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“Yeah, see you.”
I stood frozen, watching him walk away from me and doing everything in my power to not call out to him and ask him to stay.
15
LARK
It was Sunday night,Star was in bed, and I used the ladder to climb up to the roof of our mobile home, where I felt like I could do my best thinking. Sort of how Henry felt about the bell tower. I’d almost made the comparison to him, but then I’d have to talk about living in a trailer park, and I was being stubbornly private about that. I knew there was nothing to be ashamed of; this was our home, and we were doing the best we could. But I’d been feeling raw and vulnerable enough as it was when Henry melted my brain with those amazing kisses.
“I’ve kissed girls, but never a guy…unless you count me and you saying goodbye at the hospital.”
Before I could sink any further into my Henry thoughts, I heard shuffling from down below.
“You there?” Pete asked.
“Yup. Come on up.”
It’d been our thing in high school, especially when we needed time away from our families or to hash something out. Pete appeared a few seconds later, and once he got himself situated on the blanket, we sat silently for a minute, just looking at the stars.
“Well, how was last night?” He smirked. “Are you a proper Roosevelt snob now?”
“Ugh.” I placed my face in my hands.
He squeezed my shoulder. “That bad?”
“Only parts of it. But also, so fucking good.” I sighed dreamily.
“Okay, no more beating around the bush. Tell me everything.”
“Well, the football game was as good as you could imagine,” I deadpanned. “Except for the tight uniforms.”
He laughed and nudged my shoulder. “Maybe I should’ve tagged along just to spy on the cheerleaders.” When I rolled my eyes, he said, “What? How is that any different from what you just said?”
“Touché.” I crisscrossed my legs to get more comfortable. “Anyway, there was a party at the clubhouse afterward, the place where the players hang out.”
“Christ, it’s like high school all over again.”
“Pretty much.” My cheeks felt warm as I admitted, “And I had eaten an edible.”
“Look at you being all daring,” he teased, probably because I would never take more than a couple of sips of any drinks in high school. I didn’t want to give Mom anything to worry about. So maybe Henry and I had that in common. “So, how was the party?”
I shrugged. “Okay, I guess. We danced, which was fun, but it was crowded. Plus, Mr. Popular Quarterback had one of your cheerleaders on his lap some of the time.”
He scoffed. “Yep, exactly like high school.”
“But I started feeling hot and clammy and went outside to get some air,” I said, not acknowledging it might’ve been the edible, “and all of a sudden Henry was there, asking me if I was okay.”
“So he dumped the cheerleader to go after you?”
“Something like that.” I hadn’t really thought of it that way until right then. No wonder his friends had come looking for him.
“Okay, the anticipation is killing me. He’s obviously…what? Concerned about you? Into you?”
My entire face heated. “Maybe I shouldn’t—”
“Hey, this is me. No way I’d breathe a word—not that I’d ever meet this guy or anyone else from Roosevelt. Plus, my best friend needs me right now.”
I exhaled in relief because he was right. I needed to talk to someone before I combusted. “Well, we walked to his favorite secluded spot on campus, and there was talking and eventually…kissing.”
