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Isabella’s phone buzzed as she toed off her second sneaker. She reached into her purse, fumbling blindly to see who it was.
When she finally found her phone, she wished she hadn’t.
hey Isabella!
She hated how her heart still leapt every time she saw his picture on her screen.
If you really wanted to get over him, you’d block his number and never speak to him ever again, said the nasty little voice in her head.
She could never do that. Cutting Phineas out of her life would have broken her heart beyond repair. Not to mention poor, innocent Phineas would never realize why she’d done it. All those years, all those hints dropped, and he had never once appeared to notice that she was deeply in love with him.
All the better for her, really— much less embarrassing than being rejected outright. She remembered so many times she’d contemplated confessing her feelings. The emotional bravery patch she’d never earned. That time she’d almost blurted it out while they were stuck on that island. The letter! Gosh, the letter. Isabella’s face burned tomato red just thinking about it. She’d called him her little crumb cake. What the heck had she been thinking?
A second text appeared. Then a third.
just finished building the ultimate boardwalk carnival
wanna come check it out?
Isabella opened her calendar to search for an excuse not to see him.
There was none.
How could that be? Ever since the start of high school she’d been throwing herself into more and more distractions from her feelings. Filling her calendar with every possible activity, commitment, and event that she could cram into her week in order to avoid seeing Phineas. Yet there it was, that gap in her calendar, taunting her with its availability. It won’t hurt that bad, it said. It’ll be like you’re ten years old again.
Maybe Isabella was jaded, but she remembered it hurting back then too.
She had to stay strong.
sorry Phineas, ive got a thing im busy with.
A thing you’re busy with?! That’s the best you can come up with?!
She tried to think of something better, but her resolve was crumbling. She sent the text before it could collapse completely. Then she collapsed, on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.
She wouldn’t cry. She’d cried enough over him.
Phineas sighed and put his phone back in his pocket. “She’s not coming.”
“Isabella’s always busy with somethin’ these days,” Buford remarked as he hung an enormous plush butterfly behind the prize counter.
“I feel like she’s been pulling away lately,” he fretted. “I mean, she used to come here every day and now it feels like she’s never around. I only see her in the halls at school between periods.”
“I would not worry about it,” Baljeet reassured him. “Being busy is part of growing up. Frankly, it is amazing that we still have this much free time considering we are in high school now.”
Ferb nodded silently.
“Yeah, I guess so, but this just feels…” Phineas stuck his hands in his pockets and gazed out onto the ocean they’d constructed. After a while, he asked, “Do you think she’s breaking up with me?”
Buford’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “Whaddaya mean, breakin’ up with ya?!”
“I did not know you two were dating!” Baljeet gasped. “How long has that been going on?”
“Since… middle school?” Phineas frowned. “I mean, I don’t remember exactly when it started. We’ve just kind of always been together.”
Even the waves against the pier went silent as Phineas’ friends gaped at him in disbelief. Ferb was the first to speak. “Well, that explains a lot.”
“I cannot believe this!” Baljeet exclaimed, kneading his forehead. “You actually thought you and Isabella were dating?”
“Yeah?” Phineas furrowed his brow. “I’m surprised you guys missed it. We were super obvious.”
“You guys seein’ this?” Buford shared a glance with the others.
“You were not a couple back in sixth grade!” Baljeet exclaimed vehemently.
“What are you talking about?” Phineas cocked his head. “Of course we were. We did everything together.”
“You and Ferb do everything together,” Buford pointed out.
“Ferb’s my brother, silly!”
“So just because you do things together with someone who is not related to you, that means you are dating?!” Baljeet retorted. “By that logic, that would mean Buford and I are dating! That would make our entire friend group a polycule!”
Phineas blinked, pointing back and forth between them. “Wait… you and Buford aren’t dating?”
“I have been with Ginger for two years now!” Baljeet threw up his hands as Buford remained oddly quiet. “We went to homecoming and prom together! You and Isabella have never gone to a dance together!”
“We went our freshman year to the winter formal,” Phineas pointed out.
“That was with Ferb! It is not a date if you bring a third party!”
“Unless she’s datin’ both o’ ya,” Buford reminded him.
“I said third party, not third person!”
“Why wouldja go to three parties?”
“Ferb was going stag,” Phineas cut in, laughing. “He just needed a ride. Plus, he disappeared for half the night. I still don’t know where you went, Ferb.”
“I was giving the two of you space,” Ferb explained. “I wanted a chance for Isabella to reveal her feelings to you.”
“Why would she need to do that?” he frowned. “I already know how she feels about me.”
Baljeet gripped a post and began smacking his head against it.
“I mean, I wish we’d gone to more dances together,” Phineas continued. “I asked her to homecoming and prom, but she said she was busy.”
“You realize she probably just said that so she wouldn’t have to go with you and Ferb again, right?” Buford replied.
“Ferb had his own date. It wouldn’t have been the three of us again.”
“Did Isabella know that?” Baljeet glowered, his forehead covered in splinters.
“Well, I guess I… I mean, I thought I mentioned it to her.” Phineas sat on the bench, scratching his head. “Maybe I forgot? I guess I just kind of assumed that was a given.”
“Are you serious?”
“Definitely not a given.”
“You’re killin’ me, Dinnerbell.”
“Oh man.” He cradled his head in his hands. “I can’t believe I made such a stupid mistake. What kind of boyfriend does that make me?”
“Phineas,” said Baljeet with as much patience as he could muster, “when did you and Isabella have your first date?”
“I guess it would be when I built that haunted house to scare her hiccups away,” Phineas mused. “And then I guess our second date was when we went to Paris.”
Ferb blinked audibly.
“What?” Phineas frowned. “What is it?”
“Didn’tcha spend the whole time in Paris lookin’ for airplane parts?” Buford crossed his arms.
“We needed airplane parts,” Phineas replied defensively. “It wasn’t my ideal scenario either, but at least we were together.”
“I do not think that is how Isabella saw it,” Baljeet remarked.
“How else would she see it? We were in the City of Love!” Phineas exclaimed. “Together!”
Ferb stepped forward and laid a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Phineas, I’m not sure how to tell you this, but Isabella doesn’t even know that you view her romantically in the first place.”
“What?!” Phineas sputtered. “But… we’re so close, and we’ve known each other our whole lives, I thought we just… I mean, she likes me, right? That’s not just in my head, is it?”
“Isabella has been trying to get you to notice her romantically since we were six years old,” said Baljeet. “She thought you just weren’t interested.”
“But I did notice her,” Phineas protested. “I mean, I went all-out for her birthday like, every year and she didn’t think I liked her back?! I thought we had a mutual understanding!”
Ferb shook his head.
“But… but…” Phineas clutched his forehead helplessly.
“She thought ya did all that ‘cause you were friends,” Buford confirmed.
“We are friends!” Phineas insisted. “She’s my best friend! Besides Ferb. I mean, isn’t your girlfriend supposed to be your best friend?”
“There are some things that you do with your girlfriend that you would not typically do with other friends,” Baljeet explained.
Phineas tilted his head. “Like what?”
“You know, being alone together…”
“We did that!”
“…cuddling…”
“What about those movie nights?!”
“Being alone and cuddling…”
“Oh, I guess we never did that,” Phineas admitted.
“And kissing.”
Phineas’ face turned the color of his hair. “I mean, I want to, I just… It’s never seemed like a good time. Actually…”
He looked up at the giant ferris wheel towering over the games and food stalls. “I kinda built this whole thing for our anniversary. I mean, I don’t know when exactly we started dating… or I guess, when I thought we started dating, so I just decided to pick a day and call it our anniversary. We were gonna spend the whole day together, and then watch the sunset from the top of the ferris wheel, and…”
Ferb sat next to him and patted his back. Phineas buried his face in his hands. “I can’t believe it. All this time I thought I was her boyfriend and she didn’t even know I liked her! I thought I was being so obvious. That must be why she’s been so distant lately! I’m such an idiot.”
“At least you’re a different kind of idiot than we all thought you were,” Buford quipped.
“Buford!” Baljeet scolded.
Phineas stood resolutely. “I know what I have to do.”
“Let me stop you right there,” said Ferb. “Tell me exactly what you’re thinking.”
“I’m gonna make a giant—”
“Nope.”
“I’m going to get a bunch of—”
“Try again.”
“I’m going to build the most amazing—”
Ferb put a finger over his brother’s mouth.
He swatted it away indignantly. “Well, how am I supposed to ask her to be my girlfriend for real, Ferb?!”
“You could try just… asking her,” Baljeet supplied.
Ferb nodded.
Phineas looked at each of his friends. “Just… asking?”
Everyone nodded.
“Like, no fireworks or anything?” Phineas asked. “Not even flowers?”
“Flowers are fine,” Ferb reassured him. “Just don’t overdo it.”
Phineas looked at Ferb, at Baljeet, at Buford. “I’m really glad you guys are my friends.”
They stepped into a group hug, which Phineas held for a long time. Eventually, Buford said, “Quit stallin’ and go get her, Dinnerbell.”
Phineas stepped away reluctantly, coughing. “Do you think this will all still be up by sunset? I was thinking after I get back from… you know… maybe Isabella would like to see this after all.”
“Just goooooo!” Baljeet yelled.
“Alright, alright, I’m going!”
As they watched him sprint out of the carnival, Buford asked, “How d’ya think it’s gonna disappear this time?”
“Giant green beam,” Baljeet replied.
“There haven’t been giant green beams in this town for like, eight years now.”
“Well, if this is all going to disappear within the next few hours or so,” Ferb remarked, “then I’m going to ride the bumper cars while I still can.”
“I’ll meetcha guys over there,” Buford waved. “I’m gonna go grab a turkey leg.”
“I will come with you,” Baljeet volunteered. “I would like to get a chili dog.”
As the two parties went their separate ways, Buford asked, “So how’s it goin’ with Ginger?”
“It is going… well,” Baljeet replied, glancing away. “How is it going with you and Brigitte?”
“Oh, you know, uh… c’est bien,” Buford hemmed, also glancing away. “Heh heh… Can you believe Dinnerbell thought you and me were datin’ each other?”
Baljeet tittered anxiously. “Yes, that is quite an amusing misunderstanding.”
Buford looked at his feet as they walked in awkward silence. “So… how’s Ginger?”
“You already asked me that.”
“Oh. Heheh. Right.”
Phineas chewed his lip, flowers in hand as he stood with his fist poised above the door. You can do this, Phineas. Just tell her how you feel. It’ll be easy.
But he didn’t even know if Isabella wanted him anymore. The way she’d been pulling away… What if the reason she’d been so distant wasn’t because she thought he didn’t reciprocate her feelings, but because she no longer reciprocated? What if she’d tried to move on— and it had worked?
He shut his eyes and knocked.
Isabella’s mother answered the door. “Ah, Phineas! What a surprise!” She glanced at the bouquet in his hand. “Are you here to see Isabella?”
“Yes,” Phineas smiled awkwardly. “Yes I am.”
“It’s about time,” Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro winked.
Phineas laughed, turning bright red with embarrassment. Imagine if Isabella’s mother had known why Phineas had taken so long to do this. How could he ever have thought his previous romantic gestures had been remotely sufficient in expressing the depths of his feelings for Isabella when he'd never even told her "I love you" out loud?
“Isabella’s in her room,” Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro said. “Would you like me to get her for you, or do you want to go upstairs yourself?”
“Isabella’s here?” Phineas’ eyes widened. “I thought she had a… thing right now. I was gonna wait for her to get home.”
Isabella’s mother laughed. “You are a very lucky boy. She’s free for the rest of the afternoon.”
“But she…” Dread washed over Phineas as he realized that Isabella had lied to him. Did that mean she really didn’t want to see him?
But before he could say anything, Mrs. Garcia-Shapiro called, “Isa! Phineas is here!”
Phineas stood frozen with apprehension as Isabella’s mother left the room with a wink. All he could hear was the thudding of his own heart against his ribcage as he stared in trepidation at the top of the stairs.
Her face appeared.
“Phineas?”
Her eyes widened at the flowers.
“Hey Isabella,” Phineas smiled weakly. “Sorry if I’m intruding, I didn’t mean to—”
“No, it’s fine!” she reassured him, scrambling hastily down the stairs. “My, um, thing got out early. Whatcha doin’ here?”
He was normally so confident around her. There’d never been any uncertainty in his mind about their relationship before.
Like there was now.
“These are for you,” he mumbled, thrusting the bouquet toward her. “We, uh… we need to talk.”
Isabella’s cheeks turned pink, eyes filled with questions. “Okay.”
Phineas followed Isabella to the living room, where she placed the flowers into a vase on the coffee table. “So, uh… what do you want to talk about?”
Phineas had always thought of Isabella as self-assured and confident. Whenever those qualities didn’t come naturally to himself, he’d always tried to channel Isabella to regain them again. But now she was tentative, hesitant, and Phineas suddenly realized this was far from the first time he’d seen her like this.
“Hey, um, so remember that time we met Meap?” Phineas began. Great start, Phineas. Where are you even going with this?
“Which time?” Isabella cocked her head.
“The second time,” he replied. “And I guess the first time too.”
“What about it?”
“Well… remember when I said your cuteness was a scientific fact?”
Isabella cleared her throat. “…Yeah.”
“Well, I’m just now realizing you might have taken it the wrong way,” Phineas explained, scratching the back of his head. “That maybe you thought that me saying how cute you were didn’t have anything to do with whether I thought you were cute.”
“Wait.” Isabella furrowed her brow. “You’re figuring this out just now? Phineas! That was like, eight years ago!”
“I can be pretty oblivious sometimes,” Phineas confessed. “You probably know that better than anyone.”
“Yes,” she confirmed, a slight tinge of resentment in her voice. “Yes I do.”
“But I did mean it,” Phineas continued. Her face pinkened again as he took her hand. “In fact, I don’t just think you’re cute, Isabella. I think you’re beautiful.”
Isabella’s mouth dropped open. “Phineas…”
“I’m sorry I’ve never said it to you before,” Phineas murmured. “It’s true. You are the most beautiful person I know, and that’s not just a scientific fact, it’s how I feel.”
Isabella’s lip quivered. Tears formed in her eyes. Before Phineas knew it she was bawling over his shoulder. “Aw, gee,” he mumbled as he wrapped her in a hug.
“I love you, Phineas…” she sniffled. “I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember…”
“I love you too, Isabella,” he whispered back as he soothingly stroked her hair. “I’ve loved you for so long, I guess I… I guess I never realized you didn’t know that.”
“I knew you loved me as a friend,” Isabella swallowed. “But…”
“I do love you as a friend, Isabella,” Phineas replied. “First and foremost. But I also love you… you know, romantically. I thought I’d made that clear, but in hindsight, I can see how you thought…”
A thick chuckle escaped her throat. “Gosh, don’t tell me we were both the oblivious one this whole time.”
“You were in love with me and thought I didn’t know it,” he smiled. “I was in love with you and thought you did know it. That’s way worse. I thought I was your boyfriend this entire time!”
Isabella let go of him with a gasp. “You… thought you were my boyfriend?!”
“I shouldn’t’ve said that,” Phineas winced. “It was stupid of me to—”
She didn’t let him finish.
When their lips finally broke apart, Phineas felt as though he might faint. “I, uh, always thought I would be the one to initiate that.”
“Well, why didn’t you?” Isabella smiled coyly.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I’m gonna make it up to you right now.”
When they parted again, a huge grin broke over her face. “Well. I’d say that definitely made up for it.”
She giggled at Phineas’ face as it turned bright red. Then, she cleared her throat. “Did you… want to show me something earlier?”
“Oh, yeah,” Phineas grinned, standing up and offering her a hand. “I built it just for us.”
“Just for us?” Isabella’s eyes widened.
“Well, not just for us,” he clarified. “It seemed like a waste to build a whole boardwalk and not let other people enjoy it. But I thought we could spend our anniversary there.”
“Anniversary?” she giggled. “But we only became boyfriend and girlfriend just now.”
“Yeah,” he laughed. “Which means a year from now, it will be our anniversary. So this is like our zeroeth anniversary now.”
She leaned her head against his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her waist. “Happy zeroeth anniversary, Phineas Flynn.”
“It absolutely will be,” he beamed as they walked out the door, together.