Leaning against the side of one of the dumpsters in the back of the school, Seth took a cigarette out of the pack he had on the inside of his jacket. Lighting up, he slid down to the ground. Looking up at the sky he started thinking about recent events that happened to him, like meeting Christine. He always knew who she was because he knew her brother, but he never thought she was interesting, or beautiful. His face grew hot as he remembered the walk they took through the park and the scent that came off her as the wind blew through her hair. Every time he got in his car he could smell her, even when she wasn’t there. Seth wasn’t sure if he liked the thought of him falling in love. He never really experienced the feeling before and it didn’t fit the descriptions from any love song. It felt more like a stomach ache.

He hadn’t told anyone how he felt yet, too afraid of what they might think. He was so used to being alone the thought of sharing a life with someone was odd to him. Add on not only what his friends would think, but how Christine’s brother would react if he found out and Seth realized why he had constant stomach aches. The whole situation was a mess and the best he could think of was leaving Christine alone so she wouldn’t be too hurt. Taking one last puff of his cigarette, Seth threw it across the space he was sitting in.

Hearing footsteps, Seth quickly looked around for some place to hide, but when he didn’t find anything he accepted the fate that waited him around the dumpster. To his surprise it was Courtney who walked around the corner.

“Hey Seth, I thought I’d find you here,” she said. Seth watched her as she took a seat next to him on the ground.

“Aren’t you afraid you’re gonna get dirty?” he asked mocking her.
Ignoring the question, Courtney looked at him and batted her eyes. “What you thinking about?”

“Nothing.”

“Oh, come on Seth. You have to let me in.”

“I don’t have to do nothing,” standing up he started walking away but Courtney’s words stopped him in his tracks.

“You can’t be with her.”

“Who?”

“Christine. You can’t be with her.”

Facing her, he glared down at her with hatred radiating from his eyes.   “And why’s that?”

“She’s totally nothing like you and me,” Courtney said. “She doesn’t understand what our lives are like. Neither of them do. That’s why it like wouldn’t work.” Seth turned from her and started walking away again. He heard her stand up and begin to follow him. “But us, Seth, we totally understand each other. We’re like perfect for each other.”

Turning around Seth caught Courtney by the shoulders and glared at her, making her try to back away in fear. “You don’t know me, little girl. You don’t know the first thing about my life. Don’t try to act like you do. It doesn’t matter to me whether Christine would get me or not. What matters is how she makes me feel, which is a lot better than you ever made me feel.” Letting her go Seth continued on his way, leaving Courtney staring after him.

A few days later Seth lay with Christine outside at the park. The park was their favorite spot to go because there weren’t many people at night to bother them. Although Seth had been to Christine’s house a few times he never invited her to his, but it didn’t seem to bother her. While Christine stared up at the sky, trying to find different constellations, Seth stared at her for short periods of time so she wouldn’t notice. The moon shone on her face making it look ghostly white, but not in a creepy way. She looked amazing and Seth wanted nothing more than to tell her.

“Oh! I found Orion’s belt!” Christine exclaimed pointing up at the sky. She looked over at him and smiled. Her smile was contagious and the next thing Seth knew he was smiling too.  Bolting up Christine hid her face in her hands. “I’m sorry,” she said, “I’m such a nerd. You’re probably bored.” Seth sat up and turned her face toward his.

“I’m not bored one bit,” he replied which made her blush. They stared into each other’s eyes and Seth barely noticed that he was leaning in closer to her until their lips were touching. He ignored the warning that went off like an alarm in his head and refused to pull away. Shivers traveled through him, a feeling he never felt with anyone else. They only pulled apart when the sound of someone clearing their throat made them jump. Standing over them was Courtney, a wild look in her eyes.

“Oh, uh… hi Courtney,” Christine muttered. Courtney cast a short glance at her before her eyes set on Seth again.

“What do you want?” he asked getting annoyed. Without saying anything, Courtney turned and stomped off but the feeling of uneasiness stayed after she was long gone.

“I should be getting home,” Christine said breaking the silence. Standing up they both left the park, not saying a word about what had happened between the two of them.

It was times like these that Christine wished she had a girlfriend to talk to. Sitting around John’s kitchen table, she watched as John, Steve, Frank, and two boys who lived down the street, Toby and Tommy, played one of their Dungeon and Dragon games. She didn’t know why she came today, but she knew it would be better than sitting at home alone. She hadn’t talked to Seth since the night they kissed, and hadn’t told anyone what had happened between them. Although she knew she should be happy about the situation she was more confused. Her dream was coming to life but for some reason it felt wrong.

“Seth kissed me,” she announced to the room suddenly. All the boys looked up at her stunned. She knew announcing it the way she did would grab their attention which is what she wanted. Usually at one of these games she wouldn’t get them to notice her even if she was prancing around naked.

“Isn’t that what you wanted?” John asked sounding stunned that the act even happened.

“Well, yeah, but it doesn’t feel right to me.”

“What’s the problem?” Steve demanded, as if the problem could be Seth.

“Courtney showed up and she looked really pissed.”

John waved the situation aside, “Ah, Courtney always looks pissed about something. Remember the how she threatened you in the hallway. She’s probably just pissed that you got Seth and she didn’t.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Christine trailed off.

“Look,” John said as the boys prepared to get back into their game, “this is what you’ve been wanting for a long time. It’s like a dream come true. Just ignore Courtney and make sure that you’re happy, not her. You deserve it.”

Christine brightened up at these words. “I do deserve it, don’t I?”

“Yeah,” Steve said half distracted as he tried to find his spot in the Dungeon Master Guide, “and if that witch tries to mess anything up we’ll take care of her.” Christine smiled at this, knowing that they would chicken out at the last minute, but happy that the offer was there.