I laugh. “You thought my idea of a date was wind-sprints?” I wait for some sort of reaction to me dropping the d-word, and am relieved when she just smiles. I did need help with this, but I wanted her help. And if she just broke up with Zander a few weeks ago, I figure we probably need to ease into this whole dating thing anyway. Because I have enough problems with all of the guys on the team without dating Zander’s ex being added to the mix. I’m in no rush to parade Olivia around Riverton.

I stick the first stake in the ground and jog to the next corner. Olivia ties the string around the first dowel rod, and then follows behind me. “I also considered some sort of crazy hike up a dune that almost kills me,” she yells as I run to the next corner. I’m glad it’s a cool afternoon so I’m not covered in sweat. This isn’t the fun part though, and I want to do this as quickly as possible. I run from spot to spot, shoving the dowels down into the soft ground. I’ve finished two rows when I hear Olivia laughing behind me. She’s running string down a row and watching me, an amused smile on her face.

“What?” I shout downfield.

Olivia laughs as she comes up the next row. “Nothing,” she yells back. “I’m just glad you’re the only one doing sprints on this date.”

I smile. Because I somehow proved her crazy theory right, and because it turns out I am, officially, on my first date.

OLIVIA

This is not a date.

I mean, it is, but also there should be another word for something as complicated as this. And something as strangely entertaining as this. I guess an epic art adventure was an accurate description after all. It took us over an hour to run string around a section of the field. An hour of Aiden running, and me watching. It’s fun, being involved in something Aiden loves so much, and trying something new. This is so unlike the dates Zander and I went on.

Emma was right, we never really did anything together. We were always in his house or his car, or we were at the movies. It’s not like Zander didn’t want to be seen with me or anything. We went to football games, and his sister’s college track meets. We went to dances. But we never had these kinds of days together, when he tried really hard to do something fun with me and show me how cool he was.