Catching Jordan

Catching Jordan - Section 11

first date

the count? 39 days since the fight with henry

The week after the district championship, which, by the way, I rocked, we have Friday night off, so Ty’s taking me on a date. Our first real date. Since he spends his Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays washing dishes, and every other day is devoted to practice and games, we haven’t had a chance to go out, just the two of us. Usually, he comes over after practice for a couple hours, we make out, and then he goes home. At school, we eat lunch and walk down the hall, but it’s not like we’ve gotten to spend a huge amount of time together. In some ways, I barely know him.

What’s his favorite color? Favorite band? Favorite vacation? Mustard or mayo? Both? When the hell is his birthday?

In some ways, I do know him. Does he like my hair up or down? Down. Boxers or briefs? Boxer briefs. Does he like it when I dress up? He prefers my jeans and T-shirts. Joe Montana or John Elway? Elway. (Blasphemy.)

Henry? Favorite color? Silver. Favorite band? Led Zeppelin. Favorite vacation? A cross-country trip with his dad to the Grand Canyon. Mustard or mayo? Ketchup. Birthday? December 1.

Ty picks me up and we’re off to some undisclosed location. Wearing jeans and a sweater, he’s borrowed his grandfather’s car for the occasion, and he brings me a bouquet of red roses. It’s 5:30, which is early for a date, so we’re driving into a lilac-and-bubblegum-colored sunset when he reaches over and rubs my thigh.

He smiles and it reminds me of the first day I saw him, how just seeing him made my body crazy. Practically catatonic. Even if he’s not perfect for me, perfect like Henry is, it’s easy to like Ty.

Soon I notice we’re heading away from town and out into the country, aka nowhere. “Ty, where are we going? There’s nothing out here.”

“That’s what you think,” he says with a wicked grin stretched across his face.

“Where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“I hate surprises. And how can you like surprises? You like being in control.”

He chuckles. “Yeah, but I’m in control if I’m the one doing the surprising.”

He parks the car and we get out and walk across a vast green field, overrun with hay and weeds, until we come to a path that leads down to a little waterfall, where Ty has set up a picnic. I bet 99.9 percent of all women would absolutely swoon if they saw this setup, and I’m in the majority.

Gaping, I grab his elbow. “How did you find this place?”

He smiles, gesturing for me to take a seat on the blanket he’s spread out. “My grandfather told me about it.” He lights a couple of lanterns.

Water is lapping over rocks and crickets are chirping as Ty reaches into a backpack and pulls out sub sandwiches, potato salad, and chocolate-chip cookies, my favorite.

“You really know the way to a girl’s heart.”

He piles some potato salad on a paper plate and passes it to me. “Well, not every girl’s heart. Just yours.” My face heats up. If I had never heard that Henry loved me, would I still be completely crazy over Ty? Probably.

“So,” I say, biting into my meatball sub, “what do you like to do when you’re not playing football or washing dishes or controlling Vanessa’s social life?”

Ty wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. “Well, controlling Vanessa’s social life is my whole reason for being, but when I’m not doing that, I like reading.”