Act Like You Love Me//S.M. [UNDER EDITING]

~3~

Shawn

She opens the door only seconds after I ring the door bell. Nerves make my stomach a tight knot.

"You ready?" I ask. She smiles and nods, acting a little shy.

"Yeah, just let me get my purse." She spins on her heel to grab a black cross-body purse off a hook by the door, then steps out onto her porch, turning around to shut and lock the door. 

"You look nice!" I compliment her as I ring my hands from anxiety. She blushes, and runs her fingers through her loose curls. We turn and begin walking towards the car.

"You do too!" She replies. Kelsi opens the backdoor, and I allow Meredith in first, climbing in quickly behind her. I want to avoid any paparazzi, catching us out and about. Not yet at least.

"Good morning, Meredith! Sarah did a nice job on you!" Andrew looks back from the front seat. Meredith blushes again.

"Thanks!" She replies. I look out the window, not knowing what to say. There is silence the rest of the way to the hotel, the venue we had planned.

"Why are we at a hotel?" Meredith asks quietly, so only I can hear her.

"They have the best breakfast café here." I smile, helping her out of the car.

"Hold her hand." He mouths. I sigh, and reach over, grabbing her hand and weaving our fingers together. It's something I've missed ever since Kennedy.

Stop thinking about her. She cheated on you with your best friend, then claimed you got her pregnant. I reprimand myself for thinking about her again. 

"Um..." Meredith stutters, her face red as she looks down at our intertwined hands. When I look up, a red headed teenage girl is moving towards the two of us quickly.

"Oh my word, you are Shawn Mendes! And you are..." Her voice drops off when she realizes she has no idea who's beside me.

"I'm, um... I'm Meredith Hall," Meredith says, shyly. She seems to be doing well with girls screaming my name and running over to me, considering this is only her first day, and this is only the first fan encounter.

"She's my girlfriend," I smile, hugging her hand with mine. It sounds so weird to say it out loud. I glance over at Andrew who gives me a quick nod, signifying that I said the right thing.

"Oh, um, cool! Can I get a picture with you two?" The teen clears her throat and tucks her straightened hair behind her ear.

"Of course!" I chuckle. Being with my fans gives me a sense of comfort, and makes me happy.

She smiles and pulls her phone out, then wiggles in between Meredith and I. The camera snaps, she moves out from between us, and I wrap my arms around her waist for a hug.

***

"You okay?" I look over at Meredith. She sighs, and bites her bottom lip lightly.

"Yeah, it's just weird. I've gone from nobody knowing my name to people asking to take pictures with me all in the blink of an eye." She puts some more eggs on her fork, staring off into space.

"Yeah. I bet it's weird. I know how it feels. I mean, at least a little bit." I stumble over my words as she takes her bite of eggs. There are a couple seconds of silence as the both of us sit and eat, deep in thought.

"So tell me about yourself." I clear my throat, breaking the silence.

"I, uh, okay. Um, my favorite color is green, my favorite food is tacos, um..." She sits back in her chair a little, stuttering over her words as she looks for a way to describe herself.

"No, like..." I chuckle as I try to think of something to ask her.

"Okay, how 'bout this? You ask me anything you want, and I'll answer. Since I'm clearly still half asleep and can't think right now. But hey, this coffee should help!" She giggles, getting ready to take a drink of her sweetened coffee. I smirk.

"Any question?"

"Any! Just nothing that you wouldn't ask your mom or dad." She laughs softly.

"Okay. Well since we only met yesterday, I'm going to say the same for you. Any questions. We'll start easy. How old are you?"

"Twenty. And you?"

"I'm twenty-one."

Meredith

He chuckles, taking a small sip of his coffee.

"What?" I ask. He shakes his head, setting the white mug down on the table. 

"Nothing. I was just about to ask you the same question. I was born here in Pickering, and so I've just kind of stayed here my whole life. What about you? Why the small, insignificant town of Pickering?" He explains. I swallow. I had no clue he would turn the question back at me. And I'm definitely not prepared to answer it.

"I, uh, my dad and mom ended up getting a divorce. My mom moved up here, and my dad stayed in Nebraska. My sister and I had to chose who we were going to stay with. We both couldn't go to one place, we had to separate. I chose Canada. I wanted to get as far away from my dad as possible. And I left Sadie there.

Turns out, all custody was given to my mom about a year after I moved out, and Sadie moved up here. She still hasn't talked to me. But that's not what you asked, I'm sorry." I end my rambling by taking a drink of coffee, embarrassed. I really didn't mean to verbally vomit all my feelings out on him, it just kind of happened.

"Wow, Meredith. That sounds hard, I'm so sorry." He says softly, as if I'm so fragile that I could break any second, and honestly, I could. I haven't really told anyone that story other than Ari, my best friend, and now some boy I've just met has pushed into my life and walked straight past the guards to my heart.

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A/N:
{Edited}

Hi! How was it? Who's Kennedy? *gasp* Vote, comment, and share if you liked it! Love y'all!