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When I got home from school Monday afternoon, I had no idea what I would end up getting myself into.

Kelly was seated on our couch, playing with Sassy as she talked to my mother. My mom looked up and smiled. "Here she is." Kelly turned and looked at me.

"Riley!" She exclaimed. She stood up and hugged me tightly. My insides are being crushed! I widened my eyes and looked at my mom who just chuckled at this. Kelly pulled away and grinned at me.

"What are you going here?" I asked, trying not to sound too rude.

She clasped her hands together. "I thought we could hang out. You know, get to know each other a little better."

"Oh." Was my response. My mom gave me a stern look and I mentally sighed. "Okay. What do you want to do?" I asked awkwardly. I've never had someone to hang out with so I don't really know what to do.

Kelly shrugged. "I don't care."

Well, she is certainly no help. "How about we take a walk to the park?" I suggested. "I need to walk Sassy anyways."

"Okay." Kelly said, still smiling.

I ran up to my room and threw my things on my bed then grabbed Sassy's leash. When I walked back downstairs, Kelly had Sassy in her arms already. I put the leash on Sassy then I opened the front door.

"We'll be back in a bit mom." I called out to her. We walked out of my house and started walking down the sidewalk.

Kelly held the leash in her hands so I didn't have to. She turned and looked at me. "So, Riley. Tell me a little bit about yourself."

"Um..." I trailed off. "I like to read and listen to music." I answered.

"What kind of books do you read?" She asked.

I don't seem like I would be the mushy-gushy romantic type, but I am. "I like reading romance and mystery novels." Gotta love the mysteries.

"How about music? What kind do you listen to?"

"Mostly Classic Rock and Indie." I don't think I was giving great answers so I switched the subject. "What about you? What should I know about you?"

Her eyes shined. "I love to dance. I've been in ballet since I was three. I was a cheerleader for a while, but I quit. I would love to read more, but I'm usually busy. My favorite TV shows are Pretty Little Liars, The Vampire Diaries, and Gossip Girl. My favorite movie is LOL and someday I want to go skydiving."

Wow. This girl is like the complete opposite of me. I hate all the shows she named. I have never even seen LOL. Dancing has never crossed my mind and I would never go skydiving.

"And you also have a mom who is getting married soon." I commented.

She nodded. "Right."

"So are your parents..." I trailed off, not knowing if I should ask this question.

"Divorced?" She finished for me. "Yeah. They are. They divorced about five years ago."

Curiosity got the best of me. "Do you still see your dad?"

She shook her head. "Jenna visits him sometimes, but I don't feel like I need to see him. He left us, so why should I go see him and his new Barbie wife?" She said bitterly. I'm guessing this is a touchy subject.

"My dad left us too." I said to her. "He left when I was three though."

"Do you remember him?" Kelly asked.

I shook my head. "Nope. I don't remember him at all. I've seen pictures of him though."

"Looks like both our dads ran out on us." She said, looking at the ground. "I guess it's okay nevertheless. Robert is pretty cool with us."

Robert? "Aiden's dad?" I asked, to clarify.

Kelly nodded. "Mom's happy with him, so I'm happy for her." She said.

My mom has never even mentioned any other men. I think she's still hurt about my dad leaving us. I remember she talked to him about seven months ago over the phone. She had tears in her eyes the whole conversations she had with him.

"That's good." I said. I looked up at the houses that we passed and noticed that Aiden's house was coming up. "How long has your mom been with Aiden's dad?" I asked her curiously.

Kelly hesitated. "I think it'll be three years." Her eyes flickered to the houses also and she looked at me. "Let's stop by Robert's house, yeah? I don't think you've met him, have you?"

I shook my head. "No."

She grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the Callaway's house. I bent down and picked up Sassy, so she wasn't walking all over the house.

Kelly and I approached the front door and Kelly rang the doorbell. About a minute later, the door opened revealing who I assume is Robert.

He smiled at Kelly. "Hello there Kelly." His eyes flickered to me. "And Kelly's friend."

"Robert, this is my friend Riley. She's one of mom's bridesmaids." Kelly told him. "And this is her dog..."

"Sassy." I answered for her then I gave him a small wave. "Hello."

"It's nice to meet you Riley." He smiled. Now I know where Aiden got his looks from. He looks just like his dad, except his dad's dark brown hair had a few grays in it and there were slight wrinkles by his eyes. "Come in girls." He opened the door wider for us.

We walked in and I examined our surroundings. There was a staircase to our left then there was a long hallway to the right. Kelly seemed to know her way around since she started walking down the hallway. I adjusted Sassy in my arms.

"I would tell you that you need to redecorate in here, but it would be no use since you and Aiden are moving in with us." Kelly commented.

Robert chuckled. "Yeah, your mom knows how to decorate." He looked at me. "Since I obviously don't know how."

I smiled slightly. At least he has a sense of humor.

"Dad who are you-" Aiden came out of one of the rooms and stopped when he saw us. "Oh, it's you guys."

Robert clapped his hands together. "I'll be right back." He walked into another room, leaving the three of us alone.

"It's good to see you too Aiden." Kelly said to him, obviously being sarcastic.

Aiden shot his middle finger at her then looked at me. "Hey Riley. Aren't you tired of her yet?"

"Ha ha, you're hilarious." Kelly said, shoving his shoulder.

He chuckled. "So what are you guys doing here?" His eyes flickered to Sassy.

"We were in the neighborhood." Kelly shrugged.

"I actually live in the neighborhood." I stated.

"We were walking the dog and were heading towards the park when we decided to stop by." Kelly continued.

"How nice of you." Aiden petted Sassy. "What kind of dog is it?" He asked me.

"Sassy is a Pomeranian." I replied.

Kelly grabbed Sassy from my arms and held Sassy. "She's pretty dog. Aren't you Sassy?" She said, sounding like she was talking to a new born baby.

Aiden laughed at Kelly. "God Kelly, can you get anymore girlier?"

Tell me about it.

"Shut up Aiden." She snapped at him. "Let's go to the park now Riley."

"Okay." I shrugged.

"Actually," Aiden started. "I need to head that way anyways, so I'll walk with you guys."

Kelly groaned. "Really?"

"Yes really." He said, pushing past us.

***

As we walked to the park, I listened to Aiden and Kelly bicker over who should hold the leash and walk Sassy. Even though I could have just taken the leash, I continued to listen to their argument. Kelly thought that he should walk it since he's a guy and it would be the gentleman thing to do. But Aiden argued that walking a Pomeranian would damage his reputation.

I grabbed the leash from Kelly and held it myself. But yet they still continued to argue. "Or I can just walk her. She is my dog after all." I intruded into the conversation.

Aiden smirked at Kelly and she stuck her tongue at him. "So Riley," Kelly said, turning her attention back to me. "Tell me about Fairfield."

"It sucks ass." Aiden said to her.

"I don't need your input." She snapped at him then looked at me again. "Are there any cute guys??"

I scoffed. "You are talking to the wrong person for questions like that." I told her.

Kelly stopped walking and gave me a strange look. "So...are you like...a lesbian or something?"

Aiden cracked up laughing and my eyes widened. "No!" I waved my hands. "I do not like girls like that. I can assure you."

Kelly started to laugh also. "I wouldn't have minded. I just wasn't sure..." She chuckled.

"Wow Kelly." Aiden said to her. "Way to look like an idiot."

"You are walking on thin ice right now Aiden. Stop being a douche bag." She pointed at him.

"Okay, okay." He held his hands up.

When we arrived at the park, Aiden met up with a friend and left somewhere. Kelly continued to talk my ear off. As much as I hated talking about all this girly stuff, it felt comfortable. I've never had a real friend before.

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