Project Equality

Independent

Amilia

I met Jacob in the park where Club used to happen. Well, I guess Club still did - still does - happen there, just without us. That's what happens when you become an adult. All of my prior awkwardness and discomfort surrounding the ever changing nature of our relationship changed after I found out that it was actually pretty normal for things to be weird the first time. Of course, this took talking to my mom . . . and Lisa's mom and Lynn's Aunt Chrissy and Jenna's moms and Hazel's mom. By the end, though, I think I understood a lot more than I did going into it. I guess I should have probably talked to an, um, experienced adult in the first place.

"Ami!" Jacob hugged and kissed me. Being late June, it was at that point of the evening where you feel it should be getting darker, but the sun is just lazily making its way to the horizon without a single care.

"Hi, Jacob. What's so urgent that you needed to talk to me about?"

"I needed to tell you that I think you're the most amazing thing in my life," he began, and I was pulled into a flashback.

"Hello, everyone. This is my dear friend Shreyas, of whom I have told you much," May began, trying to hide her radiant smile from all of us. The summer before eighth grade, she had introduced all of us to Shreyas. I knew from our little talks that she hoped one day he would ask her to be his girlfriend. If only she knew what we knew now.

"It's nice to meet you," I had said, shaking his hand and smiling knowingly.

"You too. Mayella talks about all of you nonstop. Oh, I hope you don't mind, but I brought my friend Jacob along."

"Jacob," Ely greeted stiffly.

"Elysia."

"Hi," Lisa squeaked, blushing when he waved to her. That girl was always quick to fall in love, and there was no secret that she had.

"Hey," Lynn said in the ever-flirtatious tone of voice. It was how she greeted everyone, but something was a little different about this time.

"Nice to meet you," I told him, shaking his hand as well. "I'm Amilia."

"The pleasure is all mine." There was neither love nor even friendship at first sight. Only acquaintance.

"We've been through so much together, and every day I feel closer to and more in love with you than I did the day before."

"Well, my date stole your date, so now I'm stealing you. Come on, you've gotta loosen up a bit." He pulled me to the dance floor, and I was laughing but too shy to even look at him. He twirled my and we danced and I couldn't stop randomly giggling. Sure, he was dating Lisa, but something was happening right then.

I glanced over to see May and Lisa dancing as well. Even though we had swapped dates - albeit a platonic one for me - this arrangement almost felt right.

"I know that you thought that it was I who was always there when you needed, but the truth is that you were there for me when I needed you, too."

"Are you sure Lisa is okay with this?" I knew we were just there to do homework and chat, but I also knew that there were feelings bubbling up inside of me. In light of Shreyas' death, we were both so weak. If we were together, there was no telling how it would go.

"She wants me to be hanging out with you. She's worried sick, and likes knowing that she has an intimate relationship with the one looking after you. And I think she likes you looking after me, too."

I remembered thinking that she wouldn't have been okay with it if she knew what I was about to realize. All that we did that night was homework and chat. Of course, he also found my doodles of all of our friends . . . He almost cried seeing the one of him and Shreyas.