My Senior Year of Awesome Page 10

  “Sadie, will you be responsible for me?” Colette pleads, pushing past Jana and grabbing my hand. Bringing a freshman to a senior party is never a good idea, especially the freshman daughter of a well-known attorney with a draconian code of conduct. Jana comprehends the risk of underage drinking. Colette is naive. If the police raid Dom’s house, she’d probably turn herself in while the rest of us jump out the closest window.

  “You know I love you, Colette, but no can do. Maybe another time.”

  “Like when you’re twenty-one. Ben’s driving us, anyway,” Jana informs her as she glops on mascara and blinks at her reflection in the mirror. “He doesn’t want to hang out with freshmen.” Secretly, I find it hard to believe that Ben would refuse a direct request from Jana if she chose to allow her sister to tag along. My best friend is high on her power tonight.

  “Oooh, Ben. Jana may finally snag herself a real boyfriend.” Colette puckers her lips, contorting her face into a fishy imitation of her older sister. “Wait until he finds out that you shave your legs twice a day because you’re so hairy.”

  Jana picks up an eyeliner pencil and holds it above her head, as if preparing to bury the sharp point in her Colette’s chest. “I just don’t like to be all scratchy like you are, you stinking brat.”

  The two of them launch into a stream of back and forth curses, mixing in French and Spanish words that one would think I’d understand after hanging out with Jana’s family for so long. But I still can’t wrap my ears around the flying gutter talk, so I take a seat on the bed and hunt around for some reading material. I hope Ben’s not waiting outside.

  The monthly quiz in Jana’s latest copy of Teen People is titled “Will you still be best friends in ten years?” I dog-ear the page and make a mental note to ask Jana to fill in her answers. After World War III dies down.

  A few minutes later, Mr. Rodriguez’s heavy footsteps ascend the stairs to break up the catfight. Before he reaches the third floor, Colette storms out, still screaming about Jana’s egomaniacal beauty regimen.

  I set down the magazine. “How does Colette know about Ben? Did I miss something?”

  Jana paces the room, still muttering trash talk. “Ben?” She smiles, as if his name is a magic word snapping her out of an evil spell. “Oh, right. Because she’s a nosy brat. She borrowed my phone after her battery died and went through my messages. Sorry, I didn’t tell you, but I didn’t want to upset you. He texts a few times a day.”

  “A few times a day?”

  Jana grins and grabs the nearest canopy post for balance as she steps into her boots. “Just to say hey. Checking in, mostly.”

  “And why would that upset me?”

  She looks up at me. “Because no one is texting you?” I note the way she carefully phrases the statement to sound like a question.

  “Do you think I want you to be unhappy, even if I die alone?”

  Jana consumes herself with a stuck zipper on her boot. “No.”

  “Guys have texted you to say hey before, and you’ve always felt the need to update me.”

  “You’re right. But this could be …”

  “Different?” I ask. “He could be the one?”

  “No, not the one,” Jana says, unconvincingly. “But, he could possibly stick around for more than six weeks.”

  Yikes. Jana’s on the verge of shattering her dating record.

  “Good for you. At least one of us is getting somewhere with social achievements.” I toss the magazine on the bed and wrap her into a fierce hug.

  I’m happy for her.

  Really. I am.

  Downstairs, the doorbell rings. Show time.

  “Be my shield?” Jana whispers. Over the years, I’ve become an expert at providing cover for her. I run down the stairs and excitedly greet Ben like he’s my date. Ben looks confused, so before he spits out any revealing information, I grab his arm and drag him past Mr. Rodriguez, who’s waiting to launch into a parental inquisition. Jana breathes a sigh of relief as she follows a few steps behind. Outside, I hop in the back of Ben’s family minivan, and Jana sits shotgun, nervously fiddling with the radio and shifting around in her seat, an ultra-wide smile painted on her face.

  So, Ben must text Jana more than he talks to her, because it’s a quiet ride through town. When we stop at a traffic light, Ben’s gaze drifts Jana’s way, as if his eyes aren’t completely under the control of his brain. I wonder if Jana senses his level of interest. If she did, my guess is that she wouldn’t be acting like she’d swallowed a handful of her Grandma’s happy pills.

  I settle back into the bench seat, fading into the dark. Hopefully, a few drinks will loosen Ben up and he’ll admit his true feelings. I know better than to expect him to fall to his knees and profess undying love, but at some point he needs to move beyond the sad puppy dog eyes or even someone as date-challenged as Jana will lose interest.

  Ben angles into a parking spot a few blocks north of Dom’s house, camouflaging the van between two similar family vehicles in the event police cruise through town in search of underage perpetrators. My heels dent the grass as we dash through the Altomeri’s neighborhood, stopping at Dom’s back door, where a handwritten sign informs us that tonight’s festivities are strictly BYOB.

  “Did Dom tell you to bring your own drinks?” Jana asks as we nudge our way through throngs of drunken friends greeting us with the Harmony High fight song. Apparently, it’s spirit night at Dom’s house. And the sign on the door hasn’t deterred the rest of our senior class from keeping poor Dom company.

  Over a rousing second verse of the anthem I holler, “He didn’t mention anything.”

  “No worries,” Ben says, unzipping the gym bag he’d carried in. “I brought a six pack. Here.” Jana and I each crack open a beer. The bitter smell mixes with a cigarette stench hanging in the air, wreaking havoc on my sensory system. My vision fogs, blurring the scene in front of me.

  “Cheers to Ben,” Jana says, clanking her can against mine. We take long sips, knowing we have a long way to go to catch up with everyone partying around us.

  “Cool, Sadie’s here.” Dom staggers into the kitchen, grabs my hand, and tows me along with him. He tosses his empty bottle into a recycling bin. With both hands free, he locks me in a bear hug. “You look amazing.”

  My face grows warm at his compliment even though I know it’s a booze-fueled statement. We cling to each other a little too tightly and a little too long. His excuse is the fact that he’s stinking drunk. I have no excuse other than my inability to suppress a desire to remain up close and personal to his kick ass abs. The ultra-toned, rock hard abs I’ve sat next to for over two months now.

  Post-shameless-hug, Dom snakes his arm around my waist and pulls me further away from Jana and Ben. Everyone in the kitchen quits talking and watches us go by. As soon as Dom realizes we have an audience, he kisses the top of my head, probably because it’s the closest part of my body to his lips. I breathe in the reek of alcohol and his cologne, strong enough to function as smelling salts if I happen to pass out.

  “I want to show you something,” Dom says, his words sounding slurry. “It’s upstairs. In my room.”

  I gulp. “Uh, okay.” I telegraph a look of panic to Jana, but she only smiles and rolls her eyes.

  Before I have time to formulate a list of the potential consequences of my actions, Dom leads me through a marble-tiled foyer with fresco painted walls, then up and around a spiral staircase. The second floor of the house is pitch dark.

  “So, um, what do you want to show me?” I latch on to the top of the railing, torn between racing away or letting this scenario play out the way I’d dreamed about for years. Dom raises a finger to his lips, then throws open the nearest door and yanks me inside a cramped closet. The smell of feet makes me cough and sputter. It’s like a shoe graveyard in here, with stacks of track spikes, baseball cleats, and Nike high tops.

  “We’re alone. Cool, huh?” Dom says. Okay, so maybe I t
ruly am the stupidest person in the history of the universe, but, honestly, I expected more from Dom than seventh-grade games like spin the bottle and lock yourself in a closet with a member of the opposite sex.

  I lean against the door, needing a second to think about what’s happening. But, before I move out of reach, Dom wraps his arms around me and crushes his lips on mine. His hands roam over the top of my shirt, dangerously close to areas I don’t consider open for business on a first hook-up.

  For a second, I freeze, unsure how to react. Then, I place my arms on his chest, holding him at bay while trying not to recoil from the taste of stale tobacco. When he finally extracts his tongue from my mouth, his hands travel down to my waist. As he sways back and forth, I clutch the front of his T-shirt, fearing I may wind up flattened like a pancake underneath him.

  “This was an experiment. I wanted to see what would happen if I found myself alone in the dark with my lab partner,” he explains, sounding way too logical for someone having trouble dealing with the effects of gravity.

  “Oh,” I say, wishing I had one hand free to wipe his saliva from my lips.

  “It wasn’t great, was it?” he asks with a smug grin.

  “To be honest, it was kind of like kissing my brother. If I had a brother,” I admit.

  “You’re funny. I like that in a girl.” He relaxes his grip on me and kicks open the closet door. “See ya, sis.” Taking the stairs two at a time, he disappears into the crowd, anxious to move on with his evening, I guess.

  “What happened?” Jana asks in a low voice when I find her in the kitchen.

  “He kissed me,” I say, touching my still-puffy lips.

  “I knew it! Was it awesome?” Any semblance of volume control disappears from Jana’s voice.

  “Surprisingly, it really wasn’t,” I say, still dazed. “There was a lot of slobber. Do you have any breath mints?”

  She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a tin of Altoids. “Always.”

  As Jana continues chugging beer, I pop three mints in my mouth and wince at the harsh taste. It’s like scraping an ultra-fresh Brillo pad across your taste buds.

  “Ooh Sadie, you know what, we can make this kissing Dom thing some type of achievement.”

  “Like what? Kissing a hot guy? I hope that isn’t a once in a lifetime event.”

  “Yeah, you’re right. I don’t want to jinx ourselves.” She taps her finger on her chin, thinking. “How about kissing two boys in one night?”

  “Great. Go kiss Ben and we’ll add it to our list.”

  “What? Me kiss Ben? That doesn’t count.”

  “Why? You want to kiss someone else?”

  “No, I meant one of us kisses two guys in one night. At the same party.” Jana’s brows knit as she ponders the possibilities. “Or both of us kiss two guys in one night. At the same party. Hah. Like that would ever happen!”

  My head starts to spin, not solely from the cloud of smoke in the room or the two sips of beer I drank before Dom dragged me away.

  Jana glances at Ben, who’s standing with a group of guys from the track team. “I can’t really push him. We only started texting a few weeks ago.”

  “At least you’ve had digital discussions,” I say. “You’re asking me to kiss a total stranger!”

  “It’s a party. Everyone knows kissing at a party is meaningless. Just about any guy here would be glad to help us out, if we told him it was for a thing.”

  “Everyone here just saw me go upstairs with Dom. I don’t want people to think my thing is acting like a slut.”

  Jana shrugs and sloshes the last few drops of beer around in her can. “School’s over in a few months. No one cares about their reputations anymore. Just have fun.”

  At that very minute, the back door smacks open and a tall form strolls into the kitchen. I strain my eyes, taking in a short crop of blond hair. My knees begin to cave as Andy Kosolowski slides into focus, with a new haircut, minus his eyeglasses. He’s wearing a tight shirt skimming over muscles I’d never imagined existed under his god-awful sweats. And his dark jeans are even more flattering than the corduroy pants that threw me for a loop in Market Fresh.

  “Holy Geez-us,” I say.

  Jana follows my gaze and does a drastic double take. “Who is that?” she asks. “Does Andy have a hot twin brother on break from military school?”

  I shake my head and bump my fist against my chest to restart my heart. “No. That’s Andy.”

  “Wowee. Did he hire a personal shopper?” Jana slaps my arm, breaking me out of my stupor. “You were right Sadie; he is like Clark Kent. Superman in the house!” She points to Andy, who’s thankfully engrossed in conversation with Sidh. I continue to stand there like an idiot, my mouth hanging open.

  “Chica, you’re staring.” Jana leans over and whispers in my ear.

  “Sorry. I just …” I’m at a total loss.

  “Um, you may not want to hear this, Sadie, but Clarkie over there’s probably your best option if you want to try the double kissing achievement. He just walked in, so he missed round one of your thing. Just tell him how much you’ve wanted to be with him the last twelve years, and maybe the whole senior superlative mix-up was fate, blah, blah, blah. Maybe we can even steal someone’s beer and give it to him. You know, soften him up a little.”

  Unfortunately for me, Jana’s beer-infused rationale makes complete sense. Other than the last ten minutes of my life, I have never attracted guys for casual, impulsive kisses. And, for whatever reason I suspect Andy will, in fact, indulge my request. Given the opportunity, of course. But is this something I really want to do?

  “What exactly constitutes kissing?” I need to make sure I carry through with the minimum requirement for the proposed achievement. No more, no less. “Like if Andy and I happen to bump into each other and our lips touch …”

  Jana shakes her head. “Both parties need to fully engage. And there’s a three-second rule.”

  “What, like when you pick food up from the floor after you drop it?”

  “God, no. Floor food is a five-second rule. Kissing is only three. Close your eyes, aim for Andy’s mouth and count one, one thousand, two, one thousand, three, one thousand. Then disembark and say adios, amigo.”

  “So, I have to touch his lips for three full seconds?” My stomach jumps at the thought. “I went to detention, and now you want me to touch Andy’s lips for three seconds?”

  “Well, it’s just that, I think you have the better shot at this one,” she stammers. “If you do this, I’ll work harder to do something spectacular, I promise.”

  “Fine. You are so breaking a law in the very near future!” I grit my teeth and stomp off in Andy’s direction.

  Even with his highly improved appearance, he looks uncomfortable, leaning back against the kitchen counter, hands firmly entrenched in his pockets. He seems lost, and I resist the urge to ask if he needs help finding a man in a uniform to call his mommy. Andy’s definitely not a regular at Dom’s parties.

  “Hey, Sadie,” he says hesitantly when I approach in a stalkerly manner.

  “Hey, Andy. What happened to your hair? And your glasses?”

  “I, ah, got a haircut. And I’m trying out new contacts. My flight instructor recommended them for vision correction.”

  “Cool. How about another driving lesson?”

  “Are you drunk?” he asks, suspiciously.

  “Stone cold,” I say, crossing my heart. “Jana and I are merely observing the festivities.”

  “Okay. Let me just tell Sidh,” he says. “In case you hit a wall or something and I wind up with amnesia.”

  I get the idea that he isn’t joking.

  “Not gonna happen,” I promise. “Send Sidh in Jana’s direction. She’ll entertain him until we get back.” My best friend deserves payback for putting me through this.

  Andy and Sidh exchange a few brief words, which, based on their body language appears to be some sort of a p
ep talk. Sidh waves to me and flashes a huge grin, wordlessly thanking me for taking Mr. Nervous Nelly off of his hands for a while.

  When Andy returns, I cut and run through the kitchen door, for once leaving him struggling to keep up as I vanish into the dark February night. At the first intersection I stop, pretend to shiver and lean into him. His tall body stiffens for a second, registering my uncharacteristic sign of affection, and then he drapes a long arm around my shoulders.

  “Thanks. It’s cold out here.” I smile up at him, injecting coyness into my expression. What I wouldn’t give for just one beer in my system. Ben’s donated can somehow disappeared when I left with Dom.

  “You’re not really dressed for the weather,” he says, and his long fingers brush over one of the cutouts in my shirt, igniting a trail of heat along my bare skin. “What happened to you?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You have holes in your clothes. Did you have an accident?”

  I lock my jaw to stop my teeth from chattering and press into him for added warmth. “No accident. It’s a fashion statement.”

  “What’s your statement? Are you conserving natural resources by wearing less material?”

  “Exactly. I’m eco-friendly.” When I bat my eyelashes, his Adam’s apple bobs up and down.

  “My car is this way,” he says, his voice cracking. We find his vehicle wedged into a tiny street spot. I leap past him into the driver’s seat.

  “Why don’t you at least let me pull out?” Andy asks, and I hear another nervous hiccup in his voice.

  “C’mon, buddy, give a girl a chance.” His shoulders drop and with a sigh, he relents. When he lowers himself in the passenger side, I turn to him.

  “How do I start this thing?”

  “You know, Sadie, it’s dark, and you’re not the best driver in broad daylight, so maybe …”

  “What? You’re backing out of this?” I infuse anger into my voice.

  Andy closes his eye and presses his fingertips into his temples. “I’ll still take you driving. Tomorrow, maybe?”