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my dreams; once again my life was out of control.
    The thought caught me and I said to no one in particular, “Maybe I’m still in a coma. That would be interesting.”
    “Nice,” Liz responded, unamused. “No seriously, here’s the plan. Nick is still crazy about you. Two years doesn’t change that.”
    “Three years.”
    “Whatever,” Liz retorted, waving off the discrepancy. “He still loves you, Heather. I’ve never seen two people fall harder for each other, or two people more right for each other.”
    “What you fail to mention is that he’s with someone else now.” It was the freezing, impenetrable truth.
    “Nope, not the same,” she insisted. “She’s…well, she’s…”
    So I was right, Liz knew the girl. “She’s what?” I asked while calling up the still-shot in my head of the girl in the window.
    “She’s one of those Barbie doll types.”
    I flashed her a look that told her exactly what she could do with her unintentional compliment.
    “Sorry,” she muttered. “Okay, so here’s what we do.” She waited for my full attention, then continued, “You win him back. Simple as that.”
    “And how do you propose I do that?”
    “Easy. By annihilating the competition.”
    Her slow-growing grin soon turned into our united giggles. I sniffed up the last of my pity-party, exchanging my feeling of disappointment for a different one. Large seeds of another interesting emotion had already been festering since I saw the girl in the window.
    “The Barbie doll needs to go bye bye,” Liz joked.
    Needless to say, Liz’s thoughts were mine too. “Hm, let’s see.” I played along. “Well, being hit by a car doesn’t hurt so bad, as long as it’s a square hit. I can offer Penny,” I joked, somewhat seriously.
    “That’s a little disturbing,” Liz said, patting my knee as if to subdue me, but grinning back. “Listen, he couldn’t resist you then, and he won’t be able to resist you now. What we need is a line of attack. And an accomplice.” Liz raised her eyebrows up and down to let me know she was in. “This is your lucky day, girl!”
    I considered explaining the error in her logic, noting it would be better described as one of my bleakest days, but decided it a waste of time.
    “What are your plans for the rest of the afternoon?” she went on, her tone more calculating than questioning.
    “I was on my way to campus to register for classes.”
    “Perfect, I’m coming with and we’ll talk in the car.” She was already grabbing her purse off the counter. “We can register for a class together too. Come on, let’s go.”
    “It’s okay, Liz,” I broke in. “You don’t have to come. I’m good. Really. Besides, I told my friend from home that I’d grab dinner with him later.”
    “I know I don’t have to come,” she said as she yanked me off the couch and out the door. “I want to. And we’ll be back just in time for dinner.”
    All through our outing at least twenty-one questions must have been turning in Liz’s mind. But instead of addressing them, she chose instead to focus on what I needed most, a good listener. It was on the ride home from campus when I realized that although we’d only known each other for six months back then, we had been good friends. And we would be again.
    Be it right and logical, but I found it frustrating and unfair that my friendship with Liz could fall right back into place, my connection with Creed was as solid as ever, my reunion with Bob the boss went without a hitch, yet my romantic relationship with Nick couldn’t do the same.
    As I saw it, there were three dilemmas eating at me—each one more severe than the last. First, the hideous scar on my neck; I never wanted him to see it. Second, all the lost time during our three estranged summers; how would I make up for that? And finally, the fiancé; what to do about the unwelcome Barbie doll….
     
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    Other than a couple highlight moments, the first week of school was