Chapter 5
TRU
We walked into that closet as best friends, but only one of us walked out pretending nothing had changed.
I hated parties.
Not just because of the noise or the stupid games or the way Lauren’s perfume made my throat itch. I hated them because I never knew how to be.
Where to sit. What to say. How to make my body shrink small enough that no one would notice I was the extra. The one who didn’t quite belong.
They all noticed anyway.
I wasn’t funny like Dare. I wasn’t bold, or charming, or cool. I was just… there. Quiet. Strange. The kid who made people glance once, then look away fast, as if they didn’t want to catch whatever made me different.
The only reason I was even invited to Lauren’s birthday party was because of Dare. And the only reason I stayed was that he didn’t leave my side.
He made it easier to breathe, at least for a little while.
We swam, ate pizza, and split a bottle of orange soda even though there was plenty to go around. Lauren asked him to pick the music, and I pretended I liked it, even though I didn’t. And I laughed when he made faces behind Lauren’s back every time she touched his arm.
It almost felt normal. Almost felt like us.
Until one girl yelled, “Let’s play truth or dare!”
And just like that, my stomach bottomed out.
I should’ve said no. Should’ve slipped away and pretended I had offered to help clean up or something. But Dare was already grinning, already plopping down in the circle as if this was the best part of the night.
So I followed. And of course, because the universe is cruel, someone said, “Tru goes first.”
I froze, my heart beating in my ears. “Uh… truth.”
Groans all around. “Lame,” one girl muttered.
Lauren leaned forward, smirking through her glossy lips. “Okay, fine. Who do you have a crush on?”
My lungs locked up. This wasn’t a game, it was an interrogation! I stared down at the floor, feeling my throat close up. My mind scrambled for a name. Any name. But all I could think about was how Dare’s knee was barely an inch from mine because of how close he was. How exposed I suddenly felt.
But before I could answer, Dare spoke.
“My turn,” he said quickly. “Let’s make it interesting. Ask me anything.”
I didn’t notice I’d been holding my breath until it slipped out in a shaky rush.
Lauren rolled her eyes. “I’d rather you take the dare. Spin the can. Whoever it lands on, you have to kiss.”
Dare just smirked. “That’s it?”
He snapped the soda can with his fingers, and it spun, rattling loud enough to drown out the laughter. Everyone leaned in, holding their breath. I prayed it wouldn’t land on Lauren and her pack of hyenas. I prayed even harder that it wouldn’t land on me.
The can slowed, wobbled… and when it stopped, the tab pointed straight at me.
Laughter exploded. Shrieking. One girl clapped her hands like it was the funniest thing she’d ever seen. I could barely hear over the buzzing in my ears.
“Oh my God,” someone squealed. “You have to kiss Tru!”
I wanted to disappear.
Dare looked stunned. He wasn’t smiling anymore. He reached out to spin again, but Lauren said, “Nope. You already spun. That’s who it landed on.”
“It’s fine,” I said, though my voice cracked so hard it gave me away. My skin turned slick and prickly, heat creeping up my neck like I’d been caught doing something wrong.
One girl grinned. “You could go in the closet. If you don’t want an audience.”
More laughter. This was the punchline to some private joke. Dare’s jaw clenched.
Then he stood up, brushed imaginary dust off his swim trunks, and said, “Whatever. Let’s go.” His voice was cool, but his eyes burned, daring anyone to laugh again.
He reached for my hand, and I took it gratefully. It was warm, solid, and reassuring. A familiar anchor when everything around me was falling away.
I followed him down the hallway, surrounded by teasing voices and whispers behind hands. Someone called out, “We’re counting! Five minutes!”
Dare rolled his eyes. “We’ll kiss. Chill.”
He pulled me into the coat closet, and the door shut behind us with a solid click, plunging us into darkness. The only light was a sliver creeping in beneath the door.
We sank into a sitting position, facing each other. The closet was so cramped that our knees folded on top of each other’s.
I recognized the clean mix of fabric softener and leather. Someone’s winter coat tickled the back of my neck. Dare’s shallow breaths cut through the darkness.
Could he hear my heart pounding? Because I could hear his.
Or maybe that was mine echoing in my ears.
We didn’t speak at first. Just sat there, stunned, listening to the distant voices outside the door. Laughter. A countdown. The bass line of a song pulsing through the floorboards.
He leaned back against the wall, arms crossed, eyes closed, wanting to be anywhere else. I didn’t know what to say. Didn’t know how to sit without touching him, and didn’t really want to try.
“So,” I whispered.
He cracked an eye open. “So.”
“We’re really doing this?”
He shrugged, his gaze landing on everything except me. “We just have to pretend.”
“Pretend?”
“Yeah. Make it sound good. Come out blushing or whatever with messy hair.”
“Right.”
I nodded slowly, but my mouth dried up like I’d swallowed sand. Heat crawled up my neck, making my ears ring.
“Do you think they’ll know if we don’t actually kiss?” I asked, barely louder than a breath.
Dare finally looked at me. Right at me. “Probably.”
I nodded again, biting my lip. My chest tightened, and a sick feeling swirled in my stomach, making me second-guess that pizza.
“Maybe we should,” I suggested.
His brow furrowed. “Should what?”
“Actually kiss.”
He blinked, as if he hadn’t heard me right.
“You know,” I mumbled, throat tight, “just in case.”
The words hung there, heavy and impossible to take back.
His voice dropped, rougher than before. “You want to?”
I couldn’t lie. “I don’t know,” I said honestly. “But I don’t want them laughing at you. Or me.” Not that they already didn’t.
He breathed out in a rush. “Yeah. Okay. Just a quick one.”
I leaned in before I could talk myself out of it.
He met me halfway. “Your breath smells like pepperoni,” he whispered, making me snort despite my nerves.
The kiss was awkward, nervous, barely there. More a brush of lips than anything. But it lit something in me, something sharp and sweet and terrifying.
I jerked back too fast, heart pounding so hard it hurt. We didn’t speak. Didn’t move. And then he did something I never saw coming, something that stole the air right out of my lungs.
He leaned in again.
And this time, it was a kiss. A real one. It burned every thought out of my head and replaced them with fire.
Dare’s hand brushed the side of my face, leaving a trail of heat on my skin. His lips lingered longer, and my mouth watered. His breath hitched like he felt it too. And just for a second, the world outside the closet stopped existing.
Just for a moment, it was perfect.
Then he pulled back like he’d been burned. Dare flailed, and his hand landed right in my lap. It was the first time my body had ever responded that way, hardening, throbbing, without me touching it. And Dare felt everything.
We sat in the dark, not looking at each other. Not even breathing.
A voice called out from the hallway, “Time’s up!”
The closet door creaked open, spilling light across the floor. Dare stood before I did, pushing out without a glance over his shoulder. No hand offered this time.
And I already knew something had changed.
We’d crossed a line we couldn’t uncross. Thirteen was too young to understand what it meant, but old enough to know I’d never forget it.
He kissed me like it mattered and walked away like it hadn’t.