Page 33 of Love and Other Goals

Walking toward the parking lot, she says, “Lana, Mateo just shot Cupid’s arrow at you in front of the entire Townsend student body. Who the heck cares if you saw Aaron?”

“Okay, number one, the entire student body is not here. Number two, it was not Cupid’s arrow. It was more like inside information from our date. It used to be my goal celebration when I played soccer,” I correct her.

“Oh-kay, but that just makes it even more sweet than if it was Cupid’s arrow, so, point still stands,” Teegan says, giving me an admonishing look. My lack of poker face must be projecting the worry I still feel, because Teegan pulls my elbow to stop me. “Lana, all joking aside, I’m serious. It’s not your job to worry about what Aaron is thinking at this point. You like Mateo, right?”

Sighing, I confirm. “Yes, I really like Mateo.”

“You want to continue dating Mateo, right?”

“Yes, Teegs, I definitely want to continue dating Mateo.” Just thinking about not going on another date with Mateo makes my stomach churn.

“Then embrace it, LaLa. Let go of worrying about what Aaron thinks, because he has no say over what you do. You don’t owe him anything. Be with Mateo without Aaron in your brain,” she concludes confidently, tapping my temple.

“You’re right, you’re right. Thanks Beef,” I tell Teegan with a squeeze to the arm.

“Now, I’m starving after all that yelling and jumping. AOPi dinner is over already, so let’s go get tacos,” Teegan proclaims, unlocking her car.

Embrace it, I tell myself as I click my seatbelt. Sorry, Aaron, but you’re going to need to vacate my mind space now, thank you very much.

My resolve holds for the next hour as Teegan and I eat tacos and far too many chips, right up until I receive a text message from Aaron.

Aaron

Hey Lana. Did I see you at the soccer game?

I rest my forehead on the table with a groan. “What’s wrong?” Teegan asks, and I hold up my phone screen to her. I feel her place a hand on my shoulder, and I shift my face to the side to look at her. “You don’t owe him anything, Lana,” she says simply.

I sit up straight and nod at Teegan. She dips a chip in salsa, raising an eyebrow at me. I quickly type a response and show it to Teegan for approval, which she gives by way of a small head nod before eating another chip. I hit send.

Yeah, I was there. It was an incredible match. Go Bobcats!

I can see instantly that Aaron has read it. But no three dots, no response comes through.

Teegan starts babbling away about her practicum experience in a classroom this semester and how adorable all the students are. I’m happy to turn my attention to someone other than Aaron, especially to someone as incredibly supportive as my best friend.

I don’t owe you anything. I repeat in my mind as I put my phone away and lean in to listen to Teegan’s story. Her passion for helping students have fun learning in different ways is inspiring, even if I don’t understand the specific strategies she talks about. Teegan just wants everyone to enjoy life as much as she does.

Later that night when we return to AOPi, I tell Teegan I’m going to grab some water from the kitchen. I pause in the dining room and pull my phone out to text Mateo.

Just got back home. Teegan needed victory tacos after all her hard work cheering. You were incredible!

Mateo

Thanks. Knowing you were in the stands watching made it even better. How did it feel being at a soccer match again?

There he goes, being perfectly considerate again, thinking of my experience and not spotlighting his, even though he just played a heck of a game. I smile to myself as I type a response.

Cloud nine

I pause for a moment, looking at the screen. Embrace it, I say to myself.

It was great watching soccer again, but watching you play specifically boosted it to cloud nine

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

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