When I got back to my room that night, I walked in to see Ashley sitting on her bed on her laptop.

“Hi,” I said, as she looked up from the screen.

“Hey, how was the rest of your dinner?”

“It was fine.  I have something for you.” I pulled Ashley’s change from my pocket and set it on her desk. “Rebecca tried to have dinner on you, but I was able to pry it out of her hands.”

“You brought me change?”

“Yeah, of course.  Why wouldn’t I?”

She looked at me for a moment as if I had grown two heads.  I was so confused.  Maybe she didn’t want her change, but what else was I supposed to do with it?

“You’re a strange girl, Spencer Carlin.”

 I felt like I should feel insulted, but I didn’t actually feel insulted.  There was something in the way she said it.  It almost sounded like a compliment.

It was well past midnight, so I hurried through my nightly routine to get ready for bed.  From the clicking of her keyboard, I could tell Ashley had gone back to working on her laptop.  By the time I got back from taking a quick shower, Ashley’s light was off and she was already laying in bed.  I crawled under my own covers, but as the time dragged on I realized I was losing my battle to fall asleep.  There was just too much on my mind.

“Ashley,” I called out.  I could tell by her shifting and shuffling she hadn’t gone to sleep yet. 

“Yeah?” she replied groggily.

“I’m sorry I let you drive home by yourself.”

It took her awhile to respond.

“It’s okay, just go to sleep. It’s late.”

“Ashley,” I called out again a little while later.

“What, Spence?” she said, her voice muffled by her pillow.

“Um, I had fun today.”

“You did?” she asked, sounding much more awake.  I could hear the surprise in her voice, and it was no less than my own surprise at having admitted that I actually enjoyed hanging out with Ashley.  Usually, I spent my Saturday’s walking around campus, listening to music, practicing alone, or reading in the courtyard.  I hadn’t expected doing something different for a change would be so enjoyable.