Page 16 of Love and Other Goals

“And how is the new AOPi pledge class doing? I hope you’ll be able to find enough girls to participate in all of the homecoming competitions,” Bailey quips. “If Amaya needs any assistance making sure she doesn’t fall behind with the preparations, tell her I am absolutely here to help.”

I roll my eyes so hard I give myself a headache. Nothing annoys me more than people backdoor badmouthing my best friends. “Amaya is doing an incredible job. She’s the most organized, ambitious person I know, so AOPi is in great hands this year,” I counter, trying to sound lighthearted and unaggressive.

Bailey does her signature one eyebrow raise. “Well, I’m sure you’ll do fine by AOPi standards. I’ve got to head this way to the union—big meeting with the OG president to start planning our homecoming showcase routine. See you at Arrow Thursday night!”

Thank goodness Bailey heads the opposite direction from me before I say something I might regret. I take a deep breath and remind myself that I do not hate Bailey. I really don’t. But I wouldn’t hate it if she maybe stepped in gum on the way to the union.

I pause walking to shoot a text to the Beefs’ group message.

Don’t worry Amaya, I just talked with Bailey and she has offered her services to help you handle homecoming

Amaya

smh. Her high opinion of herself knows no bounds

Or maybe it’s just her low opinion of us

Teegan

Lana, are you really positively sure we can’t announce your date to the entire campus? It would sure knock Bailey off her high horse to find out Mateo Alvarez asked out an AOPi

NO

Teegan

sigh

On Wednesday afternoon, I’m getting ready for chapter with Teegan when my phone pings with a text. I swipe it open and see Mateo’s name in my notifications.

Mateo

I have a reservation for dinner. Wear something you’ll feel comfortable sitting outdoors in. See you at 6:30 Friday

I don’t know exactly what my face is saying as I read the text, but Teegan looks over and asks, “Everything okay, Beef?”

“Yes,” I tell her. “Mateo just sent me details for our date.”

“Ooooo, why was your face looking so weird then? This is exciting!” She grabs my phone from my hand to read the text from Mateo. “Something comfortable to sit outside. We can work with that.”

She immediately starts rummaging through my closet. “That was nice of him to give you wardrobe instructions.”

“We still have plenty of time to pick an outfit for Friday, Teegs,” I say, pulling her arm away from the closet. “Right now, we have to get ready for chapter, or we’ll be late and Amaya will punish us in unsavory ways.”

Even as I try to act breezy with Teegan, all through dinner and the chapter meeting, I’m thinking ahead to Friday. It was thoughtful of Mateo to let me know how to dress. Where could we be going? I try to think of every place in town with outdoor seating. Is it going to be somewhere with a fancy patio? Or a casual place in Center Square with high top tables on a wood deck? Super public, where we’ll potentially be seen by a lot of Arrow people? What should I wear? Will any article of clothing help me feel comfortable on this date?

After chapter, I sit in our room with my laptop, trying to will myself to concentrate. I had marked in my calendar to be finished with a first draft of the personal statement essay for my law school application by tomorrow. I haven’t even started. I really need to focus if I’m going to meet my own deadlines.

Too bad all my focus is being disrupted by Mateo right now.

The next day, I’m welcoming people to the Arrow meeting and fearing that everyone would take one look at me and know exactly what’s going on in my mind. Mateo and several of his teammates came in a while ago, but they mercifully got name tags from a different welcome team member.

“What superpower would you pick?” I ask the person standing in front of me, writing down their answer. Teleportation is beneath my name, but at this moment, I’d take invisibility.

I’m relieved when the music starts inside the meeting room and I can cease small talk with people. I put the name tag supplies away and duck into the row with the AOPis.

The band plays “Promises” by Maverick City Music, and I close my eyes and try to focus on the lyrics. By the end of the song, my heart feels calmer. We take our seats as a student heads up for the testimony.

I recognize Andrès, one of Mateo’s teammates, standing on stage. He introduces himself and says he’s going to share the story of how Jesus has changed his life. In contrast to Amaya’s polished speech, Andrès is visibly nervous, losing his train of thought a couple of times and saying “um” a lot. But his vulnerability only makes his story more real.

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