mom and Dad about when homecoming is and what you want to do for your outfit. You decide on going shopping with Cadence and your mom for a new one.

After dinner you get yourself ready for bed, shooting Cadence a couple texts to plan on your shopping trip this weekend. Not having a home football game on Friday will be very nice, so you and your best friend decide on doing a sleepover and shopping trip on the next day.

You're going to be the best dressed, we'll make sure of that!

You smile at her text and throw your phone on the charger with a smile. Maybe this won't be so bad... You think to yourself before falling asleep for the night.

The next morning you head off to band rehearsal, and your anxieties return once you remember you have to go through the days leading up to the dance. You don't know why you were so nervous; he said yes. He could've easily said no, right? It seemed like he only agreed since he thought you were desperate for a date. Did you seem desperate?

The anxious thoughts were running through your head all morning at rehearsal. You missed a couple step-offs and Wiley even called you out on the stadium microphone once. Cadence kept giving you sympathetic glances whenever you passed the podium. You could feel Aaron's piercing gaze on you the entire time, even if he was standing behind you with the drumline most of the rehearsal. You were more than happy to rush off the field once morning practice was over, and quickly put your instrument away in your band locker.

"Y/N." The familiar voice of Aaron rings in the air and you turn towards him. He still has his harness and snare on. "Are you really trying to avoid me?" A playful lilt in his voice lets you know he's not really upset.

"Uh, maybe?" You answer honestly.

"I'll walk you to class." He says shortly and turns to go to the battery lockers. "Don't run off without me." The teasing tone returns, and you sigh, waiting for him by the band doors.

Cadence catches you, slinging her backpack over her shoulder. "Ready to go?"

"Oh, right..." You glance over to Aaron nervously. "Aaron... said he'd walk me to class." Your best friend tries her hardest not to squeal and hop with excitement.

"This is good! Right?" She furrows a brow at the question to make sure she's correct.

"I guess..." You rub your arm nervously. "Yeah, it's good."

"Well, I'll see you after lunch then." She winks and takes her leave just as Aaron is walking up to you with his neutral, almost deadpan face.

"Let's go." He nods towards the door and you follow. "What's your next class?" He walks a little close to you in the crowded hall.

You answer shortly. "Physics." He nods and without another word the two of you make your way on your usual path to your first class of the day.

The silence eats at you, but you know Aaron well enough to know that if he has something to say, he'll say it. And he does. "You know, if I'm going to be your date to homecoming, you're going to have to get used to not getting so nervous around me." Without even looking at him you can just hear the smirk he has on his face.

"Yeah, I know..." You huff and cross your arms.

"So I'll walk you to class from now on."

"Do I get a say in this?"

"No." You look over and he's giving you a mischievous side eye. "You're stuck with me." Your heart skips a beat and you look away quickly to hide the blush on your cheeks.

Soon enough you make it to the physics room and you stop outside the doors. "Thanks for walking me." You face him and see his yellow eyes trained on you, neutral and hard to read as always.

"I'll see you at lunch." He puts his hands in his pockets and turns to walk away.

"Do I get a say in it?" You manage to get out in a playful tone.

"Of course not." He smiles as he fades into the crowd of students trying to get to class on time. You look down with a smile, entering the classroom with that giddy smile still plastered on your face. Some of your classmates are also bandmates and are whispering with one another. Normally you'd probably be bothered by it, but, despite your obvious anxiety, you were pretty happy. Despite your awkwardness on the situation, you were looking forward to lunch that day.

For the next week the routine stayed the same: after band Aaron would walk you to your class. If you didn't have band that morning due to the block scheduling, he'd still wait for you at the band room since Wiley let people practice in there before school and you were one of the few who actually came in to practice. Aaron was right to get you used to not being nervous around him; you did start to relax a bit after having him walk you around for a week. Those butterflies would still work their way into your stomach, but you were able to hold actual conversations with him.

During that week he messaged you after school.

For scientific reasons: What color are you wearing for the dance?

You message him your answer.

Cool. See ya tomorrow.

"What's got you smiling so much, sweetie?" Mom prods you while you're watching a show with her in the living room.

"Nothing." Your giddy smile betrays your attempt at lying, but Mom always knows, and her knowing look is on you.

"Uh-huh. I'm sure it has nothing to do with your little drummer boy."

"Mom!" You hit her playfully and she laughs and you continue watching your show together.

The homecoming football game was finally upon you. The halftime show performance actually went pretty well, considering you only had the opener and part of the ballad on the field. Third period of the game was always your free period to get food and get changed out of your uniforms. While sitting in the stands chatting with Cadence and your other friends, you catch Aaron's gaze and wave to him. He gives a small wave back and turns back to the conversation he's having with the drumline.

"So, you and Aaron, huh?" Susie nudges you and you suddenly get bashful.

"It's nothing."

"It certainly doesn't seem like 'nothing!'" She looks over at Cadence for some help, and she nods in agreement.

"There's definitely something there."

"Well I'm telling you, it's nothing at the moment." The sudden shift of attention on you leaves you scrambling to find something else to talk about.

Susie shakes her head. "Girl, he's walking you to your classes and tries to have lunch with you sometimes. He might not say anything about it, but his actions are showing he's interested." She looks over the group's heads over to him, then lowers it back down. "I don't think I've ever seen him give one person so much attention."

"Ahhh, whatever." You look away from the group's eyes on you.

You weren't sure why you were so convinced that it was nothing. Yeah, it made you giddy whenever you saw his name pop up on your phone, or when he would walk you to class, but when you'd originally asked him to go he made it sound like he was only going to make sure you didn't go alone. Out of the kindness of his heart. Maybe you didn't want to get your hopes up for something that might not be there? The conversation quickly shifts to something else and the football game continues. You guys lose, but that's okay; the band always wins.

As you're pulling your coat on to head out to your car, you sense someone standing close by and look up. Aaron's familiar silhouette is leaning against the door frame with his hands in his pockets. "I'll walk you out to your car." He doesn't even ask, but you reply with the usual.

"Do I get a say?"

"Nope."

He follows you out into the cool fall night. Most of the crowd from the game are still waiting to get out of the parking lot, so it will probably be awhile before you can even leave. You make it to the spot in the far corner where your car is parked and you look over at him with a ghost of a smile on your face.

"So, you can finally look me in the eyes, eh?" He leans on your car, hands still in his pockets.

"Sure." You roll your eyes and mirror his stance. "Don't feel so flattered."

"Never." He lets out a little chuckle and you do end up looking away. "I'll pick you up tomorrow. Send me your address." You nod and pull out your phone to text it to him.

"Fair warning, my parents will want tons of pictures."

"You'll have to send them to me. My parents won't rest until they have those pictures." He jokes, causing you to laugh. When you open your eyes again he's staring at you, with a slight hint of... fondness? He takes one of his hands out of his pocket and cautiously reaches out to your hair. "You got a little something there." He pulls out a small piece of a dried up leaf that must've fallen into your hair at some point during the game. His hand lingers in the air for a moment, as if he's debating his next move, but decides against it and returns his hand back into his pocket. "I'll see you tomorrow. Good night, Y/N." He stands up from leaning on your car and walks off without another word.

"Night." You manage to get out, flustered from the exchange, and watch him walk off to his own car several rows away. Your heart is pounding in your ears, and all you can seem to do is just stand and stare at the back of his head. You were going to be a mess tomorrow, you could already tell.

Part 2 ->

You continue with morning rehearsal as normal, and as you are returning back to the band room, you hear the clatter of drumsticks and a snare as Aaron rushes to catch up with you. "Hey, what's up?" You look over at your friend with a friendly smile.

"What are you doing on Sunday?" He sets his sticks back into the pouch attached to his snare, and comfortably rests his hands on the drumhead.

Your eyes wander up as you think if you had anything planned the day after the next competition. "Probably just catching up on some sleep. Why?"

Aaron pauses, as if he's regretting bringing it up, but follows through. "My cousin is having a quinceañera, and she's letting me bring a friend. Would you like to go with me?"

You tilt your head, confused. "A quinceañera?"

Aaron nods. "It's a birthday party thrown when a girl turns 15. Kind of like a sweet 16 but on steroids."

You nod back. "That sounds like fun! I'd love to go." He seems relieved at your answer, and you two chat about the competition coming up this weekend on your way back to the band room.

Saturday passes quickly, you all did pretty well at the competition, all things considered. Still not quite where Wiley would like to be but you all felt good about your performance.

Sunday rolls around, and you try your best to make sure you get up on time. The competition made it a late night for them, and you would feel awful if you slept through your plans. The alarm going off from your phone blares in your brain, and you grumble as you reach over to turn it off. Shortly after, you see a message pop up from Aaron.

You up yet?

You text back

Barely

and get up out of bed with a stretch of your arms. It's around 11 am, and your parents have obviously made some breakfast; you can smell it from your bedroom. You swing your feet from your bed and drag them as you make your way to the kitchen. For this Sunday, your parents have made the works: pancakes, eggs, bacon, and toast. Like usual, a plate has been set aside for you in the microwave. It was expected that you slept in on Sundays due to your competitions that occurred on Saturdays.

Later that day Aaron's name pops up on your phone's notifications.

You better be ready. I'm here.

Normally that would come off as aggressive from most people, but you'd been friends with Aaron long enough to know his sense of humor. You bid your parents farewell, not before they stress your curfew, and head out to his car. Once you get buckled in you look over to your friend in the driver's seat. He gives a small smile before backing out of the driveway and navigating the two of you to the venue.

"So, what can I expect tonight?" You break the silence.

"Lots of good food and dancing." He nods at the notion, keeping his eyes in the road.

"I'm not going to lie, my favorite part about birthday parties is the cake." You chuckle. "You'll have to show me some moves, because I am not the best dancer."

Aaron's lips curl into a sly smile. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't make yourself look that much like a fool."

"Oh, great!" You throw your hands up in the air dramatically, but smile.

The drive is a little longer than you expected, but you both make it there as many more of the attendees do. The venue is pretty nice, and when you walk in your senses are inundated with stimulation: there are balloons, streamers, and other party decorations everywhere, all matching the color scheme of a magenta and dark purple; the smell of food wafts from a line of tables in the back corner; and what you guess is salsa music is blasting from the speakers though no one is dancing quite yet. The two of you walk over to the tables to find empty seats, Aaron guiding the way with his hands casually in his pockets, and you are eventually approached by women you assume to be his relatives.

"Hola, chulo**!" A middle aged woman greets with a hug smile and grabs his face, squeezing his face endearingly, and kisses his cheeks. They all exchange the same greeting, though not with as much energy as the first.

**term of endearment for a boy or man meaning cute/handsome

"Esta es tu novia?" (Is this your girlfriend?) The oldest woman in the group gestures to you and Aaron stiffens up.

"No, abuela. No ella es mi novia..." (No, grandma, she's not my girlfriend.)

They all look over at you with a smile and Aaron introduces them. The middle aged women being his aunts and the oldest woman being his grandmother. "It's very nice to meet you all." You smile at the group.

One of his aunts gently nudges him, muttering, "Que linda! Ella debería ser tu novia." (How pretty! She should be your girlfriend.) Aaron groans and they start to speak English with you, asking some questions about yourself. When they leave to find their own seats, you look at Aaron, impressed.

"You never told me you could speak Spanish."

"You never asked; and it never came up." He shrugs and sits back down. "Sorry if you felt a little left out in that conversation. I promise we're not doing it so you don't know what we're saying. They said you were really pretty." He glances over at you to hear your reaction.

You find yourself feeling bashful at their compliment, and wave your hands. "No! It's fine, I swear."

The two of you chat a little more as the venue fills with more and more family and friends. Soon the table you're sitting at is full of more people and you suddenly feel a little overwhelmed. The chatter of conversations, both in English and Spanish, buzz across the room, and the music is still blasting as everyone starts to settle in. Aaron notices your stiff posture, and leans in closer to you. "Doing okay?"

Surprised by his face suddenly getting close to yours, you can't help but inhale sharply, but answer back, "Yeah, I'm fine." He nods and crosses his arms as he sits back in his chair. The chatter dies down when someone walks up to the microphone at the head of the room and starts the festivities.

The party begins with the food, and you follow Aaron over to where it's set up, waiting in line patiently. When you grab your plates, he starts to explain what's in a lot of the dishes you see before you. There's some common foods like spaghetti, but you elect to try some of the chicken and rice that you keep smelling.

The food was delicious, you even go back for seconds at one point, and Aaron laughs when you return. "You'll have to come over and have some of our food some time, if you love that so much."

"Are you inviting me to dinner at your house, Aaron?" You ask playfully, nudging him with your elbow.

"And if I am?" His gaze bores into you, leaving you flustered since you weren't expecting that reaction.

"Uh, then I'd happily accept. This food is amazing!" You try to feign confidence and dig into your plate of seconds.

The chatter dies down once again, and the girl of the hour stands up from the head table. She gives a little speech thanking everyone for coming, and then she and her group of people sitting up there with her get up to do a practiced dance over on the dance floor. "She asked me if I wanted to do that with her, I'm honestly kind of regretting saying no." He leans his head in his hand propped up on the table.

"Why'd you say no?" You tilt your head.

"I... honestly don't know." He shrugs. "But it would've been fun to show off for you." He smirks and you roll your eyes.

"Anything to show off, right?" You add a little laugh.

Aaron leans in a little closer to whisper in your ear. "She was pretty disappointed when I said no. She told me not to tell anyone else, but I'm her favorite cousin." He backs up to see your reaction to this.

"You really like to butter yourself up, don't you?" You tease with a playful grin.

"Only to try and impress you." He quips back and you swear you see him swiftly look away to avoid your eyes, but he's watching his cousin's dance. After another moment of watching them, he looks back over at you. "That's the only reason l reason why she let me invite you; it was going to be family and close friends only but she can't say no to me." After he says this, his cousin's dance ends, and many of the attendees stand up and make their way to the dance floor. Aaron also starts to stand up, looking down at you. "Do you want to dance for a bit?" His yellow eyes look hopeful that you'll agree.

"I think I'll sit out for a bit. I'll come in a second though." You reassure, starting to feel butterflies intensify in your stomach. He nods and goes to join his family for some dancing. Though tempted to pull out your phone, you feel it would be a little rude to do so, and decide to watch the many family members dancing. There are several young kids running around playing with one another, and you find yourself laughing quietly when they run into one another or an adult.

You see Aaron dancing with his cousin, who sports a beautiful and puffy dress that matches the magenta decorations. She has a tiara on her head that sparkles from the lights of the room, and her makeup is done beautifully. They're all smiling and laughing, which is rare for you to see such genuine smiles on Aaron's face. Suddenly you see his cousin approaching you, alone. She sits in the chair next to you and smiles. "Hi! I'm Aaron's cousin, Camila. Are you having a good time so far?" She has a very upbeat and bubbly voice, and seems totally comfortable talking with a stranger.

You introduce yourself. "I'm having a lot of fun, thank you for having me."

"Oh I know of you: Aaron talks about you all the time." This catches you off guard and you look away with a nervous smile.

"Does he now?"

She has a mischievous grin on her face and Camila then leans in, covering her mouth from the side to tell you a secret. "You can't tell him I told you this, but I think he's got a crush on you." Your face instantly feels hot and you know that your cheeks are red. "That's honestly why I told him to bring you. I think you should go dance with him." She stands up and holds her hands out to help you out of your seat. This sudden invitation leaves you a little speechless for a second. "Oh c'mon! He'll be glad to dance with you." You shrug to yourself and take her hands, letting her pull you out to the dance floor.

The two of you weave through the crowd and find Aaron dancing with a couple of of the younger kids. "Baila con tu novia." (Dance with your girlfriend.) You hear her say to Aaron with that mischievous grin of hers and she gently pushes you towards him. He squints his eyes at her, grumbling something you can't hear above the loud music, and lets Camila dance with the kids he was previously dancing with.

He leans closer to your ear so you can hear him better. "I see Camila convinced you to come dance with us."

There's a nervous smile on your face. "Yeah, she was pretty insistent."

Aaron nods and leans in again "Sounds like Camila." You stand there awkwardly, watching the other adults dancing in pairs to the fast-paced music. You had never really danced, let alone to latin music before. "Here, I'll teach you." He holds out his hands to take yours and guide you to the proper dancing position. He places your left hand on his shoulder, and gently grasps your right hand in his, and then he places his free hand on your side, a little higher than your waist. You look and feel very stiff while trying to keep a good distance between your bodies.

"Okay, we're in marching band, so I hope you know how to step in time." He snickers, and continues. "This will be a little weird, but you're going to start on your right foot and do this." He shifts his weight between his feet, bending one leg and then switching to the other as he shifts his weight. "And keep your upper body still, it's all in the hips." He looks into your eyes. "Ready?"

"As I'll ever be." You drown out your anxiety with a smile and he takes the lead. As you dance through the current song, you stumble and mess up several times, but at least you keep your feet in time. After a couple tries you start to get the hang of it, though not nearly as fluid as the rest of his family dancing around you.

"Let's try a spin." He doesn't give you the chance to react and goes right for it. You spin the opposite way and trip, falling backwards into Aaron. A squeal of surprise escapes your mouth, but you feel his arms catch you effortlessly. "I did not think you were going to butcher that so badly." He whispers in your ear and you feel the butterflies return in your stomach. "We'll just have to practice more another time." He turns you back around to face him.

Remembering Camila's words, you decide to take a chance and be a little bold. "First dinner, now dancing? Aaron, it sounds like you're trying to take me on a date."

He leans his forehead on yours as you continue dancing again. "Maybe I am. Though, I kinda don't want you to get better at dancing; I like being able to catch you if you fall." As you roll your eyes, you catch Camila's eyes and she gives you a big thumb's up. You spend the rest of the night dancing with Aaron, getting a little better with each song. As the party goes on you look forward to your d with Aaron in the future with a giddy smile on your face, content with being his dance partner for the evening.

Dinner goes well. You met a couple percussionists you weren't super close with. They're usually off in their own world and are all pretty close with one another so you never really found the chance to get to know them more. Surprisingly enough most of them didn't seem to have dates; just Aaron and one other girl in the group. It was awkward at first, but they were all so friendly and goofy that you were able to relax by the time you guys got your food. You were able to chip into the conversation every now and then, and even got the group to tease Aaron a bit.

"Y/N." Aaron quietly taps your arm. You look over to him and he points to your face. "You have some leftovers." And without waiting he takes his napkin and gently wipes it from your chin. Your face obviously goes red and you thank him quietly. Some of the other members of the group are smirking over to Aaron who ignores them and continues eating his food.

After everyone is done eating the group disperses to their respective rides and we all meet each other back at school for the dance. It was a quick, comfortably silent drive between you and Aaron, and when you arrive you almost immediately hear Cadence's excited squeal.

"Y/N! You look so pretty!" She gives you a big bear hug and you swear you can hear your ribs popping. "And hello, Aaron." She greets with a smile.

"Hey Cadence."

You pull your best friend away and take a look at her dress. "You look gorgeous, girl." You also greet Tom, her date for the night, and he smiles widely.

"Let's head inside, yeah?" Cadence takes you by the hand and leaves the boys behind. "So... how's it going so far?" She links an arm with you and you smile.

"Pretty good, I think." Cadence nods in approval.

"If he does anything to hurt you, I'll kill him for you." She jokes with a nudge.

You laugh and add, "You'll have to wait in line; I'm sure my parents will do the same." You separate to go back to your date's side again. The doors to the school open and the sea of students start to file in. Once inside you get out the tickets for the student working the admission table and stand close to Aaron in the crowd of students making their way towards the gym. He puts a protective arm around your shoulders.

"Doing okay?"

"Yup!" You try your best not to squeal out in shock at the sudden feel of his arm around your shoulders.

The theme for the dance was "Neverland," like Peter Pan. The homecoming committee did a great job decorating and planning this. The balloons and cutouts looked wonderful and so detailed. They definitely got some art or theater kids to help out. As people started to settle in, the DJ started to play some more upbeat and fun songs to dance to.

Cadence and Tom were already tearing up the dance floor with their goofy moves. When Cadence catches your eyes she pretends to throw an imaginary lasso to you, beckoning you to join her. At first you're hesitant, but her advice rings in your mind. "Just be yourself." You turn to Aaron and grab his arm gently. "C'mon." You nod towards Cadence and Tom, and he slowly walks over to your friends being goofy as ever. You join them in their chaotic dancing and Aaron just swings side to side with a slight smile on his face. After a while, you walk up to him, grabbing his arms and start to wave them around like a crazy puppet.

He laughs and smiles down at you. "You call this dancing?"

With a shake of your head you answer, "No, but it's still fun. Would you rather do the marching show visuals?"

"Hell no." He laughs again and joins you in your silly dancing, though not with the same vigor as Cadence and Tom.

The night goes on; with you dancing crazy with Cadence and Tom, joining the inevitable conga line, and finding dance circles with other band friends. Aaron ducks off for a few minutes now and then, letting you know he's gonna talk with some percussion friends, but always returns promptly.

You find yourself exhausted from all the fun, and Aaron notices. "Want to step outside for a bit?" He's taken his coat off for the time being and has his hands in his pockets. You nod, letting Cadence know you're going outside for a breather.

When the cool fall air hits your skin you immediately feel better. You didn't realize how stuffy it was in the gym until you came out here. The two of you find a nearby bench and sit in silence. After a minute or two, the cool air starts to settle in and you shiver a bit; realizing you left your coat in his car. The sensation doesn't last long, because you feel something drape over your shoulders. Aaron has lent you his coat and once again stuffs his hands in his pockets. "Did you forget your jacket on purpose?" He raises a brow with that smirk of his.

"I'll have you know, I didn't think I'd need it."

"Sure you did." He nudges you and you push back playfully. "Having fun tonight?" He asks after the two of you settle down.

"I am." You reply, still giggling from pushing him.

"Good." He nods. "I'm glad I didn't stay home tonight."

You simmer on the question that had been bothering you since you asked him to the dance. "Why did you change your mind?"

"Because you asked me. And you obviously were to scared to go all by yourself." He doesn't skip a beat on answering.

"Oh."

He glances over at you, hearing your slight disappointment in his answer. "I mean it, it's because you asked me. I wouldn't waste your time, Y/N." You sit up a little straighter at the shift in his tone from teasing to something a little more firm and serious. "I wouldn't have said yes if I thought it was a waste of time. I wanted to spend time with you." He's now avoiding your surprised look, shocked with what he's admitting to you right now.

"That's good to hear..." You nod and pull his coat around your shoulders a little tighter.

"Do I have to spell it out for you? I like you, Y/N. That's why I said yes." He's now looking directly at you, with an apparent vulnerability in those normally neutral eyes. You take a couple deep breaths.

"Good, because that's really why I asked." You laugh nervously.

"I know. It was pretty obvious." There's a twinkle in his eyes.

Your mouth hands open in shock. "Then why--" was he pretending to only do it for fun like that?

He cuts you off. "Because I thought it was cute seeing you nervous like this." He flinches when you playfully punch him in the arm. "Hey!" He laughs an infectious laugh, causing you to join in. Once the two of you settle down he stands up holding out a hand to help you up. "Ready to head back inside? It's getting colder out here." You accept the hand, stand up next to him, and link an arm around his. He leads the way back inside, and your friends' eyes are all on you.

"Welcome back!" Cadence's eyes shift between the two of you real quick, noticing his coat around your shoulders. You slightly widen your eyes at her silently saying I'll tell you later, and she catches on right away.

Soon it's nearing the end of the dance, and the DJ turns on a slow song. The couples, and some groups of friends, gather on the dance floor for the final songs of the night. You stare on and feel a tap on your shoulder. "Are you going to ask me to dance or what?" Aaron holds out his hand and you take it.

"I, uh, don't know how to do this." You admit nervously.

"Don't worry, just follow my lead." He assures softly and you feel the storm of butterflies form in your stomach. He takes your hands and rests them on his shoulders around his neck and then his hands hover near your waist. "May I?" He awaits your answer patiently. After you nod, he gently goes through with the motion and starts to sway side to side. "See? You got the hang of it already. It's that easy."

The song goes on and on, and it feels like time has slowed down for you. He leans his forehead on yours, a small content smile splayed across his face. "Did you have fun tonight?" He asks once more and you nod.

"Yeah." A smile forms as you reminisce the night's events, with all its twists and turns.

"Good." He hums.

"Did you?" You shift your hands nervously behind his neck.

"Yup." His reply short and sweet. The two of you away side to side a little longer before he speaks up again. "I'm glad you asked me. Don't tell anyone this, but I was too scared to ask you myself."

"I don't believe that." You slightly tilt your head to the side.

"It's true. I was honestly terrified." He assures and you shake your head.

"You can thank Cadence for that; she's the one who convinced me to do it." He chuckles softly and once the song is over his hands leave where they were sitting in your waist and you untangle your hands from around his neck. You didn't want this moment to end. The ghost feeling of his hands on your waist lingers as you daydream about the dance you just shared. Your thoughts are interrupted as the DJ starts to play one more exciting song to end the night, but Aaron takes your hand.

"Let's try to beat the crowd out of here." You say your goodbyes to your friends and the two of you walk to his car, hand in hand. Once again he opens the passenger door for you, shutting it when you are fully seated, and he starts the car. The whole way back he holds your hand, while you lean on the car door, trying not to fall asleep from the night's activities.

You feel the car slow to a stop and hear him shift the gear into park. "Thank you for the fun night." He strokes your hand softly with his thumb.

"Of course." You reply, eyes heavy with sleep. "I had a lot of fun too."

You stare at one another for what seems like forever before he leans a little closer. "Can--Can I kiss you, Y/N?" His yellow eyes await your answer patiently.

The question catches you off guard. "Yeah." You nod and lean in towards him. It's over just as quick as it started, as he gives you a quick peck on the cheek. You reach up a hand to where his lips met your cheek, and he gets out of the car to open your door for you. He takes your hand and helps you up to your feet, keeping a gentle but firm grasp on your hand all the way to your front door.

"I'll see you on Monday." He holds your hand a little longer, squeezing gently before letting go and heading back to his car. You wave as he leaves and sigh. A light, joyful sigh, at that. You were so happy to have had taken the leap of faith and ask him, as it left you with a fond memory to look back upon. You really did have to thank Cadence for encouraging you to be braver. Thinking about Aaron's hand in yours, you turn back to your front door and step inside, hearing Aaron's car take off only once you're safely inside.

<;- Part 1

It was your first day back from winter break. Snow was still on the ground, and all your band mates were more than disgruntled to be back at school. Before the bell rang to signal the start of the class period, you sat with your friends in another section and caught up with one another on how your winter breaks went. Among the group is Tom, the resident class clown.

"Winter break is for catching up on my video games, of course!" He beams and some people roll their eyes, not shocked by his answer.

"When aren't you playing video games, Tom?" Someone asks with a brow raised.

Tom just shrugs. "When I'm at school, when I'm asleep, and when I'm at band." He lists off, holding up a finger for each example.

You all hear the bell ring, and notice Mr. Wiley stands up on the podium to signal that class was starting. "Alright people, for your third quarter summative assessment you will be working with a small ensemble of 3-5 people." A couple groans can be heard across the band at the sound of a group project. A couple students perk up in curiosity. Mr. Wiley continues. "It can be any type of music; rock, rap, classical." This seems to grab the attention of most of the students. "As long as it's school appropriate." He adds quickly, knowing that some would definitely try to work on something that wasn't appropriate for school. "You do not have to even use your band instruments. It's encouraged, but if you know how to play another instrument or want to utilize technology on this project, it will be allowed."

This causes the class to burst into low chatter. People are already starting to pick out who they want to be in their groups, and as Mr. Wiley hears this, he raises his hands in the air to quiet the group back down. "There is one catch, however." The room goes completely silent. "I have already picked your groups." Even more groans than before come from the students and you sigh. You were hoping to get together with some people in your section to do an easy small ensemble piece and get it over with. "We will perform a casual concert at the end of the quarter featuring all your groups. Please take this seriously." He shoots a look to Tom who raises his arms in a "Seriously?!" motion.

"Your groups are posted here on the board." Mr. Wiley points to the sheets of paper taped up on the board behind him. "We'll use the last 10 minutes of class for you to discuss and brainstorm ideas with your group. Get your instruments out and let's get started." You proceed to read through some new music for the next band concert. Some were a little trickier than you'd hoped, but nothing that the band couldn't handle with time.

After putting your instrument away, you walk up to the board, trying to look over and past the group huddled in front of the board. Finally, you were able to gently push past those who were trying to leave to find their group members, and found your name. You had two other people in your group:

Tom Rizzotto, Aaron Pace

This was definitely an interesting group; a percussionist, a trombonist, and you. There were no, if any, pieces to play with this group in the standard repertoire. The three of you were going to have to get creative. Being creative meant extra work, something you were hoping to avoid.

With a sigh, you go find your friend, who is still sitting in his chair with his feet propped up on the one in the row directly in front of him. "Hey, Y/N! What's up?" He smiles widely, and you take the chair next to him.

"We're partners for this 'project.'" You cross my leg and rest your chin in your hand, propped up on my leg.

"Sweet! Who else has the honor of working with moi?"

His question is answered as the two of you see Aaron approaching you, face deadpan and obviously not happy with this project. If you could take a guess, it was probably because he was a senior and his senior-itis was already settling in. "Aaron!" Tom exclaims as if they're the best of friends, but Aaron's piercing gaze doesn't falter. "So, we need to come up with what we're going to do for this project, right?"

"Yup." Aaron straddles the chair with Tom's feet on them so that he is facing the two of you, and gently pushes Tom's shoes off. A silence falls between the three of you. You're looking between the two of them, hoping someone comes up with something to say.

Tom speaks up. "Well... let's start with this: Aaron's got the most flexibility since there are tons of percussion instruments to play, right? I, admittedly, can't play anything else other than the trombone. That leaves you, Y/N," He directs the attention of the conversation to you. "You play guitar, right?"

He was correct; you were one of the only people in the band that played guitar and got stuck playing for the show choir, jazz bands, and musicals every year for the past three years. "Yeah, I do." The gears start to turn in your head, and you come up with an idea. "We... can make our group a ska band." This even gets the attention of Aaron, who was obviously uninterested up until you gave your suggestion. "Trombone's very popularly used in ska, and Aaron and I can cover the rock elements in the group; he'll play trap, and I'll play guitar." Aaron nods, agreeing with your idea. "You'll be happy to hear that you'll be allowed to play loud, Tom." You add with a smirk, and he beams at this.

"Hell yeah! I don't know how to play any other way!"

You look up at the clock; the bell is set to ring any moment now. "Tom, I have your number, but Aaron, you might want ours so we can coordinate rehearsals and all that." You pull out your phone, exchange phone numbers, and grab your bag as the bell rings. "See you two later." You wave and start to make your way to your next class.

At lunch you finally had the chance to make the group chat for your group project and shot everyone a message.

You 11:16 AM Hello boys, we'll use this group for logistics.

You wait a moment, and then furiously type an addition.

You 11:16 AM No memes, Tom.

You don’t expect a reply back so soon, knowing Tom is in class right now, but sure enough his name pops up.

Tom 11:17 AM 🥺

You 11:18 AM I'm serious, Aaron has to suffer with every message we send. This is for logistics only.

Tom seems to get the hint and doesn't reply after. Even he seems to be intimidated by the lead snare player.

The rest of the day rolls by like normal, and after you get home, you settle down in your room for a break before working on some homework. You remember your performance project and, with a sigh, pull out your phone to message the boys.

You 4:34 PM Alright, boys. We gotta figure out when and where we can meet for our project stuff. What's the best day to get together during the week?

You scroll through some social media before you get a reply from Aaron.

Aaron 4:40 PM Mondays before school would be best for me.

Tom 4:41 PM Before school?! :o

You 4:42 PM That works fine for me as well.

There's a short pause before your phone pings again.

Tom 4:45 PM Fine... Mondays before school it is. T_T

You knew Tom wasn't fond of being at school earlier than he needed to be, but honestly it worked better. You probably had a better chance of scoring a practice room, too, so you were glad Aaron had suggested it.

You 4:51 PM I think we should meet before school tomorrow to brainstorm some songs we can play. That way we have something to work off of

Tom 4:52 PM Tomorrow morning?!

You 4:52 PM Thomas...

Aaron 4:53 PM Band room. 20 minutes before school starts. See you then.

Tom 4:53 PM Ah! They used my full name! I'll be there, don't worry!

You laugh to yourself at Tom's antics and start to scroll through Spotify to find some good ska songs to find tabs for. You're probably going to have to write up a trombone part for Tom, but if you find something simple it shouldn't be too hard. Can't go wrong with The Impression That I Get from The Mighty Mighty Bosstones; everyone knows that one, and there's sure to be music for it out there. Your curiosity has gotten the best of you, and you start to scour the internet for some music.

Unsurprisingly, most of them you have to pay for, but you thought you remembered seeing it in the pep band books. I'll have to ask Wiley tomorrow if we have the score in the music library somewhere. You realize you're getting a little ahead of yourself; you haven't had the chance to run it by the boys yet. With this, you stand up from your bed, head to your desk to put some headphones on, and get started on your homework for the day.

The next morning you arrive first at the band room. Mr. Wiley seems surprised to see you so early, considering there were no sectionals or rehearsals going on. As you sit in the band room scrolling on your phone, he pokes his head from his office. "What are you doing here so early, Y/N?"

"I'm meeting my group for our project."

He seems to perk up at this and a proud smile spreads across his face. "Seems your group will do a great job! I don't think any other group has decided to come in early or stay late yet. My hope is that they're meeting outside school." He adds, obviously not fully believing his hopes. "Well, have a good rest of your day, Y/N!" He hides back in his office, and you give a wave, turning your attention back to your phone.

"Hey."

You look up and see Aaron standing in the doorway with his backpack slung over one shoulder, other hand in his pocket. "Good morning." You tuck your phone in your pocket, not before checking the time. Tom had about two minutes before he was late. Before you could say anything more to Aaron, you hear quick footsteps emanating from the hall and Tom comes trudging in, panting as he enters. "How nice of you to join us, Tom." You say with a playful tone.

He takes a few deep breaths before standing up straight again. "I did not want to be on your bad side this morning." He laughs. "So, any of you have any ideas for songs we could do?" You look between the two boys, wanting to give them a chance to share if they had any. The awkward silence settles in like it always seems to between the three of you, so you let out a very soft, almost indiscernible, sigh.

"Well, we can do one everyone knows. The Impression that I Get." Tom seems to have a puzzled look, searching his brain for a memory of the song. "Tom! You can't tell me you don't know this." You look at Aaron. "Please tell me you know this one." Thankfully, he nods without a word. You pull your phone out and pull up the song for Tom to listen to. "You've most definitely at least heard it before." He listens for several seconds before the chorus comes in.

"Oooh. That one!" He nods as you turn the music off. "I remember that one."

"I might have to arrange this for you, but it's doable." You turn to Aaron. "Think you could pick up the trap part from listening to it?" Another nod. "I can find the tab for this, that's no problem." You look up at the clock and you still have plenty of time before you need to go to your first class of the day. "That was easy, I'll see you two later." You stand up to go find Wiley about those pep band scores. Your hope was to get this song rehearsed and learned as soon as possible so you didn't have to worry about it any longer.

Monday came faster than you anticipated, and you were working furiously to arrange a trombone part for Tom. Using the pep band score helped a lot, but you also had to transpose the damn thing to the original key. Thank goodness for technology, though. It did all the transposing for you. You spent so much of the weekend writing the arrangement that your parents actually came in a few times to check in on you.

You arrive at school early with your guitar and amp in tow. Like always you were the first there, so you decided to grab a practice room with a trap set in it and started to practice your part. You had no time to practice it over the weekend since you were focused on getting Tom's part finished for this rehearsal. You were hoping Aaron could figure it out for himself. He was a very capable musician--hell, he was in drum corps for crying out loud! Why were you so worried?

A light rap on the door pulls you from your deep thoughts and you look up to see the drummer you were just worrying about before. Maybe if you thought about Tom enough it would summon him. You wave as he enters, giving a cheery "Good morning!" as he takes a seat behind the trap set.

"Yo." He acknowledges and starts to adjust the trap set to his liking. An awkward and tense silence settles between you two as you pretend to tune your guitar--again.

"So... did you have a chance to listen to the song a bit?" He answers with a quiet nod and "mhm," starting to tap away at the snare and hi hat. "Figure it out okay? I was hoping to start practicing through some of it today now that I have Tom's part written."

"Shouldn't be a problem." His short curt answers make it really difficult to try and make any conversation with him. He seems just as ready to get done with this project as you are. Any awkward silence is saved by Tom's abrupt arrival.

The door swings open and Tom is lugging his trombone case at his side. "Mornin." He greets with his usual smile and sets his trombone down on one of the chairs. Aaron nods, and you give a wave. The room is a little snug with all our equipment, but you'll have to make it work. "Ready to get our ska on?" He surprisingly has a lot of energy for someone who was complaining about coming in early.

You fish out the music you printed off for him and hold it out. The three of you proceed to sightread through the music, and Aaron is definitely carrying the two of you. You were very impressed with how well he could play with only having a few days to have a look at it. It was no wonder he was the lead snare and in drum corps. Tom kept forgetting his key signature, even though we were playing slow, but we were sightreading it after all.

The 20 minutes fly by, and Aaron stands up, putting his sticks in his backpack. "I'll see you two again next week." He gives a wave and heads out. It's not long before Tom breaks the silence with a nervous laugh.

"I sounded awful just now. Sorry."

"Tom, we were sightreading it. It wasn't going to be perfect." You rest a hand on his shoulder and as you look away you don't notice the blush forming on his cheeks.

"H-Hey, uh, Y/N?"

"What's up?" You sling your guitar over one shoulder, your backpack over the other.

"Want to walk to class together? We have the same class on these days, so..." His voice trails off, uncharacteristically quiet.

"Sure! Let me go put this away." You gesture to your guitar, and he follows you into the instrument locker room. The two of you walk side by side out into the hall that had grown increasingly more crowded within the 20 minutes you were in the practice room. "So, you think you'll be able to play what I wrote for you?" You bring up the project once more while trying to gently push your way through the crowd.

"I'll be fine, don't worry." He assures you and waves it off. "From what I saw, it looks doable. Just need some more time to practice." He gets shoved by another student, and you guys are pushed closer together. “Sorry!” He apologizes almost the second you touch, and you give a forgiving smile in return, oblivious to the reason why his face seems a little redder than normal.

“It’s fine! Do crowds make you nervous?”

“Not really, but right now it is.” His goofy demeanor returns and the two of you continue to push through the crowded halls.

Later that day you get a text in the group chat.

Aaron 3:40 PM It might be in our best interest to come a little earlier and to have another day in the week to rehearse.

You can't help but feel like that was a jab at you and Tom's abilities but try not to take it too personally. It was a sound strategy.

You 3:41 PM I agree. Probably on a weekend day; we're all pretty busy with our other activities.

Aaron 3:42 PM Saturday work okay? We can do it at my place; I don't want to attempt to lug around any equipment.

Tom 3:42 PM Can we do around like 3 or something?

You 3:43 PM How about 3:30 at Aaron's place?

Aaron 3:43 PM See you on Saturday.

He also sends his address and that's the end of that conversation.

As Saturday approaches you have been practicing through the music for your project as much as you can. Aaron's (probably?) passive aggressive text made you a little eager to prove him wrong, but also impress him. As one of the few guitar players in the band, you had a reputation to uphold. There was also something in you that was wanted some sort of approval from him.

As you stand at his front door, about to knock, you freeze. A sudden wave of anxiety and tension washes over you. You rap your knuckles against the door, letting the storm door shut slowly. While waiting you hear some shuffling and voices coming from inside and remember the wave of anxiety that hit you just a moment ago. You nervously adjust your clothes, making sure they weren't out of place and on correct. You glance at your reflection in the glass of the storm door and notice your hair looks a little frizzier than you thought, and you try your best to pat it down.

The moment you hear the door unlocking your hands shoot back to your sides and you stand there rigidly. On the other side of the storm door is Aaron, greeting you with a soft, "Yo."

"Hey." Your grip tightens on the strap of your guitar case on your shoulder. His piercing gaze eyes you for a moment, and you feel your hands getting clammy, before he opens the door to invite you in. What the hell is wrong with me? You think to yourself as you lean down to grab your amp and walk inside. A woman, who you assume is his mother looks up from the kitchen and smiles warmly.

"You must be Aaron's friend!" Mrs. Pace greets and looks to her son. She says something in another language--was that Spanish?--and Aaron's breath hitches, eyes widening slightly.

"Mami--" He hisses and rolls his eyes, turning his attention back to you. "Sorry, let's go. I'll take that." He points to your amp and before you can protest, takes it from you, and leads the way upstairs, presumably to his bedroom. Inside there's an area set up for his trap set, and it takes up most of the room, so it is rather snug in there. Some stray laundry is splayed throughout the room and his walls are covered in posters for many different drum corps. You especially notice the jacket he has hung up on a hook on the wall; a jacket with nice embroidery letters across the back written in the Yellow Jackets' font; the corps he marched with this past season.

He sets the amp down and finds an outlet to plug it into. "Sorry for the mess. I like to call it an organized mess." He lets out a whisper of a chuckle before heading over to his stool at his drum set. "You... can come in, you know."

You realize you'd been standing in his doorway staring off into space like a zombie, and you feel your face go flush. "Oh, yeah, sorry." You step inside and sit on his bed to get your guitar set up.

There's a long silence as you tune your strings, but he speaks up eventually. "Sorry... my room's a little tight for three people." You're so used to seeing an almost emotionless face on him, that you're surprised that he seems to have a hint of embarrassment as he avoids your eyes.

"Don't worry about it, Aaron. I'm sure you don't ever expect to have more than yourself in here." You take another glance at his room. "It's very... you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" He seems defensive, but as you look up you see a mischievous smirk.

"What do you mean, 'What's that supposed to mean?' If I were to imagine your bedroom, it'd probably look like this." You laugh along with the bit.

"So, you're imagining my bedroom now?" His head tilts, the fiendish grin still splayed across his lips. You stumble on your words at the sudden accusation, and scramble for a response. "I'm just messing with you, Y/N." He starts to tap away at his drum set and you wonder where the hell Tom is. As if on cue, you hear hurried footsteps coming from the stairs and Tom practically slides down the hall.

"Sorry! I took a wrong turn and got lost. I swear." He pants and quickly gets his trombone out. While he has his back turned you find your eyes looking over at Aaron who gives you a "Really?" look and you shrug. "I promise, next time I'll bring treats."

Rehearsal goes on, and you can tell Tom had actually practiced a bit. It was obvious he had a better grasp on the music, though he still blundered through parts of it. Aaron was able to keep up, as per usual, and you were able to play your part pretty well. After wrapping up a pretty productive rehearsal, Tom and Aaron both approach your amp to grab it for you. You have your head down and don't notice (you're putting your guitar back in its case) but the two exchange a strange look, before Aaron reacts quicker and picks up your amp.

Tom mentally shrugs it off, not thinking much of the exchange, and follows you back downstairs. The aroma of food being prepared makes its way to your noses as you stand near the front door. "Mijo, would your friends like to stay over for dinner tonight?" Aaron sighs, and you try to save him from further embarrassment.

"Oh, I have plans with my family tonight, sorry, Mrs. Pace." Tom says something along the same lines. "Maybe... next time, though?" You glance at Aaron, hoping you didn't just open a can of worms. He stares blankly at you, and you can't quite read what's going on behind those yellow eyes of his.

"I'll see you guys on Monday." Aaron hands you your amp, and you gladly accept it. After exchanging awkward goodbyes, you and Tom walk together to your cars.

"I'll get that for you," he offers, while leaning down to grab the amp from you.

"If you're itching to hold it so bad, here you go." You laugh and walk down the driveway to your respective cars. "So, is the music I wrote okay? Do I need to make any changes?"

Tom carries his trombone in one hand and your amp in the other. "Nothing yet! I'm sure you did a great job arranging it, Y/N. You're the smartest person I know." You wave off his praise and let out an exhale through your nostrils. "I'm serious, Y/N." His shift in tone causes you to look over at him, and he has a gentle smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. You're caught off guard by this sudden change but nod with an equally gentle smile.

"Thanks. You're pretty cool too, I guess."

This elicits a chuckle from Tom, and he stops at one of the back doors to your car. After loading up your car with your guitar equipment, Tom stands with his hands behind his back by the driver's side. "I'll see you next time, yeah?"