Without giving it another thought, Patty took a deep breath and went to him. He stood there by his locker, barely aware of her presence. And finally she reached out and touched his shoulder. Gently, of course.
He turned to her, his eyes wide with surprise. "Patty? What are you doing here?"
It was a ridiculous question, for he knew darn well why she was there, standing in front of him in a crowded hallway. They were in school, after all. But she couldn't bring herself to give him a sarcastic answer.
"H-Hello, Richard." She couldn't believe how nervous she was. What was the matter with her? This was crazy. Richard wasn't the new kid in school. He was her boyfriend! Or… at least he used to be. However, she couldn't help the way that she felt.
Silence followed; silence that was much too awkward. And Patty knew that she had to say something. If she didn't say something now; the something that she really needed to say, she never would.
"Um… Richard, can I talk to you?"
"Well, we are talking so I guess you can."
She ignored his sarcastic comment and sighed. "Actually, not here, okay? I was thinking that maybe we could talk somewhere else."
He looked at her blankly for a second. "Well, we have two classes together. So I guess we could talk then. See ya around, Patty."
He'd barely taken two steps when she grabbed his arm in what could only be called desperation. "Richard, wait!"
He turned around and stared at her. "Okay, I'm waiting."
"Um, when I said that I wanted to talk to you somewhere else, I meant somewhere outside of school."
His eyebrows rose. "Well, okay, but that doesn't leave many places-."
"How about the Shake Shop?"
As she expected, he frowned. "Nah, I don't think so."
Although she shouldn't have been surprised at his answer, her heart sank. It was stupid to suggest the place where they'd gone on so many dates together, sharing French fries, chocolate shakes and dreams of their futures. But somehow the Shake Shop seemed like the best place.
"Richard, please!" She begged. "Look, I know that the Shake Shop isn't an ideal place to meet, but under the circumstances-."
When he looked at her again, she saw the anger in his eyes, and it was difficult to keep from crying. He had no idea how difficult.
"Look Patty, whatever you gotta say to me, you can say it right here in this hallway!"
Patty swallowed hard but the words that she wanted to say simply wouldn't come. And she knew that Richard was not in the mood to wait.
"Fine, be that way!" Richard scoffed.
As she watched him walk away, the tears that she'd been holding in began to make their way down her cheeks. But she refused to give up. For Patty Lane never gave up; especially when it came to someone she cared about.