Chapter 22: Chapter 22: The Sidekick and the Memories (Part 1)

It was only the two of us present in the courtyard. A clear sky above and a slight breeze caressing our faces did little to ease the embarrassment of the current situation. I hid it better than her; she was always so obvious, looking anywhere but at me. Her cheeks were flushed, and she frantically wrung her hands until the pasty skin turned red. A nervous tick of her that normally I thought was pretty adorable. But, right now, it was giving off the wrong impression.

“Hold on, I know we’re supposed to be practicing a confession, but maybe try keeping your hands behind your back. And you need to act more confident. Crank that up by eleven.”

She murmured an assent, straightened up, and hid her hands. “Like this?”

“Relax a little bit, Katy. You’ll look like a soldier otherwise.”

Her shoulders dropped a smidge, allowing her arms to hang at a more natural angle. I gave her a brief nod, and Katy let out a wane smile. Anyone who knew the girl would recognize how awkward she was, having no idea what to do with her hands. To a passerby, however, she appeared secure and in control of the situation. That would be enough for someone as inattentive as Ethan.

Brushing a stray piece of mousy hair behind her ear, a shy expression overtook her face once more. “Better?”

“Much better. Let’s try it one more time.”

Assuming her new stance, Katy took a step to me, doing a much better job of staring me in the face. Her lips quivered, but the words were the clearest they’d been yet. “I like you. Would you go out with me?”

“That was good. We’ll call it there for today.”

I pondered those three words while I sunk against the oak tree off to the side. They were simple enough, yet they conveyed so much meaning. They exposed your true feelings and made you vulnerable, opening you up for all kinds of hurt. That’s why I admired Katy so much. She was such a shy person but wanted to convey her feelings to my best friend no matter what. Though my situation was more complicated than that, I vowed to take a page out of her book and try my best too.

Katy sat beside me, pulling her knees up to her chest as I had. “Do you think he’ll like my gift?”

If I was being honest, I couldn’t even remember what she had mentioned buying for him. I had this conversation with so many girls pining after Ethan that they all blended together. It was almost like experiencing some sick version of déjà vu where merely the names, faces, and approaches changed. But, that was neither here nor now.

“He’ll like whatever you got for him. Just remember he’s not someone who will decide based on gifts or theatrics. He always told me he wants to be with someone who he connects with and likes being around,” I said.

She took a moment to process that. Hard to blame her, considering how odd a sentiment that was coming from a sixteen-year-old boy. I always told him he sounded like an old man when he said it, but Ethan would laugh and proclaim his seriousness. He was strangely mature in certain ways.

“But you think I have a chance?”

I looked her over. Nothing about her stood out. She was average height, average build, with wide brown eyes and a small nose–average in every regard in the looks department. Almost all her competitors were more attractive than her, but she didn’t need to know this. No need to lower her confidence any further. Instead, I explained to her why I hoped she was the one he chose to date.

“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t bother helping you. Don’t look down on yourself so much. You have a great personality. You’re sweet, you’re caring, and you’re fun to hang out with. He’d be lucky to go out with you.”

Her smile returned. “Thanks.”

I waved her off, rising to my feet after feeling my phone vibrate. “Don’t worry about it. I got to head out though. Good luck tomorrow.”

“I’ll do my best.”

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We parted ways, a barely contained skip in my step upon entering the school. I read the text message Sara sent me and couldn’t help the dopey little grin it brought to my face. To anybody watching me prance through the halls, I probably looked like a schoolgirl with a crush, which I supposed I was. Minus the whole schoolgirl thing, of course. The worst part was she sent me nothing more than a rendezvous location where we would be doing more of the same. Yet another rehashed discussion about how to get her together with Ethan. 

I almost tripped over the smooth linoleum tiles as the skip disappeared from my step. Those same feelings were rearing their ugly heads again, begging the question of what was so good about my best friend in the first place. Why were all these girls lining up to be with him when I couldn’t even get my crush to look my way? She was too distracted staring at him instead. Wasn’t I just as good? Would it be so bad if her confession went awry, and I swooped in to pick up the pieces?

How stupid.

This wasn’t the first time I felt this way, but I kept hoping it would be the last; jealousy and inadequacy weren’t a good look. Especially when it came to these two. Ethan had been my best friend since childhood and always had my back. How could I have these kinds of thoughts about him? And Sara was the first girl I liked. How could I let her down? I should be doing this without any ulterior motives because I want them both to be happy. Didn’t I? Nagging doubts continued to prick at me, making me wonder if this truly was the case.

My mood was dampened by the time I reached her club room. I knocked once on the door before letting myself in. I wasn’t at all surprised to see her sitting alone at the back table, the other members already having left for home. Considering their activities had ended some time ago, it’d be strange for them to still be hanging around unless they had some business to attend to. Settling into the chair opposite her, I took a sip of the tea from the styrofoam cup in front of me. The tea was cold as usual, having sat in the kettle since the start of the club. I could hardly complain since she went out of her way to be a good host. Part of me was flattered even, knowing she didn’t have to go through the effort. And so, I drank it greedily, enjoying the sensation of the cool liquid on my tongue and perking up a little.

Sara had been waiting for me to finish, fingers tapping against the cloth table covering. The second I set the cup down, she nearly sprung over the table in her haste to stand behind me. “Tomorrow’s the day!”

In her excitement, she had flung herself atop of me, her hand wrapped tightly around my bicep to steady herself. Her breath tickled my ear, and, doing my best impersonation of Katy, my entire body felt hot and any retorts I had lodged in my throat. It didn’t help that her chest was pressed flush against my backside, leaving more to the imagination than a gentleman would dare to ponder. I scooted forward in the chair, relieving the distracting pressure on the center of my back and allowing me to regain some semblance of confidence. “Sara, you’re crushing me.”

Either laughing at my perceived misery or the deadpan delivery, she nonetheless relented and sat across from me once more. “Sorry, I might’ve gotten a little carried away.”

A little was an understatement, but I let it slide, getting to the point. “And you’re sure you want to ask him out tomorrow? You’d still have all summer, and you don’t need to rush it because of a stupid rumor.” Her pout answered my question, and I held up my hands in surrender. “Fine, I get it. It’s important to you. You’ve got my full support.”

It was more than a mere coincidence so many people decided to confess tomorrow. There was a famous rumor at our school, the kind passed from the older kids to the newest arrivals, the same way the students before them had done with them. It was hardly a secret, however. Teachers and students alike made passing remarks about it constantly. Some mocking, some in admiration, but most indifferent to a tale of the past. A few of the older teachers claimed to have even seen it in person, but I found their recounting especially hard to believe. Not so much what transpired, but how exaggerated the events had become in their tales.

Anyhow, the story went like this. On the Tuesday of the last week of the school year, the entire school came together for the sake of two students. They were the school’s most popular girl and boy, a perfect couple who somehow hadn’t officially gotten together. An unacceptable prospect, according to the others in attendance back then. So the student body convinced the teachers, who then, in turn, convinced the administration to forgo the final exams and replace them with a last-minute festival. It stretched on for the entirety of the last week, but it only took them two days to realize their feelings for one another.

Terrific. Cue the fireworks. What a happy ending. Like I said, it was a ‘tradition’ with dubious roots, but some people clung to it. The girl in front of me being a prime example. Speaking of which, Sara had been saying something, but I hadn’t been paying attention.

“My bad. What’d you say?

“Jeez, you never listen. I said it’s all set for tomorrow, right?”

“Yep, I asked him to meet you here tomorrow during lunch. The rest is up to you.”

“Hmm.” She smirked, pressing her cheek into the palm of her hand. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

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