Because of You, Well, Us

Kate

Much to my dismay, my first date with Andy felt pretty lame, due in part to the fact that the dance didn't bode well for fun. However, Andy and I had gone out three more times since then, but he still hadn't kissed me yet. I liked him, though. Andy seemed like a great guy. The cute thing was, he had asked me to be his girlfriend last night when he dropped me off at my house.

Maybe Andy hadn't kissed me yet because I always seemed to catch Chase sitting by his desk, which looked out onto our driveway, whenever we got home form a date. Maybe he had't kissed me yet because he didn't like me as much as I thought, and we only went out again because he secretly liked to tease.

"Miss Jackson? Would you please answer the question?" Asked my history teacher.

"I'm sorry Mr. Jones, I had something else on my mind. Could you please repeat the question?"

"This is a prime example of why you listen at all times in class. When you all go to your various colleges across the country..." And I zoned out again. Various colleges across the country wouldn't care if I zoned out in class during one of the first weeks of school.

Saraville had a soccer game that night after school. It reminded me of the conversation Andy and I had had the night before.

"We have our first rival game tomorrow after school. You should go." Andy said as he put the car in park. He didn't turn off he car, and I didn't make any moves to get out.

"Why would I do a thing like that?" I asked with a teasing tone in my voice

"Because I like having someone to play for." Andy said. He wasn't teasing.

"What do you mean by that?" I dropped the teasing as well

"I mean that I like having a reason to do well that I can see." I could tell getting out what he wanted to say had become a struggle, "I mean, I like knowing people are in the stands for me. It's a pride thing. I mean, Kate, would you want to go out more often? Like, as my girlfriend, more often?"

Of course I had said yes to both things. I smiled at the memory and then it hit me that Andy Stols and I had become an item. Despite his shyness, he counted as one of the most popular guys in school thanks to soccer, but that wasn't the only reason I dated him. I wasn't that shallow.

The bell rang, snapping me back to reality: Time for the game.

By my locker, I felt someone come up behind me and poke my side, Andy's signature move. Turning my head, I caught a glimpse of Andy's backpack strap.

"You're coming to the game, right?" He whispered, giving me a discrete peck on the cheek. Saraville had strict policies against PDA in the hallways, even after school hours.

I straightened the collar to my shirt, teasing him by pretending to mull it "Maybe." I turned to give him a sly look.

He tugged at my ponytail in jest and gave me another peck on the cheek, "You'd better be." I felt so lucky to have him in that moment.

I made my way to way towards the field in a dream until someone rammed into me. My stuff sprawled all over the hallway.

"Oh, shit, I'm so sorry." They said.

I hadn't noticed who they were until I looked up. Give you two guesses as to who it was. IT felt as if my life had turned into a soap opera.

When Chase saw me, he tried to act all cool, "Hey Kate, how are you?"

I snatched my stuff from his hands, just wanting to get away from him, "Fine." Then I stormed off to watch Andy play.

As they warmed up and the other team showed, I tried to focus on my homework, but I couldn't. I put down the AP Calc and thought like a teenage girl.

Was there a reason Andy hadn't kissed me yet? Maybe... I didn't know. What would happen if I kissed him? The next thing I knew, Chase played in the goal, and Andy sprinted up the field.

The other team sucked, I could tell that right away. Andy scored the first goal. He's a pretty good forward, but he's not the best on the team. As it turned out, Saraville won without much effort. I think we slacked off a bit at the end because the one goal they did score, I knew Chase could have caught in his sleep.

So Saraville Academy won its first soccer game of the season. People flooded the field to congratulate the players, and I headed straight for Andy.

He protested as I wrapped my arms around his neck, "Kate, don't. I'm so sweaty, I've almost soaked through my jersey, I don't-"

"And I don't care." Then I did it. I kissed Andy. He picked me up; I linked my ankles behind his back, and took a victory lap around the field.