Addison Caldwell, 11

Pathfinder: Who did you ask to the dance?

Caldwell: Ryan Obeirne, a junior.

What did you do to ask him?
I had Herpel, the Latin teacher, text him that he had been caught cheating on a test. He was already leaving school, it was after school, and he came and he ran into a bunch of people because he was freaking out. I didn’t want him to expect it; I wanted him to sweat it out. So then he got there and I was in there with a sign full of soccer puns because we both play soccer, and a soccer ball. It was really funny. He didn’t even look at me first. He looked at Herpel because he was so scared.

Was he surprised?
He was really relieved. He thought he had been caught cheating, and he didn’t cheat. He wouldn’t cheat. He was more relieved and was probably really surprised.

Were you scared?
Kind of, because we don’t really do that as girls. He’s just a good friend and a good guy.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to ask someone out?
Think of what you have in common and do it with confidence. For me, I like to be funny so for me it was humor. If you are more thoughtful, do it that way.

Kathryn Harter, 12

Pathfinder: Who did you ask to the dance?

Harter: Bryan Zhang, a junior.

What did you do to ask him?
I did it at the beginning of improv practice. I made a poster that said, “KOH with Despicable Me?” I had a plush minion with roses in it.

Was he surprised?
I think he was surprised. He said something really typical Bryan: “Awesome. Sure.”

Were you scared?
Yes, I was shaking. I was so nervous because Bryan is the type of guy who would say no if he didn’t want to go no matter the circumstance.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to ask someone out?
It’s okay to be nervous, and you just have to make sure that the person you’re asking is someone you know you’ll have a good time with.

Kristen Baranski, 11

Pathfinder: Who did you ask to the dance?
Cole Buehler. He’s a junior.

What did you do to ask him?
He plays football, so I made him a sign that says, “Don’t pass on this chance to tackle KOH with me.” I also made him a brownie, cut it into the shape of a football and iced the laces on it.

Was he surprised?
I think so. We went to his house, and one of his friends was helping me. His mom answered the door, and it turned out he was actually up at the high school playing soccer with some of his friends. We had to drive up there. I had his friend Logan Williams go up there call him. He had these new subs in his car, so he told him to come down and so he could show it to him. I was standing behind the car, and when he came up, I showed him the sign. He said yes.

Were you scared?
I wasn’t really scared. We’re friends but we don’t talk a ton, so we’re just going as friends. I also feel like I had asked him in front of a lot of people, I would have been a lot more scared because it might be embarrassing.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to ask someone out?
Do something that is personal for them, like I did the football brownie since he likes football. Also, don’t stress out about it. Try to have fun with it.

Mariel McMindes, 12

Pathfinder: Who did you ask to the dance?
McMindes: I asked my good friend Christian Gholson, who is also a senior.

What did you do to ask him?
So he and I are goofy friends, and we like to make paper cranes and write little notes on the wings and put them in each other’s backpacks and hide them places. I made four paper cranes, and on the first one said “Will you,” the second one was “fly with me,” the third was “to the” and the last one was “King of Hearts dance.” I had Ms. Kitty put them all in envelopes and send them to his first, second, third and fourth hours. He was really confused at first, and one of my friends was in class with him. I don’t have any classes with him, but she told me “He doesn’t have any idea what is going on” and I said, “Good.” He didn’t text me all and I was like “Oh my gosh, what if he just really doesn’t 

want to go.” Because I was expecting him to go like “Yeah, sweet, this is going to be so fun.” I didn’t hear anything from him. Then I was in my sixth hour class and I got a note in an envelope and in the envelope was a little paper crane that he made that said “Yeah, duh.” It was really cute; I was so happy.

Was he surprised? 
I think he was. We hadn’t really talked about going before.

Were you scared?
I wasn’t scared because we are friends so I figured he would say yes, but after I sent the third one and he hadn’t texted me at all, I was kind of nervous and I was going to deliver the fourth one myself, but I ended up having someone else deliver the last one.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to ask someone out?
It doesn’t have to be a big public thing. As long as it has some meaning to you or has something that you think connects the two of you together, you should go for it. It doesn’t have to be huge.

Alex Herrera, 10

Pathfinder: Who did you ask to the dance?
Herrera: I asked Cindy Combs. She goes to Clayton.

What did you do to ask her?
I made a poster and got her flowers, Oreos and a Starbucks drink. Also, Katie Spillman and Ryan O’Connor contributed to basically all of it. I needed their approval for everything because they’re the wittiest and lowkey most romantic people I know.

Was she surprised? 
She was a little surprised. She kinda knew I was going to do something, but she didn’t know what or when. I showed up at her school after school during her robotics team meeting.

Were you scared?
I was so nervous. I don’t know why. We had talked about going, but we hadn’t really made it official or made any plans.

What advice would you give to someone who is going to ask someone out?
Be big. Be romantic. Just be you.