“Keep your behind behind. I know. I was trying, but I just couldn’t get it. Oops!” Giggle giggle.

Well, I guess it was time to cross that bridge. I needed to get a good look, though, just to make sure. I tried to act really subtle, like I had gotten something on my shoulder, craning my neck around to wipe off an imaginary dust ball. Yup. Light blue hooded jacket with fuzzy white trim, and a matching fuzzy scarf that was sprouting out of her neck. She looked cute enough. Small. Upturned nose. And right next to her was that shock of blond hair.

“That’s all right. We’ll get some time up there just you and me this afternoon,” Drew said.

I felt my jaw tighten. My hands were balled up into fists.

“Sammy, what do you think?” Ashley was saying.

I turned back around. “Um, I think …”

“Wow! The Olympics! Are you for real? That is so totally awesome and inspiring!” Fuzzy yammered behind me.

“Weeeelllll?” said Ashley.

“Yeah, well. It was only the trials. I’m hoping next time — you know, I’ll actually get to compete,” he said, and I could just imagine his lips stretching into that seductive grin.

“You okay, darlin’?” asked Ashley. Her voice was soft and concerned now. “You look a little pale.”

“Yeah. Um, Ashley, I think there’s something I have to do before I can go up again. Is that okay?”

“Sure! I thought you just went after lunch, though. Oh, well. Whatever. Sometimes I think that I’ve gone all the way and then as soon as I zip my pants up I have to go again. I think a lot of girls are like that. I try to drink a lot of cranberry juice. I heard that’s good for your kidneys. I don’t know. Have you ever tried it?”

“No, I just have to talk to someone. About … something.” I really didn’t want to go into it. I didn’t want to be doing this at all. But I knew I had to do it now. Before I lost my nerve.

“Well sure, Sam,” Ashley said. “You do what you need to do.”

“Be right back.” I dug my poles firmly into the ground and shook my hair out behind me. I marched over toward him. Or rather, I skidded. It’s kind of hard to do anything else on skis.

“Um, Drew?”

His face turned around slowly. Like he was taking his time. Like he had been expecting me.

“Hey, what’s up, Sam?”

“Well, I was just wondering if maybe we could talk or something?”

“Sure, what about?”

Fuzzy Wuzzy was playing with her zipper, but I could tell she was listening.

“Um, I mean, maybe we could talk somewhere else?”

“Well, I’m kinda busy right now,” he said, shrugging his shoulders. There were just a few people left ahead of him now in line.

You can do this, Levy.

“No, I know. Not now. I meant, like after your …” I looked at Fuzzy. “Your class. Maybe we could grab some hot chocolate?”

He sighed.

“Hmm, I’ve got plans already.”

“Really?” I sounded like someone had just punched me in the gut. Maybe because that’s what it felt like, too.

“Yeah,” he said.

“Are your plans … all night?” Ugh. This was not how I had envisioned it at all. Fuzzy was practicing sticking her behind behind.

“Sam?! We’re up!” It was Ashley. The chair was coming toward her. I looked at Drew. His eyes were clear and totally blank.

“Just go on up!” I called to her.

“You sure?” she hollered back.

“Yeah, I’ll meet you up —”

“Whoa! Okeydoke! See ya up there, darlin’!” I heard, and then I saw her honey-colored braids swinging up in the air. Who was that next to her? It looked like an older man with gray hair. Why had I done that to Ashley? Especially after she’d been so good to me. I never wanted to be someone who chose a guy over a friend. That would be like — and now my chest tightened even more. That would be like Phoebe.

“Um, Sam?” said Drew. “We’re gonna be up in a sec, too. So, was there something else you wanted to say or are we done here?”

Are we done here? I felt my nostrils flaring.

“No,” I said. “Actually, there is something.”

“Okay, well …”

I took a deep breath, puffed out my chest, and said, “Drew, I know you’re a busy man and you need to give a private lesson to Fuzzy here, but you should think about what you’re doing, because I was totally into you and I thought you were into me but if this is just about me not wanting to have sex then that’s really immature. There’s a lot more to a relationship than just sex, you know? There’s cuddling and conversation and just hanging out and being in the same moment together. And one day I’m gonna have sex, too, with someone I truly love. Yes, maybe it’ll be when I’m forty-eight, but that’s fine with me. Well, I hope it’s before then, but whatever. The point is, you made a really stupid, shallow mistake and your Jetta smells like gym shoes.”

No, I didn’t say that.

I did take a deep breath. And then I did try to puff up my chest. And then I looked him in those icy eyes, and I said, “You should try reading more than just Sports Illustrated.”

Then I dug my poles into the ground, summoned up all my strength, and pushed off as hard as I could.

The only thing about trying to make a dramatic exit on skis is that there is no graceful way to do it. At least not the way I ski. I lifted my feet up, turned my body, and then thrust myself right into —

“Hey!”

“Hey.” It was Eric. Awesome. Just who I wanted to see. I had managed to avoid him at the slopes the whole week until now, but of course it was the perfect time to run into him.

“Where are you off to in such a hurry?” he asked.

“Nowhere. Nothing. Sorry I knocked into you.” I tried to move past him, but he stopped me with his hand.

“Hey, no worries. You heading up?” He pointed to the ski lift. I could’ve lied, I guess. I looked behind him. The line of people waiting wound all the way to the chalet now. I could just imagine standing there, watching Drew and Fuzzy climb up into the sky, while I waited all alone. I looked back at Eric. The choices were dismal and dismaller.

“Yeah, I guess so,” I said glumly.

“Mind if I join you?” He just didn’t get it, did he? I was seriously regretting telling Ashley to head off. Along with a lot of other things I’d done in the past half hour.

“Whatever,” I mumbled, pushing forward in the line.

“Yow! No fair! You’re making it rock!” squealed Fuzzy as she and Drew started sailing up, her scraggly scarf trailing behind them. Wasn’t there a way that thing could get caught in the chair and choke her? Just a little bit?

Eric and I moved forward silently. At least he wasn’t trying to strike up a conversation. I didn’t know who I hated more right now, Eric for warning me about Drew being a player, or Drew for proving him right. How could he have looked at me so coolly, like I was a complete stranger? Like he hadn’t been trying to undo my jeans just the other night? I watched his blond head get smaller in the sky. I bet his hair was dyed. And P.S. — cherry ChapStick was definitely for girls. I sighed. Most of all I hated myself right now, for falling for him.

The lift came toward us, and Eric and I got on. I felt my teeth grind together as we slowly inched up the side of the mountain.

And then, just as we were getting close to the top, Eric said, “Listen, Sam, I feel like I was kinda out of line when I said that stuff about Drew the other night …”

“Yeah, I don’t really want to talk about this right now.”

“No, we don’t have to talk about it. I just wanted to say it was none of my business. I’m sorry. I really am. But I wouldn’t have said it if —”