<i> “Was one of those college boys with you your boyfriend?” </i><br />A slight bit of heat creeps onto my cheeks. Not from panic this time, but from...from... <i> “No, I don’t have a boyfriend.” </i><br />And the answer makes me shy, and the shyness gives me the power to look away. To think he called me brave. I wish I was brave. I wish that every person I’d meet would think of me that way. Not as the coward I really am.<br /><i> “Good. Those guys were losers. Stay clear of them.”<br />“You’re sort of bossy.” </i> I’m teasing. Isaiah’s way too serious to find time to be bossy. But the main point is that he’s totally unlike my brothers, who demand everything from me by plain bullying.<br /><i> “I’m not bossy,” </i> he says and I get a little thrill that he’s playing along.<br />This isn’t me. In my day-to-day life, I could never find the courage to talk to guys, much less tease them, yet here I am. <i> “No, I have four older brothers. Technically three older brothers and a twin, but Ethan claims he’s older by a minute. The point is I know what bossy is—and you’re it.”<br />“Think of it as strongly encouraged tips for survival.” </i>