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closer to him.
    “So where ya been, cutie?” asks Christina, in her raspy voice.
    “Work.”
    “Where are you working?” she asks, surprised.
    “Tony’s Auto,” says Ian, in an uninterested voice.
    “Maybe with all that money you’re making you can take me on a date?” Christina asks.
    Grace glares at her then sends a glare Ian’s way. Ian backs further away from Christina and then calmly says, “Sorry, Christina, I’m dating Grace.”
    Grace’s stomach is in her throat. Is he just saying this because he is trying to get away from skanky Christina or because he genuinely means it?
    Ian looks at Grace and gives her a wink as Christina slinks off his desk.
    “Oh. Well, good luck with that,” she says, as she walks away.
    “Fuck off,” Ian mutters, and then turns to give Grace a reassuring smile.
    As usual, the lecture in math is extremely boring, and Grace is working on an elaborate drawing throughout class. She tries her hardest not to pay too much attention to Ian. He makes it difficult to ignore him, as he keeps sneaking peeks in her direction. Grace focuses instead on her artwork, an almost lifelike drawing of the oak tree where he first kissed her. Grace senses that Ian is looking over her shoulder again, and looks up at him, unable to ignore him any longer.
    Ian mouths, “That’s great!” as he points to her drawing. She smiles, and the smile he returns fills her soul with warm fuzzies.
    The bell rings and Ian scoots his entire desk to Grace’s. “Are you okay?” he asks, gently.
    “I guess,” she says, not looking at him.
    “My sister told me you called. I didn’t get home till late, and I wasn’t sure if I could call you.”
    Grace looks at him with doubt in her eyes.
    “So I’ll see you at lunch?” he asks.
    She nods and gets up to leave class.
    “See ya at lunch!” Ian yells, as she exits the classroom.

 
 
 
    The cafeteria is louder than usual, and Ian has to shout so that Michelle can hear what he is saying.
    “She’s so confusing!”
    “You haven’t talked to her since Saturday. You just can’t do that to a girl!” Michelle yells back.
    Ian thinks about it and realizes that he has gone four days without speaking to Grace. If she only knew his reasons why, she would understand.
    Grace strolls up to the table with her lunch tray in her hands, not looking too thrilled to see him. Ian jumps up, grabs her tray from her, and sets it on the table.
    Michelle, rolling her eyes, gets up from her seat. “See ya,” she says, as she walks away flicking her hand through the air.
    Grace is silent, which only intensifies Ian’s anxiety over talking to her. “You’re mad at me,” Ian says, as he lowers his eyes and gives her the best puppy dog look he can muster up.
    Grace looks him straight in the eyes with very little emotion on her face.
    “I’m sorry that I haven’t called you. I’ve been working a lot at the garage.”
    Hearing his words does not seem to change her expression.
    “I’ve been trying to save up some money because Brandon, Bailey, and I are going camping this weekend. And…” His sentence trails off as he gathers the courage to ask her what he has been meaning to. “Don’t be mad at me, Grace. I’ve just been dealing with some family stuff and working hard. It has nothing to do with not wanting to talk to you. I swear,” he says, as honestly as he can.

 
 
 
    As Ian explains his absence, Grace realizes that she is being too hard on him and gives him a warm, sweet smile. “I’m not mad at you, Ian. I was just worried when I hadn’t heard from you and didn’t see you in school.”
    “You don’t need to worry. I have it all under control,” he says, as he picks at her French fries. “So anyway, Gracie,” he says, placing his hand on hers, “I was wondering if James would let you come camping with us.”
    Grace is taken aback by Ian’s question. He makes her feel as if she is on a roller coaster. One moment she can tell that he likes