"Would it make it more awkward if I moved closer?" she said.
I couldn't say anything. I hardly ever did those days; it wasn't as if I didn't want to let her know that's what I'd been thinking about all evening. We were at a party of sorts, but nothing typical of the average college student: no alcohol, no blasting music, no sweaty bodies. I could attribute my stuttering and racing mind to nothing besides her.
I'd known her for a while, but one wouldn't have called us close; I wouldn't have even called us friends. I'd seen her around campus, and we'd had a few awkward, force conversations whenever we ran into each other at odd places (the Gay and Lesbian fiction section of Barnes and Nobles, for example.) She was no great conventional beauty, but I found her entrancing. She was pale and tall, not skinny like most people thought on a first glance, but a bit muscular and athletic. Behind her cat-eye glasses that she didn't wear for vision correction were dark-brown, almost ebony eyes. Her complexion was flawless save for a small, moon-shaped scar on her jaw and a scattering of freckles that made her look far more innocent than I knew she was. A plain silver clip held her long, unruly black hair at the nape tonight, but from this new, closer angle, I could see fine wisps escaping and clinging to the curve of her neck, which was slightly perspiring.
Rather than turning her head, which might've placed her lips too close to my face for comfort, she placed a hand on my thigh to get my attention.
"I feel horrible," she said, "I know I've noticed you 'round, but I've never caught your name."
"Melanie," I murmured. My voice was huskier than I wished. "What's yours?"
"Dell."
"Like the computer?" I stupidly inquired. God, how old am I tonight? Twelve? I thought.
"Hah, yeah, like that. My real names Delilah, but around seventh grade I decided that didn't suit me too well."
I could tell by her expression that she didn't mind my moments of middle school immaturity. I could also tell that her fingers were slightly shaking on my leg. She turned her head towards me, and I grinned like an idiot, elated that she would want our faces closer.
"You're cute," she mentioned.
"You're gorgeous," I blurted before I could help myself. I promptly achieved the color of a tomato.