Cassie is wearing a green dress made out of a shimmery material. She looks like something out of a fantasy. The material clings in all the right places and it stops me in my tracks. Then Boyd Hotchkiss swoops in and lifts her off the ground.

I hear him telling her she's hot, but coming from him it sounds cheap and dirty. She's a goddess, she needs to be on a pedestal. Sick and tired of Boyd always butting in, I walk directly up to her, wedging myself between the two of them.

"You look really pretty, Cassie," I say.

She blushes and smiles. "Thanks, Rory."

"You look really pretty all the time, but especially in green," I say.

Boyd muscles back in beside her. "You do, Cas. Coincidentally, green is the color of my sheets," he laughs out loud and elbows me.

Even though she's giggling, I glare at him. It was a piggish thing to say.

"Well, I just wanted to tell you I think you look beautiful today," I say, easing away.

She says thanks, then falls right back next to Boyd where his beefy arm lands around her shoulders.

I have to make my move. I'm losing ground. Boyd is pretty popular (God knows why) and for some reason it is a crowning achievement to girls if he hits on them. And another thing is Cassie is falling for him. I can see it in her eyes. If I don't do something, something big and very soon I won't stand a chance.

I wander down the hall and spot Reid Willoughby at the water fountain.

"What's up?" he says, his voice clipped and tight. He always sounds angry even when he's joking around.

"Nuthin'. Man, what is up with Boyd hitting on all the younger girls? Doesn't he have enough good looking girls in his class? Why does he have to invade our girls?"

"Our girls? Shit, French, I'm guessing this is about Willows. Am I right?"

When all I do is sigh he claps his hand on my upper arm and shakes his head. "As my grandpa says, shit or get off the pot."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means, make a move or shut up. If you think Cassie is worth all this effort then, for the love of God, ask her out. Otherwise, shut up."

"She only dates guys who drive."

Reid leans down for another sip of water, then stands and wipes his mouth on his sleeve. "That should tell you something right there."

I glance back down the hall to where Boyd is still draped on Cassie. I really hate that guy. I hate the way he walks, talks, takes up space in the world, but mostly I hate that he is moving in for the kill with the girl of my dreams.

"It does tell me something, Reid. It tells me I need a car."

"Good luck with that. No offence, but I don't see a car in your immediate future, not unless your old man hit the lottery."

"Thanks."

"Sorry, man, but I call 'em like I see 'em." He steps away from the water fountain and turns to watch as Boyd and Cassie walk by. "Later."

It's hard to take offence at something that has been plainly obvious since the first day I entered Patterson County public schools. I always got free lunches, Medicaid. For a while I got these week-end care packages that some churches made. There was enough food for me to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner while I was out of school for the weekend. I can honestly say if there's a program for poverty level children, well, my name has almost certainly been on it.

The thing about Patterson County is that most of the county has been on some sort of subsidy program, be it welfare, food stamps, or unemployment. Why would people tease me when I am just one of many?

Since I won't be receiving a new car for my birthday, I have to come up with something else. And I need to do it fast.

I do have access to a fine set of wheels. It'll be a risk to take it, but if any body's worth it, Cassie Willows is. I won't get permission from Dad, but I can get really creative when I need to and I'm thinking I can pull the whole night off without him knowing. And you know what they say, what you don't know won't hurt you.

My mind is made up. Saturday night I will be cruising down route 17 with Cassie Willows by my side. The only thing to make this fantasy more complete would be to ride by Boyd as he walks along the side of the road. The devil in me takes it a step farther. I put the truck in reverse and run him over. Cassie will turn and look over at me, "What was that?" To which I will reply, "Just a load of trash."

Yep, Saturday night I'm gonna win Cassie's heart, and Boyd will fade into the background.