Nick Johnson and I sure have a history.

When we were both kids, barely even in junior high, everyone kept saying that we were meant to be with each other, despite the fact that we hated each others' guts. We'd just been growing out of that Boys vs. Girls stage in life. Nick and I had been arch rivals since our preschool days.

Despite that all, his baseball team had needed a pitcher.

Nick and I both liked baseball (and I continued to insist that I liked baseball, not softball), and we both had our talents in the game. Nick was the quickest person I'd ever seen, and he could easily hit the baseball if he didn't swing too early. I was good at timing, and I had a reputation for being an amazing pitcher.

His team and the "popular" team, as they put it, were having a match that Saturday. They were a player short, and they didn't have a good pitcher.

Nick had wanted to get the pitcher for the boys' baseball team, but that boy was already the pitcher for the "popular" team. So, I was recruited.

Everyone on the popular team had been skeptical when they saw that a girl was a part of the team. They'd stated that girls couldn't play baseball, and I'd easily retaliated by saying, "Ever heard of the All-American Girls' Baseball League?" They hadn't, but hearing the word girls used in the same title as baseball gave it away.

We smoked the popular team. No one seemed to be able to hit my pitches, and no one seemed to be able to strike one of us out. In fact, our team was just happy-go-lucky until the leader of the popular team, whose name I can't recall, decided to get smart.

I was running for third base. They hated that I kept getting homeruns, so they were trying everything they could to get me out. The leader just so happened to be at third base, and he caught the ball just as I was running by. He swung around and hit me in the face with his glove.

I'd cried out and fallen to the ground, and a bloody nose soon followed. I wasn't the one with the bloody nose, though.

While I clutched my face in my hands and that jackass leader shouted at me, Nick had approached. Nick had grabbed the leader, swung him around, and punched him square in the nose. The leader had fallen to the ground beside me, blood spurting from his nose. I'd looked at him, then at Nick.

"What?" Nick asked. "Boys aren't supposed to hit girls." He'd offered me his hand, but I'd stood on my own. Back then, I was just so certain that I wouldn't accept help from a boy in a million years. "You okay?" Nick asked.

"Fine," I'd replied. Until eleventh grade, that was just about the only nice thing he did for me.

Over the summer between seventh grade and eighth grade, my parents had decided to send me to a private school. I'd hated it there, because all the girls were so stuck-up and snooty, and all the boys were either arrogant or so terribly desperate for a girlfriend. Finally, at the end of tenth grade, my parents had had enough of my complaints, and they sent me right on back to public school for my last two years of high school.

I'd accidentally bumped into Nick in the hall. Actually, I'd been walking backwards, talking to one of my old friends, and my back had basically slammed into his.

Nick had whirled to face me, ready to shout at me to watch where I was going, and I turned to face him, ready to apologize. All words died on our lips the second we saw each other.

"Wow," I remember saying. "You've really grown up, Nick."

Nick had just stood there, staring at me with big eyes and a red face. I guess seeing me change from a kid to a young woman was too much for him. After all, when I'd been in seventh grade, I'd been flat-chested, I'd had ears too big for my face, I'd been gawky, I'd had braces, and I'd been thin-as-a-twig. When I was in eleventh grade, I had dishwater blonde hair that went all the way down to my waist, and I was curvaceous, perfectly-proportioned, and not too incredibly bad-looking.

So, Nick just stood there. I bet that if I'd nudged him, he would've fallen over.

I had my hands on my waist, waiting patiently for an answer. When it became evident that none was coming, I said, "You're supposed to say, 'Hi, Sam! Long time, no see. How're things going for you?'"

I tell you, that had to have been the funniest moment of my life. Nick swallowed thickly and said, "Hi, Sam. Long time, no see. How're things going for you?"

I had laughed my ass off. By the time I finally got a grip on myself, my hands were on my knees, and my face was red. I stood up straight again to see if Nick finally wanted to talk on his own now, but he was just as tongue-tied. So, I continued, "My life's been pretty good. I finally got the folks to get me outta private school. What about you?"

As could be expected, no answer came. I laughed and threw my hair out of my face. "Now you're supposed to say, 'Oh, things are going fine,' and then proceed to tell me just how fine they're going."

Nick opened his mouth to speak, but, this time, no words came out. I waved my hand in front of his face and said, "Helloooo, earth to Nick."

That had snapped him out of it. He'd grabbed my hand, and he had kissed me.

I'd been startled. So startled that I almost lost my balance and fell backwards, flat on my ass. But he held me up, his arms firm around my waist, pulling me close to him. Jeez, Louise, I was more surprised than Luke Skywalker after figuring out that Darth Vader was his father.

After a moment, he pulled back, and, this time, I kissed him. I had had no idea what the hell had possessed me to do it, but Nick wasn't that bad of a kisser.

After a moment, Nick had stepped back and said, his face even redder, "And this is gonna be awkward, because I just remembered that I have a girlfriend."

Call As the World Turns, we have the newest drama for them! Quite a conflict had arisen, and it kind of felt like we were in a soap opera. Eventually, Nick just ended up dumping the girl and asking me out.

Nick and I stayed together until the end of high school, which was where we went our separate ways. We both had our places in different careers, and we both decided that it was best for both of us if we weren't restricted by a long-distance relationship. That was eight years ago, and a lot can happen in eight years.

I had become a writer, and, so far, I had six books published. My popular, in-style fashion from my high school days had taken a more professional tone. My strong dislike for all hot drinks had changed to a "must-have-Starbucks-coffee-every-morning." I was still single, though, because I'd played around too much in my earlier years. Now, it was getting pretty hard to find a guy who wanted to settle down and have a family.

Nicolas Johnson hadn't even crossed my mind for at least three years. It was funny how easy it was to forget someone.

Now, I was walking the streets of Manhattan, my laptop tucked under my arm. The crisp winds were blowing my short, dishwater blonde hair out of my face. It was a little chilly out, so I had on my black jacket. I couldn't remember what the exact name for this type of jacket was, but it was just like the jacket-style of a trench coat.

I was heading for my favorite spot in the entire city: the park. It was easy to relax there, so it wasn't too hard to write. I could get a lot of work done when I went to the park.

Of course, it was too cold out to sit in the park itself, so I was just going to duck into the Starbucks right beside it. When I finally got to the Starbucks, I noticed that it was much more packed than usual. In fact, there wasn't a free table in sight!

Sighing, I decided that I was just going to get my usual, two-sugar, three-creamer coffee and head next door to the library. Though the library was a quiet, peaceful environment, it didn't have that good of a view of the park. I knew that I might as well just kiss my story goodbye for today.

As if to make my day even worse, as soon as I got my coffee and turned around, I ran right into somebody.

I fell to the ground and dropped my coffee. It hit the floor beside me and splattered everywhere. The man I'd bumped into offered me his hand, and I took it. He pulled me to my feet, and I groaned and mumbled both an apology an a thank you to the man. The man didn't say anything, but he didn't move, either. I looked at him, and I felt my breath catch in my chest.

Son of a bitch, if it wasn't Nick!

Even though a lot of things had changed for me over the past eight years, it seemed as though nothing at all had changed for him. He just stood there and stared at me with big eyes and a red face. I couldn't help but smile as I remembered that he'd been just like this when I ran into him back in eleventh grade. Just like back then, he was tongue-tied. Some things just never change.

"Nick," I said incredulously. "I haven't seen you since high school." After waiting for a reply, I laughed and said, "You're supposed to say, 'Hi, Sam!'"

Nick swallowed thickly. "Hi, Sam."

Jeez, Louise. He hadn't even changed by a little bit. Still, I grinned and said, "And now you're supposed to say, 'Will you marry me?'" Now, you see, I only meant this as a joke, nothing more. I was absolutely positive that that would help him get a grip on himself. It was just supposed to be a joke.

Didn't I get a surprise when Nick asked with all sincerity, "Will you marry me?"