(I cut out a looot of this first part because it was ridiculously soap opera-ish. So yeah. Hope you like the revised version better. Sorry it's so short now, but I like it better this way.)

I don't know how long we stood there, but it was a long time. And I didn't care how long it was, or how late it got. I was just happy I was there, with her. Alone together.

After a second, we just looked at each other and laughed.

"What will Emily think?" I wondered, still laughing a little.

"Oh, I think she'll live," she smirked, as if she knew something I didn't.

**

"You WHAT?!"

"You heard me, Em."

"I know, but you kissed her?! Seriously?!" Emily squeaked.

"Yeah. Yeah, I did. You got a problem with that?" I laughed.

"No. No. There's no problem with that at all! I'm so happy! I'm just... wow. I can't believe you did that!"

"Did what?" Ryan walked in, holding a bowl of cereal in his hands.

"Kissed Diana," Emily said matter-of-factly before I could say anything.

Ryan had chosen to take a bite at just the wrong time and almost spit up his late-night snack.

"That's my little brother!" He high-fived me. Very hard. Maybe I'd have the use of my right hand back by tomorrow evening? Saturday evening? Sunday, at the latest. "And what did she think?"

"What do you MEAN, 'what did she think'? She's probably smiling that little head of hers off right now," Emily screamed. She was kind of taking over for me, so I quietly moved away as she told Ryan everything about tonight. She had made me tell her all about it - you know girls and their need for details. She had been pretty normal until the last little part.

With all the excitement, I was exhausted. It was very late, Thursday night, or very early, Friday morning. Diana and I had talked about - as Emily put it - "things" at the park for quite some time.

I went up to my room and plopped on the bed, not even bothering to change into pajamas. I knew I wouldn't sleep anyway, no matter how tired I was.

I just sat there, thinking, for the longest time. It was so weird how so many things could happen in one day. Well, I guess it hadn't been a lot of things, but what had happened was so important, so exciting, and so wonderful that it felt like a lot.

Love could do so many different things to a person. I mean, I'd felt so many different emotions because of how I felt for Diana. It had made me feel rather angry with James, dissapointed with myself, annoyed with Emily, and too many other things to list. The only emotion I'd felt that hadn't changed was, obviously, my love for Diana.

I felt kind of odd, saying that I loved someone. It sounded so cheesy and weird coming from me, a pretty normal teenager, and a teenage guy at that, but there was simply no other word that worked. I couldn't say I liked Diana. You don't like a person like that. You like a sports team, or a car, or a flavor of ice cream.

Needless to say, I didn't just like Diana. I loved her.

With that thought going around in my head, my exhaustion got the better of me and I eventually drifted off to sleep.

**

My head popped off the pillow the next morning - or maybe the same morning, depending on how late it had been when I finally slept. I had something to be excited about today.

I quickly changed into some clean clothes and threw on my favorite baseball cap. I wondered if Diana would still come past my house every morning?

Only one way to find out.

I ran down the stairs and grabbed a granola bar and a glass of milk. Everyone in the family was gone this morning, I found out, so I didn't have to answer any questions or anything while I was eating (for once). I don't know why, but I kind of enjoyed being alone.

I threw away the wrapper and rinsed my glass in the sink, then strolled outside and sat on the porch. And waited.

Sure enough, she came.

"Hi."

"Hi."

We smiled at each other, and I went out to meet her.

We were both silent for the first few minutes or so, just walking together, content to not say anything.

It was a more chilly summer morning, slightly overcast and a little windy. I could tell she was getting a bit cold. I grasped her hand.

Without formally deciding to, we both kind of headed to the park. Like last night, no one else was there. Everything was totally empty but for a few abandoned basketballs, frisbees, and baseball bats.

Diana selected a swing to sit on and slowly rocked back and forth, the wind blowing her hair around. She was so beautiful.

I stepped behind her and began pushing the swing lightly.

"Hey, Di? Do you care if I call you Di?"

"No," she laughed. "I don't mind. I like it. And was that what you wanted to say?"

"No," I laughed back. "I was wondering, do you want to go on a date with me on... Monday night?"

"I'd really like that," she breathed. "Where are we going?"

"It's a secret," I answered.

"Okay. I can handle secrets."

"Good. I'll pick you up at seven?"

"That will be great."

I smiled to myself. Things were finally going right.