The Vitamin C Protocol

My palms were sweating through my flannel again. Same thing that happened every time Tyler walked past my locker. I'd spent twenty minutes perfecting my hair that morning—this intentionally messy look that actually required three different products and exact calculations—and now I was probably about to ruin it by nervously running my hands through it.

"You're taking those vitamins, right?" My mom held out the orange bottle like it was some kind of magical solution to my entire existence. "Vitamin C is supposed to help with stress."

"Mom, I'm literally just asking someone to spring fling. It's not a medical emergency." But I took them anyway because arguing took energy I didn't have.

The thing about Tyler was that he didn't even know he'd been the protagonist of every single one of my daydreams since September. I'd built up this whole narrative in my head where we'd have this perfect moment, maybe at his locker or after lacrosse practice. Instead, I was hiding behind the bleachers during lunch, clutching a stuffed bear I'd won at some carnival in eighth grade because apparently that's what I did when I was spiraling.

Maya found me there. She took one look at my face and said, "Okay, what kind of BS are you telling yourself now?"

"What if he says no?"

"What if he says yes?" She countered. "Or what if you literally never ask and spend the rest of high school wondering about it? That's worse. That's actual bull, and you know it."

She was right. Not that I'd admit that.

My palms were somehow sweating more as I walked up to Tyler after last period. He was messing with his own hair, this dark curl thing that fell over his forehead when he wasn't paying attention.

"Hey," I managed. My voice didn't even crack. Progress.

"Hey!" He looked surprised but not like he was about to call security. "What's up?"

"So, spring fling..." I started, and then everything spilled out in this rush of words that had been living in my chest for months. "I was wondering if maybe you'd want to go? With me? Like, together?"

Tyler blinked once. Then twice. Then his face broke into this smile that I'd only ever seen directed at his phone or his friends.

"I was literally hoping you'd ask me," he said. "I've been trying to figure out how to ask you without being weird about it."

Oh.

Oh.

Later, I'd text Maya: THE BEAR IS GOOD LUCK CONFIRMED. And she'd respond with like fifteen heart emojis and something about how the vitamins had clearly worked, but honestly? I think it was just time. Time to stop overthinking and just let myself be the person who asked for what I wanted.

Even if my palms were still definitely sweating.