I'd always sort of hated her, Ashley, she was sour like a lemon. And that year she spent dressed as a vampire? That was bad. I suppose we sort of got along when we were planning Paige's surprise 16th birthday party. Well, we had to get along for the party. Then Craig goes and cheats on her with Manny, which I knew he was doing. He's a big stud. Anyway, Ashley practically kills herself over it. I mean, c'mon? Kill yourself over Craig? But that's Ashley, a goth, a drama queen. And then, then, we beat her band in the band contest, fair and square, Downtown Sasquatch won and somehow she ends up in our band and nearly records the song with us! It was too much to take. Too much by far.

Then a funny thing happened, after Craig went completely nuts and the two of them were an item again once he got out of the hospital, something real funny happened. I started to see her in a different way. Like the way I used to see Paige, like I saw Manny. I'd find myself thinking about her, thinking she was pretty when she walked by. Thinking I wanted to have her, like she was a fine champagne.

I tried not to think that. First of all she was Craig's girlfriend and he'd been through enough without me trying to steal his girlfriend. Second, I didn't want to think it. It was Ashley, sour lemon girl, not someone sweet like Manny or cool like Paige. But the thought wouldn't leave my head, I couldn't stop thinking about it.

I knew Craig had flipped out, we all knew. I think it really started when he just walked out of the recording session. That was freakin' crazy, man. But he was real weird at her father's wedding and then he beat up Joey after he stole the credit card, rented a hotel room and completely trashed it. He owed thousands of dollars, he pissed off everyone, and now he's on some medication. Since he's been back he's been a little…out of it. He walks around eating chips out of those little bags, his eyes kind of unfocused. He's out of it. And Ashley avoids him a little bit. Not all the time but sometimes. And because I'm a genius I know that this is where my chance lies, Craig's all drugged up and Ashley is sort of avoiding him. That leaves a window for me to swoop in.

I told myself I was just going to stop thinking this way, thinking about this. Ashley and me, we aren't supposed to be…anything. We were barely friends. And I wanted to, what? Sleep with her? Date her? No, no, no. I was going to go to school like a normal person and not think about her anymore than I used to.

So that's what I do. I go to school and I see her and I start to think, hey, I'd like to…but I squash it. Even if she does look pretty good in her jeans and little rock t-shirt, I refuse to do it.

"Hi, Ashley," I said, stopping at her locker. She looks at me funny. She can tell I like her. Girls are psychic. Damn.

"Hi, Spin," Her voice is kind of sexy and her eyes are really blue. I start to panic. What am I doing?

"Hey, uh, where's Craig?" I say, as a sort of cover. Boy, am I smooth.

"I don't know," She gets a funny look, like she's mad but doesn't know it.

"What's the matter?" I say in my sweetest voice, and then she starts crying, right there in front of God and everybody, just bawling in the hallway, one of her hands still on her book that she was putting into her locker.

"Oh Spin I can't take this! I don't think I can take this anymore. I have to be so careful of what I say around him and ,and I'm always looking for signs that he's taking his meds, or isn't taking them, and I know I'm being selfish, but I can't help it. I had never seen someone so out of control like he was at Joey's house that day,"

She started crying even harder and then she was hugging me and I hugged her back, and the hug felt so good, and I felt kind of guilty. I pulled away and she wiped her eyes and smiled at me.

"Sorry, I guess I've been a little emotional lately," she said.

"Hey, no problem. It's no problem. You can cry on my shoulder anytime,"

"Thanks, Spinner,"

I walked away fast. Now I knew I couldn't stop thinking about her and if I didn't watch it I'd start to plan devious things. I was basically screwed. But there was someone who would make me feel less like hooking up with Ashley. Craig. I'd find him and listen to him talk about how much he loves her and everything, and maybe he'd talk about how crazy he was, just so I could feel extra bad.

I headed over to Craig's homeroom and saw him at his desk, spacing out.

"Craig!" He looked up, smiled a little, and got up.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Uh, nothing. Listen, Craig, we need to talk, I mean, I should talk, I don't know.." He gave me that puzzled look and I wondered was I actually thinking of telling him I was lusting after Ashley? I heard what he had done to Joey and I knew what fights with Craig were like. He eventually just starts pounding you with his fist, this crazy light in his eyes. He is crazy. I can't tell him I want to bang his girlfriend.

"I saw Ashley talking to that new kid…uh what's his name? Chester?"

"So what, Spin? She can talk to people. I don't own her,"

"Yeah, right. It just looked like he was, I don't know, flirting or something.." Craig swallowed and looked off to the side and for a split second I saw this anger so I knew he'd get pissed if he knew it was me. I was flirting. I stopped at her locker and even though he doesn't own her that doesn't mean much of anything. He'd still probably bash my head in if I fool around with her, and the way it looks now, I don't seem to have much of a choice.