Part 39 (1/2)

”Of course.”

”So this Ping-Pong paddle,” Archer continued, ”it was pretty unique. It had a message written on it. It said, 'I hate horror movies.'”

”Curiouser and curiouser.”

”Exactly. But the person who gave it to me had asked me to watch a horror movie with her.”

”Weird. Was the movie any good?”

”I wouldn't know,” Archer said, meeting my eyes for just a moment. ”I wasn't really able to concentrate on the movie.”

”Archer...”

”I want to talk about it, Cara. What happened?”

Hadn't he been there? Was he really going to make me relive it? I took a deep breath and concentrated on pulling my pretzel into bite-size bits.

”I liked you,” I said. ”A lot. And I thought maybe you liked me, too ... but then I tried to kiss you and you ran away screaming ... so I knew you actually didn't.”

”Oh,” Archer said to his fries. ”Because I actually did like you ... a lot ... but I don't exactly have a lot of ... experience. I panicked a little and felt like the biggest loser in the universe ... and everything got very horrible very fast.”

”You... did like me?”

”I do like you, Cara,” he said. ”I wanted to tell you, but you said never talk about it again, and I figured you were so completely turned off and disgusted by my freak-out that you weren't interested anymore. I thought that's what you liked about Nate and Eddie. They knew what they were doing.”

”No! Archer, Nate and Eddie were ... they were different. I never liked them the way I liked you. I only went out with them because ... It's stupid and ridiculous, but I swear I never would have gone out with either of them if I thought you were even remotely interested in me.”

”So ... if things had been different that night...”

”Everything would have changed.”

Archer looked up and met my eyes when I said this, and my insides started shaking. I wanted so badly to believe what it seemed like we were both saying. I couldn't take it if I was wrong, but if there was even a chance...

”Did you come here to find me?” I asked.

”I saw your Facebook update. I remembered.”

I pulled my chair closer to his. Our knees touched, and we both leaned forward ever so slightly. Only inches separated us.

”Archer ... I want to kiss you now, but I need to know you're not going to run away.

”I promise.”

I took a deep breath and saw that he did, too. Then we both leaned forward-and b.u.mped foreheads.

”Ow,” he said.

”We are so not good at this,” I said. ”I hope it's not some kind of a-”

He took my face in his hands and pressed his lips to mine.

I was wrong: we were soooo good at this. Kissing Archer was nothing like kissing Nate or Eddie. Kissing Archer was exactly what I'd always dreamed it would be. It was as if everything inside me had been clenched since that one night, and now I was bursting, so filled with happiness that I couldn't even contain it all. Tears welled in my eyes, and when we eventually pulled away, I let out a sound that could have been a sob or a laugh.

”Let's go to the prom,” Archer said.

Now I laughed. ”Next year? Sure. It's a date.”

”No, tonight. I want you to come to the prom with me. I have tickets. We can leave now and be right on time.”