chapter two, the flying soccer ball!

THE NEXT DAY, PAISLEY WAS IN HER ROOM getting dressed.  She had on a red sweater, dark flared jeans, and camel colored uggs.  Before leaving for school, she decided to FaceTime Andy.  The said boy picked up, causing her to wave.  "Morning, Andy."

"Morning, Lils. You look good."

"Thanks. You look nice too. Anyways, what did you want to tell me yesterday?"  Andy opened and closed his mouth, unsure of what to say.  He couldn't confess to her now, especially when they were going to school.  So he did what any person that had a crush on their best friend would do: lie. "Well, what I wanted to tell you is that... me and you have been best friends since forever. And... I'm so happy that I met you. You're the best person I could ever ask for." Paisley wore a wide smile and Andy just hoped he wasn't blushing. She looked adorable in his eyes and it was driving him crazy. "That is the sweetest thing you've ever said to me. I'm really happy that I met you too and you're an awesome person."

"Paisley! We have to go!" her mother called from outside the door. "Coming, Mom! I really need to get going. See you at school, Andy!"

"See you at school, Lili!" Once the call ended, Andy placed his hands on his face as he groaned in frustration. You just had to call her a friend, didn't you? You should've told her! Andy sighed, grabbing his backpack and heading out of his room.

It was going to be a long day.

Paisley entered the school, only to be hugged by Malia. "Morning, Paze!" The dark skinned girl returned the gesture with a smile. "Lia, hi!"

"Lia, Paze!" Lucas exclaimed as he ran up to them. "Lucas!" They widened the hug, including Lucas in it. The trio eventually broke it up, linking arms. "Did you guys finish your projects yet?"

"I turned mine in, actually. I'm thirteen now, remember?" Paisley rolled her eyes, "You're lucky you don't have to wait until July. I hate having a summer birthday."

"Try having a birthday in November. I'm the youngest here!" Lucas complained, causing his friends to laugh. Suddenly, someone covered Paisley's eyes. "Guess who?" Paisley put a finger on her chin, "Hm... is it Michael B. Jordan?"

"No. Keep guessing."

"Matthew Gray Gubler?"

"Not even close."

"Andy Goldfarb." The said boy took his hands of her eyes, playfully scoffing. "Funny of you to name your celebrity crushes."

"I'm a bit sad they aren't here but I'm happy that you're here now." Paisley gave the boy a hug, causing Malia and Lucas to teasingly 'aw'. Andy returned the gesture, staring at the duo. "Will you two quit it with that? I'm trying to hug my best friend here."

"Sorry." Once they ended their hug, the duo did their signature handshake.  Paisley turned to her friends. "Do you guys mind if I walk with Andy to class?"

"Sure, Paze." Lucas nodded, "We'll catch up with you later." Paisley linked arms with Andy, causing the boy's cheeks to flush. Stacy and her friends walked by as her jaw dropped. "You can't tell me they're not dating. They look like a couple."

"Maybe they are?" Tara questioned, earning a few nods from her friends. "Hi, Lydia." Lucas stated, causing the girl to wave. "Hi, Lucas."

"Oh my gosh, you like him, don't you?" Stacy asked, causing Lydia to shush her. "Keep it down. Okay, maybe I do."

"Spill." As Lydia spoke to her friends, Paisley waved to the girls. "Hi, Stacy! Hi, Lydia! Hi, Tara and Nikki!"

"Hi, Paisley! Hey, Andy!" the girls exclaimed, only to be ignored by him. "He's so cute. I need to make a move asap." Stacy told her friends.

Little did she know someone else would do that soon.

PAISLEY SAT WITH MALIA IN THE SCHOOL YARD as they talked about their celebrity crushes. "Would you rather marry Pedro Pascal or kiss Caleb McLaughlin?" Paisley asked. "Kiss Caleb McLaughlin. He's really handsome."

"If only we were older! Then you'd have a chance with him."

"And you'd have a chance with Michael B. Jordan." Paisley wore a wide grin, "He's so fine, bro. The number of edits I have saved on TikTok is concerning."

"It can't be that bad."

"2,342."

"Woah! That's crazy. How do you have that many?"

"It's Michael B. Jordan! Of course I'm going to save multiple edits of him!" The two girls turned around, seeing Stacy get hit in the face by a soccer ball. "Oh my gosh, Stacy! Are you okay?" the girls stated as they helped her up. "Is your nose bleeding?"

"I don't think so. At least, I hope not." Andy stood out on the field, "That's my bad! You good?" Stacy nodded, smitten by the boy. "Yeah. Sorry about that." Mateo held out his water bottle to her, "Have some water." While Stacy's friends were busy gushing over the moment her and Andy had shared, Mateo glanced at Nikki's bandaged up legs. "Hey, are your legs okay, Nikki?"

"They're fine, Mateo. Just relax." the girl answered in a rude tone, pushing past him. Mateo faced Malia and Paisley with a smile, "Are you two okay?"

"Yeah, we're fine. Thanks for asking. I'm gonna go look for Lucas, I'll be right back." Once Paisley went inside, Malia placed a hand on Mateo's shoulder. "Don't worry about Stacy and her friends. You're very sweet and if they can't respect that, then they aren't worth it."

"You think I'm sweet?" Malia nodded her head, "Yes, Mateo. I do, you're nicer than a lot of the guys in our grade and that says something."

"Thank you, Malia. You're very sweet too." They smiled at each other, like they were the only two people in that moment. "I should probably go back on the field. See you later, Malia!"

"See you later, Mateo!"

It was eventually time for Rabbi Rebecca's class as students entered the room and started to take their seats. Andy walked up to Lydia and Stacy, "Yo. You good, bro?" Stacy nodded her head, "Yeah. Why?"

"Uh, your head from earlier. Head injuries are no joke. One time I barfed at soccer practice. Did you barf?"

"No, I didn't." You know those scenes in those cheesy high school movies where the main character's crush walks into the room in slow motion? Well, that's how Paisley was entering the room in his eyes. "Andy? Andy? Andy!" The boy was brought back to reality, clearing his throat. "Hey, Lili."

"Are you okay? You kind of zoned out for a minute."

"I'm good. Are you okay? You were standing next to Stacy's table earlier when she got hit by my soccer ball." Paisley smiled, "I'm okay."

"Oh no."

"What?"

"I think there's something on your hands." he stated as he gently held her hands. Paisley felt butterflies in her stomach which was weird. She never felt them before so why was she feeling them now? "Do you see anything?"

"False alarm. But your hands are really soft.  Nice nails."

"Thanks, Andy. Your hair looks nice by the way."

"It always looks like this." Paisley playfully rolled her eyes, "Just take it as a compliment." As Rabbi Rebecca began to teach, Andy stole a few looks at Paisley. It was killing him that he didn't confess to her yet but at the same time, he knew she'd never feel the same.

Maya Speaks 💫:

You guys got Mateo and Malia crumbs 😔 good thing I'm going to write a book for them after this one

Andy has such a big crush on Paisley oh my gosh 😭 like the fact he touched her hands just to be next to her is so cute (the unrequited crush on your best friend HURTS sm like the way I've experienced this too many times needs to be studied)

Aaron being confused in class is so me like I wouldn't know what to say in that moment either 😭