It was a cold day early spring in Grecian Valley, Pennsylvania, but to Leah Windsor, it was as sunny as midsummer’s day. She smiled lovingly into her bedroom mirror, trying to find the perfect pose for when Tyler asked her to marry him. Sure, as she was only seventeen it was a long way away, but no matter. The day would come. The two of them had been going out since fifth grade, and they had been through ups and downs together. Her heart fluttered. Tyler, her boyfriend, the love of her life, the best guy she’d ever dated. The only guy she’d ever dated, actually. But she didn’t need to know her options. She knew every guy at school would kill to be with a dirty- blonde, blue- eyed cheerleader like herself. Besides, Tyler was the only guy for her. He was so handsome, a musician. He was very talented at archery, and sometimes he would even take her to the shooting range, but he wouldn’t hurt a fly. Whenever there was as much as a spider, he would gently take it in his hands and carry it outside.
She tried another pose in the mirror, head up, eyebrows raised, lips puckered. No, that looked too model-esque , she decided. Not natural enough.
All of the sudden, the phone rang. Leah jumped and looked at the caller ID. It was Tyler. She had to make sure her voice sounded perfect. She cleared her throat and tried out several different greetings before picking up the phone.
“Oh, hey Tyler!” she spoke, trying her best to sound a combination of sexy and sweet.
“Hey, babe.” Even his voice sounded hot.
“Hey Tyler.”
“Leah, you already said that.” She could already tell something was wrong. He never called her Leah. Just ‘babe.’
“Well, anyway,” he continued, “I got something to tell you. Leah, I- I can’t think of any nice way to put this… I’m breaking up with you.”
Leah Windsor dropped the phone. At that moment, she was the most miserable girl alive.