didn’t,” Kate said in the same moment I asked, “Told me what?”
Kate and Jessa had a staring match, and possibly an entire conversation with their eyebrows that I couldn’t decipher. “Why don’t you go collect the others, and then we can go for ice cream after Corinna and I clean this mess up?” Kate said slowly and deliberately.
Jessa nodded quickly, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Duly noted.” She turned tail and walked out of the change room without a glance back.
“What was that about?” I asked, pulling a face at Kate. Instead of responding, Kate walked up to me and pressed her mouth to mine in a soft, dry kiss. I blinked and it was over. She rocked back on her heels, pulling away. “And what was that about?” I repeated, not even caring about the first thing anymore.
“Since we have school on your real birthday, we’re having your party today. You’re getting an ice cream cake. Brandon and his friend have gone to pick it up.”
“Robert,” I corrected instinctively. “And I meant—why’d you kiss me?”
“Every girl should be kissed on her birthday,” Kate said sweetly, and then bent down and swept the mess of supplies back into the first aid kit. “It’s like, a rule.” She clicked the box shut with a resounding noise. “Besides,” she continued, not looking at me. “I wanted to test something.”
“And?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest and suddenly feeling very exposed in a thin white dress covering my two-piece bathing suit. “What was the result of your experiment?”
“I proved my hypothesis.” Kate turned to me, finally, and I could see that she was smiling. “I mean, I don’t think I’m ready to, like, take you to prom or anything. But—yeah. I, um… I don’t have to be high not to mind.”
“I don’t mind either,” I said. She took my hand briefly and squeezed it before we left the change room together. We sat next to each other at the ice cream shop where I pretended to be surprised about my ice cream cake, and in the back of Jessa’s car on the long drive home her bare knee was pressed against my bare knee, and I didn’t move my knee even though I could have. Because I didn’t mind.
(I got a real kiss on my real birthday too, the next morning before school. I didn’t mind that either.)
June 26th
A FTER TAKING a staggering number of photographs inside the limousine, and a good dozen more outside of it, we finally made it to prom. We barely made it through the door before there were more photographs, taken by a professional photographer: groups, couples, groups of couples. We got a few of the six of us, and some with just us four girls. Kate took one with me and then one with Jessa, and I took one with Ricky making dumb faces. We left Jessa and Brandon to take a million cutesy shots together and wandered into the ballroom.
The theme of our prom was Starry Night, and the prom committee had committed . The ceiling was hung with black paper and faerie lights glued into constellations and the tables were covered in star-shaped confetti. Cardboard stars adorned every chair, construction paper stars were taped to the walls, plastic stars hung from the ceiling; and stars made from every medium were stuck in every inch and corner of the rented room.
“It’s so gaudy,” Kate said, her voice sounding awed. She raised her camera and snapped a shot of the whole room, which was filling up quickly with our classmates. “I love it.”
“The prom committee really committed to the theme,” I agreed.
“The prom committee should be committed,” Kate laughed, spinning around in her ridiculously high heels taking pictures of everything. “Smile, Cor!”
I quirked up my lips on demand just as Jessa bounded up behind me and put her arms around my neck, grinning wildly for the photo. “I photobombed you!” she crowed, laughing daintily.
The prom committee played a video during dinner, the usual photos and video clips set to overplayed
Kate and Jessa had a staring match, and possibly an entire conversation with their eyebrows that I couldn’t decipher. “Why don’t you go collect the others, and then we can go for ice cream after Corinna and I clean this mess up?” Kate said slowly and deliberately.
Jessa nodded quickly, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Duly noted.” She turned tail and walked out of the change room without a glance back.
“What was that about?” I asked, pulling a face at Kate. Instead of responding, Kate walked up to me and pressed her mouth to mine in a soft, dry kiss. I blinked and it was over. She rocked back on her heels, pulling away. “And what was that about?” I repeated, not even caring about the first thing anymore.
“Since we have school on your real birthday, we’re having your party today. You’re getting an ice cream cake. Brandon and his friend have gone to pick it up.”
“Robert,” I corrected instinctively. “And I meant—why’d you kiss me?”
“Every girl should be kissed on her birthday,” Kate said sweetly, and then bent down and swept the mess of supplies back into the first aid kit. “It’s like, a rule.” She clicked the box shut with a resounding noise. “Besides,” she continued, not looking at me. “I wanted to test something.”
“And?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest and suddenly feeling very exposed in a thin white dress covering my two-piece bathing suit. “What was the result of your experiment?”
“I proved my hypothesis.” Kate turned to me, finally, and I could see that she was smiling. “I mean, I don’t think I’m ready to, like, take you to prom or anything. But—yeah. I, um… I don’t have to be high not to mind.”
“I don’t mind either,” I said. She took my hand briefly and squeezed it before we left the change room together. We sat next to each other at the ice cream shop where I pretended to be surprised about my ice cream cake, and in the back of Jessa’s car on the long drive home her bare knee was pressed against my bare knee, and I didn’t move my knee even though I could have. Because I didn’t mind.
(I got a real kiss on my real birthday too, the next morning before school. I didn’t mind that either.)
June 26th
A FTER TAKING a staggering number of photographs inside the limousine, and a good dozen more outside of it, we finally made it to prom. We barely made it through the door before there were more photographs, taken by a professional photographer: groups, couples, groups of couples. We got a few of the six of us, and some with just us four girls. Kate took one with me and then one with Jessa, and I took one with Ricky making dumb faces. We left Jessa and Brandon to take a million cutesy shots together and wandered into the ballroom.
The theme of our prom was Starry Night, and the prom committee had committed . The ceiling was hung with black paper and faerie lights glued into constellations and the tables were covered in star-shaped confetti. Cardboard stars adorned every chair, construction paper stars were taped to the walls, plastic stars hung from the ceiling; and stars made from every medium were stuck in every inch and corner of the rented room.
“It’s so gaudy,” Kate said, her voice sounding awed. She raised her camera and snapped a shot of the whole room, which was filling up quickly with our classmates. “I love it.”
“The prom committee really committed to the theme,” I agreed.
“The prom committee should be committed,” Kate laughed, spinning around in her ridiculously high heels taking pictures of everything. “Smile, Cor!”
I quirked up my lips on demand just as Jessa bounded up behind me and put her arms around my neck, grinning wildly for the photo. “I photobombed you!” she crowed, laughing daintily.
The prom committee played a video during dinner, the usual photos and video clips set to overplayed
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