them. We finally just got them to grow back. How is your makeup?”
I laugh. “I did everything you told me to do, Yoda.”
“Good,” Brooke says. “She says she's ready,” she adds to someone else.
“Who's over?” I ask.
“Hallie,” Brooke says. “My brother is going to the crash-up derby in Riverhead tonight, so he's going to drop us off at Boulder Creek Steakhouse.”
This is what happens when you live this far out on the fork. The closest chain restaurant you can go to is Boulder Creek in Riverhead, which is about twenty-five minutes away. What I wouldn't do for a Chili's.
“Good luck, Charlie!” Hallie yells from the background.
“Are you nervous?” Brooke asks.
“A little,” I admit. “What if I can't stop talking? Or I trip? I'll be mortified.”
“You won't trip,” Brooke says firmly. “Not tonight. This isn't Milk and Sugar. You're going to be calm and funny and act like the Charlie we know and love.”
“Okay,” I say as my breathing starts to get more rapid by the minute. Fine, I am nervous. Very nervous! I have liked Zac for months and I can't believe he actually asked me out.
Me
. That never happens. At least it's never happened to me before now. It happens to Hallie all the time. And it has always happened to Bella. But me? The boy I like usually never likes me back. “I think I'm going to throw up,” I say weakly.
“You can't,” Brooke insists. “You'll smell bad all night! No nerves. You didn't eat, did you? So then you have nothing to throw up.”
“You're right,” I squeak. “But Brooke?”
“No! No freak-outs, Charlie, you can do this! We know you can, and call us on one of our cells afterwards, okay? We want every detail,” Brooke says.
A familiar song makes me jump. It's our doorbell, which is as old-fashioned as everything else in this house. I hear footsteps and know Mom is heading to the door.
“It's him!” Brooke freaks. “GO! Before your mom tries to show him her rooster collection.”
“Talk to you later,” I say hurriedly, then hang up and throw the phone on the couch.
“So, Zac, you're a junior?” I hear my mom say and I pick up my pace. Oh no. Oh no. Please don't let her ask something about his SAT scores or where he wants to go to college. “What made you choose there?” she says next. Shoot! I dart around the dining room table and slow down before they can see me in the entranceway. Unfortunately I slow down too late and my foot slips on an area rug. I fly forward and Zac catches me mid-fall.
“Hey,” he says with a soft smile. How come I never noticed the freckles on his nose?
“Hi,” I say back, feeling myself blush. Zac still has his arms around me. I'm vaguely aware of my mom watching this whole exchange with much amusement. Zac lets go, but the two of us stand there staring at each other. He looks good. His hair is damp, probably from a recent shower, and his curls are super shiny. He's wearing jeans, just like me, but he also has on a dress shirt that is half open, revealing a navy tee. But it's those blue eyes, once again, that stop me dead in my tracks. I still can't believe they're looking at me right now.
“Charlotte, I keep telling you not to run around the table like that,” Mom scolds. “That's how she knocked out her two front teeth when she was seven.”
“Time to go,” I say and Zac laughs.
We head toward the door and Mom yells out, “Have fun! Nice meeting you, Zac. I hope we see you again.”
“I hope so too, Mrs. Reed,” Zac says as he closes the door behind us.
The night air is cool, but not cold, and my spring trench coat is all I need to keep warm. I got it at the Gap outlet just last week and have been dying to wear it. Navy is one of my favorite colors, and I love how the coat makes me look sort of like a college student. I awkwardly stick my hands in the pockets.
“So, which movie do you want to see?” I ask, even though I know. I checked the times myself. 8:10 or 9:45. It's rare to find
I laugh. “I did everything you told me to do, Yoda.”
“Good,” Brooke says. “She says she's ready,” she adds to someone else.
“Who's over?” I ask.
“Hallie,” Brooke says. “My brother is going to the crash-up derby in Riverhead tonight, so he's going to drop us off at Boulder Creek Steakhouse.”
This is what happens when you live this far out on the fork. The closest chain restaurant you can go to is Boulder Creek in Riverhead, which is about twenty-five minutes away. What I wouldn't do for a Chili's.
“Good luck, Charlie!” Hallie yells from the background.
“Are you nervous?” Brooke asks.
“A little,” I admit. “What if I can't stop talking? Or I trip? I'll be mortified.”
“You won't trip,” Brooke says firmly. “Not tonight. This isn't Milk and Sugar. You're going to be calm and funny and act like the Charlie we know and love.”
“Okay,” I say as my breathing starts to get more rapid by the minute. Fine, I am nervous. Very nervous! I have liked Zac for months and I can't believe he actually asked me out.
Me
. That never happens. At least it's never happened to me before now. It happens to Hallie all the time. And it has always happened to Bella. But me? The boy I like usually never likes me back. “I think I'm going to throw up,” I say weakly.
“You can't,” Brooke insists. “You'll smell bad all night! No nerves. You didn't eat, did you? So then you have nothing to throw up.”
“You're right,” I squeak. “But Brooke?”
“No! No freak-outs, Charlie, you can do this! We know you can, and call us on one of our cells afterwards, okay? We want every detail,” Brooke says.
A familiar song makes me jump. It's our doorbell, which is as old-fashioned as everything else in this house. I hear footsteps and know Mom is heading to the door.
“It's him!” Brooke freaks. “GO! Before your mom tries to show him her rooster collection.”
“Talk to you later,” I say hurriedly, then hang up and throw the phone on the couch.
“So, Zac, you're a junior?” I hear my mom say and I pick up my pace. Oh no. Oh no. Please don't let her ask something about his SAT scores or where he wants to go to college. “What made you choose there?” she says next. Shoot! I dart around the dining room table and slow down before they can see me in the entranceway. Unfortunately I slow down too late and my foot slips on an area rug. I fly forward and Zac catches me mid-fall.
“Hey,” he says with a soft smile. How come I never noticed the freckles on his nose?
“Hi,” I say back, feeling myself blush. Zac still has his arms around me. I'm vaguely aware of my mom watching this whole exchange with much amusement. Zac lets go, but the two of us stand there staring at each other. He looks good. His hair is damp, probably from a recent shower, and his curls are super shiny. He's wearing jeans, just like me, but he also has on a dress shirt that is half open, revealing a navy tee. But it's those blue eyes, once again, that stop me dead in my tracks. I still can't believe they're looking at me right now.
“Charlotte, I keep telling you not to run around the table like that,” Mom scolds. “That's how she knocked out her two front teeth when she was seven.”
“Time to go,” I say and Zac laughs.
We head toward the door and Mom yells out, “Have fun! Nice meeting you, Zac. I hope we see you again.”
“I hope so too, Mrs. Reed,” Zac says as he closes the door behind us.
The night air is cool, but not cold, and my spring trench coat is all I need to keep warm. I got it at the Gap outlet just last week and have been dying to wear it. Navy is one of my favorite colors, and I love how the coat makes me look sort of like a college student. I awkwardly stick my hands in the pockets.
“So, which movie do you want to see?” I ask, even though I know. I checked the times myself. 8:10 or 9:45. It's rare to find
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