You walked out onto the schoolyard dedicated to recess, in which a throng of students was shouting joyously, tossing balls high through the cool but sunny air. Suddenly, your best friend Avalon, or Ava as you called her, came bounding up to you. "(Y/N)!" she exclaimed. "Look, Simon's over there! You should totally go talk to him," she giggled. Ava was your annoyingly insistent but sweet wingwoman, regarding your friend Simon Dubois, whom you were mildly infatuated with. She pushed you towards the corner of the yard, where he was talking to the lady's thumb flowers. You stumbled a bit, but then walked over to Simon and sat beside him. "Hi, Simon."
He looked up from his flowers. "Hi, (Y/N)." He was a skinny boy with a pointed chin, a quiet voice, and bright dark eyes. "Those are pretty blooms," you said. "Thank you - their names are Persicaria and Redshank." he replied, his eyes focused on them, but occasionally flickering up to meet you. "Oh! Astute! They are both names for the species." You smiled at Simon and his flowers, plucked some long blades of grass, and began braiding them. "What are you doing?" he asked. "You'll see," you answered with a mysterious smile. Soon, the braided grass started to resemble a woven circlet, which you placed on Simon's head. He smiled at you, adjusting the verdant crown. "Thanks, (Y/N). This is really pretty," he observed.
Ava, who had appeared out of nowhere, grinned and mouthed, "Good job." Simon saw you looking and craned his neck to glimpse what you were looking at. "What's over there?" he asked. "Grass and people," you responded. "Otherwise, nothing." The corners of Simon's mouth twitched a bit. Then, the obnoxiously loud bell rang, and everyone started walking back to the building. "Simon?" you said. "Yes?" "Before we go, I wanted to say..." You looked bashfully at the ground and fidgeted. Simon looked at you quizzically. "I like you." The words came in a very small voice.
Simon turned beet red, shuffled his feet, and seemed to develop a keen interest in Persicaria. You held your breath. Finally, he looked up at you and mumbled, "I think I like you, too." You released your breath, and your heart soared. As you walked back together, he clasped his hand around yours, and you beamed at each other.
