Chapter 2

I clamped a hand over my mouth and bounced on my heels, like I had just hit the jackpot.

Maybe I looked pretty silly, because Wilbur's eyes were full of amusement as he watched me.

My eyes darted around, then I turned to Wilbur.

I cupped his face and kissed him, hard.

Our lips touched, and his were so much softer than I had expected.

I was lost in bliss when Wilbur pushed me away.

Wilbur looked a bit displeased. "What are you doing?"

I licked my lips. "Just enjoying the perks of being your girlfriend. What kind of boyfriend doesn't let his girl kiss him?"

Wilbur pressed his lips together and said nothing.

My heart was pounding so hard I thought it would jump out of my chest.

I needed to get away from him to calm down.

I was scared I'd lose control, throw myself into his arms, and do something even more reckless.

"Well, my friends are still over there. I'm going to head over. You guys have fun," I said.

His friends were all still staring, shocked that I had kissed him like that.

As soon as I walked away, they all burst out laughing.

"Leila, I did it! Wilbur agreed to date me for three months. If he still doesn't like me after that, I can never bother him again," I said.

"Hey, that's not bad at all. Even if things don't work out after three months, at least you get to be with him for three months," Leila replied.

I could barely contain my excitement. "I know!"

*****

I still couldn't believe I was actually Wilbur's girlfriend. That night, I couldn't sleep, so I texted him.

Wilbur's Girlfriend (officially): [I can't sleep; I'm thinking about you too much. What do I do?]

Wilbur only sent me a question mark, while Stuart sent me a laughing emoji.

I sent a question mark back to Stuart too.

Stuart replied: [Your username is on point. You've got such guts; you'll make it at whatever you do.]

I thought he was right, so I replied: [Thanks for the compliment. I think so.]

I ignored Stuart after that and sent Wilbur another text.

Wilbur's Girlfriend (officially): [I'm so happy. I'm finally your girlfriend. I've waited three years for this. My dream has finally come true.

[Do you even know how much I want to be with you? Sometimes I wish I could turn into your phone, so you'd always be holding me, tapping me, playing with me.

[It's 26 degrees Fahrenheit outside right now, but I don't feel cold at all. You're in my heart, and it's so warm it's burning.

[Sorry if I'm rambling. I'm usually not like this, but I'm way too happy today, seriously.

[Why aren't you replying? Just say something, please?]

I waited for ages, but Wilbur never texted me back.

I felt like my brain had crashed.

But it was pretty normal for him not to reply.

He had never texted me back before, no matter how many messages I sent him.

Instead of feeling discouraged, I was kind of relieved. At least he hadn't blocked me, and every now and then, I could still see his posts.

That was the sad life of someone fawning over a guy they like.

I held my phone to my chest, waiting and waiting. I fell asleep, and there was still no reply from Wilbur.

*****

Stuart caught the hint of a smile on Wilbur's lips and leaned in, only to see my barrage of corny pickup lines I had sent him.

Stuart shuddered, goosebumps popping up everywhere.

Stuart said, "It's actually crazy that a girl has been head over heels for you for three years when you're this cold and distant all the time.

"Seriously, You don't feel anything at all for this pure, intense, genuine affection?"

Wilbur slipped his phone into his pocket, returning to his usual cold self.

"Focus. You just gave them a free kill," Wilbur said.

The screen flashed: [GAME OVER.]

*****

The next morning, I woke up still clutching my phone.

When I opened it, I saw a message from Wilbur.

Oh my god. He texted me back.

Even though all he had replied with was just a string of ellipses.

But it was still progress.

*****

Like clockwork, Wilbur went to play basketball on the court every Wednesday afternoon.

When I got there that day, Wilbur and his friends were arguing with a group of guys over the court.

Wilbur turned around, and the guy across from him, acting out of spite, slammed the basketball to the ground so hard it bounced right back up.

I saw the ball flying right for Wilbur, so I ran and pushed him out of the way. The ball hit me square in the forehead instead.

I winced and grabbed my head. A bump swelled up on my forehead right away.

Wilbur pulled me to his side to check the injury, while Stuart went to yell at the guys.

Everyone was talking over each other; the whole place was chaotic.

Eventually, the big guy who had thrown the ball came over to apologize to me.

Wilbur glared at him, his voice sharp. "We're getting her checked out, and you're paying for everything."

I had only ever seen him cold and distant before. I had never seen him look this angry.