"Come on," Gwen said cheerfully as she finally got organized. "Let's get to practice before we're too late to save ourselves." With that, the two friends linked arms and walked speedily to the parking lot outside.
"Girls, that was a pretty decent practice, but I expect you to do some erg work before our next on-water day. Lara, make sure you do a timing call more often to keep your rowers together. Claire, I want to see you lengthening your stroke. Adrienne, don't rush your stroke, and Gwen, I want to see you pushing your hands down and away at the finish. That's all for today - and be here on time next time, you two!" Coach Tom concluded the after-practice speech as he gave a stern but joking look at Gwen and Adrienne.
The nine girls standing in a semi-circle around him slowly disbanded, wandering off to gather their things and head to their cars. Adrienne ran from person to person, sharing her good news. She was so excited - she just couldn't keep all of her enthusiasm to herself.
And why should I? she asked herself silently.
There's nothing wrong with being happy. Just because my friends aren't all in the same situation I am doesn't mean I'm not allowed to tell them about it. After all, we are
friends.
After making her rounds and getting high fives from her teammates, Adrienne slid into the driver's seat of her car, grinning madly. She rushed home as quickly as she could, because she needed to shower as well as change clothes, do her makeup, and fix her hair in less than an hour.
What am I really doing with Chase? she thought to herself suddenly as she waited at a traffic light.
Whoa, that was random. I thought I liked dating him - well, I do like it. But seriously. Is a relationship with him really going to go anywhere? We don't even do anything on our dates. Dinner, maybe a movie, and then a goodnight kiss. That's it.
But do I want more? Physically, definitely not. I'm happy with nothing sexual right now. But I don't feel like I'm getting too much emotionally from Chase. When it comes down to it, he really doesn't interest me as a person all that much. Although I do like the feeling of having a boyfriend...I don't want to lead him on.
With that, Adrienne decided to make a choice in the near future about Chase. Maybe her date with him tonight would be the final deciding factor. However, her thought process was cut short when she arrived at her destination. She ran up the stairs to her apartment on the second floor and unlocked the door.
Jogging quickly inside, she made a beeline for her bedroom closet and ransacked it, tossing shirts, skirts and pants aside. Finally, she made a decision and carried her newly picked outfit with her into the bathroom, where she took an extremely brief shower. After drying off, getting dressed and blow-drying her hair so that it fell in soft golden waves to her shoulders, she felt like she was just about ready.
However, just as she was preparing to put on a bit of makeup, she stopped short and stared at the phone. A strong urge overcame her.
"Adrienne, just do it," she told herself. "Don't be chicken. Just call him." She couldn't understand the slight fluttering feeling she felt in the pit of her stomach, because honestly, she didn't often get nervous about boys.
Pulling a scrap of paper from her purse, she ran her fingers across the number she had scribbled there in blue ink after listening to her cell phone messages. She decided to forge ahead with the idea and not give up so soon.
She picked up the cordless phone and dialed, holding it to her hear until she heard someone say: "Hello?"
"AJ, hi, this is Adrienne," she said, trying to sound confident. She sneaked her left hand up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Adrienne...oh yeah, Adrienne! How are you doing?"
"Good, pretty good, how about you?"
"Oh, not bad," he chuckled. "So, I take it you got my message."
"Yes, I did." She was extremely glad that he couldn't see her blushing. "Hey, is this a bad time? I can call back later if it would be better."
"No, not at all. I'm just doing a little shopping."
"Ooh, one of my favorite activities! I can already tell we have a lot in common!" Both of them let out a laugh, followed by an almost-awkward pause.
"Well, um..." AJ cleared his throat. "Did you want to do something this weekend?"
Adrienne smiled. "Sure, why not? What did you have in mind?"
"I've actually got a party to go to on Saturday night, so how about we have lunch earlier that day?"
He sounds hopeful. Definitely a good sign. "Of course. That would be great."
"Wonderful, then I guess I'll give you a call sometime before then to make more definite plans."
"Great," Adrienne cheerfully agreed. "I'll talk to you later, then!"
"You too...bye."
Adrienne pushed the 'end' button on her cordless, dropped it carelessly onto the couch, and jumped up and down in a circle around her coffee table seven times until she had calmed down slightly.
"Yes!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. This exclamation motivated her upstairs neighbor to bang a broom against their floor three times as a signal for her to shut up. "Sorry," she yelled in the direction of the apartment above hers.