Kimberly+*•

“If you don’t ask I’ll ask for you!” I whisper to Aaron, even though there’s no way Alice could hear us. “Okay, okay! Christ. But, and not to sound cliche, or anything, what if she doesn’t like me? I’m going to look like an idiot, if she says no after class.” These two had to make it so difficult. I just want to scream at both of them; You love each other for godsake! Someone, please, make a move! But I promised both of them I wouldn’t tell the other.

“All you’re doing now is just asking for a pencil, Just tell Alice you don’t have any and that I told you to ask her.” I punctuate my sentence with an eye roll.

Then out of the corner of my periphery, I see Alice turning around. She looks at me from across the classroom with a puzzled expression. She signs to me, ‘Why are you whispering? I can hear you all the way up here even with half the class talking.’ We learned sign language at the beginning of the year so that we can communicate in class without talking.

I sign back, ‘Just talking to Aaron’, and at his name I can see Alice bite her lip to keep from smiling as she turns back around. These two are going to be the death of me.

I clasp my hands together and turn to Aaron. “Pleaseeee!” I beg. I know this can’t go wrong, he just has to trust me. I just need this to be over with, I’ve been trying for a year and a half at this point to get these two together. It’s almost annoying how hard I’ve tried. Finally he nods reluctantly and stands up from his desk. It’s about time.

I watch as Aaron asks Alice for a pencil. She’s blushing, of course, and fidgeting. Clearly nervous. But of course, not being able to say no, I see her smile and nod and reach for her bag. Aaron runs a hand through his hair and toys with his hoodie string as he says thank you to Alice and begins to walk away. Part one accomplished. Such a relief.

~~After Class~~

I get my things extra slow when the bell rings, and I make my way towards Alice’s locker to see if Aaron went through with the plan. But I wouldn’t be surprised if he chickened out like a dummy. They really are perfect for each other in the way they both can overthink a situation so easily. But to my surprise, I see Aaron talking to Alice. I can’t hear the conversation or see their faces but I’m praying it’s about homecoming.

Finally, after about five painstakingly slow minutes, Aaron turns and I see him walking away from her locker with a smile on his face and looking at the floor in disbelief, and Alice is watching him leave with a lovestruck smile on her face. She gives me a thumbs up and it looks like she might just go weak in the knees. It worked. Thank god this is over.

**Alice+*• I hear Kimberly all the way from the front of the class. I can’t make out her words with all of the sound going on around me, but I can tell she’s talking with Aaron. Correction, she’s whispering with Aaron. I try to focus on the words on the pages of the book infront of me but my fingers won’t stop taping on the desk anxiously. I can’t help myself but feel nervous. I know Kim, and she would never tell Aaron that I like him, so then what are they talking about? I let out a long sigh and set down my book. I need something else to distract me. But just as I am about to put my book away I hear a voice from behind me. A voice I would know anywhere in a crowd of people. “Hey, Alice.” I turn around, heart already pounding at just two words, and smile nervously. “Aaron! H-hey! Um, what’s up?” I stutter as my hands begin to shake. I grab a scrap of paper I was using for my bookmark and start to fidget nervously. “I was wondering if I could borrow a pencil? I asked Kim but she didn’t have any so she suggested I ask you.” I’m barely listening to Aaron’s words as he talks, I’m too busy memorizing every little detail about him. The way he fixes, and then re-fixes, his hoodie string, the way he runs his hand through his dark blonde hair. My mind starts wandering. Is he nervous too? What if I don’t have a pencil in my bag? Of course I do. What if this is some way of making fun of me? There’s no way, he’s too nice. Wait, he asked me a question, he needs a pencil. Say something! I mean to say, ‘yeah sure! Here! You can keep it, I have a ton.’ And then laugh it all off but all that comes out is, “Um… mhm. Yeah I probably have one…” That’s the best you could do, mouth? I reach into the side pocket of my backpack and pull out a pencil. It’s one of my best ones. One I usually never let anyone use, but I’m barely thinking straight. It’s like I’m in overdrive. And, come on. Like I’m going to give _Aaron_ a shitty pencil. “You can keep it, I don’t mind.” Is it just me or do I sound like a psychopath? What if he thinks I’m crazy? Or, like a murderer, or something? His voice drowns out my thoughts, “Thanks, see you later.” I stare at him, dumbfounded, as he walks away. See you later? What the hell does that mean? I try to shrug it all off but all I do is stare at the screen of my phone counting down the seconds until I can go to my locker and freak the fuck out. ~~After Class~~ At my locker, I write down today’s homework on my whiteboard and replay the events of class over and over again. I’m already planning the playlist I’m going to make when I get home, I’ll definitely add Apocalypse, when I see Aaron about to walk by. But instead of walking past me like he does everyday, he smiles a bit and stops at my locker. My brain screams with overthinking. What. Is. Happening? “Hey, again,” he chuckles and the sound of it sounds like all of my dreams combined into one, “I figured I’d return your pencil anyways. I noticed it’s one of your favorites.” Ohmygod. He noticed it’s one of my favorites? That means he’s been watching me write. Like, more than once. I’m marking this day in my calander, FOREVER. “Oh yeah, thanks. I can’t believe you noticed.” I laugh and put the pencil in my locker. I turn back to him but I don’t dare meet his eyes. I’ve convinced myself that if I looked him in his eyes I would die from a heart attack. What the hell is wrong with me? “Well I’ll, uh, see you later then, if that’s all?” This is the point in time when he’s supposed to walk away, never talk to me again, marry a dumb blonde, and forget all about me, but yet, he doesn’t leave. “I actually had a question, if that’s okay?” He rubs the back of his neck, seemingly nervous, which by association makes me even more nervous, and looks down at me. I meet his eyes. His insanely ocean blue, gorgeous, eyes. I, to my shock, don’t die of a heart attack. Instead, I get rendered helpless and just nod, stupidly, while I try to supress my hopeful grin. “So I know homecoming is coming up,” There’s no way in hell this is happening. Aaron. Fucking. Greenbriar. Is asking _me_, about homecoming. What universe did I switch to? “And I was wondering if, maybe, you’d want to go with me?” He smiles softly as he runs a hand through his hair and waits for my response. But of course, the stuttering. “Oh, um, y-yeah! I, uh, I- I’d love to!” Curse you nerves. I’m smiling ear to ear now, drunk on the feeling of being liked back. “I’ll text you tonight, okay?” Aaron says, about to walk away. “Yeah! Totally.” I say back. Still staring in awe at him even when his back is turned. And then I see Kim watching. I give her a shaky thumbs up and smile. I smile like I just got handed the only thing I’ve ever wanted in my whole life. Because I did. It was just like a dream. Aaron+*• Jesus. Kimberly was not taking no for an answer. I sigh and say, “Okay, okay! Christ. But, and not to sound cliche, or anything, what if she doesn’t like me?” Which was just a question to stall, because she has liked me since we met, I think, “I’m going to look like an _idiot_, if she says no after class.” I drown out what Kim is replying with, I just turn and look at Alice. She’s reading, per usual, even with all of the chatter going on. I don’t even know why I’m going through with this, Alice is way out of my league. I know she likes me, it’s actually insanely obvious, she can barely look at me without getting nervous, so I’m almost one hundred percent sure she’ll say yes to homecoming, but I feel like she deserves better. “Pleaseeee!” Kim is begging me at this point, so I give in, just to put her at ease because she’s been pushing this for nearly a year and a half now. I nod, adding a sigh at the end, and begin to walk over to Alice’s desk. “Hey, Alice.” I say casually to get her attention. She instantly gets nervous. I wonder what’s going on in her mind. She stutters as she says, “Aaron! H-hey! Um, what’s up?” And it makes me smile. I grab the string of my hoodie and readjust it. Twice. A habit I’ve picked up over the years, and add, “I was wondering if I could borrow a pencil? I asked Kim but she didn’t have any so she suggested I ask you.” I run a hand through me hair as she sits there, looking at me for a few seconds, most likely thinking of what to say, when she responds with something I’m not listening to. I watch as she fidgets with shaky hands, and as she reaches for a pencil in her bag. She grabs the pencil she uses almost daily and I almost laugh. She lost it once and I knew how much she liked it so I returned it to her locker without her knowing. She hands me the pencil shakily and I give her my thanks and walk away. Step one complete. ~~After Class~~~

I stop at Alice’s locker after class and greet her with a smile. I say, “I figured I’d return your pencil anyways. I noticed it’s one of your favorites.” And she laughs. “Yeah, thanks. I can’t believe you noticed.” I smile as she puts it in her locker and looks away. “Actually I have a question, if that’s okay?” She looks so hopeful as she nods. “So I know homecoming is coming up, and I was wondering if you’d like to go with me?” She replies with a yes but I’m to busy memorizing her features to listen. She’s so uniquely beautiful. “Okay, cool. I’ll text you tonight okay?” I smile as she stutters over every word and then I walk away.

I see Kim giving Alice a thumbs up as I pass by, and I smile to myself. I can’t believe I did that. I’ve always dreamt of asking her that but didn’t think I’d ever actually go through with it. What a crazy day.