29. Chapter 29
Chapter 29
Sloane
S aying goodbye to Ky was really hard, but I remind myself that at least I'm not alone anymore and that makes me happy. I also have to wrap up my college applications before Christmas break is over, so as soon as he's gone, I get to work on them. After a couple of hours, I need a break, so I call Maggie.
"Hey!" I say as I hear her voice on the other end. "How was your Christmas?"
"It was pretty good, but we had to go see our dad." Maggie's parents had a rough divorce, and I know she still harbors ill feelings toward her dad. She's never really said what happened, but I think he cheated on her mom and that would make me mad at him, too.
"Ugh," I groan. "I know you didn't love that, but he is your dad."
"Yeah," she admits, then changes the subject. "Wait, did Ky come visit you yet?"
I fling myself back on my bed so that I'm staring at the ceiling. "Yeah. He only left a few hours ago and I miss him already."
"So, it was a good visit then?"
I bolt up on my bed. "Maggie, it was awesome! We have great chemistry. He's so cute, and I think he made a good impression on my parents. It just stinks that he lives so far away." I fling myself onto my back again.
"I bet," Maggie says. "Tell me all about it. What did you do while he was here?"
I fill Maggie in on every detail, and my pulse races when I tell her about our time alone together. As I'm telling her I remember what he said that freaked me out. "There are a couple of things, though," I start.
"Uh-oh," Maggie interrupts.
"The first one isn't that big of a deal. He's just kinda corny and not as mature as you would expect a nineteen-year-old to be. Like, I feel like Tyler is way more mature than him."
"You're still thinking about Tyler?"
I squirm a little. "Yeah, I guess so. I hate to compare the two, but Ky doesn't seem as…deep."
"Well, maybe he was just nervous?" Maggie suggests and I think it through. "What's the other thing?"
I inhale deeply. "So, we were making out on the sofa, and…he told me he loved me."
"What?" Maggie shouts through the phone so that I have to hold it away from my ear. "He said that so soon?"
I sit up and put the phone back to my ear and fidget with its spiral cord, wrapping it around my index finger. "Yeah, kinda weird right?"
"I mean, I don't have tons of experience in this department, but, yeah, I think it's kind of fast to be saying that." She pauses then says, "You don't think he was trying to get you to-"
"I actually thought about that," I tell her. "But, no, because he didn't push me to do anything more than kiss him. Besides, we were in my family room with my entire family right upstairs."
"What did you say?"
I inhale sharply. "I told him I love him too," I whine, my voice full of regret. I fling myself onto my back again and put my free hand on my forehead. "It's like my mouth took over, and it came flying out!"
"Sooo, you don't love him?" Maggie asks, her tone serious.
"No!" I bolt upright. "I mean, I don't think so." I pause "It's just, I really like him, and we have good chemistry, but I've spent all of, what? Maybe 48 hours total with him in person?"
"You've talked a ton on the phone, though, right?"
"Yeah, but, it's so new.”
"I agree," she says. "You haven't had time to figure out if you love him or not."
"Exactly," I say, feeling better that she understands. "It's not that I don't love him. I really like him, it's just too soon to know." I hear a click on the phone. "Hello?"
"I'm still here," Maggie says.
"Did you hear a click?"
"Yeah."
"Dang it!" I say as I feel my blood pressure rise. "I bet Bryn was eavesdropping." I fling myself back again. "Ugh!" I groan as I hold the phone away from my mouth.
Maggie chuckles. "Listen, try not to sweat it about the L-word thing and just see where this goes. I can tell you really like him, and it's cool that he thinks so highly of you since he said it out of how he was feeling and not an attempt to get you to…you know."
"Yeah," I say as I sit back up. I smile as the memories of our two days together warm me from the inside-out. "I just wish he went to our school or at least lived in the area."
"When do you think you'll get to see him again?"
"I don't know. He asked if I could come down to Thomasville, but I honestly don't think my parents will allow me to drive there by myself. He said he might be coming to more concerts up here, and if he does, I'm totally going to ask my parents if he can stay here so he doesn't have to drive back the same night."
"Well, that would be cool," Maggie says encouragingly.
"And," I say, "he's only two-and-a-half hours from Panama City, so I'm hoping he can meet me when we're on Spring Break."
"Ooh, that would be awesome," she says as her voice goes up an octave. "I really want to meet him."
This has me smiling widely now. "I know! Wouldn't it be amazing if he could meet us, even if just for a few days?" My mind starts to imagine how awesome it would be to hang out with Ky during Spring Break. "We could watch the sunset together, take walks on the beach hand-in-hand. I could spend all day with him while he's wearing nothing but board shorts…"
Maggie starts laughing. "I see you already have this planned out."
I giggle. "I finally have a boy, and I want to do all the little things I've dreamed about for so long."
"So, if you're already talking to him about Spring Break, have you thought about asking him to prom? It's only, like, a month and a half later."
I get excited just thinking about it. "I totally thought about it when he was here, but it's so far off, and I didn't want to scare him. I mean, he's nineteen and is out of high school. He may not want to go to a stupid prom."
"Sloane," Maggie says, her voice serious, "the guy just told you he loves you. If he loves you and things continue to go well for the next 4 months, there's no way he's not going to take you to your prom."
"You think?" I nervously fidget with the phone cord again.
"Absolutely," she says. "If he cares that much about you, he'll take you. Why would he want to let another guy take you to your prom?"
"I guess you're right," I agree. "Mags, this means that my dream of going to a school dance might actually happen!" I squeal a little as I think about doing all the things that I've missed out on so far as a high schooler: the dress, corsage, pictures taken by my parents, a limo, dinner, pictures at the dance, the actual dance. And, I think about having that tall, cute boy with the chin-length brown hair by my side as my smile goes as far across my face as possible.