Spencer: “Huh? Great, that was perfect!” I say with a smile. She returns it with a little something extra.

Ashley: “Yeah?” She says self-consciously. She bites her lip but she still smiles. I get up from my chair and walk over to her with every intention of being the one that bites her lip from now on. But I stop myself just as I stand directly in front of her. I push her hair behind her ear and begin to say my lines as Lancelot.

Spencer: “I don’t believe in Heaven, I’ve been living in this Hell. But if you represent what Heaven is, then take me there.” My hand rest on her cheek and her breathing has become deep and ragged as we stare.

Guy: “Hey, you guys gonna be in here for long?”

Spencer/Ashley: “Yes.” We both let out not breaking our eye contact. The kid mumbles something as he leaves the room closing the door behind him. I suddenly break our contact; remember that the room doesn’t have walls but glass windows, so everyone in the library can see our moment.

Damn you Veronica for getting sick! But it goes on like this the whole night. We say our lines, we touch, we play, we laugh, and we use our character’s to say what we’re really feeling.

When it came time to actually perform our scene it still felt like it was just the two of us like it was in the library; in our little room, in our own little world, vaguely aware of those watching. After the skit Professor Atkins actually stood and clapped reciting ‘beautiful, beautiful’ over and over again as the rest of the class broke out into monstrous applause. I suddenly cared little about the assignment and only about Ashley and closing the distance between us. I’d wished everyone would just fade away so we could pick up where we left off last week.

So when Veronica told me that Faith, the girlfriend, was coming to see her for the night, and requested the room I didn’t hesitate as I ran to Ashley’s room. I knocked a few times and waited. She opened the door; hair pulled back, t-shirt and shorts accentuating all the right things.