Chapter 3
The first week of school was tiring, even though it was fun to catch up with everyone I hadn’t seen for months.
It’s finally Saturday, and Paige and I are trying to find something to do today.
We stayed up all night burning CDs. We wanted to make CDs with all our favorite songs to listen to in the car.
My favorite is “Summer Nights” by Lil Rob.
Even though the summer is about to end, it always makes cruising in a car so much more enjoyable.
“What should we do today?” I ask Paige.
She flips a page in her issue of Cosmopolitan magazine.
My mom thinks they’re trashy because it talks about stuff someone my age shouldn’t be reading; she banned me from reading them.
The ban hasn’t stopped me from reading Paige’s magazines, though.
Mom just won’t buy them for me. I’ve actually learned a lot between the pages of Cosmopolitan.
Yes, there are articles about sex, but it’s not all about sex.
I’ve learned a lot about skincare, fashion, and makeup. It’s not all bad.
“Should we go to the mall and meet some guys?”
The only guy I’ve been wanting to meet up with is Kai. I’ve seen him around school here and there, and we say hi when we pass each other in the halls. He hasn’t tried to talk to me again. I haven’t tried speaking to him either, though, but shouldn’t the guy try more than the girl?
“Maybe we’ll run into Kai. You still haven’t talked to him?”
I shake my head.
“I don’t want to go to the mall again. We’ve spent all summer there.”
“Who are you and what have you done with my friend?”
I laugh. “Come on. You can’t tell me you’re not sick of it.”
She sits up on my bed and throws the magazine away from her. “Then what does Ms. Too-good-to-go-to-a-mall want to do?”
“Shut up. It’s just a mall. It’s always going to be there.”
“Why don’t you call Kai? Doesn’t he have a car? He could pick us up.”
I stand up and move to sit on my floor in front of the tall mirror; it’s way easier to apply makeup using this mirror.
“I’m not sure if he has a car. I assumed he does since he’s a senior.
” Grabbing my Maybelline Mousse Foundation, I dip my fingers into the makeup and glide it onto my face with both hands.
Its light, whipped cream texture makes my face look flawless—even if it’s a shade or two too dark.
“We haven’t even talked since the first day of school. And I don’t have his number.”
Paige sighs and rolls over onto her back, making herself more comfortable on my bed. “You know, if you want to get laid, take down the glow-in-the-dark stars on your ceiling.”
I grab my blush brush and chuck it at her. “Who says I’m going to get laid?”
“I’m just saying. It looks like a little kid still sleeps in here.”
I’ve had those glow-in-the-dark stars since I was little. It was a big thing for kids growing up. They don’t bother me. I hardly notice they’re there.
I grab my lighter and melt the tip of my black eyeliner before drawing it around my eyes. “Let’s go to Sonic and get a drink.”
Sonic is the place to hang out on the weekends.
Everyone lines their cars up side by side.
We all walk around talking to each other.
Sometimes fights break out. One time, there was a girl who literally yanked a fistful of another girl’s hair out of her head.
That wasn’t even the worst of it. The girl that got her haired yanked out was sitting in the passenger seat of a car and the car drove off while the other girl had her hair wrapped in her fist. It still makes me cringe when I think about it.
“Fine.” Paige comes and sits next to me, and starts doing her makeup. “Sonic, it is.”
“What can I get for you guys?” the waitress on roller skates asks. I could never do her job. I would fall right on my ass with food in my hand, and the food would go flying and fall right on top of me.
“Can I get a small blue coconut cream slush?” I ask.
“I’ll have the same,” Paige says.
The waitress nods as she writes down our order.
“Should we get some tater tots?” I ask Paige.
“Sure.”
“One small order of tater tots.”
“Coming right up,” she says and skates off.
It’s only eight o’clock, and only a few people have shown up. The sun is setting. It makes me sad when it sets early because that tells you the cold is coming.
My mom had to drop us off because she had plans with her friends and needed the car. It’s not like she lets me borrow it, though. She still doesn’t trust me. At least Paige’s mom trusts her. Paige’s mom had plans tonight too, so we couldn’t use hers.
“Have you talked to Jace?”
Jace is the guy Paige has been seeing off and on for the past year.
I don’t see how they can do it. They date, break up, date other people, and then get back together.
She lost her virginity to him. I heard it’s hard to get over the one that you lose your virginity to.
That’s most likely why they go through this vicious cycle. Paige won’t admit it, though.
“No,” she mumbles. I can tell she doesn’t want to talk about him.
“Why don’t we find another guy for you?”
Wide-eyed, she says, “That’s a great idea. Let’s look right now.”
We both chuckle and look around at the few guys around.
“Yeah, let’s wait for more people to show up.” She says.
I giggle in agreement.
A couple of hours later, the parking lot fills up. We’ve been walking around talking to everyone.
“Hey, Blakely,” I hear behind me. When I look over my shoulder, I find Jace standing there by himself.
“Oh, hi.”
“Have you seen Paige?”
Does she want me to tell him she’s here? I’m sure he knows she is here. We’re always together. “We split up a little bit ago. I haven’t seen her.”
He drops his head and walks away without another word. Poor guy.
As I turn back around, I see Kai in the corner of my eye.
He’s talking to a group of girls. My heart pangs with jealousy.
Why should I be jealous? There is nothing to be jealous about.
I’m about to turn my back on him, when I notice he is staring right at me.
Ugh, I don’t want him to know I saw him.
As I turn around, I notice a girl named Allison that I go to school with.
She’s deep in conversation with a group of people, so I jump into it to distract myself.
“No way! Your parents let you do that?” I’m not sure what she’s even talking about.
Something about her spending the night at a guy’s house during the summer.
Her bleach-blonde hair hangs a couple inches off her shoulders.
If you ask me, it’s always yellow, but she obsesses over the fact that she bleaches it herself at home.
Her fake orange tan and zebra print attire are staples for her—oh, and her big hoop earrings.
She’s the type of girl that every guy tries to hook up with.
By hook up with I mean one-night stands.
She is not the type of girl you take home to your parents.
What’s even more sad is she knows how people think of her, and she wears it with pride.
A lot of girls have problems with her. I’ve never had an issue with her, so I continue talking to her here and there.
“They don’t know,” she says sarcastically.
Geez, sorry.
“Hey.”
My whole body freezes at the sound of Kai’s voice.
Allison’s eyes go wide as she looks past me. Damn it. Now she’s checking him out.
“Hey. When did you get here?” I ask.
“Just now. Why didn’t you come over? I know you saw me,” Kai says with a smirk.
Allison pushes her way through the crowd and stands shoulder-to-shoulder with me. “Hey, I’m Allison.”
What the fuck is she doing?
“Hi,” Kai says, giving her no attention at all.
Hmm. Interesting. Allison is one of those girls that all the guys drool over. Not him. He seems different.
“Do you want to walk with me?”
“S-sure,” I stutter. I need to get over this shyness if I’m ever going to have something with him.
“When did you get here?” he asks, sipping his slush. The smell of the slush has a strong, distinct odor. I wonder what flavor he got.
“A couple of hours ago. It’s barely picking up.” I wiggle my nose at the smell of his cup. “Do you come here often?”
“Sometimes. Usually just when my brother comes or when he lets me borrow his car.”
“Oh. You have a brother?”
That’s perfect. Paige could date his brother, and I could date Kai.
“Yeah. He’s older than me.”
“How old is he?”
“Twenty.”
The people who come to hang out here are all of different ages. No one usually asks me my age. I’ve been told I look older than I am. “What flavor of slush did you get?”
He gives me a side-eye. “Wanna try it?”
“Sure.” The second the gulp hits the back of my throat, something burns, and I gag. I’m trying to catch my breath through all the coughs. Tears are burning my eyes.
Kai laughs as he takes the cup from me and sips it. “You weren’t supposed to take a gulp.”
I don’t think it matters how small of a gulp I make; that shit is nasty. “What the hell is that?” I ask, wiping the tears from my eyes.
“It’s vodka.”
My brows rise toward my hairline. Vodka? Ew!
“You’ve never drank before?” he questions.
I’ve had sips of my mom’s drinks when she’s not looking. I’m not telling him that, though. “I have. I guess I was a little caught off guard since I didn’t know what was in there.”
He chuckles. “Do you want to go to a party with me later?”
“What time?”
“We’ll probably head over there soon.”
The time on my phone reads 11:00. My mom wanted me home by midnight.
“If you have to be home, it’s cool,” he says.
“What time do you have to be home?” I ask him.
He shrugs his shoulders. “Whenever my brother drops me back off. I stay with him and his friend at their apartment. That’s where the party is.”
“Your parents don’t care?”
“My mom’s the only person I answer to, but she doesn’t know what we do exactly. She thinks we play video games all night. But I sort of live with my brother now.”
Lucky. I wish I had an older sister to do stuff like that with. I am the older sister, and I don’t know if I would want to hang out with my little sister when I’m older. They must be close.
“So, what do you say? You want to come?”
I watch the crowd in silence. I guess I could tell my mom I’m sleeping at Paige’s. But then my mom is going to want to talk to her mom. If Paige asks her mom if she can sleep at my house, her mom will want to talk to mine.
“I might have to sneak out…” I say, unsure.
“Have you ever snuck out before?” he asks after seeing the uncertain expression on my face.
The night we took Paige’s mom’s car replays in my head. I’m not going to tell him how that ended. “Yes,” I say.
“Then sneak out and come with me.”
“Okay. But can I invite my friend?” Great, how am I going to sneak out?
“The one you’re always with?”
I nod.
“Yeah. I can pick you guys up later.” He hands me his Sidekick cell phone. “Put your number in my phone.”
“Okay.” I type in my number with shaking fingers. God. Why do I have to be so nervous around him?
“Put your name under beautiful,” he says.
Heat rises in my cheeks. I give the phone back to him without saving a name. “If you think I'm beautiful, you can type it.”
I lean over to see if he’s seriously going to do it, and sure enough, he does. I bite my bottom lip. I don’t want him to know it has such a big effect on me.
“I gotta go. Text me when you’re ready, and I’ll come get you.”
“Okay.” He reaches in and hugs me, and goosebumps raise on my arms.