Prologue

I was never the kind of girl who felt as though I needed a boyfriend.

Honestly, for the most part, they were more trouble than they were worth. Sure, the highs were great. When you’re in love, you’re on top of the world. Nothing can wreck that feeling. Oh, right. Except for when that boy stops paying attention to you, or worse, breaks up with you. The lows not only make you fat—pint of Phish Food ice cream anyone?—but they dampen your spirit in every aspect of your life. Ever tried playing a convincing Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz with a broken heart? It doesn’t go well.

All this being said, I still wanted a boyfriend.

I functioned perfectly well without one. Better than well, in fact, with my 3.9 GPA and my second-chair seat in Honors Choir. It wasn’t the kind of thing that consumed my every thought. It struck every once in a while but still too often for my liking. I’d feel a pang of loneliness while walking behind Dani and Andy, who’d been together since the summer before freshman year, even though I was surrounded by some of my best friends. I wished I could go to a movie with my boyfriend rather than my best friend while making plans for Friday night.

It was with these emotions that I began my sophomore year.