Disclaimer: I have nothing to do with any of the cast members of In A Heartbeat, nor do I have anything to do with the producer or anybody related to the show.

Val: Him

            I saw Tyler get upset and I saw how Casey comforted him. I don't know if I could of kept it together at the barbeque if Caitie hadnt squeezed my arm and whisper, "Smile. Just smile. Don't let him know that you have any feelings for him." I looked at her and smiled. Then, I went over to Hank and some of my friends from the cheer squad. They greeted me and we started a conversation. Actually, they started a conversation. I was trying to sort out my feelings.

            The fact was, I was hurt. That used to be me out there comforting him and bringing him back to the party. That used to be me who was the first person he'd go to. I felt tears sting at the back of my eyes and they were threatning to come loose. I ordered myself to stop. After all, Casey was the one going out with Tyler. Casey was the one who was supposed to be there. Right? So why was I acting like a such a baby. I told myself that over and over again, but no matter how hard I tired, the knot at the back of the my throat got tighter and tighter until I couldn't take it anymore. I excused myself from the group and quickly ran down the block. As soon as I was sure no one was following me, I let the tears roll silently down my cheek.

            Why did I feel this way? Why couldn't I just accept the fact that I couldn't have Tyler? I heard footsteps and quickly wiped my eyes with my fingers and the back of my hand. Walking faster, I wondered who it could be.

            "Val?" I spun around. It was Jamie. Of all people, why Jamie? Why not Caitie so I could cry? Why not Hank so I could just tell him that something came up at home? Why not Tyler, even, so I could tell him I saw the "guy that I wanted" and he completely ignored me? It wasn't that I didn't like Jamie, no. I liked Jamie as a friend a whole lot. But it was the fact that no matter how hard I tried, Jamie could still see through me if I lied to him.

            "Um, hey Jamie. What's up?"

            "What's wrong?"

            "How come you're not back at the party?" I asked him ignoring  his other question.

            "I told you, jocks and over-acheivers are not my thing. Besides, Caitie is on the phone arguing with her mom like crazy and Hank was swamped with you cheerleading friends. Tyler's obviously busy so I came out here to look for you because you seem to be the only sane one here besides me at this moment."

            "Gee, thanks. Turn to me as the last resort. I really appreiciate it Jamie." I said sarcastically. Jamie smiled sheepishly, "Sorry. I didn't mean it like that. What's wrong?" he asked me, still not getting off of his subject.

            "Nothing."       

            "What's wrong?"

            "NOTHING."

            "What's wrong?"

I sighed, "You're not going to stop until I tell you are you?"

            "Nope. What's wrong?" he asked again. I sighed again, "Jamie, nothing."

            "Fine then," I thought he was going to find Catie or something but he didn't move, "If nothing's wrong, then why are your eyes red? Why do you look like you've been crying?"

            "I wasn't crying. I just had something in my eye." I lied.

            "Both of them?"

            "No..Yes. I mean, yes, both of them. It really got to me. You know how sensitive my eyes are right?"

            "Uh-huh, Val, you can tell me what's wrong. Because you know, even if we're not best friends, we're best friends with the same person. So in reality, we would be sort of best friends."

            "Really, Jamie?"

            "Yeah."           

            "Well, guess what? This isn't reality. This is my life." I told him. Jamie sighed, "Val, all I want to do is help you. If you don't want help, then fine."

            "Hey guys!" Caitie called out, jumping onto Jamie's back.

            "Hey!" I exclaimed, grateful that she showed up.

            "Caitie," Jamie whined, "tell me what's wrong with Val!!!"

            "Wrong? There's nothing wrong with Val. I saw her. She just got a lot of that BBQ smoke in her eyes. That's all." I smiled at Jamie, "See? I told you."

            "Girls…" he muttered.

            "Hey, hey, hey!!!" Caitie ran after him. I sighed. Suddenly, a voice sounded behind me, "Hey." I thought it was Jamie again so I started to get really annoyed, "Jamie…" I turned around and stopped mid-sentence. It wasn't Jamie. It was a really hot guy. He was wearing a letter jacket from our school so I knew he was on a team, most likely the football team. I remembered Tyler and Hank talking about a new guy. 'That must be him.' I thought.

            "Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone else." I said blushing. 'You idiot!' I said to myself, 'You stupid moron!!' The guy smiled, "It's ok. You seemed kinda stressed and I just wanted to know if you were alright."

            "I'm fine, really, I am. Thanks…" I was searching my brain for his name.

            "Mike. The name's Mike."

            "Thanks Mike. I'm Val."

            "I know. You're one of the best cheerleaders in school. And you're the girl of every guy's dream." He smiled at me and I blushed big time. He offered to walk me home since I didn't look like I was having a good time and I let him. On the way home, I kept on blushing and feeling all weird around him. The funny thing was, the only time I had ever felt this way about a guy was when I was around….Tyler.

            "So, I'll see you at school Monday?" Mike asked as we reached my doorstep.

            "Um, yeah, of course." I stammered.

            "Great." He reached over and hugged me. Then he winked at me and walked away. I was so excited that I almost went back to the party to tell Caitie, but changed my mind because I didn't want to seem like a dork for making Mike walk me all the way home just to see me walk all the way back. I sighed happily and listened to my music, almost pushing Tyler completely from my mind. Almost.