Emotional Witch-ducking - A Choose Your Own Adventure Story

You know about witch-ducking, I'm sure, even if you didn't know that's what it was called.
Something like this happens: you're accused of being a witch, likely because your neighbor's crops failed or their cat died. They call the law, and you're hauled off, tied up and thrown in the river. The thought process is that if you manage to slip your knots and swim to safety, you're clearly a witch and are therefore either jailed or executed. If you drown, however, happy day! You're innocent and your name is cleared. Oh, except... you have to be dead. Details, details...

What does that have to do with anything outside a history lesson, you ask?
Only that I've been thinking a lot about how we do this very thing to ourselves all the time. We get into these situations, where it looks like drowning is the only possible scenario that allows us to save face.

For example, a parable:

Once upon a time, a boy meets a girl. It doesn't matter how, but suppose their eyes meet over the last copy of the last issue of the Neil Gaiman Eternals run. There's only one copy, and both have run all over town looking for it, because they're both great big nerds. Eyes narrow, resolve is strengthened, but eventually boy, girl, and comic book all adjourn together to the diner next door. Coffee is drunk, the book is discussed, and a friendship is born. By the time they've reached the third or fourth cup of coffee, they've learned some things about each other and realize they have enough in common to hang out again. Phone numbers are exchanged, and tentative plans are even made to toilet-paper the gates at Skywalker Ranch in retribution for the latest animated Star Wars fiasco.

Just like that. Just that simple, right?

Maybe, but then again, maybe not. What if the boy gets home that night and realizes that he's met the woman of his dreams? What if the girl calls her best friend right away and tells her that if she'd ordered one from a menu, she could not have found a guy she'd like more? What if only one of them is having their heartstrings tugged, while the other "only" feels quite lucky to have made a new friend?

Now it's time to choose your adventure!
Whether you're the boy or the girl, the options are the same.
If you are romantically interested in your new friend, you can:
Flip to page 143 to take the risk and tell your friend how you feel, knowing that they'll either reciprocate or not, and that it could either ruin your new friendship or not.
OR
Stay on this page to keep silent, keep your friend, and hope you can keep your feelings under your hat either until they go away or until your friend speaks up first.

To be continued...