Winning My Ex-Crush

Fenella’s POV

End of 9th grade, 9 years ago…

“Would you go out with me, Fenella?”

Huh? I blinked in disbelief as I looked at the figure in front of me.

What did he just say?

I pondered in front of the soda vending machine. The 7th-grade boy just grinned, although I could catch a hint of redness on his cheeks. He adjusted his glasses and seemed to wait for me to respond to his question.

“Lloyd, you’re kidding, right?”

I had to be honest; my heart was pounding. This was the first time I’d been asked out on a date. What girl wouldn’t be thrilled to be asked out?

But, come on! It’s Lloyd Evans! He’s Laird’s little brother!

“Would you prefer it if I joked about this?” Lloyd asked, raising an eyebrow.

Flustered, I didn’t know where to look. Several times, I glanced back and forth between Lloyd’s eyes, my shoes, or the corridor door between buildings.

I truly didn’t expect a boy of Lloyd’s age to have the courage to ask me out. After all, I’m his senior. I’m in 9th grade, and Lloyd shouldn’t be asking a senior like me out. Either Lloyd was maturing too quickly, or I was being childish.

“Okay, let’s just pretend I was joking. So, I’ll take you out for some one-on-one friendly hangouts tomorrow, Saturday. How about that?” Lloyd asked.

“Friendly hangout?” I was still stuttering, but I tried to calm myself. After all, I was trying to be a good big sister to him.

***

“Isn’t that wrong?” Cath, my best friend, burst into laughter.

“Ha ha. Yeah, yeah, funny, huh? Go ahead and laugh, but I’ll still be going on a date before you do.”

I straightened up the books on my desk. However, Cath and I didn’t immediately go home. We were still lingering around in class, choosing to chat first. Especially about today’s hottest topic: Lloyd’s date invitation.

“How could he even think of asking you out? I thought he was a bookworm.” Cath widened her eyes, still amazed at my news.

“I have no idea. Maybe I’m just so charming and charismatic.” I flipped my hair back dramatically, and Cath burst into laughter again.

“Come on, Fenella. What did you do to an innocent boy like Lloyd?” Cath interrogated me, and I sucked my cheeks in.

“Seriously, I don’t know. Lloyd just joined our school this year. At the beginning, I thought he was bullied by the 8th graders. So I defended him and scared away those bullies.” I clasped my hands together.

I remembered the incidents from last semester. Lloyd just joined the 7th grade, and for some reason, he seemed to be bullied. Maybe because he was just too snobby, he was harassed by the older kids.

“Since then, I’ve been keeping an eye on him. His attitude is, you know, arrogant. I’m afraid he’ll get into trouble again.”

I sighed after recounting how Lloyd and I have become quite close lately. After hearing my story, Cath shook her head and sighed.

“I didn’t know you had a heroic side like that.” Cath laughed teasingly again.

“Don’t tease.” I said this with annoyance at Cath and started to get up from my seat, carrying my books to the locker.

“Not teasing, really. I just can’t believe it. What would Laird think if he knew about this?” Cath chuckled, and I elbowed her.

Yeah, right. That’s what I’m worried about. I can’t even guess what’s on Lloyd’s mind, let alone Laird, who hasn’t talked to me in a long time.

I opened my locker and looked inside. A photo was printed on the day of elementary school graduation. Laird and I stood side by side, posing funnily. I pretended to be sweet, while Laird made a funny face.

I missed those days.

Too bad. Laird and I have had a wide gap since we entered junior high school. He was busy with school and the baseball senior league, whereas I was busy with cheer squad and hanging out with my friends. According to Lloyd, their father forced Laird to take extra classes in exchange for permission to continue playing baseball.

“Hey, Fenella. You’re spacing out.” Cath nudged my arm.

I turned to Cath. My friend tilted her chin as a sign for me to look behind. I followed Cath’s indication and saw Lloyd standing at the end of the school corridor, waiting for me.

***

I walked alongside Lloyd to our houses. We were silent at school until we hopped off the bus. I really observe him now. Lloyd’s hair was dark blond, just like Laird’s. His haircut was shorter than Laird’s. He was taller for his age, as we were both about 5 feet, 2 inches tall.

“You’re not usually silent all the way home. You’re usually chatty about various things.” Lloyd broke the silence as we neared our homes.

“Really?” I laughed awkwardly.

Yeah, he’s right. In the past few months, we’ve been going home together often. Whenever I’m free, have no plans with my classmates, or don’t have cheerleading practice, I’ll go home with Lloyd. Come to think of it, Lloyd always asks me to go home together when there’s no scheduled practice.Property © NôvelDrama.Org.

“Are you not happy with me because I’m asking you out on a date?” Lloyd asked.

I glanced at his grim face. There was no way I could be completely honest, even though that’s how I felt at the moment. I truly didn’t know how to act towards Lloyd. We walked back in silence until we reached my house.

“Lloyd, I’m sorry.” I began, but Lloyd cut me off.

“Listen, Fenella. For a long time, I’ve known and observed you as Laird’s friend. I’ve always referred to you as my brother’s friend. But, since you helped me out earlier, I realized my brother isn’t at the same school as us.”

The boy then stared at me intently. His body faced me directly, so I involuntarily faced him as well. I tried to contain the thumping in my chest, and I faced him boldly.

Lloyd’s words seemed sincere and serious, so I didn’t want to be rude by underestimating what he said. Nobody likes to be underestimated, even if they’re younger.

“I’m starting to see you more as Fenella Baxter, not just as my brother’s friend. I hope you’ll give me a chance tomorrow and see me as Lloyd Evans, not just Laird’s little brother.”

“Can you do that?” Lloyd tried to look into my eyes from behind his glasses.

He’s right. Until now, I still saw him as Laird’s brother. It would indeed be strange if suddenly I had to see Lloyd as Lloyd Evans, not just Laird’s brother.

I should’ve acted more maturely, according to my age. The way Lloyd sees all this, it’s like he’s 14 years old too, not just 12 years old. I finally nodded firmly.

“Yes, Lloyd. I’ll try.” I said.

“See you tomorrow at 10 a. m. I’ll pick you up.” Lloyd smiled and then crossed over to his house.

I took a deep breath to control my unstable emotions. How strange. This is my first experience going on a date. It seems to have sparked a little bit of excitement in me.

Not long after, I felt someone else near me. I turned, and my eyes widened.

“Laird?!” I exclaimed in surprise and immediately held my breath.

“What was that?”

He asked with a puzzled frown on his forehead. He seemed as surprised as I was. His eyes blinked a few times, and I quickly ran into my house.