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didn’t hear? Polly did me a solid and made sure to leak the secret to the chattiest of the cheerleaders so word would get around by game time. I’m surprised you don’t know.”
“I skipped my classes this afternoon to work on the sculpture,” I said, widening my eyes. “No one told me anything.”
Now that I thought about it, my phone had buzzed quite a few times while I was working. But I’d assumed that was just Mandy and Audrey checking up on me. What else had I missed?
His lips curled into a teasing smile. “You? Mother Trina, skipped class? Alert the media. Call the police. We’ve got a juvenile delinquent on our hands.”
I pounded lightly on his chest with my fist, frustration swirling in my stomach. “What news? Did the scans come back? Are you going to be okay?”
His grin dissolved into a serious frown. Cradling my head with his hands, he leaned down until he was at eye level with me. “Trina, there’s no cancer. The scans came back normal. My bloodwork, too. It was a false alarm. My mom got the news this morning.”
Relief spread through me like an opened can of white oil paint dropped onto the floor. It spread to my limbs and shot out my fingertips. I gasped with joy, holding tight to the front of his jersey.
“That’s the best news I’ve ever heard in my entire life.”
An amused grin played on his lips as he tilted his head sideways. “You really didn’t know?”
“I would’ve tackled you on that court during the middle of the game if I’d have known.”
It was true. I wouldn’t have been able to hold in my joy. Mason was safe! He was healthy and wonderful and all mine. I couldn’t believe what a day it’d been. The last fifteen hours felt like fifteen years.
Mason dipped his head and pressed a tantalizing kiss to the hollow beneath my ear. His warm breath on the side of my neck made me shiver with all kinds of longing. “You know, I kind of wish you would’ve tackled me on that court. It really would’ve given the RockValleyBiz something to talk about.”
I giggled at the ridiculous image. I’m not sure either of our parents would’ve appreciated that kind of display, but the school definitely would’ve eaten it up.
A moment later, the sound of the crowd bursting into the back parking lot split the quiet. Oh yeah. I’d forgotten about the rest of the school. The few minutes we’d had in the perfect night air had made it feel like we were the only two left on Earth.
“So...about that sunrise?” Mason glanced meaningfully at my car as a few people gleefully shouted his name from across the parking lot. They were obviously still celebrating. “Want to get out of here?”
I nodded and jangled the keys. “I want that more than anything. Let’s go.”
His eyes crinkled in a teasing smile. “See? It’s not that hard to tell me what you want. You’re already getting better.”
“Ha!” I pushed him playfully before running around to the driver’s side door.
As soon as the doors unlocked, we both slid into our seats. And when the car was in drive, my wheels pointed toward the highway, Mason took my hand and wove his fingers through mine.
“We’ve got a few hours until sunrise,” I said, smiling over at him. I couldn’t believe my good luck. It felt like a dream to have him sitting next to me, his thumb tracing lazy circles over the back of my hand. “Any ideas of what we should do till then?”
He threw me a crooked grin. “Spin-the-bottle?”
My stomach clenched in response and my laugh came out all nervous-sounding. “You’re funny. My friend Charley is going to freak when she meets you. You’ve got to come with me to her celebration tomorrow morning. It’s her last chemo treatment.”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” he said, bringing my hand up to his mouth to brush his lips across my knuckles in a soft kiss.
And as we drove off in search of the night, I sighed happily. The last couple of weeks had changed me in ways I didn’t think possible. I hoped that in at least one way, I was a little less naive and maybe even a little wiser.
Yes, I still wanted everyone to find their slice of happiness — that would never change. But for the first time, I was able to see the possibility in my own needs. And how important it was to be honest with myself about what I wanted.
And right now, that included the boy sitting on the passenger side of my car in his basketball jersey, looking at me as if I were the most beautiful girl alive. No longer was I afraid of senior year coming to an end. The future was an amazing thing and full of possibilities — for both me and my point guard.
Epilogue
Mandy
“What if they hate it? What if everyone boos? What if the rest of the school grabs their pitchforks and chases me out of town?”
I held back a smile as Trina stared up at her sculpture, which had been installed on the lawn of Rock Valley High and was still wrapped in a pristine white cloth. The student council had decided to unveil it on today of all days — the Valentine’s day festival. It was a big deal, for both the single and coupled people in our school. Most of the funds raised went toward Prom.
