Chapter 2: Two Minutes in Heaven

"Brittany, I need to go home. I'm not feeling well," I lie.

"Okay, well, see you tomorrow. We have a party to plan. And girls for you to keep away from Zander."

"Bye, Brit."

I leave Brittany's house. As I walk down the stairs, I see Zander sitting on the living room chair. The one where I just sat.

"Are you going?" Zander asks.

"Yes, I'm not feeling well."

"Can I walk you home?"

"Sure, " I hesitate.

We both leave the house. Secretly I know Brittany would put me on trial for walking home with Zander.

"Listen, Zander; you don't need to worry about me."

"Well, someone needs to make sure you get home safely."

We take a right, and I find myself on the secret path next to the garden again. Only this time, I'm alone with Zander. The boy I'm tasked with keeping all the girls away from.

"Zander, why did you hold my hand?" I ask.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Never mind, forget it. Bye, Zander. I'm fine now. I'll take it from here, " I say.

I walk away from Zander. Our hand-holding earlier was a mistake-a brief moment of confusion on his part and girlish desire on mine.

"Wait, Ash. Don't go."

"Why not?"

"I did hold your hand back there. But I meant nothing by it, okay? So let's not tell Brittany."

"Fine by me."

He takes his hand and holds mine again. He brushes my thumb with his. This is not like me. I'm alone with Zander Hogan in the woods.

"Bye, Ashley," Zander smirks.

When he smiles, I see his two familiar hidden dimples. And I know that if I'm not careful, I'm going to fall for him.

"Bye, Zander," I blush.

I feel my face turn red. I turn around quickly; I don't want to give Zander the satisfaction of knowing he got a rise out of me. I need to put the flames out. Otherwise, there goes my friendship with Brittany. Zander Hogan is not worth the death of a friendship.

I've never blushed about a boy before. I kissed Kyle Sumpter once in middle school, but it wasn't hot. It was painful. I don't have time for boys, and I certainly don't have time for Zander.

A few days pass, and the night of the party is here. I bought Zander and Brittany a cake. It's chocolate, their favorite. Mrs. Hogan hired a band to play music at the party.

The party is at the neighborhood swimming pool. I take my sundress off and reveal my new bikini to the world. Aiden Buckland notices me right away.

"Nice bathing suit, Ashley," he cat-calls.

"Thanks, Aiden," I say.

Zander won't stop staring at me. It's making me uncomfortable. Then, a group of senior girls flock over to Zander and start hitting on him.

"Hello, Zan, how have you been," Leslie Thompson laughs.

Her high-pitched laughs sound like a witch's cackle.

"Ash, are you forgetting your job?" Brittany reminds me.

Right, I'm supposed to keep the girls away from Zander. I panic and push Leslie into the swimming pool.

"What the hell? You freaky little bitch."

I ignore her and run away. I grab my sundress and start to leave the party. But I can't do what Brittany wants me to do. I can't keep girls away from Zander.

Zander chases after me.

"Hey, are you alright?" He asks.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks," I reply.

"What was that about?"

"Nothing, forget it, " I say, heading back to the party.

"What's going on? Tell me."

"Brittany wanted me to keep the girls away from you tonight."

"Well, I'd say you're taking your job very seriously," Zander laughs.

"Let's go back to the party, " I say, ignoring the comment.

We head back to the party. I'm embarrassed about pushing Leslie into the pool. So I avoid her for the rest of the evening.

The pool party ends, and the remaining partyers head to the Hogan's house for cake. We eat pizza, listen to the band play, and watch Brittany and Zander open their gifts.

It's late, and as I get ready to leave, everyone decides it's time to play Seven Minutes in Heaven. This is the last game I need to play right now.

"Let's write our names down on a scrap piece of paper and put them in this hat," Brittany says.

We all do what she says. My heart pounds. I'm so nervous. I haven't kissed anyone since that awful 8th-grade Spin the Bottle game. I just know there's a sticker on my head that says, "Virgin."

We all go around pulling names out of the hat. My heart pounds again. I pull out the scrap piece of paper, and it says, "Zander."

"Who do you have, Ashley?" Brittany asks.

"Zander, " I reply.

"That's perfect. I'm glad you have him. I know you won't do anything together. It's the perfect way to keep those other girls away," Brittany whispers.

"You're right; it sure is perfect."

"Well, Ash, it looks like it's our turn, " Zander says.

"I'll set the timer," Brittany announces.

I follow Zander into a closet. The one where I'll be for the next seven minutes. We shut the door. I know my friends and peers expect me to make out with Zander. Brittany expects me to let the time pass by.

I sit down in the corner of the closet. Waiting for the beeper to go off.

"What are you doing? This is not how Seven Minutes in Heaven works," Zander says.

"Well, it is for me. Brittany told me not to do anything with you," I say.

"You're no fun."

"Yes, I am. I'm loads of fun. Just not with you."

"Yeah, when's the last time you kissed someone?" Zander asks.

"That's none of your business," I yell.

"When?" He asks again.

"The Spin the Bottle party with Kyle, okay."

"That was in middle school."

"Shut up," I say, embarrassed.

I cover my face. Has that dumb beeper gone off yet?

"I'm sorry, Ash. Let's change that. We still have three minutes left. Come over here and let me kiss you."

"Why should I?" I ask.

"Because you need to have fun. And because I want to."

"You what now?" I ask, feeling my heart flutter a little.

"You heard me. I want to. I want to kiss you, Ashley."

I walk over to Zander. I decide to play two minutes in heaven with Zander. Zander's lips touch mine as I close my eyes. I open my eyes and pull away.

I now realize the connection we've always had has been there this whole time. It was waiting for me to find it. I close my eyes and kiss Zander one more time before the beeper goes off. We pull away.

We walk out of the closet. I pretend that nothing between us has changed.

"How was it, Ash?" Brittany whispers.

"Nothing happened, " I lie.

"Good, thanks for not doing anything with Zander. I'm glad I can count on you to keep the girls away."

"Me too," I lie again.

I look at Zander, and he looks at me. He smiles, and I smile back. I kissed Zander Hogan, and that is not like me.