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I honestly cannot believe that we are already at chapter twelve! We only have a few more chapters to go before the epilogue and then Chasing Liam is finished. I'm both happy and also a little sad by this. How do you guys feel about us reaching the end? Happy to finally know what'll happen in the end or are you sad to see the story wrapping up?

Also up above is Brody.

~*~*~

Chapter Twelve

"Have you two gone on a date yet?" Liam sent Adam a surprised look. Liam had just finished telling Adam about the other night when Chase showed up at his door, but he actually hadn't been sure if he had been paying attention.

Adam has this very emotionless face and sometimes, especially when he's silent, it's honestly hard to tell whether he's listening and at attention or if he's zoning out and day dreaming. "So? Have you?" Adam urged him.

Shaking his head, Liam said, "Not yet."

"And why not?" He asked curious.

Liam shrugged not really knowing the answer. "The timing hasn't been right."

"The timing hasn't been right?" Adam repeating with a raised eyebrow. He scoffed. "Come on, man. What are you both waiting for? If a meteor struck the earth tomorrow you would regret waiting so long to go on that date."

He smiled humored by Adam's words. "Luckily the likeliness that we'll be struck by a meteor tomorrow is next to nothing. I think I'm safe."

"You know what I mean," Adam continued, "Do you really want to wake up thirty years from now with regrets? How would you feel looking back on your high school experiences and think what if?"

"I already do that," he grumbled.

Looking down Adam sighed at Liam's words. "I know. I do too . . . or at least I did." Liam waited for Adam to continue, "I told you before that I was expelled well I got into a lot of trouble after my sophomore year. I began to hang out with the wrong crowd so to speak. We would drink, get into trouble, and soon enough we began to get arrested. It was over stupid stuff like vandalism and public disturbances, but one night my buddies and I were drinking. We decided that it would be a brilliant idea to break into the school and graffiti the walls."

"You got busted," Liam figured.

Nodded, Adam confirmed it. "We got busted. That's why I was expelled. I was supposed to start here at the beginning of the year, but at the end of the summer I was in an accident. I wasn't drinking or anything. Honestly, I don't even remember what happened, but somehow, I ended up in the middle of a busy intersection and was t-boned. My car was totaled and I was in rough shape. I couldn't leave the hospital for several months, and by the time I did I was terrified of just about everything. It weeks before I was comfortable driving a car again."

"Why are you telling me this?" Liam wondered. He is glad his friend trusted him enough to share this, but a part of him couldn't help but wonder why.

"Maybe because I know what it's like to put your life on hold," he confessed. "The accident taught me something. As teenagers we tend to feel immortal in a way like nothing can happen to us, but that's not true. We can die at any moment and when I go I don't want to regret the things I didn't do or the love I didn't confess to. I want to be happy and proud of the life I lived. I refuse to have a single regret."

Smiling Liam understood what his friend meant. At times he feared for the decisions he's made in school. Would he look back at them someday and regret it? Would he be happy or ashamed of his life? Adam was right. Life is short and he didn't want to regret the things he did or didn't do in life.

"You're right," Liam admitted.

With a smug smile, Adam asked, "Do you think I can record that real quick? My mom would never believe it unless I had proof."

Rolling his eyes playfully, Liam pulled out his phone and dialed a familiar number as he walked away from Adam. The phone rang until it was eventually picked up. "Hey Chase. Quick question. Are you busy tonight?"

"No. Why what were you thinking?"

Liam opened his mouth to speak only to be overtaken by a sudden wave of nerves. "Well . . .uh. You see . . . maybe we could-"

"Are you trying to ask me on a date?" Chase guessed.

Smiling, he couldn't help but chuckle at the situation. "I'm trying. I don't know if it's going too well," he confessed.

"You're doing fine," Chase admitted. "I'll can borrow one of my dads' cars and pick you up later. Is seven okay?"

"Seven is great," he agreed.

The two said a few parting words before hanging up. Liam smiled to himself after ending the call. For so long he has been so scared of trusting and caring for someone, but in this moment, he wasn't scared. Liam was happy . . . very happy.

~*~*~

Liam couldn't wipe the smile off his face by the time he got home. Liz had made fun of him for it practically the entire drive, but he could care less. His mood was great and, in that moment, nothing could bring it down. He and Chase would be hanging out and going on a date later that night. Spending any time at all with Chase always made him happy.

Walking into the house, he was surprised to find his mom sitting on the couch with her feet propped up and a book in her hand. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun and she was wearing her reading glasses. She was dressed in a pair of old, ripped sweats that she has owned practically his entire life and one of his father's old college sweatshirts.

"Hey no work today?" He asked her.

She shook her head. "Today was one of my random day offs." Her work schedule wasn't a set one so her days off were pretty random.

Setting his backpack down at the door, Liam made his way to the kitchen for a snack. He was searching through the fridge when his mom yelled from the living room, "Do you have any plans tonight?"

He hesitated slightly, wondering what this was about. "Uh, yeah, I do. Why?"

"Oh, okay." Disappointment was littered in her voice.

"What's up?" He asked curiously as he walked back into the living room.

She was now sitting crisscross on the couch with her cell phone in her hand. "You know the man I've been seeing, Patrick?" He nodded slowly. Patrick was the guy that Bradley, one of Chase's dads, set her up with. They've gone on several dates already and apparently it seems to be getting serious.

"Yeah," he responded slowly.

"Well Patrick and I have been spending a lot of time together and we've been getting serious lately." Liam waited for her to continue. "Patrick wants to meet you."

"Oh," was the only word to escape his mouth. He wasn't sure what he expected her to say, but that wasn't it. He was surprised to say the least. His mother has never asked him to meet someone she dated before – although he also didn't know that she was dating until a few months ago.

It also didn't help that he didn't even know how he was supposed to be feeling in that moment. Should he be nervous about meeting his mother's boyfriend? Happy? Scared? Angry? All of these emotions seemed to swirl around inside of him. He wasn't sure which to choose and that worried him. He was finally getting on a good standing with both of his parents and he didn't want to say anything that would ruin that.

As thoughts ran through his head, he heard himself ask, "When?"

"Well I was hoping tonight," Liam's eyes widened at her words, "but you said you had plans tonight."

"Uh yeah I do," he confessed. "Chase and I are going on a date tonight."

Her eyes seemed to light up at his words. "That's great sweetheart. I'm happy for you."

"Thanks," he said returning the smile.

She seemed to think it over. "Well since you'll be out tonight I will invite Patrick over for a night dinner that way you can meet him before you leave. Then we can plan to have a sit-down dinner with the four of us later on this week."

"The four of us?" He questioned.

"You, Chase, Patrick and I," she clarified.

Anxiety coursed through him at that prospect. "Um sure," he replied awkwardly. "I mean I'd have to ask Chase of course, but he should be okay with it."

His mom's face transformed from that of nervousness to relief. She must have been worried about his reaction. That realization suddenly made Liam feel guilty but he pushed the feelings aside. He couldn't ruin this for as. As awkward as it would be to get used to this, he wanted her to be happy, and that should be the only thing that mattered.

"Excellent. I'll go and give Patrick a call. He should be on his lunch break by now," she said with a large grin on her face.

Chuckling slightly to himself, Liam finished searching for his snack before making his way from his bedroom. He didn't get a lot done in those few hours before seven o'clock. He tried to get some of his homework done, but ultimately couldn't keep his head focused enough. Every time he would try to take down a note or read something in his textbook, his mind would wander until he forgot what he was studying in the first place.

Reading was also a dud. No matter which book he tried (and he had a lot of them) his mind just wouldn't remain focused. Soon enough his stomach began to twist into knots and his palms became sweaty. Finally, after maybe his millionth glance at the clock he figured it was early enough (without it being too early) to take a shower and start getting ready.

The shower did help him relax and calm down slightly which was a relief to Liam. Now their first date couldn't occur inside of the shower. Liam laughed to himself and thought, Well it could, but that would be a bit fast for a first date.

Eventually he forced himself out of the shower so he could begin getting ready. It didn't take him too long. His hair took the longest since it had to dry. After that he changed into a pair of dark wash jeans, a light blue button up with a cardigan over it. Neither he nor Chase discussed where or what they would be doing for the date so this way he looked both nice yet casual.

Liam heard the door bell ring as he double-checked his wallet for cash and his debit card. Picking up the wallet and his cellphone he made his way to the front door. Opening the door, he found that it wasn't Chase behind it, but instead an older man in his mid-forties to fifties. The man had salt and pepper hair and smile lines across his face.

"You must be Patrick," Liam guessed.

The man, Patrick, smiled widely at him. "Hi, yes. You must be Liam. I am so pleased to finally meet you. Your mother talks about you a lot."

The two shook hands before Liam invited him in. "Mom must still be getting dressed. You can sit down if you want," he said awkwardly. In all honesty he had no idea what to say to the man but being polite was probably a good way to go.

"I have something for you actually." Patrick reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small paperback book. He eagerly handed it to Liam.

"The Music Man," Liam read.

"Yeah, your mother told me that you read a lot of books. I didn't know if you've read any plays at all or not."

"Just Shakespeare, but almost every high school reads at least one of those," Liam confessed shrugging.

"Yes, well, Shakespeare definitely isn't for everyone," he agreed. "This is actually one of my favorite plays. It's about a con artist who travels to a small town and convinces the town to give him money for instruments and uniforms in order to form a band. Before the main character can leave town however he falls in love with the local librarian. He then has to figure out what to do with himself and his life. I figured even if you don't like plays perhaps you would find this one interesting."

Liam studied the cover. He was surprised because it actually did sound like something he would like. What was even more surprising was Patrick's gesture. He hadn't expected it.

Before either of them could say anything, both Liam's mom and the doorbell interrupted them. Liam let his mom greet her boyfriend while he stood up to get the door. This time it was Chase standing on the other side. The two shared a brief kiss before Liam turned back toward the living room. His mom and Patrick were already making their way to the kitchen giggling and laughing.

Studying them, he couldn't help but wonder what would happen between them. As first impressions go, it seemed like a good one, but Liam wouldn't know for certain until he actually gets to know the guy. His mom did seem genuinely happy though and she deserved that. Between everything with his dad, Leslie moving, and his own acting out, she deserved some happiness in her life.

With a small smile Liam turned back to Chase and closed the door behind him as he left to enjoy his own date. 

~*~*~

Alright now I have to confess that I was a theater nerd in high school. I was never on stage, more behind the scenes, but I still love to go and watch plays to this day. The Music Man is also my favorite musical. I still have my Shipoopi shirt from high school when we preformed the play. Anyone else a fan out there as well?

~Kaylee

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