I’d much rather stay in this hallway the rest of the night, getting to know Rhett better. He says he knows a lot about me, but there’s so much I want to find out about him.

“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow morning in class—with my killer picture presentation.” Slowly, he walks backwards, away from me, leaving me with another one of his signature winks that does all kinds of crazy things to my insides.

“See ya tomorrow, Rhett.”

As casually as he left, I try to do the same with Becca, but she yanks on my backpack, stopping me before I’m even three steps away from my locker. “Hold up, killer.”

“Becca, I have to get to work.”

“Not until you finally admit he has a thing for you. I saw it with my own two eyes, Kinsley. He likes you, and I think it’s safe to say, you like him, too.”

I can’t help but laugh at her. She’s so serious, like she’s telling me something I don’t already know, but after talking to him there’s no denying it. What’s even crazier is, I’m crushing on him, too. When I woke up this morning, never in a million years did I imagine I’d end the first day of school with the possibility of Rhett lingering in my future.

“Come on, Kins, admit it before I’m late for practice. I don’t want to run extra laps because I was standing in the hallway waiting for you to admit you want to jump his bones.”

“I’m not agreeing to any jumping, but I like him. Happy now?”

“Ecstatic. Now go home and cover your binder in hearts with his initials in the middle.”

“You’re crazy. This isn’t middle school, you know. Plus, if I go and do that, it would scare him away. Who knows, the way guys go through girls around here, by tomorrow morning, he could be into someone else. My luck he’ll be with Mandi again by the end of the week.”

“Kinsley West, don’t make me smack you.”

“I’m just being realistic, Becca. How about we drop it for now.” In all honesty, I’m more used to people leaving my life than coming into it. It’s more natural to me to have to let go than to allow someone in.

It’s hard to open up—to give someone the benefit of the doubt, but for Rhett, I might be willing to try.

“We’ll see,” I tell her with a shrug of my shoulders.

“Don’t blow it off as just another day, Kinsley. This is a big deal, and I’m happy for you. That,” she points in the direction we just came from, “is not the same Rhett that made me eat dirt.”

I laugh at the reminder of what he made her do all those years ago. Back when girls still had cooties, and we were more worried about who was “it” in a game of tag, than who was interested in dating each other.

Life was so easy then. I had both my parents, a house I called home, and I didn’t care how popular I was. In fact, I’d rather play a game of Red Rover than try to figure out why Rhett suddenly finds me interesting. I was perfectly happy being a wallflower—even good at it. Now, he’s gone and stirred up feelings. Feelings I’ve never experienced before, and that will most likely lead to trouble.

“Did you hear a word I said, Kinsley?”

“Yes, I’m listening. I’m glad Rhett’s not a little punk anymore.”

“That makes two of us. So, if he asks you out tomorrow ,tell him yes.”

“Did he tell you he’s going to ask me out? Don’t lie, as your best friend your loyalty is with me.”

“Calm down. He didn’t tell me anything, but I can tell from how he’s acting. I’m really good at reading people. If he’s anything like he was when we were kids, he won’t quit until he gets you either. He can be a stubborn fool—just like you.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?” she questions. “I just told you he’s going to ask you out, and that’s all you have to say?”

“No, I want him to, but I’m scared.” I admit as I wrap my arms around my middle. Even saying the words makes me feel more exposed than I’ve ever been before. Only I trust Becca with my confession because she would never use it against me.

“Just be you, Kin. Let him see what’s he’s been missing all these years.”

I can do that—I think. “Thank you for not laughing at me.”

“Never. You’re practically my sister. Plus, he has an older brother in pre-med.”

“It all makes sense now. You want to use me to get to his brother.”

“I’m not using anyone. Not that it would be so terrible to have to date Rhett to help me out. I mean, his brother is hot and he has a brain.”

“Rhett has a brain. Even my brother has a brain, Becca.”

“You know what I mean.”

“I do, but I’m still holding out hope you’ll be my sister someday. I gotta run though, so I’ll see you in the morning. Oh, can you pick me up? My car’s going in the shop for a few days. It’s making that obnoxious clanking sound again. Brian, from the diner, said he’d take a look at it for me. Hopefully he’ll save me some of the outrageous labor costs.”

“That sounds so technical, but yes I’ll pick you up.”

“Thanks, Becca. You’re a lifesaver.”

I hurry to my car while Becca goes in the opposite direction to the locker room. Turning the key in the ignition, I pray it even starts. It does, but as expected, the noise returns as soon as I hear the engine. It only gets worse when I put the car in drive. Each time I have to hit the brake, I worry the car’s going to stall. Which is why I panic a little bit when the crossing guard stops traffic just as I’m pulling up to the intersection.

“Come on, hurry.” I whisper to myself.

I’m tapping my fingers on the steering wheel when a knock on my passenger side window scares the ever loving shit out of me. Rhett’s standing on the other side of the glass, signaling for me to roll my window down. I fumble with the button, hitting my side before his.

“Didn’t mean to scare you,” he says with a stupid cute grin on his face.

Dressed in his football gear, he’s holding his helmet in one hand, and his shoulder pads in the other. All that’s covering his chest is a thin cut-off T-shirt. I thought he was hot in his regular clothes, but he’s even better in his uniform.

He clears his throat, and right away I realize he caught me checking him out. I look away as fast as I can, but he just laughs. “Like what you see?”

“Eh, it’s okay.”

“Wait, I want you to have the full experience. Maybe that’ll change your mind.”

Before I can tell him I was only kidding, he spins in a circle on his toes like the most ungraceful ballerina I’ve ever seen. He looks absolutely ridiculous, and I can’t stop laughing at him. “Rhett, you’re going to hurt yourself.”

“There, that’s better,” he says, as he bends down to rest his arms on the edge of the opened window. “You’re even prettier when you smile. But your car doesn’t sound so good.”

“It’s going in the shop tonight.” My Ford Focus isn’t a total piece of shit, but it’s been anything but reliable lately. I guess that’s what happens when you have friends fix it for you who don’t really know what they’re doing. They fix one problem and create a new one.

“Do you need a ride to school tomorrow?”

“Becca’s picking me up.”

“What about a ride home from school? I can take you. Tomorrow’s game day, so I usually go home for an hour or two after school. Clear my head before the game.”

Becca would take me home if I needed her to, especially since we only live a couple minutes apart, but she told me to give him a chance. This seems like the perfect opportunity. “Sure, I’d appreciate it.”

“Yeah?” he questions with a smile on his face. The truck behind me honks its horn, and I realize the crossing guard isn’t holding traffic anymore. Rhett pulls his head out of my car and yells, “Go around! I’m trying to have a conversation.”

I glance in the rearview mirror and notice it’s one of Rhett’s friends giving him a hard time. He listens to what Rhett says, as most usually do when he speaks, but not before yelling a few obscenities out the window. Rhett flips him off, but is laughing when he sticks his head back in the car. “Sorry about that. Jake’s an idiot.”