LITMIR.BIZ

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think so?” Madison asked eagerly, sitting down in Becca’s chair.

      Julia sat on the desk, partially obscuring Dana.

      “Yes, I’m totally serious. He pulled me out of the party the other night at the boathouse, and told me he had to talk to me … he was worried I was going to leave him for some other guy, you know, and then he took my hand—” she smiled as she watched everyone’s eyes get bigger “—and told me he never wanted us to end.”

      Lie.

      Madison and Julia aahed together.

      “That is so sweet,” Madison said, her hand over her heart.

      “I know. He says this kind of thing all the time. And about how, like, he wants to get married one day and we’ll have a big house on a beach that doesn’t suck like this one.”

      Lie.

      They laughed. Dana looked down at her fingers and said nothing. Whatever, Becca thought, she’s not the most important one to pass the information along to anyway. Madison and Julia were bound to tell everyone how completely all about her he was.

      Dana didn’t matter at all.

      chapter 12 me

      I’D TAKEN TO SPENDING EVEN LESS TIME IN MY room than before. Rather than be in there, I even studied on the way to the senior study room.

      “Look at you, getting your homework done.”

      I looked up from my book. I’d been reading and walking, and hadn’t noticed Johnny walking toward me.

      “Yes, I actually do my homework,” I said. Johnny was never to be seen with any assigned books or even a pencil. I constantly felt I was going to discover he was just a maintenance guy masquerading as a student.

      “I do homework. I just do it last minute. That way I spend as little time on it as possible.” He smiled, and leaned against the wall.

      I laughed.

      He smiled. “So, new girl, you want to go to the ball with me?”

      If I’d been a cartoon, my eyes would have popped out of my head and I’d have done a double take. “Are you … What?”

      There was no real reason why I shouldn’t. He was hot. He was nice to me. Everyone told me to stay away from him and Max, but since Max had almost completely ignored me lately, all of my hopes in that direction had died.

      When I hesitated, Johnny said, “You’re not with anyone, right?”

      “No, no, I’m not….”

      “It can be just as friends if you want. I just think it would be fun to go with you.” He shrugged.

      I scrambled for an answer. “Um. Okay. Sure. Yes. Let’s do it.”

      “Four kinds of ‘yes,’ that’ll work.”

      I gave a nervous laugh, thinking now about what people would say when they found out. I liked the idea of rebelling against them, but I wasn’t usually a rebel—and therefore wasn’t sure I had the stomach for it.

      “All right, you go do your homework. I’ll talk to you about the plan later.”

      An hour after I arrived in the study room, the door opened. All at once my heart jumped out of my chest, and my stomach melted into my shoes.

      “Hey,” said Max. “You are here. Blake said you might be.” He shut the door behind him. “I’ve been looking for you everywhere.”

      It felt like another dream. “You, um, you have?”

      He nodded. “I even asked Dana if you were in your room. She didn’t give me an answer though. Just glared at me.”

      “Well, I’m here,” I said, unnecessarily.

      Max sat down in the chair opposite me. “What are you reading?”

       “Taming of the Shrew.”

      “Ha, I can relate to that guy’s struggle.” He cleared his throat. “We haven’t really talked in a while.”

      “Yeah, I know.” My heartbeat accelerated.

      “I, um … I wanted to ask you if maybe you’d want to go with me to the ball?”

      I froze. I was so shocked that I couldn’t help but be honest. “We’ve hardly ever even talked.”

      “I know, I know.” He shifted his weight. “I know. But I thought you might want to go with me anyway.” He shook his head slightly, as if his words hadn’t come out properly.

      I could tell Johnny to forget it. It’d be mean. But I wanted to.

      “Unless you’re already going with someone,” he added.

      “I am.” The disappointment was tingling in my every nerve. If only I hadn’t run into Johnny. Why had I said yes?

      “Ah. I’m not surprised.”

      I didn’t know what to say. My chest was constricted, and no words would come to my mind besides profane ones.

      “But we should be friends. You know? I just wanted to go as friends anyway.” He straightened up.

      “Right, friends, sure. We can still do that without the ball. Right?”

      “Yeah. So I’ll see you soon. The ball I guess.” He gave a small smile and turned to go.

      “Yeah. I’ll see you then.”

      “You mind if I ask who you’re going with?”

      “Johnny Parker.”

      His face drained of expression.

      “Are you guys together?”

      “No, not at all.”

      He nodded. “All right, well, I’ll see you around.”

      I wanted to scream. I wanted to kick something. He’d asked me. Max asked me. And I’d said no. But then he’d said he wanted to go as friends. My brain was doing cartwheels. I dragged my feet back to my room. There was no way I could keep reading.

      “Oh, my God, you’re going with Johnny?”

      Madison and Julia burst into my room without knocking and spewed the question at me.

      Dana, who was of course reading a book and pretending I wasn’t in the room, glared at me. “Johnny Parker?”

      “Of course Johnny Parker,” said Madison.

      Dana was still staring at me blankly, but with that look in her eye I’d seen in Dr. Morgan’s office.

      “I’m so glad you’re not upset that Max didn’t ask you. I mean, he is still totally in love with Becca.” Julia sat down on my desk and looked pityingly at me.

      “He did ask me,” I said, enjoying the looks on their faces. “But I had already said yes to Johnny.”

      Dana was still staring at me.

      Neither Madison nor Julia said anything right away. Finally Julia smiled, and said, “I mean, we did tell you not to go after him. His feelings for Becca … I mean …”

      I breathed deeply. “I didn’t go after him. And also it doesn’t really matter. He’s no one’s property.”

      Another brief silence, and then Madison said, “Great! That’s so great. Um, so, what are you going as?”

      “I have no idea. I was thinking I might have to have my mom send me something I have at home, I have no clue what I’m gonna wear.”

      Madison smiled. “I’m sure you’ll figure something out. You have two weeks after all.”

      “Could

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