The Girl in My Dreams

by Logan Byrne

  “What do you want to do first?” she asked.

  “What do you have in mind?” I asked.

  “Well, I could go for some cider and doughnuts, but I don’t think it should just be that easy,” she said.

  “Okay,” I said, intrigued.

  “I think we should have a race through that maze to see once and for all who’s the better person. Winner gets their treats first,” she said.

  “You just want to beat me again,” I said.

  “Are you saying you’re a chicken?” she asked.

  “I’m not a—”

  Belle started to make chicken noises as a few passing people looked at her like she was crazy, which in turn made my cheeks warm with embarrassment.

  “Okay, fine, I’ll race you, but I’m not holding back,” I said.

  “Please don’t, hot lips,” she said, grabbing my hand and dragging me toward the maze.

  There were about a dozen kids and nobody even close to our size or age in the maze. It didn’t seem to faze her, though, unfortunately for me. She walked up to the entrance and turned back to look at me.

  “Okay, you know the rules?” she asked.

  “There have never been any rules,” I said.

  “Exactly,” she said, smiling.

  “I want to apologize, though,” I said.

  “For what?” she asked.

  “For eating my doughnuts in front of you in about five minutes,” I said.

  “Yeah, we’ll see about that, buddy,” she said.

  “Ready?” I asked.

  “Ready,” she replied.

  “Three … two … one … go!” I shouted.

  The two of us ran in there like bats out of hell as we dodged and weaved between the much shorter children who couldn’t see over the barriers like we could. Belle shoved me, causing me to stumble a bit, as I did the same to her and tore around the corners, making a dust storm form behind me. I knew I wasn’t supposed to beat her, at least that was what I’d heard, but there was something about her smack talk and me never winning as a kid that ignited something inside me.

  “You’ve gotten better,” she said, running beside me.

  “I’ve got longer legs now. Makes it easier,” I said.

  We came around the last few turns, and I could see the exit. Belle was a formidable opponent, keeping beside me the entire time. But when we got closer to the exit, when it was within close reach, she yelled out in pain, and I stopped and quickly turned around.

  “I think I twisted it,” she said, down on her knee and gripping her ankle.

  I could see the look of pain in her eyes, and I was sure she was about to start crying. This stupid race wasn’t worth her hurting herself. How was she going to cheer if she had a twisted ankle? What if this messed up so much for her?

  “Are you okay?” I asked as I knelt down beside her.

  “Yup!” she exclaimed, before jumping up and taking off.

  “Hey!” I yelled as I sprinted after her.

  I could hear her giggling and snorting as she got closer to the exit. With all my might, I sprang forward, wrapped my arms around her, and picked her up in the air. She laughed harder than I’d ever heard her laugh as she wiggled her legs.

  “Okay! You won!” she yelled as I set her down.

  “You’re a little cheater,” I said, laughing.

  She turned around and hugged me then gave me a kiss. I couldn’t stay mad at her, not that I really was anyway, as I looked at her smiling face and knew she was just messing around. I should’ve known she’d do something like this, and I was pretty sure I remembered a time she did it when we were kids.

  “How about we go look at the animals before getting our stuff?” she asked as she laced her fingers with mine.

  We walked over to a large red barn that reeked of manure and wet dog. Inside, we saw an assortment of turkeys, chickens, pigs, cows, and goats. There were feed stations, and we watched as a father put in a quarter and got some for his son, who was maybe four. He giggled and screamed as the goats gobbled the food out of his hand like furry vacuums.

  We looked around at all of the animals. A cow took a liking to Belle and walked up to her, and she petted it. It wasn’t fully grown, or maybe it was a dwarf species, and the little patch of brown fur on its head was soft and wavy.

  We didn’t feed any of the animals, mostly because we didn’t have change, and instead watched kids do it before we left and walked to the café area, which was the bottom half of a huge barn that had shopping up top.

  The stone walls of the café area were cold but the kitchen let out enough heat to warm my chilly nose. Belle was extra-affectionate, her arms wrapped around me in line. I looked down at her and still wondered how any of this had even happened. I was the luckiest guy in the world, and boy did I know it.

  We each got two doughnuts and a large cup of cider before walking over to the tables, which were rustic and had old steel milk barrels as stools. We sat beside each other, looking around at the space, and I thought of when we were six and came here with my mom. She’d forgotten to get cash, which was all they took back in those days, and couldn’t get us cider and doughnuts. We were devastated, as all six-year-olds would be, but an older gentleman and his wife overheard our despair and bought us each a doughnut and a small cider. We were the happiest we’d been that day, and that simple act of kindness from that man and his wife made a gigantic impact on me. It’s funny how something that seems so insignificant at the time can have such a lasting effect.

  “Belle!” I heard from behind us.

  We turned around and saw one of her friends, a girl from her cheer squad, who walked over and hugged her. She said she was here with her parents and brother, and pointed to them as they waved back from the line.

  “This is my boyfriend, Theo,” she said, introducing me.

  “Hi, Theo. I’m Nicole,” she said with a smile.

  “We were just about to go upstairs and look at what they have this year,” Belle said.

  “It’s so cool up there. You’re going to love it,” she said.

  They talked for another minute about who knows what as I finished my doughnuts and cider before Nicole had to get back in line with her parents. We said our good-byes and threw away our trash before walking up the old wooden staircase to the main floor.

  The floors, which looked original to the barn, had a few tiny holes in them that you could see through to the café, and the scent of spiced cider and pumpkins filled the air. The store had barrels full of candy, homemade jams, and spreads to try, and anything autumn-themed you could think of. There’s nothing like fall in the Midwest, that’s for sure.

  “I want some candy corn,” she said, then filled up a small bag with it.

  “Me too,” I said as I filled up my own bag.

  There wasn’t too much else for us to buy, considering most of it was homey stuff that we had no use for, but that didn’t seem to matter. I’m not sure if it was because of tradition, but we puttered around, gazing at everything, as we snuck around the other people, mostly adults, who were actually interested in this stuff.

  “Oh, remember these?” she said as we turned the corner.

  We saw some older women, workers, dipping apples into fresh caramel before sprinkling them with nuts. My mouth salivated a little. I rarely ever got these as a kid, mostly because of my braces, even though I always wanted a huge bite from one of my mom’s.

  “I should get one for my mom,” I said.

  “Aw, that’s sweet of you,” she said.

  I took one that was already wrapped from the counter, suddenly worrying how much this was all going to cost me. It wasn’t that I was cheap or anything, but I didn’t exactly have a job, and only subsided on a paltry allowance that I probably shouldn’t even be getting at this age. Oh well, it wasn’t like I really had any other expenses.

  The final section of the building was where they brought in barrels upon barrels of freshly picked apples and had them sitting in premeasured bags for p
eople to buy. The best part, though, was the already cut apple samples they had for people to try so they could find the kind that they liked best. As kids we always treated this as a free taste test, and let’s just say that old habits die hard.

  “I really like this one,” Belle said, with her mouth full of a Gala apple.

  “It’s really good,” I said as the juicy apple slice exploded in my mouth.

  We each sneakily took two more apple slices before walking out of the room and back toward the front where the cash registers were. We waited in line behind a woman writing a check, and finally when it was our turn, I took Belle’s candy from her hand and put it with my stuff.

  “You don’t need to do that,” Belle said.

  “I want to,” I said.

  “But—”

  “Hey, it’s okay. I promise,” I said, looking at her with a smile.

  “Thank you,” she said, her cheeks turning a soft, rosy shade of pink.

  “What a good guy you’ve got here,” the cashier said as she rang up the stuff.

  “Oh, don’t I know it,” Belle said, smiling, as she bit her lower lip a little.

  I paid ten dollars for the stuff, which was a lot less than I thought it would be, and we walked out the door and back toward the parking lot.

  “Anything else you want to see?” she asked.

  “No, I think I’m good here. You?” I asked.

  “I’m good,” she said.

  After we got in the car, she took my hand and leaned in before kissing my cheek and thanking me again for her candy corn. I said it was no problem, and we pulled out of the parking lot and headed home.

  Chapter Ten

  Halloween was nearly upon us, and Belle had the idea that we should get matching costumes, as I guess all the couples did. I was down to do it, mostly because she was extremely excited about it, and she said she’d pick out costumes for us and I’d just have to put it on and show up.

  Our school had a dress-up day for Halloween, where we could wear whatever costume we wanted as long as it wasn’t too violent or offensive. I knew Belle wouldn’t pick anything like that, so we were pretty set.

  Things between us had been moving smoothly, without so much as a small fight. It was like we worked in perfect harmony, and she even mentioned how she wished we would’ve started dating sooner. That comment really stuck with me and made me happy, as I felt the exact same way. Imagine what things would have been like if she’d never even met Trent. Speaking of him, he’d backed off and wasn’t talking to either of us anymore. I think Paul really did a number on him, and last I heard he was dating some girl on the volleyball team, which was great news for us.

  I’d been going to therapy once every two weeks, and Dr. Grier said I was making tremendous progress every week and that I was close to not needing her help anymore. Belle had brought out a happiness in me that sliced through the melancholy, jaded attitudes I had before we started dating.

  “Are you sure you want to wear those?” I asked Belle the night before Halloween. We were at her house, looking at the costumes she’d chosen.

  “What’s wrong with them?” she asked.

  “Nothing is wrong with them—it’s just, I don’t know,” I said.

  “Theo, they’re adorable. Everybody is going to be talking about us,” she said.

  “That’s what I’m worried about,” I said, rubbing the back of my head.

  Holding our costumes up in both hands, I looked them over again, wishing I hadn’t given her the control over this. She’d picked out peanut butter and jelly sandwich costumes, with me being the peanut butter and her being the jelly. There were black tights and gloves involved, and I knew she’d love every minute of it.

  “I chose the costumes because you and I are like peanut butter and jelly. We’re amazing when put together,” she said.

  Knowing it was best to just concede, I told myself that it was only one day of my life I’d have to wear the costume, and besides, every other kid in school was going to be dressing up. I even knew of a few other couples who were friends with Belle that were wearing couples costumes, though I had no idea what they were coming as.

  “I think we’re going to look great. We’re definitely going to win the best couples-costume award,” I said.

  “I’m so glad you’re on board! It makes me so happy!” she said, smiling from ear to ear and giving me a peck on the lips.

  It sometimes amazed me what we’re willing to do for love. Even things we thought that we’d never do in a million years, we’re more than willing to do for the person we love the most. I hadn’t yet told Belle that I loved her, but I was thinking about it day and night. I didn’t want to tell her just any time, and I was scared regardless because she might not say it back. She hadn’t brought it up, and hadn’t almost slipped up, but I wanted to say she felt the same way. Just the way we were together—it made me think that there was no way she couldn’t love me. The question just became when I should say it.

  “By the way, we have the party to go to, but we aren’t going to stay too long,” she said.

  “Party?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I told you about it last week. Karissa is having a Halloween party at her parents’ house tomorrow night since it’s Friday and Halloween,” she said.

  “Okay, what time do we need to go?” I asked.

  “I think around eight or so. We’ll only stay for an hour or an hour and a half. I don’t want to stay too long anyway. I’d rather come here and watch a movie or something,” she said.

  “Okay, well, I’m going to go home and get some sleep. I have a feeling I’ll have to wake up early just to slide into this thing,” I said.

  “Don’t put it on until we get to school. Have on just the tights. I don’t think you’ll fit in the car with it on,” she said.

  “Just the tights?” I asked.

  “Yeah, what’s the problem?” she asked.

  “Nothing … it’s just that they’re, you know, tight,” I said.

  “You’ll be fine. I’ll see you in the morning,” she said before grabbing the collar of my shirt, pulling me down closer to her, and giving me a kiss.

  Taking the costume, I walked out of her house and toward mine as the air, which seemed to get more chilled as the days wore on, rattled my bones a little.

  Well, it could be worse. At least I didn’t have to dress up like a doll.

  •••

  “Oh my god, you look so adorable,” someone said as we walked toward the school.

  The two of us were in our costumes, side by side, holding hands the best we could. Everybody loved our costumes and the fact that they matched so well. I saw some girls get jealous and elbow their boyfriends in the stomach, as if asking why they didn’t come up with an idea as good as this one. Needless to say, I felt pretty good about it all.

  “See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Belle asked as we stood at her locker.

  “No, I guess not. It’s a little big, though,” I said as I shook back and forth gently.

  “It’s only one day, so no big deal. I’ll see you soon?” she asked as the bell was close to ringing.

  “Count on it,” I replied, and she leaned forward and fell into me as she gave me a kiss.

  She laughed and smiled before walking away in the opposite direction of where I was headed. I got a few strange looks as I walked down the hallway, probably because now I was just a walking piece of bread with peanut butter all over it. I guess it didn’t make much sense without Belle next to me.

  “What are you wearing?” Martin asked when I sat down beside him in homeroom.

  “Couples costume,” I said.

  “I won’t ask. Are you going to the party tonight?” he asked.

  “You’re going?” I asked, surprised.

  “Yeah, you think I’m not cool enough or something?” he joked.

  “Not that—I just didn’t expect us to ever be at a party together,” I said.

  “True that, but it looks like it’s going to ha
ppen. Hopefully I can sink my fangs into a cute girl. You know, cause I’m a vampire and all,” he said.

  “Makes sense why you chose that costume. You couldn’t see your reflection and how stupid you look,” I said, smiling.

  “Says the giant piece of peanut-buttered toast,” he said.

  I laughed until the teacher told me to be quiet and I instantly did. There was something funny about this entire situation, and I think it came from just never expecting it to happen. Now I had a girlfriend, a couples costume, a Halloween party to attend, and soon I’d go to winter formal. Who was this guy, and what did he do with the Theo I always knew? I guess some changes are for the better, though.

  As I did some last-minute studying, which I was never all that into to begin with, I noticed something different about myself as I read the words on the pages. I was actually reading them. I know that sounds a bit strange, as of course I’d be reading them if I were studying, but that was the thing. That was what I realized. All of this, all the new things in my life, was turning me into a person different than the person I’d grown up to be. I now cared more about doing well in school and paying attention because I didn’t want to let Belle down. I wore this costume because her smiling and being happy was more important to me than the embarrassment I felt from walking alone down the hallway in this costume. She made me into the type of person that I should’ve been all along. She made me better, and not only for her own benefit but for mine as well.

  The school day went along just like any other. In math, Belle and I sat desks apart, though everybody knew that we were supposed to be together. During lunch, people complimented us, and someone asked for a picture for the school yearbook. I overheard people saying we looked great together, and in that moment I finally felt like I’d made it with her. I was nervous when we first got together, but now I felt more secure in myself, and in us, than I ever had before. We might not be the world’s perfect couple, but we were my idea of the perfect couple, and that was all that mattered.

  That night, after the street lamps came on and the children of our neighborhood started to creep out into the streets with their parents, I got a text from Belle that said she’d be ready in about ten minutes, which I knew meant at least twenty. I was pretty much ready, as I was relegated to candy duty while my mom finished getting ready for a party of her own she was going to with some work friends.