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over to Tyler, thinking maybe I can figure out why he’s
been avoiding me and try to fix it so we can be friends
again.
    When he looks up and notices me
walking towards him, he doesn’t smile like he would have before the
Hansore House party. I wonder if I said anything to him while I was
drunk. I almost want to come right out and ask him, but I refrain.
Instead, I act like everything’s fine between us.
    “Hey.” I give him a bright, cheery
smile.
    He doesn’t smile in return, but he
still replies politely. “Hey.”
    “I haven’t seen you around in a while.
How’s football going?”
    “You were at our last game.” He
shrugs. “It wasn’t great.”
    “We didn’t win, but you guys were
still pretty good,” I reassure him.
    He just shrugs again.
    “Are you mad at me?” I finally
ask.
    “Why would I be mad at
you?”
    “I don’t know. Did I do something the
night of that party? I had too much to drink and I can’t remember
most of the night. But I swear you’ve been avoiding me and it’s
kind of breaking my heart. I miss talking to you.”
    I can see his tense posture loosen up.
“I’m not mad at you, Val. I just thought maybe we were starting
something here. I mean, I know we haven’t even gone on a date or
anything, so I guess maybe it’s ridiculous to be upset about you
and Craig -”
    I interrupt him before he can finish.
“Craig and I are not together.” I can tell Tiffany is listening so
I continue loud enough for her to hear too. “I don’t know why
everyone thinks that we are, but we aren’t. Craig and I will never
be together. We have mutual friends. That’s it.” Even as I say it,
I know it’s not true. As much as I want it to be true, it’s not.
I’m sure of the fact that we’ll never be together. But there’s also
more to us than just mutual friends. I can’t deny that I care about
him, despite how mad he makes me. But I know that I’d never allow
myself to be with him because I know he’d never take any
relationship seriously. So I repeat it for both of them to hear, “I
am not, nor will I ever be, with Craig Morgan.”
    “Okay,” Tyler responds, nodding. “If
you’re sure that you and Craig aren’t…”
    “We’re not.”
    “Okay.”
    “Will you just ask me out already?” I
try not to smile, but I can’t hide it.
    He laughs in return. “Will you go out
with me, Val? Saturday night?”
    “I would love to.”
    I’m not sure why I did it. Maybe
because I don’t want to lose Tyler. Maybe because I need to prove
that I’m not interested in Craig. Maybe neither. Maybe
both.
    Saturday night goes like any other
typical date night would. Tyler picks me up at my dorm at
seven-thirty on the dot. He brings flowers and tells me I look
beautiful. He’s a sweetheart and a gentleman all night. He holds
the doors open for me, pulls my chair out at the restaurant, let’s
me pick the movie we see. He really is a catch and I’m lucky that
he’s interested in me out of all the girls that I’ve seen openly
flirt with him in school. Unlike Craig, he’s utterly oblivious as
to how hot he is and ignores the flirtatious girls in a way that’s
both polite and yet non-participative. When he walks me to my dorm,
he says goodnight and then briefly brushes his lips over mine. Not
rushing, not pressing. Chaste and gentle. When I get inside, Hailey
asks me a million questions about the night and we stay up late
discussing every little detail. Everything was perfect. So why do I
not feel as giddy and excited as I should? I push the thought out
of my mind as I finally drift off to sleep.

Chapter 7

    As chance would have it, my favorite
holiday falls on a Saturday this year. Despite being the biggest
baby in the world, I’ve always loved Halloween. So, when Hailey
decided to put together a camping trip, I couldn’t refuse. I’m not
thrilled about Craig going, especially since he’s bringing Tiffany.
But I’m determined to have a good time. Things are going really
well with