Home Sweet Drama by Jessica Burkhart Page A

Paige’s shoulders slumped. “Poor Callie! She must be a mess. Her first boyfriend.”
    â€œI know. She’s got to be so upset and I really do feel bad for her.” I had to choose every word carefully so that Paige didn’t think I still cared about Callie and missed her as my BFF. If Paige knew that, it would totally blow my cover story with Jacob.
    â€œThe last thing she probably wants to do is come to the bonfire,” Paige said.
    And it’s the last thing
I
want to do,
I wanted to say.
    â€œYou’re probably right, but she has to,” I said.
    I pulled a jean skirt, platform wedge sandals, and a V-neck sweater from my closet. I couldn’t talk about Callie and Jacob anymore.
    â€œI’ll be ready to go in half an hour,” I said. “You can wait or go without me, if you want.”
    â€œI’ll wait,” Paige said, shrugging. “You won’t be too long and it doesn’t start till it gets dark, anyway.”
    In the bathroom I closed the door and sat on the edge of the bathtub. It was going to be a long night.

15
    CAN’T LET THE NIGHT GO UP IN FLAMES
    PAIGE AND I WALKED TO THE BACK OF THE campus, near the spot at the woods where I’d ridden the new cross-country course.
    â€œYou look nervous,” Paige said. “Don’t be. It’ll be okay. Really. The nominees
have
to be there, but at least you all don’t have to do anything together.”
    â€œBut the odds of us all running into each other are ridiculous,” I said. “You know I’ll see
someone.
”
    Paige touched my arm. “Don’t worry. Even if you do, just walk away. It doesn’t have to turn into a thing.”
    That made my head jerk back a little. Did Paige think I always turned social events into “things?”
    â€œI don’t want it to turn into anything. I just want to be there until I can leave and then go.”
    Paige pressed her lips together, not saying anything. We walked the final distance across campus where the glow of the bonfire reached into the sky and illuminated darkness. I loved the smell of burning wood. The sparks of the fire flew into the air and shattered into ash.
    We reached the fire and it was so much warmer, even though the night air was cooling around us.
    â€œHey,” Ryan said, walking up to us. He grabbed Paige’s hand and smiled at her, then me.
    â€œHi,” Paige said. She touched his upper arm with her free hand.
    â€œA bunch of people are roasting marshmallows over there,” Ryan said, looking at us. “Want to?”
    Paige nodded. “Sure.” She looked over at me. “Sash?”
    I looked around to the spot Ryan was talking about. Roasting marshmallows sounded like a popular spot.
    â€œYou go,” I said. “I’m going to go find a hot dog or something.”
    â€œYou sure?” Paige asked.
    â€œTotally. Go and I’ll meet up with you later.”
    â€œâ€™Kay,” Paige said. “Sounds good.”
    Hand in hand, Paige and Ryan walked away to the other side of the bonfire. I tried not to feel anxious about being on my own since I’d told them to go, but I couldn’tstop running through scenarios. What if I saw Jacob? Or Eric? Or Callie?
    I was most worried about seeing Callie. I didn’t trust myself not to run up to her, hug her, and tell her that she was going to be okay. Panic was just starting to rise in my chest when I saw Heather, Alison, and Julia walk up to me.
    â€œIs this not the lamest thing ever?” Heather asked. Lame as she claimed it to be, she’d dressed for it, too, in a black skirt, sandals, and V-neck T-shirt.
    â€œSo lame,” I said. “We’re
forced
to be here. How wrong is that?”
    Alison rolled her eyes at us, grinning. “Stop it! It’s Homecoming week. It only happens once a year, so embrace it. Stop whining and just enjoy it. It’s a bonfire. Have fun!”
    My eyes met