"Do it."

"No."

"Do it," he said stronger than the first.

"No. Drew, I'm not doing this," I argued, looking at him like he was crazy.

"Riley, would you just-"

"I'm not gonna run you over with my car!" I shouted, gaining the attention of the people around us.

Drew was standing in front of my Tahoe, asking me to mow him down. And he wasn't joking.

"She's not coming back to me, man!" he yelled, his eyes bloodshot. "You heard what she said! In one moment, I ruined everything! Just end me now!"

"Will you stop being so dramatic!?" I complained through my open window.

"I'm not being dramatic. I'm  depressed."

"You're being pathetic," I said, laying my forehead against my steering wheel. "How are you going to win her back if you're dead?"

"She's better off without me," he moped.

This kid. Seriously.

"That's it!" I yelled, turning my car on. "You really want me to run you over?!"

"Yes, please!"

Shaking my head, I revved up the engine, keeping my eyes on my stupid friend before pressing on the gas. As soon as the car jumped forward, I hit the brakes, stopping about a foot in front of him.

"What the hell, dude!?" Drew exclaimed, his eyes huge and mouth gaping open. "You almost hit me!"

Sigh, the things I do for brotherhood.

Sticking my head out my window, I deadpanned, showing no signs of amusement because there were none.

"Shut up and get your butt in my car!" I shouted.

Seeing that I wasn't kidding, Drew quickly rushed to the passenger side door and hopped in, awkwardly staring at me once he was buckled in.

When I didn't say anything, choosing to drive in silence, he spoke up.

"I think that-"

"Shut it," I interrupted.

"What, why-"

"Hush."

"Riley-"

"Nope."

"Are you kidding-"

"I don't want to hear it!" I said loudly, talking over him. When he kept trying, I just resorted to speaking gibberish until he finally gave up.

Resting his elbow on the door, he leaned his head against the window, staring out if it. That's when I decided to say something.

"Out of all the things I told you she said," I began. "You took in everything but the most important part."

Puzzled, Drew looked at me like I had an answer he desperately needed.

"She still loves you," I made clear. Despite the glum way Natalie spoke about what happened with Drew, it was evident that the love was there—not gone, just bruised.

It seemed like he was holding his breath, so I said it again to reiterate my point.

"The girl you love, still loves you. So, unless you say something along the lines of how you're going to fix things, I don't want to hear another word from you," I finished, satisfied with my little speech.

I'm good.

As the seconds turned into minutes, I wondered what was going on in his mind.

"Hey, um, could you drop me off over here?" he asked, looking out the window.

Leaning forward to see past him, I was a little confused. The large brick building looked pretty empty. Most of the lights were off, but a few still burned bright, shining in the darkening afternoon.

"Why do you want to go there? Classes are over for the day...right?" I questioned. It was almost six, and we were supposed to be heading to dinner just a moment before.

"Yeah, I just...need to talk to someone."

When I gave him a doubtful look, he fully faced me.

"It has to do with me getting Natalie back, Riley, I swear," he said with a new light of determination in his eyes.

Good.

I was just glad I wouldn't have to endure weeks of him all pitiful and heartbroken. I preferred seeing him put all his energy in getting his girl back. That was the only thing that could make this trip worth the trouble.

"Okay," I smiled, pulling over next to the sidewalk.

"Thanks, bro. For everything."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm amazing, I know," I joked. "Call me if you need me."

"I will," he said before hopping out and closing the door behind him.

When he was a safe distance from the car, I drove off, looking for the nearest fast food restaurant I could find. 

About an hour later, I was pulling up in front of the dorms, with a belly full of Wendy's and a car full of gas. Reaching over to the passenger seat, I grabbed the bag of food I got for Drew, since he probably hadn't eaten yet, and headed inside. Half of me expected him not to be in his room, but he was.

"Sup, bro," I greeted when I came in. His back was to me as he typed away on his laptop that sat on his desk.

Swiveling around in his chair, he grinned so wide I almost didn't believe it was him.

"Uhhhh..."

"I've got a plan!" he exclaimed. "Look!"

"Woah, really?" Rushing over to where he was, I tossed him his bag of food and leaned over his desk, looking at what he was showing me on the computer.

"You're ordering things off Amazon?" I questioned, wondering where he was going with this.

"Mmhm," he answered through a mouthful of fries.

"Why?"

The things on his list were...not what I would have expected.

"Because," he began to explain. "You know how I had you drop me off at that building?"

"Yeah," I answered.

"Well, that was the arts building, and one of Natalie's sisters is there like, all the time. So, I went in to ask her for advice."

"Hold on, what? Nat doesn't have any sisters."

I distinctly remember her telling me she was an only child. Aside from Paully, her stepbrother, she didn't have any siblings.

Furrowing his brows, Drew looked at me with confusion before a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head.

"Oh, right, sorry. I meant one of her sorority sisters." Oh. "Anyway, Imani was there, like I hoped, but...she wasn't exactly welcoming," he said, pointing down at his paint covered shirt. This was the first time I noticed the neon green goop splattered all over him. "Guess I should have seen that coming."

"Yeah, probably," I shrugged. "But, that doesn't explain to me why you've rush ordered a giant stuffed Mario, ten boxes of thin mints Girl Scout Cookies, and a bouquet of plastic lillies."

Seriously. I think he's lost his mind.

"It makes perfect sense!" Drew argued. "Once Imani ran me out of there, I realized it would be better for me to come up with a plan on my own. Riley, I have to remind Natalie that we're perfect for each other, and I can start by giving her things she loves."

"...like Mario," I concluded, raising a puzzled brow. "Still not sure I'm following you, man."

"She loves Mario Kart. It's something she played with her dad all the time, and she still loves it, so yeah, I got her a giant Mario."

"Okay...and the cookies. I'm guessing those are her favorite, too?"

"Uh, well, no. Her favorite is double stuffed mint Oreos, but I'm pretty sure that's only because they're three times less than thin mints."

That was true. Girl Scout cookies were bomb, but they certainly took a bigger chunk out your pocket than other brands.

"Riiiight, so you got her a pricier version of her favorites. Cool. Let's say all that makes sense...Why the plastic lillies?" I asked, wondering what kind of reasoning he had for those.

A sheepish smile formed on his lips as he leaned back in his chair.

"I was kinda hoping they'd remind her of my mom. You know how much she loves her. Maybe, by association, she'll love me again," he shared. "Plus, Natalie's terrible with live plants. This way, the flowers never die, and neither does our relationship."

I can honestly say that I have never felt like facepalming as much as I did in that moment.

"Okay, so, let me get this straight. You want to give Natalie a bunch of plastic lillies, in hope that she'll think of Lily and love you again?"

When Drew nodded his head in agreement, I didn't know whether to laugh or kick him. If Lily could see her son now, I can only imagine the look she'd be giving him.

"Drew, that's a terrible idea!" I exclaimed.

"It is?"

"Yes," I said firmly.

"Well, I don't know how to do this! I'm a guy! I suck at grand romantic gestures! This is what I came up with," he sighed, running a hand through his hair before cradling his face. "I just want my girl back."

Letting out a heavy exhale, I sat at the edge of Drew's bed, thinking of what to say next. I mean, he was trying, but I just didn't think cookies and fake flowers were the best move. But hey, maybe I was wrong.

"Well, she does love Mario Kart," I admitted, feeling better when Drew's shoulders relaxed a bit. "But, try to remember that she already loves you. You don't have to make her, you just have to show her that you're still worth it."

Looking up at me, I saw how watery his eyes were getting. Dang, he's really falling apart over this. Patting him on the back, I smiled, "You'll get her back, Drew."

After one more pat, I grabbed my guitar and headed toward the door.

"Where ya' goin?" he asked.

"To get some writing done," I said, hooking the strap of my case across my torso.

Closing the door behind me, I headed to my car and started driving around campus, looking for a place to play without too many people around. I had a couple of weeks before the final product of my song had to be submitted to the competition, and normally that wouldn't have worried me, but I only had a few chords thrown together—that hardly made a song.

I knew there had to be a story, a tale to tell, one that would linger on the listener's mind. But, with the stump my life was in, I didn't really have anything new to draw from.

You have Drew and Natalie's breakup.

I couldn't write about that, though. No one wants to sing about their best friend getting dumped. It would just be weird, and almost cynical.

Deciding that the empty gazebo looking over a small serene pond was a good enough spot, I parked my car and took shelter under the structure. Leaning against the white railing, I started strumming the chords I came up with, but eventually nixed them, feeling like they weren't right and quite possibly the reason for my block.

Improvising, I just let my fingers strum as my mind worked on finding a topic for the song.

What about a roadtrip? Like the one you took to get here?

I played with that idea for a couple of minutes, but didn't think it was special enough to catch the judges' attention. If I wanted to make it to the next round, I had to paint a picture worth looking at.

And that's when her face appeared in my head.

Now, she's definitely something worth looking at.

"I don't even know your name, but I know the feel of your lips against mine," I sang, letting the words flow out as they came while I fumbled around for a melody to put them to. "Saw you walkin' up to me, kinda shy at first, but with trouble in your eyes."

After a while, I could see potential in what I was coming up with, and began to enjoy myself. It had been a while since songwriting felt like anything but a chore.

"You said 'It's a crazy stupid dare,
and you probably wouldn't care,
but my friends' said to kiss you',

So I did, and you did, and we did,
And you smiled, turned and left, and I didn't say it then," I continued, laughing at how crazy this was.

I was literally writing a song about the girl from the park. A girl whose name I didn't know, but whose face I hadn't forgotten. When I kissed her, it was to help her out...but now, it looked like she was helping me.

"But, baby, if I could,
I'd dare you to kiss me, again."

(I Dare You by me. Lyrics are property of author.)

When I finished writing the lyrics down in my notebook so I wouldn't forget them, I couldn't keep the smile from forming on my face. When I came on this trip, it was for Drew, but it looks like it wasn't a bad thing for me, either. Actually, things were starting to look up.

Sooooo this was an interesting chapter! I love showing you how Drew acts when it's just him and Riley. They're real bromieomies!✊🏽

😅 And, I don't know why, but I just found Drew so funny in this. First he wanted Riley to run him over, then he gets mad at him for "almost hitting him", and then he's ordering thin mints in bulk. Like, can I have some? 😍

Oh! That's reminds me! I wanted ask you guys, what is your favorite Girl Scout cookie?

Considering Natalie's diet is mine (with the whole no pork choice, pineapples on pizza, and vanilla shake preference 😉), my favorite is Thin Mints. *update, I'm vegan now soooo...I'll live on through Nat*

Also, thoughts on Riley's rough draft of the song? 😏  (I wish you guys could hear the tune, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ oh well, you can come up with your own if you want.)

Thanks for reading! Don't forget to vote if you think Riley is bae and deserves to find a bae and you wouldn't mind volunteering to be that bae! 😘