Anatomy of a Boyfriend Read Online Free PDF Page A

and survey the horizon in an attempt to clear my mind. But within the minute, I imagine Wes and I are walking on a secluded beach somewhere. He tries to take my hand, and I playfully scurry away, knowing there is no chance I could ever outrun the prize-winning sprinter of the EFM track team. He catches up with me a few seconds later and pulls down my bathing suit, causing us both to fall to the sand…. I can‘t believe I‘m thinking this stuff when my parents are two feet away.

    Five hours of raunchy daydreams later we finally arrive home and I get online first thing, just to be disappointed by an empty in-box. It‘s only been a day, though, and we‘re going to see each other Monday at the New Year‘s party as it is. I console myself with this thought until Instant Messenger‘s ―invitation to chat‖ window suddenly appears. I don‘t recognize the screen name, but I have a pretty good hunch. I‘m grinning as I accept the hail.

    The100MeterDash: Hey Dom. It‘s Wes Gershwin.

    DominiqueBaylor: Oh, hi! Thanks for adding me. How are you?

    The100MeterDash: Good. Thought I‘d take a break from my essays and make sure your knees were on the mend.

    DominiqueBaylor: I‘m so glad you did.
    Yes, everything‘s healing nicely. So I know I asked
    you this over e-mail, but where are you ―crapplying‖? And what do you think you‘ll major in?

    The100MeterDash: NYU and Fordham. English, definitely. I read a lot.

    DominiqueBaylor: Cool! I take it those schools have track teams too?

    The100MeterDash: Yep. My parents are also making me apply to Miami since my brother, Arthur, is a sophomore there, but I really want to live in New York City.

    DominiqueBaylor: I‘ve never been to NY but always wanted to visit. But enough college talk, I‘m sure you‘re sick of it. How is your day going otherwise? And should I call you Gersh or Wes?

    The100MeterDash: Wes. Only trackies call me Gersh. Day‘s going great. Arthur‘s here on break, so we‘re hanging out. Soon I‘ll take a run with Jessica.

    DominiqueBaylor: Who‘s Jessica? An EFM friend?

    The100MeterDash: No, my collie.

    DominiqueBaylor: Oh, Jessica‘s a very human name for a dog.

    The100MeterDash: Well, we got her 10 years ago back when we lived in San Antonio. The girl next door, Jessica Sky, had this red-orange hair that matched the collie‘s fur exactly, so I named it after her.

    DominiqueBaylor: She must have been flattered.

    The100MeterDash: Well, I don‘t think she was super thrilled a dog reminded me of her, but we stayed friends, so it‘s all good. How‘s your day?

    DominiqueBaylor: Good. Went fishing! Must have caught at least 12 bass, and Mom‘s making 3 of them for dinner. Yum!

    The100MeterDash: Bass, eh? That sounds good. I became a vegetarian last year, though, so I can‘t enjoy that stuff.

    DominiqueBaylor: A vegetarian? Uh-oh, you must think I‘m some ruthless fish-killer!

    This chat lasts over an hour, and Wes hails me the next four nights also! Fortunately, he never says anything assholeish, and I manage to avoid making a fool of myself. I‘m also the one who ends all the chats, which is good—Amy always says you‘re supposed to leave boys wanting more. To my relief Wes never mentions Jessica Sky, or any other girl, again.

    The one discouraging aspect of all this IM-ing is Wes never sounds overtly flirty. Mostly we talk about school, movies, and all the cities he‘s lived in—his Dad‘s civil engineering firm moved his family five times in the last fifteen years! Amy says Wes‘s timidity is probably a direct result of his never being able to get settled in any one place, and she suggests I take the lead and start inserting provocative lines like, ―Can you hold on, Wes? I have to take my panties out of the dryer.‖ First off, IM-ing about underwear is not my idea of a come-on. But even if it were, I don‘t want to risk losing this great thing we have going by pressing the issue too early and scaring him away.

    The night