Simone Elkeles

"Next time I want to do something nice, slap me."

"I look down at our knees, slightly touching. Jeans against jeans. Does she notice the heat transferring from her body to mine? Does she even realize what she's doing to me? I know, I know. I'm not a virgin and the slightest touch of a girl's knee is driving me insane. I don't even know what I'm feeling for Maggie, I just know that I'm feeling. It's something I've tried to avoid and deny until yesterday, when I held her in my arms while her tears spilled onto my shirt. God, our knees touching isn't enough. I need more. She's knotting her fingers together on her lap as if she doesn't know what to do with them. I want to touch her, but what if she pulls away like before? I've never been such a wuss with a girl in my life. I bite my bottom lip as I slide my hand about millionth of a millimeter closer to her hand. She doesn't seem fazed so I move closer. And closer. When the tips of my fingers touch her wrist, she freezes. But she doesn't jerk her hand away. God, her skin is so soft, I think as my fingers trail a path from her wrist to her knuckles to her smooth, manicured nails. I swear touching her like this is driving me nuts. It's more erotic, more intense than any other time with Kendra. I feel awkward and inexperienced as a freshman again. I look up. Everyone else is oblivious to the intensity of emotions running rampant in the back of the public bus. When I look back down at my hand covering hers, I'm grateful she hasn't come to her senses and pulled away. As if she knows my thoughts, we both turn our hands at the same time so our hands are palm against palm...finger against finger. Her hand is dwarfed against mine. It makes her seem more delicate and petite than I'd realize. I feel a need to protect her and be her champion should she ever need one. With a slight shift of my hand, I lace my fingers through hers. I'm holding hands. With Maggie Armstrong. I'm not even going to think about how wrong it is because it feels so right. She's avoided looking right at me, but now she turns her head and our eyes lock. God, how come I never noticed before how long her lashes were and how her brown eyes have specks of gold that sparkle when the sun shine on them?The bus stops suddenly and I look out the window. It's our stop. She must have realized this because she pulls her hand away from mine and stands. I follow behind, still reeling."

"Consider me your candy stripper... I mean striper."

"Expectations make people miserable, so whatever yours are, lower them. You'll definitely be happier."

"Please, amigo. We need you, Kimosabe, O Mighty Powerful One. We need you more than the earth rises in the west. The sun rises in the east, dickhead. Only if you're standing on the earth. If you're on the moon, the earth rises in the west."

"This is a team of gay dudes, isn't it?What gave it away? The pink shirts, or half our team drooling over you?"

"Fifty percent of all doctors graduate in the bottom half of their class - Hope your surgery went well!"

"I write edgy, sexy teen romances, and that's what I'll continue to do."

"“We kiss all the time. I clear my throat, then add, We just...do it in private. A smug expression crosses his face. I don't buy it for a second, 'cause if you were my girlfriend and a stud like me was livin' in your house, I'd kiss you in front of the guy every chance I got as a reminder. A reminder of w-w-what? That you were mine.”"

"We kiss all the time. I clear my throat, then add, We just...do it in private. A smug expression crosses his face. I don't buy it for a second, 'cause if you were my girlfriend and a stud like me was livin' in your house, I'd kiss you in front of the guy every chance I got as a reminder. A reminder of w-w-what? That you were mine."

"You’re dangerous, he says. Why?Because you make me believe in the impossible"

"You’ve got a big ego, Fuentes.”“That’s not all I’ve got."

"Tell me what we had was real, I whisper."

"Girls like you want to cut guy's nuts off and hang 'em from your rearview mirror."

"Next time I want to do something nice, slap me."

"I wonder if it's medically possible to be addicted to another human being."