Page 41 of What I Like About You

“Thank you,” I say. “Seriously.”

“Of course!” He looks at Ollie. “See you later?”

“Yup.” Ollie’s pupils practically have heart-eye emojis in them.

“I’ll see you around,” I say, trying to be casual.

Sawyer nods. “See ya, Hal-lee.”

I exit Maple Street Sweets high on cinnamon sugar andhaving a job. So on the car ride back to Gramps’s, Ollie and I blast music and freak out.

“I have a job!” I say.

Ollie pumps his fist in the air. “I’m going to make varsity!”

Then his face falls. “Wait. Why did you let me agree to go hit with him?”

I turn down the music. “What?”

“He’s so coolandhe’s captain,” Ollie says. “What if I botch this? I’m out of practice.”

“He has a girlfriend, you know,” I say.

He flips me off. “That’s not what I’m worried about.”

“Ol, you got this. I promise. Baseball is like breathing for you. And as for the social part, he’s nice. You’re nice. He’s funny. You’re funny. If there are any awkward moments, well, just start speaking baseball. But it won’t even get awkward. Because you’ve got this.”

Ollie breathes. I crank the music again.

“It’s just baseball,” Ollie shouts over the music, which confirms it issonot just baseball.

“Keep telling yourself that,” I say. “Admit it. You have a crush on Sawyer.”

“Crushis a strong word.”

“Lust?”

We burst out laughing because it’s true and because Ollie will never admit it, especially since I’ve referred to Sawyer ascuteonce or twice. We can’t have the same taste in anything, let alone guys. He didn’t talk to me for a week after I discovered he followed myLes MisérablesSpotify playlist.

Ollie turns the music back down. “Gramps doesn’t need to know,” he says. “Most days,Idon’t even know, and he’ll want to label it and I’m not ready for that.”

“Okay,” I say.

“I mean—I want to figure it out before I tell him. If I do.”

I nod. “Totally.”

“And, Hal? Thank you for saving my ass back there. I don’t know what happened.”

“I do,” I say, wiggling my eyebrows.

Ollie rolls his eyes but cannot for the life of him wipe the stupid smile off his face.

Neither can I, honestly. I am giddy the entire drive home because I have a job I can be excited about.

A job where I can almost be Kels, for real.

If I could work at Maple Street Sweets every day, I think I would.

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