Chapter 2- Mutual Feelings

I woke up in the morning to the sound of birds chirping and the light breeze blowing through my window. I looked over at my alarm clock. It was only 8:30. I decided to get out of bed and go for a run.



I walked downstairs to see the guys still fast asleep in the living room. Empty cans of beer were scattered everywhere. I laughed when I saw my brother. His foot was on Grant's face. Jake was lying on the couch. Well, half of his body was. The other half looked like it would fall off any second. There was even a guy sleeping on the pool table.



I headed to the kitchen to grab a glass of water and found Karl in there, scrolling through his phone. He was already awake? He looked up when he saw me and smiled.



"You awake?", he asked.



"Yeah. Looks like you guys had a crazy night," I remarked. He chuckled. "Well, I'm going for a run now. You wanna come along?"



I can't believe I just had the gut to ask my crush to join me. What was I even thinking? Of course Karl would say no. He didn't want anything to do with me. But I was wrong.



"Sure. There's nothing else to do anyways," he replied.



I told him to wait in the kitchen and I ran upstairs to my bedroom. A huge smile was on my face. My whole freshman and sophomore year, I've dreamt of spending time alone with Karl, without any other girls around. And now was the perfect opportunity. There was still so much I didn't know about him.



I brushed my hair and put it in a ponytail. I changed into a pair of pink Nike shorts and a white tshirt. My phone was still charging so I decided to leave it there. When I went back downstairs, Karl was standing at the front door, ready to go. He looked so cute in his Notre Dame snapback.



"Are we actually going to run?", he asked.



"Yup. We'll meet at the stop sign by the lake," I told him.



He nodded then started running down the street. I followed behind and eventually caught up to him. After that, we kept the same pace. Don't get me wrong, Karl is extremely fast, but I'm not that bad either. I got 2nd place at the State meet last spring in the 400m dash. And boy was I happy.



By the time we both reached the lake, Karl and I were out of breath. He used his shirt to wipe the sweat from his face and I couldn't help but glance at his abs. I felt my cheeks reddening. Karl obviously noticed, too.



"Like what you see?", he asked with a smirk.



I blushed and looked out at the lake instead. We were both quiet until Karl spoke up.



"So...are you doing anything next week?"



"Aaron and I are spending a month in California with our family. We're leaving on Tuesday," I replied. Karl's face slightly fell.



"Oh. Never mind then. I was just wondering if you wanted to see a movie or something."



I was in total shock. Since when did Karl even talk to me, let alone ask me out on a date? Was it because my brother was the captain of his team? Did he want to get close to me so that he could win Aaron over and become the next captain? I had to know what was behind all this.



"Oh I see. Thanks for asking though." I paused for a moment, then decided to go for it. "Not to be rude or anything, but why did you ask me out?"



Karl looked taken aback and had a confused look on his face.



"What do you mean?", he asked.



"Well, you never even talk to me in school. I don't even think you knew what my name was," I said truthfully.



"I know, and I regret not talking to you sooner. I really like you, Christine," he replied.



Did Karl just seriously say he liked me? But why?



"I thought you liked Lizzy. You guys are always hanging out at each other's houses and stuff," I commented.



"I know, but I wouldn't actually date her. The only thing she ever cares about are clothes and partying. Her friends are just like her. But Christine, you're different than the rest of them. You actually care about school and your future. You already know what you're gonna be. A business major. I really admire that about you," he confessed.



"Wait, how did you know I wanted to major in business?", I quickly interrupted.



"Your brother told me. He's always telling the team how proud he is of you," Karl explained.



Aaron did? I was completely touched. As for Karl, I was absolutely awestruck with what he had just said to me. I don't think I've ever been so happy my entire life.



"Oh and Christine, I know you have a thing for me," he added with a glint of amusement in his eyes.



"No I don't," I lied, playfully punching his arm.



"Come on, you're always staring at me in class. I hear you and your friends talk about me all the time, too," he said. Great, now he was being arrogant.



"What if I told you I did?", I asked.



Karl looked over at me and his deep blue eyes came in contact with mine.



"I think it'd be very cute," he replied with a grin, revealing his perfectly white teeth.



I felt my knees go weak. It happened every time he smiled. The guy I liked actually liked me back. We ended up walking back home, talking about what we were looking forward to our junior year. When we got home, most of the boys had already left. Karl was going to carpool with Jake since they lived by each other.



"I'll text you when you come back to Minnesota so we can plan that movie date," he said to me.



"Sounds good," I replied with a smile.



"Ok. Have fun in California." And with that, he and Jake left.



I slowly walked back up to my room feeling out of this world. I was replaying my conversation with Karl by the lake in my head. Not only did I get his number, but I scored a date with him, too. My brother probably noticed because he gave me a strange look before going to make breakfast.







A/N- Christine is seriously the luckiest girl ever. I'd die if my crush liked me back. I mean, who wouldn't? Read on to see what happens on her date with Karl. Remember to fan and comment!