There were two minutes left in Mr. Pram’s English class.  Roman had packed every thing into his bag six minutes ago, save his Early American Poetry book, from which Mr. Pram was droning.  Roman was no longer sure if he had his book open to the correct page.  He watched the second hand slide past the four.
            Despi caught his eye, and they smiled at each other.  Despi, of course, was reading along with Mr. Pram.  Roman considered leaning over to Despi and checking the page number.  Chances are, though, Roman wouldn’t need to know where they were during the last 90 seconds.
            Roman looked back at Mr. Pram, who was wandering around the class, reading aloud.  He noticed Sten was sitting at the back, furiously making notes.  Roman sort of smiled.  He looked back at Despi, and their eyes met.  Roman pointed toward the clock, and Despi turned to it.  She realised what he was inferring, and started to pack every thing up.
            The bell rang, and Mr. Pram looked up mid-line.  ‘Oh, sorry, class, I lost track of time.  Please finish reading this poem and the one after it for to-morrow.’  Roman and Despi were already half-way to the door before Mr. Pram finished his sentence.
            ‘You forgot your poetry book, Roman,’ said Despi, as they had nearly left the classroom.
            Roman turned back, and saw his book was still on his desk.  He went back, picked it up, and then a piece of paper floated to the ground.  Curious, Roman picked it up.  It was a regular piece of eight and a half by eleven, but folded in half.  He opened it and started reading.
            ‘What do you have there, Roman?’ asked Sten.
            Roman looked up and saw Sten was still putting books into his bag, as he walked over to Roman’s desk.  They were the only two left in the classroom.
            ‘It’s a love letter,’ said Roman.  ‘I guess I have an admirer.’
            ‘Any idea who it could be?’ asked Sten.
            ‘Well, it’s unsigned.  I don’t have any idea, really, who...’  Roman trailed off.
            ‘Yes?’
            ‘Well, Despi just told me not to forget my book, and when I came back, I found this here.  I guess it must be from Despi.’
            The two started walking out of the classroom, now.  Sten said, ‘well don’t jump to any conclusions.  Despi seems like the kind of person that would just tell you if she liked you.’
            ‘Yeah, but maybe not.  I mean, who else could it be?’
            ‘I bet you I could figure it out,’ offered Sten.  ‘I’m pretty good at this sort of detective work.  I’m going over to the Library now, actually.  Come along and bring the letter.  I’ll run some tests, and we’ll see what we can find out.’
 

            ‘This is the Librarian,’ introduced Sten.
            ‘Hi there.  My name’s Roman.’
            ‘I am aware,’ answered the Librarian.
            ‘I’m just going to take Roman to the lab for a bit,’ said Sten.  ‘We’re going to be working on some thing that just came up.’
            ‘Observe standard security protocols, Mr. Palborn,’ said the Librarian to Sten.
            ‘Yes sir.’  Sten led Roman up the spiral staircase to the non-fiction.
            ‘What’s the Librarian’s name, by the way?’  asked Roman.
            ‘I don’t know it for safety reasons,’ answered Sten.  Then he pulled a book from one of the shelves, and the entire mythology section opened up like a door.  ‘The lab’s in here,’ Sten added.
            Roman and Sten came into a large, white room.  Computers lined one wall, a blank metal table was in the middle, and a window in one corner showed an observation room.
            ‘I never knew this was in the library,’ said Roman.
            ‘Yes, well, how many times have you ever wandered past the magazine rack?’ asked Sten.  ‘Let me see the evidence.’
            Roman handed the letter to Sten.  Sten put the paper down on the table, and ran a hand scanner over it.  As a copy appeared on one of the computer screens, Sten explained, ‘I’m making a copy so we know what the original looks like, after I dust for fingerprints.’
            Sten went over to the computer and started typing.  ‘Because it’s the computer age, I have very few handwriting samples on hand, but I’ll run a check on that right away.’  Hand-written essays and letters, obviously in multiple styles, began flashing across the screen.  ‘I’d also like to ask you a few questions.’
 

            ‘So other than Despi,’ began Sten, ‘whom you obviously believe to be a suspect, any one else you think might like you?’
            ‘I can’t really think of any one,’ said Roman.  They were sitting in another room, small with one chair, in which Roman was sitting.  One soul lightbulb hung from the ceiling.
            ‘Hm.  Well, is there any one else you speak with often, or with whom you have recently spoken?’
            ‘Uhm, well Jane C, I guess.  I spoke with Apollonia after school yesterday.  My lab partner in Chemistry is Warena...’
            ‘Think of every one, though, not just pretty girls.  The letter seems to indicate some one highly intelligent, but equally introverted.’
            ‘Uhm...  Lucy.  Maybe Siri...’
            Sten had written these names down as he went along.  ‘Let me ask you a blunt question,’ he said.
            ‘Go ahead.’
            ‘How do you feel about gays?’
            Roman looked confused.
            Sten continued, ‘well, there’s no reason to rule out the possibility of a homosexual infatuation.’
            ‘Well, I’m not gay, but I don’t have a problem with them.’
            ‘One last question.  Is there any one you like?  Despi, perhaps?’
            ‘No, no,’ said Roman.  ‘I mean, we’re good friends, but that’s all.’
            ‘All right, well the checks I’m doing will probably take some time,’ said Sten.  ‘I’ll run the names you gave me through my computers, and I’ll also check any one in the school, specifically your English class, who meets with the profile.  I can get give you some results to-morrow morning.’
 

            ‘So where’d you go after class?’ asked Roman, speaking into the telephone as he lay on his bed, staring up at the ceiling.
            ‘Uhm..  home,’ came Despi’s voice on the other end.  ‘I waited for you at the bike racks, but you never came out.’
            ‘Oh.  I thought you’d already gone home when you didn’t wait outside English for me.  I ended up walking home with Sten.’
            ‘Oh yeah?  I like him.  Where does he live?’
            ‘I don’t know, actually.  I dropped him off at the Library.’
            ‘So have you started the History assignment?’ asked Despi.
            ‘Hello?’
            ‘What is it?’
            ‘Just a sec,’ said Roman.  Then he put his hand to the mouthpiece and yelled out, ‘Dad!  Hang up the phone!’
            After a moment, Roman’s dad called back that no one was on the second phone.
            ‘Hm.  Is some one else on the line at your house, Des’?’
            ‘I don’t think so,’ she answered.  ‘I’ll check if you want.  What’s up?’
            Roman was sitting up, now, and moved over to his bedroom door.  ‘I can hear sort of an echo,’ he answered.
            ‘All right.  I’ll check.’
            Roman continued to walk around the bedroom while he waited for Despi.  When she came back, she said that all the other phones in her house were securely hung up.
            ‘That’s odd.  I wonder what’s causing it.’  Roman looked out the window.  ‘Do you hear it?’
            ‘Yeah, sort of,’ said Despi.
            Then Roman saw a grey, unmarked van parked across the street.  ‘Hey, Des’.  Let me call you back, okay?’
            A moment later, Roman went out his front door, and began to walk across the street, aiming directly for the van.  Before he even got to the curb, though, the engine started going, and it started driving down the street.  Roman tried to chase it, but soon it was gone.  He went back into his house, and picked up the phone.
            When the other person answered, he said, ‘Sten, I just chased away a grey van that was following me.’
            ‘Come over to the library right away.’
 

            ‘I don’t suppose you got a license plate number?’ asked Sten.
            ‘No, I didn’t even think to check.  Sorry,’ said Roman.  They were in the laboratory again.
            ‘Well,’ sighed Sten.  ‘I’ll run the check through with the description, but I don’t know what will turn up.  I guess the fact they were driving probably means your admirer is at least sixteen.
            ‘Other things I’ve figured out: no handwriting match, and this is interesting.  There were no fingerprints on the letter.’
            ‘What, none at all?’
            ‘Well,’ said Sten.  ‘Yours and mine, of course, but no others.  This admirer of yours is not only incredibly intelligent, but quite secretive as well.’
            ‘You’re good.’
            ‘I haven’t even gotten any clues yet, really.  Here’s more bad news.  I ran a check on the paper manufacturer, and it seems that quite a lot of that brand has been sold recently.  Cross-referencing our list with credit card and debit purchases of this paper, it looks like Apollonia’s father, and Lucy’s sister both bought quantities of this paper in the last five months.  That isn’t taking cash into account, how ever.
            ‘The Ink from the pen was a little rarer, but unfortunately, I traced it back to Miss Hanson.  You know those pens she gave us all at the beginning of the year?  It’s one of those.  So chances are, it’s some one who’s also in our History class, but I don’t wish to jump to any conclusions.’
            ‘Despi’s in our History class,’ said Roman.
            ‘Yes, but it couldn’t be Despi,’ explained Sten.
            ‘It couldn’t?  Why not?’
            ‘Well, you were on the phone with her when you noticed the van.  Unless she was speaking to you from the van, it couldn’t’ve been her.’
            ‘And I know she wasn’t in the van, because I called her at home.’
            ‘Exactly.’
            ‘Well, then she’s crossed off the list.’
            ‘You sound disappointed.’
            ‘No,’ said Roman.  ‘It’s not like that.  We’re just friends, is all.  I don’t like her in that way.’
            ‘Are you sure?’
            ‘Yes, I’m sure.’
            ‘Roman, do you even care who your secret admirer is now that we’ve proven it isn’t Despi.’
            ‘Uh...well, no, not really.’
            ‘And what do you think that means?’
            Roman looked hard at Sten.  ‘But..  I can’t..’
            ‘Go to her,’ said Sten.  ‘Tell her how you feel.  It’s the only way you can know for sure if she feels the same way.’
            ‘But what if she says no?’
            ‘Some times you have to live with a ‘no’, Roman.  But you can’t live your life wondering, because then it will never be a ‘yes’.’
            ‘Sten, you’re an amazing friend.  I’m going to do that right now.  Don’t worry about this any more.’
            Sten nodded, and Roman ran out of the room.  Sten turned off the computer, and then began gathering his papers.
            ‘Some times you have to live with a ‘no’,’ he repeated to himself.  Then he turned out the lights.