1
Ever since the winter dance, I could hardly look at Aaron.
That dance was over a month ago, but it stung like it had just happened yesterday.
It hurt to think about how excited I’d been getting ready that night, zipping up my dress with Mom’s help.
Making sure every strand of hair was in place.
Patiently putting on make-up, applying my new lipstick, all in anticipation of dancing with Aaron.
He hadn’t asked me to go with him.
But I thought he would for sure ask me to dance.
That everything would change for us that night.
It had been foolish to think so in the first place.
Just as Scarlett and Ben had fallen for each other, Aaron and I had gotten closer than ever last semester.
Stolen glances had turned into a squeeze of his hand or mine.
I went from crushing on him for years to realizing that he undoubtedly felt the same way about me.
He’d texted me on my way to the dance, and my heart had practically leaped out of my chest.
Aaron: Can I make a confession? I wish you were my date tonight…
All of that had made me sure he was finally going to make a move. Ask me to dance, at least.
I would’ve been so happy with a single dance with Aaron.
Maybe that’s all it would take for everything to change.
It didn’t happen.
I’d gone home utterly disappointed, heartbroken that he’d pretty much ignored me the entire night.
Then he’d sent a single message the next day, saying sorry because he should’ve known better.
It wasn’t until later that I’d begun to realize then what I fully knew now.
It was never going to happen, not then and not ever.
The reason he hadn’t asked me to dance was because he had seen that before me.
So I’d stayed away from him since then, knowing Aaron and I just weren’t meant to be.
I headed past his house and towards the woods. One of my favorite things to do, especially on the weekends, was to go for a long walk through our neighborhood and then the woods until I reached the creek.
I’d always loved the creek.
As kids, the Garcia brothers had often played there. It had been their playground, their fortress, a portal for all of their adventures.
I’d usually play the princess that needed to be saved or, if I was lucky, join them as a warrior against whatever monster they were fighting that day. Sometimes, I’d just be somewhere nearby, making mud pies or jumping from rock to rock, collecting interesting things.
These days, the only person who still came here was me.
I liked the solitude, which was the exact opposite of cheerleading and the environment at my house.
I loved cheerleading, the chanting and the stunts and how loud it got. I loved my family and never having a dull moment. But sometimes I just needed to get away from the noise of it all so I could hear my own thoughts.
For a while, I sat at the creek and watched the river flow by. It always amazed me to think that the water was never the same. It was always running, moving, and changing.
Sometimes I just watched it go by and wondered where in the world it got to go.
It was all very unlike my life.
While the water got to explore new places, I felt stuck in the same spot.
Stagnant.
There was always school and then cheer, and then coming home to help with chores or watching my younger brothers.
The Garcia brothers were usually around. They lived across the street.
Aaron was almost always nearby because he was best friends with my older brother, David. So he was both close and out of reach.
I watched the river in silence for a while.
The sun began to set, and the cold began to creep in. That was my signal to go.
I got up and made my way back home.
Now that the second semester of the school year had started, basketball season was well underway.
Which meant more cheering.
Football during the fall under the bright stadium lights was amazing. It couldn’t quite compare to anything else.
But fast-paced basketball games and loud thundering crowds were something else too.
This season, Ben wasn’t playing. His main thing was football, and he’d decided to increase his hours at the diner instead now that the season was over. He’d be heading to college in the fall, and he wanted to save as much money as possible.
Aaron, though, was playing basketball again along with my brother. They had both made varsity. It was also David’s last season since he was graduating this