Diving Into The Wreck

Falling For You

There were only two practices left before Quiz Bowl regionals, a thought that terrified everyone on the team. We had no idea what kind of competition we would be facing, and we didn't have much time to prepare. However, that fear didn't stop Tanner from writing "T-Rex vs. Polar Bear" on the board and then creating elaborate drawings of dinosaurs fighting bears. It didn't stop Devon from making sure that the desks were in a perfect line before starting the game, and it definitely didn't stop Madeline from chatting endlessly about Blake.

"Blake asked me out!" she exclaimed right as the game was about to start.

"Really?" I said.

"Yeah," Madeline said. "I went to his house this weekend, and he said that he was in love with me and that he wanted nothing more than to go out with me. It was so sweet."

"What did you say?" I asked.

"I said yes, obviously. Why wouldn't I go out with Blake Pinkerton?"

I could think of a million reasons not to go out with him, but I wasn't Madeline. "Do you know when you two are going to go on your first date?"

"Yeah, we're going to see the new Avengers movie tomorrow night," Madeline said. "I'm so nervous. What if something goes wrong?"

"You'll be fine, Madeline."

"I hope so. Can you come over to my house before the date? Maybe you can help me."

I wasn't sure why Madeline thought that I would be able to give her any useful romantic advice when I had never been in a relationship, but I said yes anyways. Madeline was about to say something when Tanner suddenly handed a packet to Mrs. Welch, and she started reading the first question.

"What T.S. Eliot poem contains such lines as 'This is the dead land. This is cactus land,' and concludes with the line 'This is the way the world ends, not with a bang but with a whimper?'" Mrs. Welch asked.

"The Hollow Men!" Madeline exclaimed, as if she had just been reading classic poetry instead of gushing over her new boyfriend.

The next day, I went to Madeline's house right away after school. I played with her brother's pet snakes, letting them wrap around my arms while Madeline stood in front of her closet, trying to decide what to wear. "Dani!" she eventually called. "Should I wear this dress, or is it too formal?" She held up a long, black dress, and then explained, "I usually wear it for orchestra concerts."

"Madeline, you're going on a date with a boy, not a cello."

Madeline sighed and then said, "You're right," as she rifled through her closet. "I just don't know what to wear. I don't want to be overdressed, since we're just going to the movies, but I want Blake to notice me. What about this?"

She pulled a light pink blouse and a black skirt out of her closet, and I said, "That would probably be fine."

Madeline changed into the outfit that she had picked out and then spent a ridiculous amount of time putting on makeup. Once she was finally satisfied, she turned to me and asked, "Do you think Blake will like this?"

"I think you look gorgeous," I said.

"That's not what I asked. Will Blake like it?"

I sighed and said, "I'm sure Blake will love it."

All of a sudden, the doorbell rang, and Madeline rushed to open it. Blake was there, and he was carrying a bouquet of flowers. He gave the bouquet to Madeline, and as she gushed over how romantic this was, our eyes met. I couldn't find anything to say to Blake: the words that had once come so easily to us were gone. Soon, Madeline and Blake had left the house, off to see the new Avengers movie together, and I went home again, off to study for Quiz Bowl and hope that everything would go back to the way it was before.