I do, Lyric confirms
and that’s all it takes.
In an instant
I’m in front of Lyric’s ring light
and tripod.
Lyric wraps her arms around my waist
and then tilts her face down at me ever so slightly
so that I can feel her breath on my cheek.
I’m just a little shorter than her
so when she tells me to turn my head up
to look her in the eyes
our lips are so closethey almost touch.
Like this?I whisper
hoping she can’t feel my heart
knocking around my chest
through the layers of our coats.
Yes. Now
just give me a little smile.
I obey.
I hear the sound of the camera shutter
as Lyric clicks a remote.
The snow begins to fall harder
around us.
I forgetfor just a moment
that I am not in fact
starring in my own
real-life holiday romance.
That despite my crush
since the first day of senior year
Lyric Watkins does not in fact like me
