Just Friends

The Story of Lilly and Oliver

There she goes again
The girl I'm in love with
It's cool we're just friends
We walk the halls at school
When you know it's casual
It's cool we're just...
I don't wanna lead you on
No
But the truth is I've grown fond
Yeah
Everyone knows it's meant to be
I'm falling in love
It's just you and me
Till the end of time
Till I'm on her mind
It'll happen
I've been making lots of plans
Like a picket fence
And a rose garden
I'll just keep on dreaming
But it's cool cause we're just friends

"The Ollie Trolley has arrived at the station! Oh, hey Lils!" she shook her head in my direction.

"I will never understand the way you think, Oliver Oscar Oken!"

"Oh so we're pulling out the middle names are we, Lillian Rose Truscott!"

"Ugh, don't say that! It sounds so old fashioned, I hate it!" That's funny; I always thought it was a really pretty name, perfect for Lilly, the prettiest girl ever.

Time for another smart ass remark, I don't know why I do this.

"Anything is better than Triple O, I don't know what my parents were thinking. Plus, now you always have to smell good, Lilly Rose!"

Wait, did I really just say that? Yes I did. I just told the love of my life that she has the ability to smell really bad. Okay well, maybe she isn't the love of my life, but she could be. Well, that is if I could grow a pair.

I've known the girl for 11 years and I've never told her I'm in love with her. Nice job, Oken.

Huh, oh, she's waving her hand in front of my face, must've zoned out. Ooopsie.

"Oliver! Hello, this is Earth, have we met?"

"Psh! Smokin' Oken does not zone out. He's got it all under control…" I am the epitamy of cool, well except for that whole refuse to ask Lilly out thing…

"Well 'Smokin' Oken', maybe you should open your locker before the bell rings"

Oh, huh, yeah maybe I should do that. Alright, here goes…dammit!

"Lil, I can't remember my combination!"

She groaned and pushed me out of the way. Before I knew it my locker was wide open and she was handing me my English book.

"What would it do to Locker Man's reputation if people learned that he can't even open his own locker?"

"Dunno. At least I still have a reputation with the ladies", Well I did, whether I wanted one or not.

"Yeah, how is that thing goin' with Shelby anyway?"

Oh yeah, Shelby was this week's 'thing'.

There was a point in time where Miley and Lilly started to think I was gay because I wouldn't, and obviously couldn't, tell them who I had a crush on.

There was Hannah Montana, which was a good distraction, well until I found out that Miley was Hannah Montana. Then Miley thought I liked her and even though I didn't I was worried it would get Lilly thinking, and that was the last thing I needed.

So I had 'things'. Weekly crushes on hot girls that did not appeal to me in any way, shape or form. At least it diverged them away from the truth.

Oh, I was zoning out again wasn't i.

"So, Lils, where's Miley?"

"She had a dentist appointment", that's what we always said in public to mean 'She's too busy being Hannah Montana to care about school'.

"Oh, we-"I heard the bell ring and I was on my last tardy. I started running down the hall only stopping to turn around and wave to Lilly.

I got into my classroom 2 seconds before the bell rang. Ms. Chisholm glared at me, but I was on time and there was nothing she could do about it. I sat down in my desk toward the back of the room.

Johnny was sitting next to me. He was trying to balance a pencil on his nose and sadly, was starting to make some progress. He looked over at me and let the pencil drop into his hand.

" 'Sup Oken", he said giving me a sideways glance and pretending to pay attention to the lecture at the same time. He had a weird hint to his voice; like he was hiding something.

"So Johnny, is there something you feel you should tell me?"

"Nope. But maybe you could tell me what's happening between you and Lilly", he said, smirking. I almost choked on my gum when I realized what he had said.

"What do you mean?" I said, trying my best to sound skeptical.

"The way you guys just were in the hall. Are you two together?" And I just swallowed my gum.

"Nah, Lilly are just friends. That's how it will always be", he just kept looking at me.

"Well that's how she wants it to be…will you stop looking at me!"

"Do you realize that most married couples spend less time together than you two?"

"Oh, shut up. This coming from the guy who thought ketchup was a moisturizer…"

"I'm gonna ignore that last statement. If you recall, it was your friend Miley who told me that anyway. I'm just saying, most people already assume you guys are together, maybe you should make it official already"

"Yeah and if she says no, 11 years of friendship go down the drain" That should've been the most obvious thing in the universe.

"She won't"

"What do you mean she won't? How do you know that?" Now he was just being an ass.

"You've been too busy looking at her to see the way she looks at you. That girl adores you." Really? That had never occurred to me before, that she liked me the way I liked her. Did she?

"Really, you're not just mocking me?"

"I would never mess around with something like this! She. Is. In. To. You!"

"Well, should I ask her out?" I really needed this advice, even if it did make me look like an idiot.

"Mr. Oken, Mr. Collins, do you have something you'd like to share?" We both suddenly looked forward. Ms. Chisholm was glaring at us and people around us were giggling.

"No M'am!" we both almost yelled out.

"Good, and I'll talk to you about it after school. You both have detention."

Fantastic. This is just what I needed. A detention on top of all these teenage hormonal issues. Just. Peachy.

A crumpled piece of notebook paper landed on my desk and I unfolded it to see a note from Johnny:

Oh well, I wasn't doing anything after school anyway. Oh and…YES!!!

The last word took up half the page and was written in black sharpie. Well, he got his point across.

--------------------------------------------

It was 2:30 and Johnny and I had come straight from Geometry to sit in detention for forty minutes. I hadn't even bothered to go to my locker, so I started on my homework. I was something to do with circles, or triangles, or parallel lines or something.

Ms. Chisholm told us she had to make copies or something and left us there, telling us to be quiet. Yeah right.

I pulled out my phone just for it to start ringing in my hand.

I ain't got no money

I ain't got no car to take you on a date

I can't even buy you flowers…

"Hey Lils!" I said into the receiver. I could feel her smiling on the other end.

Johnny rolled his eyes and mouthed the words 'Oh my God'.

"Well Ollie, where is my ride home?" Shit! I forgot that I was supposed to drive her home. I'd gotten my license a few weeks ago and I'd been giving Lilly rides home since then.

"Um, he's in detention…"

"Oliver! You are such a donut! Now I have to walk home!"

"Come on Lilly, I only have 15 minutes left of my sentence. Wait for me, please" The last word was dripping with honey and I knew she couldn't resist.

"Fine, I'll meet you by the car…Bye Ollie"

"Bye Lils" I said, then I heard the dial tone and hit end. I turned around to see Johnny looking at me from under his eyelashes.

"You didn't ask her", he said.

"Gimme some time. Timing is key", Truthfully I was just trying to work up my nerves.

"Buk-buk-buk-a!"

"I am not, it's just complicated!"

He just rolled his eyes and went back to his work. Ten minutes later Ms. Chisholm came in and told us we could leave, so Johnny and I walked to our lockers, then we walked out to the parking lot together.

Lilly was leaning on the hood of my car. She was obviously bored, but she had her iPod in and she seemed not to notice us coming up behind her. I tapped her on the shoulder and she fell backwards. I caught her and awkwardly set her on her feet.

"My hero…" she grumbled. "What took so long?"

Johnny spoke up for the first time, "Sorry, we got detention because I was trying to give Oliver some girl advice."

"Oh, he told you about Shelby…"

"No, actually we were talking about…" I interrupted him in the nick of time.

"Cheese. Yes, we were talking about cheese. I love Cheddar, don't you?"

They both looked at me like I was insane; and I really couldn't blame them. Cheese?

"Okay O, whatever you say…" Lilly said getting into the passenger seat.

When the door closed I glared at Johnny. He just smiled.

"You have to tell her"

"I know"

"Tonight"

He won the stare down and I muttered, "Fine!"

I didn't know how I was going to do this, but I had to do it. Tonight.