CHAPTER 58

"Adam! Yo, Adam!"

A voice calling my name broke me out of my daydream. Pausing mid-step, I turned around to see Blondie, the popular kid from drama class.

"Hey!" I replied casually, yet confused, watching him approach me as people walked around us, waiting for him to state his purpose.

"I never gave you my name. Dylan Swanson." He held out his fist. I reluctantly bumped it.

"Yeah, you tried out for the council too, right?" I asked, then realized it sounded like I was rubbing it in his face that I got in and he didn't.

He shrugged. "Real talk, I didn't even wanna. My brother's on council and wanted me to try out."

"Really?" I asked, half with fake interest and half with genuine interest. "Who's that?"

"Jeff Swanson, the VP." he replied. I would never have guessed that guy and Dylan were related. While Dylan was a slightly muscular, slightly lean popular-looking kid with blonde hair, Jeff was kind of pudgy, looked and dressed like a nerd, and had brown hair.

"I see." I commented, not knowing where the conversation was going. "So what do you need?"

"Well, I heard through him what you did with Megan and May…"

Of course. A freaking week later and I couldn't even escape it, not even from people who weren't even indirectly related to the event. Cringing on the inside, I prepared for the worst as Dylan finished his sentence.

"…And it was totally sick, bro!" He said, holding out his fist again.

"Excuse me?!" I asked in disbelief, ignoring his fist.

"You, like, totally put May in her place! I think she's frigid anyway. Plus, you're a stone cold playa!" Dylan replied enthusiastically. "Massive respect for that. Especially since, no offense, you were a total nerd a few months ago."

"Yeah, things change quickly." I admitted.

"Anyway, I totally dig your style, man." He continued. Did people after the '90s even say 'dig' anymore? "I wanna invite you to this party I'm throwing on Friday. You down?"

"You're seriously inviting me to a party because I got involved with multiple girls?" I asked him.

He looked at me as if it was obvious. "Yeah, man! It was freakin' hilarious! You got them good."

"I was a dick." I admitted.

"Naw, man. Look, does Megan still hate you?"

"No." I begrudgingly answered.

"May May?"

I paused. "I don't know." I answered.

"Then you're all good!" He protested. "No feelings are hurt, and what you did was a freakin' riot. C'mon, it'll be awesome."

"Alright, if you want me there I'll go." I caved. "But I've never been to a party before."

"Yeah, I kind of got that impression." He retaliated. "What's your phone number? I'll text you the time and address."

I gave him my phone number and he pulled out his phone, nodding enthusiastically as he typed my number into his phone. "Sweet." He commented, then looked up at me with a goofy grin on his face. "See you there!"

"Yeah, see you." I mumbled, trying to process what had just happened. Did being an asshole just make me popular? No wonder jocks are vilified in movies. But being invited to a party… I have never been invited to one of those. While I didn't quite know what to expect, I did have a general idea of what would go down. As I kept walking towards the weights room, I debated in my mind if it was really worth it. I just about approached the door as I felt a buzz in my pocket.

I stopped and pulled out my phone to see I had a new text message from Megan.

Hey there. :) I answered before opening the door. I sighed to myself, the empty room echoing my sight back to me.

What's up? Megan texted me back.

Not a lot. I shot back before thinking if I should tell her about the party. Given that a lot of my problems in the past stemmed from either keeping the full story to myself or being misunderstood, my sudden sense of caution won. Dylan Swanson invited me to come to a party with him. You want to come with me?

Aweeeee id love to!! <3 :) :) was her response. Well, it certainly was an improvement from everyone getting mad at me, I thought to myself as I took off my sweater and started stretching, getting ready for my first set.

***

Of course, the universe sometimes has other plans. The day Dylan set for the party turned out to be the one day Megan couldn't make it. Given the nature of what goes on at parties, it was scheduled to be Friday night, which I'm amazed Megan didn't see coming. However, I made it up to Megan by ditching my Thursday workout with her to hang around town with her.

She was a great girl and I won't lie, the sex was amazing when we got the chance, but it was painfully obvious we weren't right for each other. As we walked throughout the town, we tried to chat, but we could never find a topic both of us were interested in. We tried to be more vague with topics, but that either made the conversation end quickly or bored us to the point where we wished the conversation would end quickly.

Eventually, we settled for a hike in the forest, something I was not shy about never enjoying. Nevertheless, by the hand Megan dragged a very reluctant me into the woods where we just walked around for a bit.

"Aren't you having fun?" She eventually asked me.

I laughed aloud. "Of course I'm not. I already said I don't like hikes." I answered. "Plus there's something about hiking in winter. It's just… nasty. The trees are dead, there's no nature, and everything is dirty and slushy."

Megan thought back to one of our earlier conversations. "I thought you said you liked hiking in winter."

Well, it is good to know that she almost listened. "I like going outside in winter." I clarified. "But not hiking. Hiking, I have to experience the downsides. The deadness, the dirt, the work. But just going outside and taking it in is something else. Winter's got this vibrant energy that you have to stop and feel. Hiking is too much work to really feel that energy."

She nodded. "Okay." She said, which was her universal equivalent for 'In through one ear, out the other.' "But this hike is different, right?"

I thought about what she was getting at. "This hike isn't really that different. I'm still not enjoying myself, if I can be frank."

Megan pouted, half playfully. "But I'm here with you. Shouldn't that make it better?"

I paused, wondering how I was going to phrase this. As I did, I noticed a few large, flat rocks in an open area. "Care to sit down?" I asked, gesturing to the rocks. She complied, and I sat down next to her, exhaling before I began rambling.