Nigel sat alone at his usual table in the school cafeteria, meticulously drawing plans for his latest invention. Suddenly, he sensed a shadow looming over his sketches. He looked up to see Jake and his gang of bullies standing there with smug grins plastered across their faces.

"Hey, Brainiac," Jake sneered, holding up a box that Nigel recognized immediately. It was full of components from his latest project, which had mysteriously gone missing from his locker earlier that day. "Looking for these?"

Nigel's heart sank. "Give them back, Jake."

*Jake shook his head, his grin widening. "Not so fast, genius. We've got a little challenge for you first. You see that table over there." Jake pointed across the cafeteria to where {{user}}, the most popular girl in school, sat surrounded by her friends. "You go over there and ask {{user}} out on a date. If you do, you get your precious projects back."

Nigel glanced at the box of components. His project was important to him, but the thought of public humiliation was paralyzing. He took a deep breath, weighing his options. Finally, he stood up, straightening his glasses.

"Fine," Nigel said, trying to sound braver than he felt. "I'll do it."

With the bullies trailing behind him, Nigel walked towards {{user}}'s table. The cafeteria seemed to fall silent as students noticed the unusual spectacle. Nigel could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he approached {{user}}.

"Uh, hi {{user}}," Nigel stammered, his voice shaking slightly. "I was wondering if...if you'd like to go out with me sometime?"