Dezzy’s POV:
“He likes you, Dezzy. It’s so obvious.” My best friend tells me again. I groan and look at her with annoyance in my eyes.
“He doesn’t like me! Why would he like me? I mean, he’s Hayes Grier; the brother of Nash Grier. He would never notice me. I’m too normal. Plus, he’s adorable and amazing and…ugh. Don’t get me started again.” I beg. I’ve had a crush on Hayes since…well forever. The only person that knew was my best friend. I had her swear she would never breathe a word of it to anyone. How embarrassing would that be if Hayes found out?
“Whatever.” She shakes her head and I ignore her. No way was I going to get my hopes up and think that Hayes liked me. Besides, she’s my best friend; she’s supposed to tell me that my crush likes me back.
“I think you should at least ask him out.” She says. She looks like she’d just told me that I should eat a sandwich for lunch.
“Are you crazy?! I can’t ask him out! That would be disastrous!” I squeal at her. Luckily, my family had left the house and wouldn’t be hearing my screaming.
“Geez, Dez. Calm down. Let’s just put on a movie before you have a heart attack okay?” She tells me and I start to calm down.
It will always be like this. I like Hayes a lot…like a lot a lot. But, I don’t have the guts to tell him. I don’t think I ever will. In the end, I figure I’ll just have to get over it.
The Next Day-
Hayes’ POV:
“When are you ever going to tell her?” Nash, my brother, asks me as we walk to the snack table. We’re at a party, a party that I thought was supposed to just be close friends, but turns out, everyone from school found out about it. And who doesn’t want to go to Cameron Dallas’ party?
My mind comes back to Nash’s question and I answer, “Tell who what?” I act innocent. I don’t really know what he’s talking about…not really.
“Cut the crap, Hayes. Everyone knows you have a thing for Dezzy.” He pauses for a second then continues, “Literally, everyone.”
I feel my cheeks blush and I try to deny it but Nash won’t have it. Then Taylor and Gilinsky come over and they all have things to say about it. Taylor is saying to be spontaneous and just kiss her then come out with my feelings. Gilinsky is saying to be romantic and get her alone and tell her sweet things, then kiss her. Nash is just telling me to be a man and do it. When Aaron, Shawn, and Matthew start coming closer, I tell them I will do it my way. I don’t need any more advice from these supposed love experts.
I walk away and suddenly see DezjaNeah and her best friend on the dance floor. They’re bouncing around and laughing to some song I can’t seem to hear anymore. I scale the wall, around the crowd, and keep my eyes on her. God, she’s beautiful. Her smile, her eyes, her hair, everything.
I notice she glances at me a few times and I quickly look away. I always find my eyes trained on her again. A nameless girl pulls me on to the dance floor and I dance with her. I keep looking around, though, for Dezzy. After a few minutes, I can’t see her anymore and I leave the crowd of dancing teenagers.
I slowly make my way through the house but, I can’t find Dezzy. I keep looking, casually, but determinedly. Then Cameron comes up to me and puts his arm around my shoulder and guides me to the less crowded kitchen, “She left bro. But, I heard that she has a volleyball game tomorrow at noon. Me, you and Nash are going.” And with that, he left to go mingle with other people.
In a way, I’m frustrated and annoyed that my brother and the other guys were getting so involved with my crush on Dezzy. But, at the same time, I’m grateful. They’re experienced and older but, in no way, more mature. Oh well. I guess I’ll have to make do with what I’ve got.
The Next Day-
Dezzy’s POV:
I bend over and place my palms on the cold floor between my spread out legs. I can feel the backs of my thighs stretching and I walk my hands over to my right ankle and stretch. I do a few more leg stretches and plenty arm stretches.
When I look to the crowd I notice, with much surprise, Hayes, Cameron, and Nash sitting in the front row of the bleachers. I try not to make it noticeable that I’ve spotted them. But, then Cameron and Nash start waving at me with huge smiles on their faces and Hayes moves in quickly to swat both of their waving arms and heads. I giggle a little at the sight but now, I’m more confused than ever.
During my game, I keep looking toward Hayes. Sometimes, I’ll catch him looking at me but most times, wouldn’t be. By the end, I look over to the trio, hoping that they’ll come over and say hi or something. But, Hayes practically runs out the building and Cam and Nash follow slowly behind.
The next day, at my lacrosse game, I find Hayes there, in the front row. This time, he’s with Jack Gilinsky, Matthew, and Carter. I hear many hoots and shouts from them at the girls on the field and I roll my eyes. Hayes continuously tries to shush them and I smile. At the end, I look again to see Hayes rushing away from the field. The other three boys just laugh and wave at me.
A week goes by with the same scenarios and it’s starting to get pretty weird. I come to the conclusion that Hayes is following me. But, why? I am beyond confused and beyond ready for an answer! I decide I’m going to get the answer myself. I hate waiting around and I hate not knowing what’s going on.
On a whim, I convince my best friend (who already has her license) to drive me to Hayes’ house. She does so with many questions the whole ride. I give her no answers. Once we get there, I notice a few other cars in the drive way. I hop out and walk straight to the door and ring the door bell.
Nash answers and looks at me stunned. I walk past him and into the house. All the guys are in the living room with pizza on the floor, the TV on, a camera on a tripod, and girls’ clothes and wigs littering the floor. I look to Cameron and ask, “YouTube video?”
“Yeah.” He says quickly. He looks at Nash who just shrugs his shoulders.
“Where’s Hayes?” I ask. Nash looks at Cameron. Cameron looks at Matthew. Matthew looks at Carter. Carter looks at Taylor. And so forth. They all avoid my gaze.
“This is really starting to get old! Why are you all stalking me?” I ask, clearly letting the frustration drip in.
Nash lets out a long sigh and I turn around to look at him. He says, “Okay, look, we aren’t stalking you…not really. Well, okay Hayes kind of is-”
“What he’s trying to say is,” Aaron cuts Nash off. “Hayes has the biggest crush on you and has been following you with the intent to tell you but he keeps chickening out.”
The room went silent and I felt my mouth drop slightly and my cheeks heat up. Then Johnson says, “Hey, you like him too, don’t you?” They all laugh a little and my face gets even hotter.
Suddenly, the front door opens and Hayes walks in. He stops mid stride when he sees me. The door closes behind him and he looks at all the guys around me then his eyes stop and land on me. His cheeks redden and I can see his Adam’s apple bob from his hard swallowing.
“Um, we’ll give you two some privacy.” Carter says with a wink at Hayes. They all walk out and then it’s just Hayes and I…alone.
It’s quiet for a few seconds and I desperately want to run away but also desperately want to just plant one on him. Hayes actually likes me. I want to scream out that I like him too but, I also want him to tell me. I can’t completely trust the guys’ word for it.
