A/N: Hey, what up with all the Chase hate, guys? He's not so bad! Perhaps a little self-absorbed and immature, but I'm sure he'll improve with age.

Chase: For the record, if they hate me it's your fault.

Me: Whatever, sugarplum. On with the reader responses.

ohshocking: Even more amazing is that my readers have managed to keep me writing this for over 30 chapters. Lol.

Huntress of the starsYour wish is my command. :o)

WhiteCamelia: Next chapter, baby. Next chapter. It's all gonna happen.

BeyondtheSea: It was such a good line, I had to use it.

Jill: Glad you liked your chapter. Although I have to say that review was just as good as the rest of them. Seriously, sometimes I think I write this story just to get to read your reviews :o)

schiziodmastermind: It feels… hmm. I dunno. I might be kinda sad when it's done, actually. I'll have to find something else to do with myself. :o)

And thank you, of course, to the rest of you: NotreDamegirlie, nebulia, justcallmebubba, annie, Linnath, Lilly, chexbb, Radiant, and anti-botox.

For the record, the next chapter is the chapter we have all (with various degrees of patience) been waiting for. I say this in the hopes of coaxing some pretty urgent review out of you guys. :o) Love ya'll. Sorry it's a little short. Enjoy.

Chapter 30
Several Surprises Continued

I am officially resigning from my position as campus matchmaker.

Seriously. I'm obviously crap at it, and this whole Chase-Sophie business is the last straw. Let's pause a moment to review my brief and illustrious career.

Matchmaking blunder #1: I talk Jen into liking Elton. Plan backfires. Elton turns out not only to be a complete prick, but also after me instead of Jen. The venture climaxes with Elton trying to stick his tongue down my throat and me leaving hand indentations on his face. I am still trying to block these memories. Gag.

Matchmaking blunder #2: I talk Jen out of liking Luke Emerson. Plan backfires. Luke turns out to be the coolest guy on campus, excepting Christian (off course) and possibly West (despite the fact that he probably still has not realized I am in love with Christian and not Chase). Also, if I had let Jen date Luke Emerson, blunders #1 and 4 would have never happened.

Matchmaking blunder #3: I talk self into liking Chase Everhart. Plan backfires. I royally screw up my perfect relationship with perfect-man-for-me Christian. I end up not really like Chase anyway. Chase ends up being secretly engage all along, which is seriously annoying and humiliating. And also very typical.

Matchmaking blunder #4: I talk Jen into liking Chase Everhart. Plan backfires. For obvious reasons.

As Christian and Jeremy would (and will, when the opportunity arises) tell me: if I had listened to them, either one, none of this would have happened.

In other words, I told you so.

Oh God. I'm never going to be able to be in the same room with both of them again.

More over, I really need to stop thinking about Christian.

I suppose it is my duty as best friend and person who got her started on this Chase track in the first place to go and try to break the news gently to Jen. I'm a little scared, remembering how badly she reacted when the whole Elton thing was going down. Hopefully she's matured since then. I mean, she's been hanging out with Christian lately. He's very mature. Maybe he rubbed off on her.

Then of course, I've been hanging out with Christian all my life, and look at me.

And there I am on the Christian track again. This is getting bad.

I don't have to find Jen. She finds me. She comes over to my house early the next morning (Saturday morning, mind you. My sacred sleeping time) and flounces into my room. Yes, flounces. This girl is way too hyper for 10 a.m. I'm really sorry that I'm going to have to put a damper on all this exuberance.

"Ohmygosh, did you hear about Chase and Sophie?" Jen says, flopping down on my bed, on top of my feet.

"Mrphm," I grunt, confused in my early-morning mental lethargy and not sure that I'd heard her correctly. Did she just say—wait, does Jen already know about Chase and Sophie? Why is she so… happy?

"Isn't it, like, the weirdest thing ever?" Jen is continuing cheerfully. I pull myself into a sitting position and eye her warily. This is way beyond what a little quality time with Christian can do.

"What?" Jen asks, really looking at me for I think the first time since she came in the room. I can imagine what my face looks like, so terrified I am by this uber-happy Jen when her boy world is once again crashing down. Jen tries to figure out what the hell is wrong with me for a minute. Then she shrieks, "OHMYGODYOUSTILLLIKEHIM!"

All one word, just like that.

"What! No I DON'T!" I shriek back.

"Oh, I didn't think you did," Jen says, instantly returning to her usual voice level. "Well then what is wrong with you?"

I'm perplexed. At this point, I should be consoling Jen, shouldn't I? Is there an important piece of the puzzle I'm missing here? I'm so mystified, I'm reduced to stilted sentences.

"I don't like him. But I thought—I mean—well—you did."

Jen stares at me blankly for a full three minutes, while I fidget uncomfortably with my comforter. Then she starts laughing. Guffawing. Crying she's laughing so hard.

I have to say, I don't get it.

"You thought. I liked. Chase," she manages to gasp between spiels of giggles.

"Well… yeah?" Is that so stupid? We basically spelled it out. We did everything but say his name.

Shit. We did everything but say his name. What did we say?

Jen has calmed down now. She says, "Seriously though, Becka, how could you think I liked him? Even you with your whole Chase-obsessed past have to agree he doesn't exactly live up to the competition."

The competition? Oh God. Oh shit, shit, shit, shit.

She's talking about Christian.

Jen likes Christian.

GAAAAAAAAAAH!

What did I say to her!

"But I remember. When we talked about it. We were saying how he was all heroic for you. You know, with the shoe-pirating incident," I say desperately. Oh please, please, please don't let it be true.

"No. I mean, if we talked about heroism I was definitely referring to the party. You know, when Christian came and danced with me after Amy threw her drink on me."

Christian. She said it. I can't deny it anymore. The horror I feel at the moment is clearly mirrored on my face. Jen says, "What's wrong Becka? You aren't mad are you? You said you weren't mad. You said you thought it was great and—"

"I WAS TALKING ABOUT CHASE!" I shout.

Jen has suddenly gone all weepy. "Oh my God. You don't think I'm good enough for him? You think I'm just this dumb girl who's no way good enough for your precious Christian."

"No, no, that's not what I think," I say, trying to comfort Jen although I think I might start crying myself. "It's just… I just…" I pause and swallow hard. "Do you think he, you know, likes you back?" I can hardly choke out those last couple words. But I need to know. I really need to know.

"I think. Yeah. Maybe," Jen says quietly.

"Well." Another hard swallow. "Unlike Elton and Chase and apparently every guy I'm ever going to be romantically involved with," (cough, sputter, swallow) "Christian doesn't lead girls on."

"Thank you," Jen says.

Oh. She does not know how much she should be thanking me right now.

Somehow I manage to keep up the I'm-okay façade until Jen leaves. At which point I am actually too shocked to cry about this like I should. Fortunately, there is ice cream in the freezer.

Shortly, Jeremy makes his appearance on the scene. "Ice cream for breakfast," he yawns. "Good choice. Out of curiosity, what was all the screaming going on in your room about?"

I stare at him expressionlessly.

"This is bad, isn't it?" Jeremy sighs.

"Christian and Jen," I say, "What do you think?"

Jeremy is momentarily taken aback. Then he ponders. Then he says, "Wow. I would've never seen that one coming in a million years. But I just, I don't know. I mean, they're both irreproachably nice."

My face falls, along with my heart.

"Hey, don't give up yet, kiddo," Jeremy says, sitting down beside me and taking a spoonful of my ice cream. "You can't know anything for sure until Christian comes back."

He's right of course. Christian is due back late tomorrow night. I probably won't see him till Monday night. It is going to be a very long three days. Until then, there's no use obsessing over it.

I spend the rest of Saturday not thinking about Christian.

For instance, I don't think about while I'm driving, listening to the mix CD we made when we graduated high school.

And I don't think about him while I'm studying chemistry with Luke, who's has to ask me the same question five times in a row, at which point he gives up and asks me what the latest Christian update is.

I don't think about him while I'm watching The Princess Bride, which I'm definitely just watching to pass the time, and not because it's "our" movie.

And most of all, I definitely don't think about him before I fall asleep, when I'm praying that God will please, please make him love me.

I do dream about him. But you can't control your subconscious.