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“Owen—” She moans. It’s not answer enough for her.
“Okay.” I huff out an airy chuckle and think. I’ve loved Annie for so long, it’s hard to pinpoint one specific moment. “I did look at you like I’d never looked at another girl that day. And then again, in seventh grade.”
“Seventh?” She cringes.
I knew she would. To Annie, it’s the year of buck teeth and Marla Thompson. For some reason, Annie’s two front teeth seemed to grow a lot that year. She grew into them—eventually, but in seventh grade, she resembled a beaver. Her words, not mine.
It was also the year that Marla Thompson pantsed Annie in the middle of gym class.
All twenty-six members of our class saw and laughed. Her face turned the color of a cherry tomato and she barely got her pants up before tripping her way out of the gymnasium. Then came Marla’s nicknames to make sure everyone remembered what had happened. She called her Annie Panties, Potty Pants Archer, and a slew more I’ve tried to forget over the years. She called Annie names until the day she moved away in eighth grade. I witnessed Annie’s tears more than once because of Marla’s cruelty.
However, it was weeks after the de-pantsing incident, themoment Marla tried to do the same thing to Ellie Stauffer, that made me love Annie.
Before Marla could snag ahold of Ellie’s gym shorts, Annie charged at her. She hit her hard, like a running bull, right in the shoulder and side, knocking Marla—double her size—to the ground.
That hit got Annie a black eye and a lot more name-calling for the next year. But Annie was almost proud of her shiner. She didn’t flinch or cry again after that. She decided then and there Marla wouldn’t win.
We were all afraid of Marla—first female wrestler for Lincoln Middle School. But Annie had stood up to her. She had saved Ellie from suffering the same fate as herself, and it changed everything.
For Annie.
But for me too.
Annie stood for doing the right thing, no matter the cost. She was the bravest person I knew. She was my best friend. And from that moment on, she had a piece of my heart.
It only grew with time.
She knows the story, so I simply say, “You saved Ellie Stauffer—no matter the cost to yourself. I decided that day that my best friend was a hero.”
Her eyes water a little with my words. “You’ve always been soft for the underdog.”
“I have. But this was different.” I inch closer and take her hand—like I would have had it been any other day. There’s a tremor in her fingers, but I ignore it. “I couldn’t help but fall in love with you.”
“I’m gonna need you to stop using that word, Owen.”
I knit my brows and tease. “Love?”
She swallows. “Yes. That one.”
“Annie? Are you afraid of falling in love?”
41
Annie
Iclear my throat and grip Owen’s hand like a lifeline. That’s a complicated question. I’m not afraid of loving someone else. But I honestly don’t know if anyone can love me for the long haul.
I’ve demanded honesty from my friend. Does that mean I have to give it?
“No.” My mouth goes dry. “I’m not afraid of falling in love.”
“Really? Because…” he says, his nose scrunching with words he doesn’t want to say. “You seem a little afraid.”
I narrow my gaze. I could slug him. I might slug him. I flex my fist, and my skin tightens over my knuckles.
I’m still pondering when my phone, sitting on the table next to a half-empty pizza box, jingles.
It’s a FaceTime call on my cell.
