by Amelia Blake
“Everybody’s waiting for you,” Chloe says.
“It’s not even seven yet,” I say in my defense. Um, does that mean that my mysterious date is already here? I gulp at the thought. I only now realize what this actually means—that this is my very first date. Why didn’t I think about this before I agreed to Chloe’s demands?
“It’s six fifty-five. We need to leave now.” She gives me a pointed look.
“I guess we’re done here anyway,” Jessie says, putting away her curling iron.
When we come downstairs, it’s more crowded down there than at a rock star concert. My parents are here, the Sullivans are here—all four of them, plus Chloe, Derek, and me.
“Have a nice evening, honey,” Mom calls out as I pass her, but I’m not even sure if she’s talking to me or Chloe.
But the biggest surprise of the evening is waiting for me in the doorway. In all his bruised glory, Parker O’Donnell leans against the doorframe, his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
I give Chloe an I-can’t-believe-you-did-this-to-me look and get only a dismissive shrug in return. She seems really cozy with Derek who has his arm around her shoulders. Everyone is saying their goodbyes and nobody is leaving. There isn’t enough air for me in the room, so I grab the hem of Parker’s jacket and drag him outside.
He follows me like a puppy and doesn’t even call me any names. It confounds me for a second, but I don’t give it much thought.
“Which one is your car?” I ask.
“Really? You rode in it just a few days ago.”
I squint at him. “I don’t have a very good memory for cars.”
He stares back at me and I can almost hear his mind going through all the possible ways he can taunt me right now. “The black one,” he says finally. What’s wrong with him? I was pretty sure he’d spew at least a few insults by now.
I start walking in the direction of his car. He follows me.
“So how was the game?” I ask.
“Didn’t Logan tell you?”
“I didn’t ask. Did you win?” It’s true that I didn’t ask Logan. I didn’t need to, because Chloe buzzed my ears off with the news.
“We won.”
He reaches to open the door for me, but I lean against it, not really wanting to get inside just yet.
“Get in the car, you’re shivering,” he says.
“I don’t want to get in the car.” Well, I mostly don’t want to be told to get in the car.
“Do you want my jacket?”
“I already owe you a jacket.”
“That was my favorite, by the way.”
“Sorry about that. So I assume Logan told you everything that happened?”
“Yeah.” A pause. “Should I worry now?”
“Worry about what?”
“That you’ll give me a magically-induced black eye when I call you Munchkin again?”
“Wait, is that why you’re being so polite with me today? Because you think I might do something witchy to you?”
“No.”
“You’re so eloquent.”
“I know.”
“Okay then, is it because you’re participating in Chloe’s evil plan and your conscience is pricking at you?”
He considers it for a moment. “Maybe.”
“Why are you participating in Chloe’s evil plan? I mean, I know we have our differences, but this is too devious even for you.”
“Would you believe me if I said I was doing you a favor?”
I snort. “Is that a rhetorical question?”
“It was either me or Dennis Marshall.”
I cringe. “Is that the guy who can fart his own name?”
“That’s the one.”
“I guess I owe you a thanks then.”
Parker leans against the car next to me. “Does that mean you’re not mad at me for going along with your sister’s evil plan?”
“Well, I wasn’t mad at you because of that. I was just mad at Chloe. But this walking on eggshells around me thing is doing the trick.”
“Let me get this straight—you don’t want me to be nice to you?”
“I don’t. I find it unsettling when you’re nice to me.”
“How so?”
“Because then I feel like I don’t have a reason to be mad at you.”
“Are you saying that you like being mad at me?”
“Of course. It’s my comfort zone.”
“So what happens if I don’t do what you want? You’ll turn me into a frog?”
“I thought only princes got turned into frogs. The best you can expect would be a dung beetle.”
“Dung beetles play an important role in the ecosystem.”
“You’re right. How about a mosquito?”
“Really, Munchkin, if you wanted me to bite you, you could just ask.”
“I think that magically-induced black eye sounds really tempting right now.”
“You don’t know the spell.”
“I know how to use a fist.”
“I wouldn’t want you to hurt your hand.”
“You think so highly of my abilities.”
“You have no idea, Kiddo.” He grins.
The noise coming from the house gets louder. I look at the front door—Chloe and Derek are finally leaving. I’m definitely shivering by now, and I suddenly remember how warm Parker’s car was.
“You know, I think I changed my mind about getting into the car,” I say as I move aside so that he can open the door for me, which he does promptly. But before I get into the passenger’s seat, I ask, “Theoretically, if I could turn you into a frog, would you still annoy me as much as you do?”
“Theoretically, if you’d ever listen to me, I’d tell you to get out of your comfort zone sometimes.”
“Well, theoretically, maybe I will.”
He grins. “Get in the car, Munchkin.”
I grin back at him, and then I get into the car.
THE END
Afterword
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