It didn't help when my first ever seventh-grade crush shattered my hopes with something even worse than rejection.
It certainly didn't help when, on the same day, the cloud of all my miseries from middle school re-entered my life: one and only Caleb Anderson, the guy standing at 6'2" (why am I so short?) with annoyingly godly looks.
But what did help was a girl that distracted me once again. Yes, I found her on the same dating app my previous crush had used to crash me (dating apps weren't my choice; my friend had stuffed cheese into my mouth to make me download it).
Except that she wasn't a girl.
***
All Noah wanted was to lead a high school life with less drama, more academics, some sports, and a hope for romance he would never admit he needed. The truth was, he just wanted a life opposite of what he had been in middle school: a loner shadowed by the Golden Boy.
The Golden Boy had everything Noah didn't have: great marks, personality, looks, height, relationships with teachers (off the chart, he was a playboy), and the art of getting out of trouble.
Now it never helped that the same Golden Boy, aka Caleb Anderson, entered his life again. To make matters worse, they were now paired into a duet Noah wished he could have strangled the music teacher for even suggesting.
But now, since they're stuck in practice after school hours-alone and working-something new starts to develop. Something Noah never thought Caleb would have done.
Stop, stop, stop, stop!
Y'all didn't forget the girl Noah met on social media right after his crush, did you?
So who will it be for this hopelessly unromantic girl? The brooding best friend? Or the young and unquestionably attractive substitute teacher?
They say every person is worth the potential heartbreak of relationships not working out. That's why people still take that leap. But not me. Never been kissed, never had a boyfriend-I was pretty convinced by now that I was one of those mega-rare exceptions to the rule; the unlucky sap was just not worth the risk.
And I'm totally fine with that. Romance and heartbreak? Not worth the hype in my book.
Until life decided to get all snarky on me. "Fooled you, idiot! You'll get your love story...just not at all how you wanted it."
Before I know it, I'm swept up in romantic turmoil more dramatic than anything my wildest playwright fantasies could dream up. Getting these very real, very adult feelings for the first time is bloomin' confusing.
Lines will blur, tough choices will be made, and hearts will be deliciously broken.
So who will it be for this once-hopelessly unromantic girl? My brooding best friend? Or my young substitute teacher?