The Bet

Chapter 26 - In Search of Mr. Mysterious

"Amy?" Chris called again. By the exasperated look on his face, he must've been calling her for some time now, "Amy? Earth to Amy? You there?"

"Yeah, sorry. Just day-dreaming again," she smiled sheepishly. Of course she already told Chris about that boy. He'd been the second to know, right about Julie - who'd interrogated her for every detail.

"Do you know who he is?" Chris asked quietly, his head ducking to hide his expression.

Amy looked at her hands too, "No. I wish I did but no one reminds me of him. He was so nice and warm and lovable and wonderful - I don't really know. I just knew he was the one, you know?"

Chris smiled but she could tell his mind was elsewhere. His naturally friendly eyes were distant and clouded.

"Yeah."

Amy frowned at his response but after he didn't elaborate, she turned back to the people walking by. It was like they were walking too quickly, a vision of blurred faces and clothes that seemed to all mix together. She was just waiting for that one guy, the one from last night, to just stand out to her. It was supposed to be obvious; it was supposed to feel like lightening when their eyes met. That's how all the books and movies described it. But Amy didn't feel that with any of them. They were just boys, not THE boy.

"Do you love him?" Chris asked. Amy hadn't thought that he'd said anything until he met her eyes, hope whispering through them.

Amy smiled and nodded. It was just that easy to admit.

"Would you love him no matter what?" he asked, a bit louder so Amy knew that he was speaking for sure.

"What do you mean?" she said, her brows furrowed together in confusion, her sandwich long forgotten.

Chris shrugged as if to make it seem like he meant it lightly, hypothetically, but it meant more to him than that. The way his back was angled towards her and his free hand pushing against the bleacher seat to get his body closer in her direction suggested that this was a most serious matter for him. He might have looked slightly disfigured in that position, but there was no doubt in Amy's mind that he was also interested.