Adam's mind was on the math problem he was trying to solve. My mind was on him.

  

I admired the breadth of his shoulders and his ruffled brown hair. His scent made me think of freshly laundered flannel. Even the way he held his pencil seemed special.

 

What an idiot I was, though I was smart enough to be Adam McKinney's pre-algebra tutor. I'd fallen for Abraham Lincoln High School's football captain. For a girl geek, that was a major mistake.

 He slid his paper toward me. "What did I do wrong this time?" he asked fatalistically.

 I checked the answer with my calculator. "Nothing. You got it right!" I offered him a high-five. He beamed and when his hand touched mine, I swear I felt sparks.

 

"Hey, you're good," he said.

 

I felt myself blush. "Math isn't as scary as it looks."

"I owe you. How about a pizza sometime?"

 

"Sure."

 

Suddenly I sensed someone behind us. I turned to see Brittany Caldwell. Rich, blonde, and pretty, she was the girl at Lincoln. In the social lineup she was the sun; the rest of us just orbited around her. My place was in some far-flung black hole.

 

"Hey, Brittany." With dismay I noticed the sparkle in Adam's eyes.

 

"Hi, Adam." Her voice was disgustingly singsong. Her orthodontically perfect smile faded as she looked at me.

    

I struggled to sound friendly. "Hi."

 "Excuse, me, Adam, but I wonder if I could ask you something?" she said.

  

"Okay."

 

She touched a well-manicured hand to the hip of her designer jeans. "Can we step outside?"

 

He excused himself and followed her out the library door. Although they were in the hallway, I could hear bits and pieces of conversation. Brittany was having a party; Adam was being invited, and I wasn't.

  

My cheeks burning, I flung my backpack over my shoulder. I was pretending to check out a shelf of new books when Adam came back.

  

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