Straight To You

thirty-six

When Monday rolls around, I'm not looking forward to going to school. Now that I'm positive Lacey is plotting some sort of revenge on me for "stealing" her boyfriend, I'm dreading the chance of running into her, which is inevitable considering how small this town is. Unfortunately, I know better than most that there is no point in running from your problems. They'll always find a way to catch up to you; so I might as well put a brave face on and hold my ground.

I find Lana waiting for me by my locker once I approach to grab my books for first period. I pretend not to notice the faint hickeys that dot her neck, unintentionally searching the hall for Kyler. I don't notice him, so I assume Lana is here to talk about the "we're together but not official" relationship she has going on with him.

As if on cue, the second I reach her side, Lana says, "I need your help."

"What is it this time?" I tease, shooting Lana a playful smile before turning my attention to entering my locker combination in order to get into my locker.

"Kyler asked me to be his girlfriend," Lana blurts in one quick breath, rushing to add, "And I said yes."

"You said yes?" I cry in excitement, completely forgetting about my books for first period as I turn to face Lana and offer her a wide grin. "Lana, that's great! I'm so happy for you two!"

"No, it's not great!" Lana counters dejectedly. For the first time since I joined her, I notice the worry and embarrassment lacing her tense expression. "I was drunk at the time, Morgan. And now . . . now Kyler is my boyfriend." Lana shudders as if this is the worst thing she could possibly think of happening to her, and I see that she's still trying to act like she doesn't have feelings for Kyler.

"Lana, we both know you like him," I retort simply, as if stating a fact. I take a few notebooks out of my book-bag and set them into my locker, facing away from Lana as I say, "And we both know that he likes you. You two were bound to get together eventually." 

"I just wanted him to work harder for it," Lana admits with a groan, leaning against the locker next to mine. "I didn't want him to ask me out while we were both wasted. I don't want that to be our how-we-got-together story, you know?"

My eyebrows furrow as I lift my gaze back up to Lana, her words puzzling me. "But haven't you two been hooking up this whole time, anyway?"

"That's different," Lana retorts, dismissing my statement with a roll of her eyes. "It's easy to get someone into bed with you. But managing a real relationship? That's hard. It takes genuine effort and work and maturity. I'm just not sure Kyler can handle all of that."

"Lana," I say softly, resting my hand on my friend's shoulder as I offer her a sympathetic gaze. "Anyone looking at Kyler can see how much he cares about you. Believe me. And if he thinks he's ready for a real relationship, and you both like each other, what's stopping you from at least giving it a try?" Lana opens her mouth to respond, but I quickly stop her short by mumbling, "Speak of the devil, he's walking this way."