The next day in study hall, Nicole was about to die of boredom. She glanced up at the clock and sighed upon seeing that she had about thirty five minutes to go. She looked around the room and saw that one seat over and two seats up, Zac wasn't any better off. He too was watching the clock.
She wasted no time. Nicole pulled out a notebook and started to scribble out a note.
Hey. Have you talked to Katie lately?
She tore it out of her notebook and folded it in half. She nudged the boy in front of her and gave him the note, then pointed at Zac.
Zac opened the note then looked around. His eyes met Nicole's, and she nodded. He unfolded the note, scribbled something down, then handed it back.
No. Doesn't she still hate me?
Nicole frowned. This was not going to be as easy as she thought.
No, she was just a little confused. She wants to talk to you after school.
She passed it back.
She does? About what?
I don't know...just go to the park and meet at the swings. She wrote and passed it up to him.
Are you sure? Okay. I'll be there.
Nicole read the note and smiled. This was her last resort.
"Hey." Nicole said, tapping Katie on the shoulder.
"Oh, hey." Katie said, looking up from digging in her locker.
"What's up?"
"Not much." Katie replied, dropping a few books in her bookbag.
"Oh. Well, Zac wants to talk to you after school. Meet him in the park at the swings right away, okay? Bye." Nicole said, walking away quickly.
Katie tried to question her, but Nicole had already left.
Why would he want to talk to me? Katie asked herself. Something strange....
Katie shoved her hands in her coat pockets as she walked down the partially snow covered sidewalk of the local park the same day after school. The snow and ice crunched beneath her feet as she walked along. She had been pondering all day why Zac would want to talk to her. She couldn't come up with any real reason other than he was going to apologize to her.
"He should, too." Katie muttered to herself.
Fifty yards away, Zac was sitting on the cold ground against a leg of the swingset, wondering why Katie would want to talk to him, other than the fact that she would yell at him. The last few months had been so confusing for him, not to mention the whole Brooke ordeal. He felt sick just thinking about it.
As she approached the swings, Katie could see Zac leaning against the swings. When he saw her his expression remained as blank as hers. She walked up and stood ten feet in front of him.
"Hi." He said.
"Hi." She said. They looked at each other for a few moments, and then an awkward silence set in. The two stood there for almost a minute before both of them spoke.
"Well?"
"What did you want?"
They looked at each other, surprised.
"You-" Katie started.
"I-"
They both stopped. "Go ahead." Zac replied.
"Oh. Um, didn't you want to tell me something?" She asked.
"Me?"
"Yeah."
"Um, I thought you wanted me to tell you something." Zac said.
"No, Nicole told me that you wanted to tell me something."
"She told me you wanted to tell me something." Zac replied.
The two just looked at each other for a moment. Katie finally let out a small laugh, then Zac joined in.
"Nicole." They said in unison, their eyes meeting as they giggled.
"Gosh, I feel like an idiot."
"I do too." Katie said.
"I think she just wanted us to talk."
"Yeah." She replied. There was another short awkward silence between the two of them.
"So...why were you mad at me?" Zac asked. "I mean...I never really understood....the whole...thing." he said, making a gesture with his hands.
"Oh." Katie said. "Well...." She sighed and dug the toe of her shoe into the ice.
"Just tell me." He said. "I'm just sick of this."
"Sick of what?" She asked.
"Just...us. All of this crap. I just want the truth." Zac said.
"Oh." katie said.
Zac could tell this wasn't going to be easy. "Was it about the dance?" He asked.
"Yeah."
"Well what was it? Is that what you were mad about?" He asked.
Katie kept her head and eyes down and nodded.
"Well?"
There was yet another long pause before Katie spoke again. "I.....I.....I was going to ask you."
Zac couldn't believe his ears. "You...you were?"
Katie shifted uncomfortably. "Well....yeah."
"Oh." Zac said. "I didn't know that." He said sheepishly.
"Well...I did." She said.
"But why didn't you?" he asked.
"Because Brooke asked you." She said.
Zac suddenly felt like an idiot. That's why Katie had been mad when Brooke called. She had thought that he was rubbing Brooke in her face.
"No she didn't." Zac said. He wanted to see what Katie's reaction would be.
"She didn't?" Katie asked in disbelief.
"Well, she asked me, but I said no." Zac replied.
"Oh. Why?"
Zac shifted uncomfortably. "Well....I thought....." He sighed. "I thought you were going to ask me."
"You wanted me to?"
"Well....yeah. I mean.....yeah."
"Oh." Katie said. There was yet another awkward silence between them.
"I never liked her...Katie." Zac said truthfully.
"You didn't?" She asked.
"No." Zac said, looking at her closely. He watched as the late January breeze floated through her blonde, curly hair, guiding several strands out from behind her ears.
"Gosh I feel so stupid." She said, letting out a nervous laugh.
Zac smiled. "Me too."
"So.....Do you want to go with me?"
"Yeah." Zac said quickly.
"Really? Cool." Katie said.
"Yeah." Zac replied.
"Well....."
"Yeah......" The two laughed again, glad that everything was fine between them.
"I....should be getting home." She replied.
"Um...okay. Do you want some company?" He asked.
"Sure." Katie said, smiling at him. Zac felt his chest literally untense as he smiled back. The two of them walked out of the park and through the snow, towards Katie's house.