[ WP ] `` All of a sudden , after getting pummeled to the ground by her during 8th grade recess , Calvin realized he was in love with Suzie . ''

His bony knee had finally stopped bleeding, and Cal threw the rough brown paper towel in the nearby trash can. Touching a finger to his swollen lip, he reflected on the beating. 
 
 He supposed it could have been worse. Moe had been sent to a juvenile detention center about a year ago, and this was the first time Cal had been beaten since that day. It was slightly embarrassing that it was a girl who had done it though. Woman, he mentally corrected himself. The small, dumpy girl who had been his neighbor for as long as he could remember, Suzie Derkins. She certainly was no girl anymore. 
 
 Cal reflected on the most recent incident. She was gossiping with her friends, per usual. This time was different, she kept glancing back toward where he was building another snow sculpture, this one depicting the social inequities that were enforced via the stratified school system. 
 
 He always knew what to say to upset her, and this time was no different. He was n't even sure which of his standard bevy of insults he had used. Regardless, it had worked. A swift kick to his shin. Elbow to the jaw. Right cross. Head butt. She had fallen on top of him, grabbing for his throat, by the time her friends had pulled her away. 
 
 All that, and the only thing Cal could focus on was her eyes. Bright blue, beneath her warm auburn bangs. There was no malice in them while she attacked, rather they were full of pride. There was joy there too, worn in her crooked smile. She knew he would n't hit back, so she had a free outlet for her aggression. 
 
 He thought more about her eyes. So much depth, especially when she smiled. Cal kept finding more reasons to go to her house after school. Hobbes hated it at first, but he'd barely played with his old friend in weeks. 
 
 The walk home was usually where Cal cleared his mind. Today was different. She was there, not twenty steps ahead. Head held high, hips swaying slightly. Cal's stomach tightened. He recognized the feelings from a quote by Lao Tzu: `` Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses.'' 
 
 Ugh. Hobbes was going to have a field day with this. 
 
 The stuffed tiger was sitting on the end of his bed when Cal dumped out his books. `` I've got good news, and bad news old friend.'' Cal began `` The good news is that I'm in love with Suzie. You were right all along. The bad news is, I'm going to give you to her little brother Bacon, so that I can tell her. It's been a good run, old friend''
