He walked down the sidewalk now, leaves crunching beneath his feet. Fall was the only time of year that Torby was really happy. Maybe it was the nice, cool weather, maybe it was the trees changing color. Maybe it was the fact that there were a bunch of holidays in a row. Whatever it was, it made him happy for once in his miserable life.

His friends had gone to the JMCA after school, and Torby was going to meet them, but he was taking his time, enjoying the fall colors. Leaves crunching beneath his feet, he strolled up to the doors of the J and went inside. He didn’t realize how cold he was until he walked into the warmth of the JMCA. Inside the Adventurer Center, he saw George and Meghan having some sort of staring contest and Casey and Craig sitting at another table. He sat down next to Casey and Craig.

“Oh, I should tell you guys, I was going to go to Kobinski’s,” Craig announced as Torby sat down. Kobinski’s was a grocery store near the park. It was another good hanging out spot.

“Why?” Torby asked.

“I heard a bunch of the girls from school were going there,” Craig said, embarrassment hidden by his giant helmet. “I wanted to go, you know, hit on them or something.” Torby chuckled.

“Craig, Craig, Craig,” he muttered. “When are you going to realize that we three are never going to get any girls? We’re all losers!”

“I’m married,” Casey pointed out. There were a few moments of confused silence.

“Anyways,” Torby said, clearing his throat. Craig mumbled something, too. “I guess we’re going then?” Torby asked. Craig responded in the affirmative and they left the J to the sounds of Meghan whining about how she lost the staring contest. The walk across the stone plaza was cold and quiet, but they reached Kobinski’s quickly. Once inside the doors, they immediately spotted the girls.

“Here I go,” Craig said, checking his breath and casually strolling towards them. Torby didn’t want to see how this turned out. He averted his eyes and walked briskly away. He heard several unpleasant insults as he left. He walked blindly until he came upon a free sample tray. He ate one, spotted another, then moved on to it. He continued in this fashion until he arrived at the front of the greenhouse. Feeling botanical, he went in. There he discovered Christine.