“Really? As bad as me?” I ask.
“Worse,” he says. He’s dead serious.
“Maybe your teaching skills are the problem. Right, Sadie?” Mom asks, but she’s looking at Mr. Drum. Her hand rests on his forearm, covering one of his scarier tattoos.
“I refuse to answer any teacher-related questions until after graduation,” I say. Meanwhile, Mr. Drum leans in and kisses Mom right on the lips. Oh, yuck! Aunt Tina and I engage in mutual eye rolling.
“Can I talk the three of you into a late dinner at The Green Lagoon?” Mr. Drum asks after he and Mom break it off.
I’d prefer the floor to open up and swallow me whole rather than sit through an entire meal with my Driver’s Ed teacher. But, given my mom’s current state of rapture, I’m okay with risking total embarrassment for the sake of her happiness.
Plus, The Green Lagoon has excellent burgers.
***
Mom and Aunt Tina sit through the entire Little Shop show again on Saturday night, along with my mother’s now official significant other. Meaning that we are all now aware they are a couple, but we still need to work out a few kinks in our family dynamic. Treating me to a burger at The Green Lagoon was a smart way to begin a long, mutually appreciative relationship, though. Everyone loosens up after a few green beers (or in my case, diet Cokes) and the four of us really bond. Mr. Drum didn’t reveal my driving distractions list, for which I will owe him for all of eternity. Aunt Tina and my mother bickered about their clothes and hair like sisters do, and we all laughed about my Audrey II costume.
After dinner, Mr. Drum dropped Aunt Tina off at the train station before driving Mom and me home in his truck. He told us how he rebuilt the engine, which he claimed purred like a kitten. Mom pretended to be interested, and I closed my eyes in the back seat as the exhausting schedule I’d kept the last few months finally caught up with me.
At the end of the night, Mom invited Mr. Drum into our apartment. I can’t say this for sure, but when I entered my room, ready to collapse into twelve hours of deep sleep, he didn’t appear to be in a hurry to leave.
I’m just glad he didn’t stick around for breakfast. I doubt Mr. Drum would even recognize me sans makeup. Morning-after Sadie is not a pretty sight.
Anyway, I miss a few cues during the second Little Shop show because I’m so happy and excited for Mom. I know Mr. Drum, and deep down, he is a good person. For years, I feared my mother would end up with a total rat. No one, and I mean no one, wants rat relatives, even if they are step-relatives.
When the last notes of the finale echo in the air, the curtain drops and the audience roars. The stage crew yanks the curtain back up, and I notice Andy, much closer to the stage tonight, clapping with his hands held above his head. Our eyes meet, and then he jogs up to the stage with a huge bouquet of flowers. Jana is squealing next to me, because Ben gave her flowers too.
But mine are bigger. Just saying.
I stare at Andy, completely speechless, but he just shrugs as if to say, it’s all cool and walks back to his family. All of the Super Ks are in attendance for my last-ever performance as a plant.
Should I have kissed Andy, like Jana kissed Ben? In front of everyone? I flash back to my last kiss with Andy and remember how much trouble I had stopping the process once we got started. No way is that happening with both of our mothers less than ten feet away.
Next up is the cast party at Leslie’s house. I hurry backstage; tearing off pieces of my costume, ready to kiss the green monstrosity good-bye. The stage crew lumps together near the exit, wearing black T-shirts, acting too cool to mingle with the cast, but Leslie told me they always show up for free food. Jana holds both of our flowers while I shed my final layer of glittery gauze.
“Ben’s waiting for me,” she says.
“Will he go to the cast party?”
“I’m not sure. We may have other plans. Why don’t you walk out with us?” Jana says, acting oddly evasive.
In the parking lot, we run into Andy and Sidh, talking with a group of younger girls, including Colette. And Melinda Banner. I stare hard at Jana’s little sister, and she nods her head, sending me an affirmation, before looking away with sad eyes.
“Ben’s over there. Be right back.” Jana takes off toward her boyfriend’s minivan, deserting me among the sea of girls circling Andy and Sidh.
“Nice flowers. Apparently there was some truth to the Senior Superlative.” Melinda sashays over to me.
Rather than disagree, I clench my jaw shut. Though I’ll never admit it, Melinda’s probably right. Colette uncovered the truth I hadn’t been able to find on my own. I place my hand on my hip and lift my chin in defiance. “Who knows the truth? You might have missed the story of the year at Harmony High.”
Melinda’s nose wrinkles. “Andy and Sadie the story of the year? I think not.” She spins around and huffs off.
“Sore loser,” I mutter.
“Great job, Sadie,” Sidh says, reaching out to punch my arm affectionately.
“Thanks. Did Andy pay you to come with him tonight?”
“Nah. He mentioned something about you manipulating mechanical devices while dressed in skimpy clothes.” Sidh’s thick eyebrows wiggle up and down suggestively. Andy leans back against his car; a guilty grin plastered on his face. Slowly, the group of girls begins to drift away.
“Thanks for the flowers,” I say, turning to Andy.
“No problem. It’s a closing night tradition. That’s what I heard, anyway.”
I wonder who gives him his information.
“So, no tutoring tonight?” I ask.
He smiles. “Nope. Some of us are going to Bella Pizza. If you want to come, I’ll drop you off at Leslie’s later. I hear the cast party is an all-night event.”
Again with the inside info.
“Um, let me check with Jana. I’m not sure …” I say, and dash over to my best friend, standing with Ben next to Dominic’s car.
“What’s up, sis?” Dom asks. We share a smile. Dom would make a great brother. As far as his boyfriend potential, well, he needs to work on that.
“Are we doing the party thing, Jana?” I ask.
“Dom and Ben want to grab pizza first. The van’s low on gas, so Dom’s driving. I don’t think you can fit.” Jana grins triumphantly and then slides her gaze across the parking lot to Andy.
“Plant-girl can sit on my lap.” Dominic smirks.
“You know what, I think Sidh and Andy are going to Bella Pizza too. I can just catch a ride with them and meet you there, okay?”
“Great idea, Sadie,” Jana says with a sweetly innocent smile.
My best friend is on the brink of achieving her dream ride in the Altomeri hot rod.
“Are you jealous?” she asks, lowering herself onto Ben’s lap. His arms wrap around her like a safety belt.
“Not at all. Add it to our list,” I say. “See you when I see you.”
“Have fun riding with Andy,” she calls, as they zoom away.
By the time I return to Andy, he’s all alone. “Where’s Sidh?”
“Previous engagement. Ready to go?”
I sweep my eyes around the empty parking lot. “With you?”
Andy’s light eyebrows raise. “Do you have another ride?”
“No, but … just the two of us?”
“Something wrong with that?”
“No, I, uh …”
“Sadie, I trusted you enough to let you drive my car. Don’t you trust me?” Andy’s blue eyes gleam in the moonlight, daring me to say no.
This is what I wanted, right? I think so. I climb into the passenger’s side.
“Did you talk to Colette?” I ask him once I’m settled.
He nods. “You were right. The vote was fixed.”
“Andy, I’m sorry you didn’t get the Most Likely to Succeed award. It’s the one Senior Superlative that actually matters.” I fold my hands in my lap and twist my fingers together t
ightly.
But, Andy, being Andy, doesn’t appear upset. “Cindy Min deserves it, too. She’s already written like three novels or something. Besides, Colette’s right, I’d already gotten into my first choice for college.”
“Well, not that it means anything, but I voted for you as Most Likely to Succeed.”
Andy presses the power button on the dash to start his car. “It means a lot. Thanks. So, you and Mr. Drum, huh?” he asks, trying to be causal, but I hear a hitch in his voice.
I burst out laughing. “Ugh. No way.”
“Really? He looked a little overly affectionate when he hugged you after the show last night. For a Driver’s Ed teacher, that is.” After checking the rear view mirror, Andy backs out of the parking spot. “You and Jana always talk about how Mr. Drum’s so good-looking. But he’s, like old enough to be your dad …” Andy clears his throat and pauses, at a loss. I decide to help him out.
“That’s a good thing, because he’s dating my mom.”
Andy screeches to a stop in the middle of a three point turn, narrowly missing the dumpster sitting beside the cafeteria.
“Watch it! Do you want to get us killed?” I scream.
“No. Sorry. Can you say that again?”
“Mr. Drum has been secretly dating my mom. For five months. Some kind of forbidden love, I guess.”
“And no one told you?”
“No! I just found out. My mom made me take Driver’s Ed because she was hoping I would realize he’s a great guy before she fessed up. But I was kind of clueless.”
“Well, who expects that to be the underlying reason for mandated driving instruction?” Andy shakes his head in wonder. “Are you okay with their, uh, relationship?”
“Yeah, sure. I mean, it was sort of a shock, but now … I’m okay.”
“Good. I guess. Sorry, but I don’t even know what to say, Sadie.”
“It’s fine, Andy. I’m still adjusting to it myself.”
We drive on in silence.
“So, do you get to keep the costume?” he asks.
“The bejeweled green leotard? Yes. You can borrow it, but I don’t think it will fit you.”
“Heh heh heh.”
At the sound of Andy’s laugh, the tension between us dissolves. I crack up. Seriously. I cannot stop laughing.
“Hey. What?” he asks, reaching for my hand to stop it from repeatedly banging his dashboard. His fingers curl around mine and I freeze mid-slap. “Did you spend too much time squeezed into the plant?”
“No. I’m fine. Good.” I take a minute to steady myself, pretending to be interested in the view of the Harmony passing by, so familiar that I’m sure in the past seventeen plus years I’d memorized every house on every street. If someone repaints their shutters, I trust myself to pick up on the difference.
High above, the night sky seems to float down to earth, wrapping around me like a blanket. A bright yellow moon hangs low, grazing the roof of the courthouse. Andy makes me happy, I realize. I just like being with him. And, I feel like I can tell him anything, and he would at least try to understand. Which is more than most other guys my age would do.
“You know, we’ve been friends for a long time,” I say.
“I wouldn’t categorize our relationship as friendship, exactly,” he responds, thoughtfully.
“Okay, we’ve known each other for years.”
“But not really well.”
“Andy, am I missing something I should know about my alleged future husband? Are you a closet cross-dresser? Is that why you want my costume?” I squeeze my fingers tighter to let him know I’m joking, and he squeezes back.
“Nothing like that,” he says. “I just think it would be nice if we learned more about each other. Especially if the Senior Superlative turns out to be a reliable predictor of the future and we do wind up getting married. For example, you know my family and you know about my goal of learning to fly. I know you have a ridiculous list of achievements you feel the need to complete before graduation.”
“So, we’re about even, then.”
Andy heh-hehs. “Not quite.”
“What do you want to me to tell you?”
“Anything. You’re great at avoiding serious conversation, you know.”
I do know. It’s not by accident that I refrain from telling people about my boring life.
“My name is Sadie Elizabeth Matthews,” I begin. Andy nods, a sign of encouragement. “I live with my mom in the Cambridge House apartments. And I was recently introduced to her new boyfriend, who happens to be my ex-Driver’s Ed instructor.”
“Sounds like you have some future sitcom potential. I talked to your mother after the show, by the way. She’s really proud of you.”
“You talked to my mom?”
“And your aunt. She’s nice too. Kind of like an older version of you.”
My mouth drops open, and my chin just about hits the dashboard. “Why? Why did you talk to them?”
Andy sighs, as if he’s being forced to communicate with a very naïve young child.
“Because I’m a nice guy, Sadie. And because I want you to like me as much as I like you.”
I hinge my jaw closed and open again. A million different words run through my mind, but I can’t say any of them. So, I blurt out the one question I’ve wanted to ask for weeks now.
“Will you go to the prom with me, Andrew?”
Fill It In – Random List
The Top Ten Reasons Why Andy is an Awesome Prom Date.
1. He’s a really good kisser.
2. Just looking into his blue eyes makes me smile.
3. He’s known me forever, so I don’t have to impress him. But, I know he’ll still appreciate how nice I look in my prom dress.
4. He makes me laugh.
5. Besides Mr. Drum (Scott), who faced death on a daily basis for years as an Army Ranger, Andy is the only person brave enough to get into the car when I’m behind the wheel. Although, he says he’s more afraid of driving with me than solo flying an airplane. I’m pretty sure he’s joking.
6. His car is small, so I don’t have to reach very far when I want to kiss him. Which is frequently.
7. He thinks Chase is an excellent boy’s name.
8. He’s super tall, so I can wear those ridiculous heels I bought at the Macy’s One Day Sale and I still probably won’t make it above his shoulder.
9. He asked what color prom dress I picked, and he actually listened to the answer. Then, when I quizzed him an hour later, he remembered what I said.
10. He’s the best man. And he loves me.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Mrs. McCaffrey was right. It’s better to hold out.
On prom night, Mr. Drum, I mean Scott, as he keeps insisting I call him, opens the door to greet my date. Scott has assumed the duty of potential step-father and he does his best to scare Andy while Mom helps me finish my make-up.
My grand entrance entails simply walking out of my bedroom and past the dining table. Four giant steps later, I reach Andy, who’s grinning and holding flowers. Andy just fills up space well, especially when formally attired in a classic black tux, with his hair combed and cut a few inches shorter than the last time I saw him.
Ah, the miracles of hair gel.
Not that I don’t appreciate his messy look as well. In the last month, since he agreed to be my date, I’ve discovered that I like everything about Andrew Kosolowski.
We stand smiling at each other like a pair of deranged lovebirds, completely forgetting our audience. My heartbeat goes all screwy and I forget to breathe until Andy clears his throat and it hits me that Mr. Drum, I mean Scott, (I’ll get it right one of these days), looks as if he wants to test out some new para-military weapons on the guy who is brave enough to escort me to the prom.
Andy hands me the bright pink roses he picked out, which perfectly match my dress. Mom wipes a tear from her eye, and Scott (Mr. Drum) kisses me on the chee
k. My heart feels swollen, brimming over with love and happiness, and I pray to high heaven that my Spanx will hold everything in place before something inside of me explodes.
***
“So, the last time I saw that achievement list, there were a few empty spots at the bottom,” Andy says as we drive to the prom. Of course, I’d offered to drive, as I am more than ready to break in my brand-new license, but he insisted on getting behind the wheel. Admittedly, hitting the brakes while sporting four-inch heels is a challenge, even for a driver with more than two days’ experience, but I was willing to try.
“Earth to Sadie,” he prompts. Andy has a way of knocking the words right out of my head. “I’m offering my assistance to help you fill it in. Do you want to cut out of the prom and go to the zoo? Photo bomb the president? Rob a bank, maybe?”
I smile coyly and gaze at him from under my falsely extended eyelashes. “Jana and Ben are swinging by school on the way to the prom for some PDA in front of the school sign. After that, we just need one more achievement. Robbing a bank is a good suggestion. I was thinking about breaking a law, but I wasn’t going to aim as high as a felony.”
Falling in love, the one achievement I truly doubted would be possible, is happening everywhere. Jana and Ben. Andy and me. Dominic and himself. Even my mother and Mr. Drum checked off that particular item on their list of amazing lifetime achievements. They’re planning a wedding this summer. Before Andy and I leave for college. I’m not attending MIT, but in the last two months I’ve pretty much applied to every school in a thirty-mile radius.
“Sadie, you’ve already broken a law. Repeatedly.”
“I have? I mean, sure, you’re a few months younger than me, but really, no one gets arrested for statutory kissing, do they?”
“Not the kissing,” Andy says, with a laugh. “I let you drive my car, remember? Before your permit test.”
My Senior Year of Awesome Page 18