It is very true that people of the opposite sex can be friends. It has been shown time and time again throughout your lives and mine. Although that is a fact, I have found that at one point or another one of the two will have a want for something more from the relationship. Now, this may be for a brief second but it will indeed occur. For one moment, one of them will feel an uncommon attraction towards the other.

I met Oliver in my eleventh grade US History class. The first day I came in we all chose seats wherever we liked; unannounced to us these would be our seats all year. Now, I have never been a very outgoing girl; in fact, most of my sophomore year I found myself spending my lunch hour alone in the library reading the seemingly unlimited novels that were kept there. I could not place a friend in that entire forty-person class, so I sat down at the desk closest to the door. This would be my easy escape from fifty minutes of complete and utter boredom.
On my right was a boy with wavy caramel brown hair that was cut off sloppily at his neck. I looked curiously at him but not intensely enough for him to notice. He was speaking to a friend of his in front of him. I listened in on their conversation and learned that they were on the soccer team together. This information I would be sure to file somewhere deep in the offices of my mind.
Our teacher introduced herself to the class and I doodled away in my notebook, all the while catching glances at the mystery boy. She instructed us to introduce ourselves to the person next to us; for me that was mystery boy.
“Hi, I’m Dana.” I said warmly as I turned to face him. I noticed his inviting chestnut eyes and friendly smile. He wasn’t a very attractive boy but one day he would be the most beautiful person I have ever met.
“I’m Oliver. Are you a junior, too?” He asks sweetly, in a voice I could never believe would contain any hint of malice.
I nod my head, “yeah, I am. I’m really glad not to be a sophomore any longer.” At first I was so angry that came out, how come I needed to add on? Since when was I not just telling people the bare minimum?
He stares at me quizzically, “why not?”
I laugh nervously, “I don’t know, I mean now I have lunch with my friends. Last year I didn’t have it with anyone.”
“What period did you have lunch?”
“Seventh”
“I had seventh. You could have eaten lunch with me.” He says playfully.
“Right, accept for the fact I didn’t even know who you were.” Many days I find myself wondering why I had never met Oliver in lunch my sophomore year. I always wish I could have known him one year earlier. Our teacher calls on us again and we learn that these will be our partners for the rest of the year. Apparently we are going to be doing everything together. Fate has a funny way of bring people so social, like Oliver, with people deathly afraid of any social interaction, like me. For that I am really glad, because I cannot imagine my life having met a different US History partner that day.
Half the time while conversing with Oliver I could not make out whether we were just friends or something more. As time grew on and Oliver grasped my hand in his or drummed on my knee I found myself hoping the latter was true. I didn’t fall in love with him, but slowly slid into affection for him.
I knew this for sure when I came to his first soccer game of the year. Five of my friends promised me that they would be there so I didn’t have to sit alone. All of them ended up bailing on me. I sat on the bleachers alone and did not feel much different from the girl who spent everyday alone in the library hiding behind a book. I sat by myself as rain fell down upon me and the team warmed up. I guess I didn’t care all too much that my friends had ditched me; deep down I think I had always known that their attention did not lie with me. I was used to being the one who card the most.
During that game I watched intently as Oliver passed the ball to teammates and kicked it down the field. Even when he was sitting on the sidelines I noticed my eyes focusing on him. I am always the one who cares more, in any relationship; I guess that’s why I’m so afraid to tell guys how I feel. The rain subsided and the sun came out for the first time all day. This was always meant to be a day of firsts.
Oliver scored a goal near the end of the game with the assistance of his friend Max, from US History. He looked up into the stands and he noticed me and I waved at him. I knew what I had to do that day. When the game ended I waited around for him to finish cleaning up so we could speak. When he was done I went over and congratulated him on his great game.
“Thanks, and thanks for coming to my game.” He told me pleasantly as we walked away from the field.
“No problem, if I can’t make time for you, who can I make time for?” It was time to ask him and a knot was building in my stomach. “Oliver, I’ve been meaning to tell you something. You know a lot of the time I really don’t know where I stand and that’s okay but I kind of would like that to change. You really mean a lot to me, like so much that I cannot even explain it. I feel like you are more than I friend, for me at least. Does any of this make since?”
He nods his head but looks away from me, “Yeah, it does. I’m so sorry Dana, but honestly you’re just a really good friend and for me I don’t really feel like there is anything more.”
Tears are building up in my eyes but I will not let myself cry, “Okay…Okay.”
He holds me tight in a bear hug, “I never meant to hurt you Dana. I really like, I’m so sorry.”
Sometimes you have to deal with rejection, even if you feel so in control of the situation. One person always feels something for their friend even if it’s not for long. At one point one of them thinks “hey, this person is great, why haven’t I seen this before?” If you’re lucky, both of the friends have feelings for each other at the same time and one will have the courage to tell the other. Unfortunately, I have never been lucky.