Hey Lovefool,

This is sort of a spin off of another question. My new boyfriend wants to know who all I've kissed and dated and stuff. Do I have to tell him? 

 Embarrassed Virgin

Dear Embarrassed Virgin,

That's a difficult answer to answer. If it were me, I'd tell him because I think honesty is the best policy at all times. Think of it this way, wouldn't you rather know something up front than always wondering about it in the back of your mind? If you don't answer, that will only lead to him questioning more (AKA fights) or his thinking that you have something to hide. Just a thought.

Remember, don't be a fool for love. That's my job.

Lovefool

                                                                                         *****

The clanging of the metal lockers slamming shut and jarring open filled the early morning void of the Summit High School's halls.

Mavis stared into the mirror affixed to the locker door, lathering on another layer of Paris Pink MAC lipstick. "Think this is a good color for senior pictures?" Her mouth formed a pout to accentuate the obvious.

After a quick twist of the dial on the lock, I turned to my best friend. "What are you going to wear?"

Mavis took a step back, fluttering her hands over the bodice of her skin-tight black dress. "Duh?"

"That's what you're wearing?" I asked. When I went for my senior pictures, I stayed ultra casual; jeans, cropped sage green sweater, and hiking boots. Entirely low-key and under the radar. Just like today.

She narrowed her dark eyes. "What's wrong with—"

"Good morning, Harry," Tanner interrupted our "girl talk" by walking up behind me.

"Harry?" Mavis mouthed while Tanner's back faced away from her. Her eyes spread wide and kept skipping between Tanner and myself. In all the hoopla since Monday, I had notably omitted the sociology class project from any and all of our talks for precisely this reason.

I rolled my eyes, conveying two answers. I'd talk to Mavis about it later was one. The second, inferred my irritation with Tanner this early in the morning.

A quick shifting on my heels had me heading in the opposite direction toward my first hour AP chemistry class. Rushing and shuffling footsteps hurried after me. 

"Hold up."  Mavis threaded an arm through mine and tugged me to an abrupt stop. "What's the rush? We still have another..." Her eyes glanced at her phone. "Five minutes until the bell rings."

"Okay, and?" I stole a quick peek over my shoulder at Tanner. Sadly, he was catching up to me as well.

My best friend shot me that annoying duh look and leaned close. "And? And? You're kidding me, right? Why didn't you tell me about you and." She paused in time to address him. "Tanner."

"Meg, right?" he asked.

Mavis sucked her bottom lip and adopted a hand propped at the hip stance. "It's Mavis, actually."

Tanner tipped his head back, feigning exasperation at his blunder. "That's right. Sorry, I'm not good with names."

"Or people," I murmured.

His left eyebrow lifted. "Did you say something, Harry?"

"Nope." I tucked my books closer to my chest to make room for the endless stream of fellow students heading to their classes. "Did you need something?"

"Of course I do..." He flashed Mavis a manufactured smile. "Can I borrow her for a few minutes?"

Mavis glanced at me, gauging how to answer. "Ummm." She stalled. Even with the wide-eyed say no look I threw her, she still fell for his charm. "Sure. No problem. I'll just talk to you later, Harry."

Just great. Now my best friend was going to try and act cute.

I ignored her stupid comment. Tanner grabbed the sleeve of my flannel shirt, pulling me closer to the lockers.

"What do you want, Tanner?"

Tanner removed the black rimmed glasses from my face before I had the chance to object. "Do you have anything for me?" he asked.

Holding my hand out proved pointless. So did huffing and puffing at the blue-eyed wonder. Finally, I conceded and played along. "Like what?"

He pretended to ponder my question by tapping his chin with a finger. "Oh, I don't know, Harry." A theatrical frown. "Maybe what you agreed to help me with on Tuesday night?"

"Help you with?" I choked back a laugh. "I don't remember agreeing to..." Recollection took hold, and I stopped mid-sentence. Whenever he asked me to help him the other night track down who was behind the Lovefool blog, I thought it was a joke. Honestly. Oh the irony!

"Uh-huh, yeah, now you remember, don't you?" Tanner's expression turned haughty. "So, I'm guessing you're not any closer to figuring out who's behind it, right?"

I spun on my heels and took a couple of steps down the hallway. Avoiding this conversation at the moment was essential. Unfortunately, Tanner already had the uncanny ability to detect when I was lying. And after only a few days of us talking at that. If I weren't careful, he'd figure out the secret I'd been hiding from everyone at this school for the past three years. That could not happen.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Tanner's long legs put him at a distinct advantage when he blocked my path. "Where do you think you're going to?"

Like clockwork, the school bell shrilled. I pointed to an overhead speaker and tried sidestepping him. "To chemistry. How about you?"

Tanner smirked, positioning my glasses on my face. "Yeah, no. We have more important issues to attend to." He wrapped an arm around my back, steering me in the opposite direction.

"Umm." I tried twisting from his hold on me to no avail. "No. There's a test in chemistry that I have to take right now."

I almost made it out of his grasp when he held me tighter.

"Actually, I got special permission from Mr. O'Brien for you to help with setting up for the student council assembly today. Since you volunteered and all." Sure enough, Tanner produced two signed school passes excusing the two of us from the first period.

I cut my eyes sideways. "Except, I didn't volunteer for that."

We rounded the open doorway, entering the gym. "I know you didn't." A cocky wink. "I did it for you."

                                                                                               ********

It didn't take too long to comprehend what Tanner hoped to accomplish. The other ten students in attendance, a mixture of seven guys and three girls, were busy hanging a few banners and moving the podium to the middle of the gym.

Tanner and I stood to the side, using a helium tank to inflate a few dozen red and black balloons. Savannah Miles and Abby Raines, the two co-captains of the cheerleading squad helped by adding the curling ribbon to the balloons and tying them to the folded chairs that the faculty would use.

For only being a silly school assembly to celebrate the football team winning more than three games this season, they were taking it to the extreme.

"So... did you read Lovefool's blog post last night?" Tanner said to me, loud enough that Savannah and Abby took notice.

I felt my forehead furrow. What was he up to? I purposely abstained from updating the website last night, just to ensure the drama would die down in the aftermath of the Tanner/Claudia show on Tuesday. It had been the first time since the site's inception that it had ever taken a three day break.

"Umm. I didn't get a chance to." My head stayed down, concentrating on the metal lever that released the helium. "Why?"

"Oh. No reason." He chuckled under his breath and my heart skipped a beat. "Was just wondering was all."

Savannah stepped closer, trying to avoid Mr. O'Brien from overhearing."She didn't post anything last night."

I chewed my lower lip, hiding my satisfaction that a nobody like me even garnered the attention of a Queen B like Savannah. Even though it was my alter ego, but still.

"Huh? She?" Tanner tilted his head to the side, a smug grin tugged his perfect lips. "So, you think whoever is a she, too?"

I groaned. Was I that obvious? Apparently, I needed to reevaluate a few things. Like how to write gender neutral was one. But how?

"Why do you think it's a girl?" I blurted before I could catch myself. Darn it, Harriet!

Savannah shrugged. "Just the way she's always calling the guys out on their bullshit."

"And, do you agree with what she's doing?" Tanner tied the end of the balloon and passed it to me. His mismatched blue eyes stayed fixed on Savannah's face, awaiting her reaction.

I wanted to roll my eyes but refrained. Oddly, this was one of those conversations where they were discussing me in third person, like I wasn't even here. But unless I decided to out myself, which I wouldn't, then all I could do was just grin and bear it. Which I did, begrudgingly.

Abby threw her best friend, Savannah, a cautious glance that didn't go undetected by me. "No. Of course we don't." A forced cough. "Right, Sav?"

Savanna hesitated for a moment. "It wasn't right what you did to Claudia,Tanner."

"What I did?" Tanner's jaw clenched, and those cheeks of his reddened a bit. He positioned the deflated balloon over the tank and twisted the valve to the left. "Yeah, well, you don't know the whole story."

"I know enough." Savannah folded her arms. "I know what Claudia told me."

Tanner finished tying off the black balloon and let it free from his hands. He stared straight at Savannah while it floated to the rafters. "Did Claudia bother to tell you how she's been cheating on me with Kaden Masterson, or did she forget that part?"

Oh, he did not have to spring that news on Savannah like that. Little did anyone else know, but I was just itching to place Kaden Masterson on the Naughty list for rumors of his bad boy ways alone. Now if there was actual proof though?

"Claudia and Kaden?" Savannah forced a strained laugh. "Yeah, okay, Tanner. She wouldn't hook up with my ex— "

"Boyfriend?" He smirked, a cross between sexy and dangerous that had my the butterflies in my stomach fluttering. "Oh well, believe it, because I have proof." Tanner dug his cellphone from the back pocket of his jeans and after a couple of seconds held the device at an angle that all of us could see.

It took a few racing heartbeats, but then the video came into focus with Claudia in an awfully compromising position atop of none other than Kaden Masterson. That copper hair of his alone made it undeniable. Once the vocal accompaniment became too much, Savannah pushed the phone to the side.

"What?" Tanner flipped the phone towards him, a smug smile on full display. "You don't want to hear her screaming his name? That's when it get's really good."

"Ugh!" Savannah huffed. Not even a second later, she latched onto Abby's arm and dragged her to the other side of the room.

Tanner stood there laughing to himself for a moment. He tucked his phone back into his pocket again and glanced at me. "What? You didn't think that was funny?"

I rolled my eyes. Hopefully, that was a well enough answer to convey my annoyance. But knowing him, probably not. I kept busy by inflating the final three balloons and tying them.

Maybe a few minutes or so passed. "Are you not talking to me now?" he asked, the amusement in his tone more than apparent.

"You didn't have to do that, Tanner." The school bell rang. All twelve of us quit decorating the gym and walked toward the exit.

Tanner picked up his pace to match mine. "Hey." He latched onto my arm, stopping me."Maybe if you did your job—"

I raised a hand to silence him. "My job? What are you even talking about?"

He exasperated a sigh, making sure to blow as much steam from his nose as possible. I guess he was used to getting his way by throwing a tantrum? Not today, Tanner. Not today.

"If you would have just figured out who this Lovefool is already then..." His voice trailed off.

I fixed my eyes on him. "Then, what?"

Tanner grumbled something incomprehensible and stomped past me into the hallway. He spun on his heels. "Nevermind. We'll just have to try again at lunch."

And before I had the chance to counter with a "I don't think so," he made his way into the crowd of students rushing to their classes, and disappearing from sight.

_________________________________

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