I started to laugh but managed to cover it with a cough and darted past him into the bathroom. Mum had done the whole ‘talk’ thing with me years ago, pretty much as soon as I got boobs and started having periods. If she hadn’t told Dad, then I wasn’t about to either. Better to let him wallow in his delusions rather than frighten him so much he’d invest in a shotgun.
It was only once Jake and I were on the road that I realised what had happened. Dad had accepted Jake, tantamount to giving us his blessing. What a pity there wasn’t ever going to be a ‘me and Jake’ scenario: it would have made life a lot easier seeing that Jake already had Dad’s approval. A sigh escaped from my chest and drew a curious look from Jake.
‘You OK?’ he asked.
‘Yep,’ I said, avoiding meeting his eye. No way was I about to explain myself. I stopped daydreaming and paid attention to the road instead, with Jake firing questions from the Highway Code at me ready for our first outing the following week. From there, we deviated onto anything and everything, and were still chatting away when he pulled up outside college.
‘I guess I’ll see you next week, then?’ he said.
‘Yeah …’ Disappointment washed over me and refused to be shrugged off. There was just something about Jake that made me feel relaxed, content, but it was probably just the crush talking. ‘Thanks for the ride.’
‘Unless …’
My ears pricked up. ‘Unless …?’
Jake turned to look at me. ‘You probably wouldn’t be interested, but I might as well ask now that I’ve started.’ Since when did Jake resort to rambling? ‘I’m having a party on Saturday, but you probably knew that already. Anyway, you’re welcome to come along if you’ve nothing else planned.’
‘I’d love to,’ I said, sounding far too keen.
‘Great.’ Jake looked back to the front. ‘It will be good for Gemma to have a friend there, just get the details from her.’
‘Gemma. Right. Will do.’
Boy, did I feel silly for reading too much into his invitation. He was only asking me to come along to keep his sister happy. The sensible side of me rejoiced, while the girly-crush side of me threatened to erupt in tears.
‘Cool. I’ll see you there, then?’
‘Sure thing,’ I said, opening the door and swinging my legs out of Jake’s van. Solid ground met my feet, which was exactly what I needed. Not a load of pipe dreams and impossible fantasies about a guy who could never be mine. I took a deep breath and let the air fill my lungs before I turned back to face Jake. ‘Thanks again. Have a good day.’
‘You too, Lena,’ Jake said, his smile returning. ‘And no getting into mischief today: I’ve got too much work to do.’
‘Spoilsport.’ I closed the door and gave him a wave, looking back only for a second to see him driving away. It was hard to believe it wasn’t even nine o’clock yet, when so much had happened already. Friday may have been the worst day of my entire life, but things were looking up for me now. So what if Jake wanted me at his party only for his sister? At least he’d invited me in the first place. And, hey, a party was a party, and that meant I could dress up.
I found a welcoming committee waiting for me at my locker, on the receiving end of sympathetic looks from Flick, Chloe and Piper. ‘I take it you all know what happened, then?’ All three of them nodded. Gemma was efficient, I’ll give her that, but at least she checked it was OK to tell the others rather than gossiping about me. ‘Good, then I don’t need to talk about it, do I?’
Silence hung in the air but it was soon broken, something else you could rely on Gemma to take care of as she popped up behind me. ‘If that’s what you prefer,’ she said, placing a supportive arm around my shoulder. ‘But just remember that we’re all here for you, if you change your mind.’
‘Thanks.’ Considering she was Jake’s sister, her arm wasn’t anywhere near as comforting as her brother’s.
Whoa, where did that come from?
‘Now that we’ve got the deep and meaningful out of the way, did any of you see Jake this morning?’ she asked. I jerked my head up to see if she was accusing me in particular, but it must have been my guilty conscience. ‘I could’ve sworn I saw his van leaving just now.’
‘Oh, yeah, he came by the house this morning and offered to give me a ride,’ I said as casually as I could manage, watching carefully and seeing Gemma’s eyes flash. ‘Which reminds me, he’s asked me come to his party to keep you company. He said to get the details from you.’
‘Really?’ Gemma recovered herself quickly. ‘That’s so cool,’ she said, clapping her hands. ‘I thought I was going to be stuck with the olds all night. Hey, you’ll have to come over to the house so we can get ready together. You might as well stay over, too.’
‘I’d love to,’ I said. ‘Now I just need to figure out what to wear, but at least I’ve got the day off work.’
‘Oh, now you’re talking,’ Gemma said, her clapping giving way to rubbing her hands together as a demented look in her eye told me she had shopping on the brain.
My plan to deflect her attention worked a treat—anything to stop her getting all uppity with me for no reason, or digging for more details. Call it a wild hunch, but I got the impression she wouldn’t be too happy about Jake and me spending time together so the less said, the better.
Chapter Eight
CANDIDATES
The bus ride home was an anticlimax. Hayden had gone back to being mysterious, acting like a stranger again. It was as if the past week had never happened. Fine by me. By the end of the week, I barely even noticed him any more.
Unlike Gemma, who had been on at me all week to see the revised shortlist. She’d been ready to disown me until I floated the idea for a girly night, complete with grand unveiling. Gemma suggested having it at her place, with all of us crashing overnight, but I would sooner die than risk Jake find out about Operation: Popping the Cherry. If it wasn’t for Jake’s party the next day, I would have had a right job explaining why I didn’t want to stay at hers, but as it was, she didn’t bat an eyelid when I suggested my place instead.
As I sat on my bed and skimmed over the names for the umpteenth time—not that I needed the actual list any more: I’d read it so many times I knew it off by heart—my stomach lurched and my pulse raced. A gentle knock on my bedroom door made my pulse race for an entirely different reason and I panicked. I shoved the shortlist under my pillow, then snatched up the first thing that came to hand, pretending to be engrossed as the door inched opened.
Mum poked her head inside my room, so I looked up from my music player and hoped she didn’t notice the headphones still dangling over the edge of my bed.
Note to self: always keep a book next to the bed in future.
‘What time are your friends due over?’ she asked.
‘Umm … we said around eight o’clock in the end.’ I put down my iPod and slowly released the air trapped in my lungs. ‘Flick’s coming straight from her ballet class.’
‘That’s good. You won’t be on your own for too long, then.’ Mum still hadn’t recovered from last week’s drama but she was doing her best not to do the cotton-wool thing. ‘We’ve left some money on the telephone table if you want to ring out for pizzas, otherwise there’s plenty of food in the fridge.’
‘Ooh, pizza sounds great. Thanks, Mum.’ She hovered in the doorway, as if she couldn’t bear to tear herself away. ‘Go on, I’ll be fine,’ I said, putting on my best ‘adult’ face. ‘Lock the door behind you if it makes you feel better.’
That did the trick.
‘Good idea. I’ll do that.’ She glanced at the clock on my wall. ‘Right, I better get a shift on before your dad starts grumbling.’ Instead of leaving, as I expected, she dashed all the way into my room and pressed a kiss onto the top of my head first, then darted out and pulled the door shut behind her.
‘Ah, there you are,’ Dad joked, his voice carrying up the stairs. ‘I was about to send out a search party for you.’ I couldn’t hear Mum’s
reply but the sound of them both laughing made me smile. ‘Bye, Tink, we’re off now,’ he called up to me a few minutes later.
‘Bye, have fun,’ I shouted back.
‘Bye,’ Mum replied. ‘Take care.’
I waited until the front door slammed shut, then fished the shortlist out again. Headlights streamed through my bedroom window ten minutes later, so I hopped off the bed and watched Gemma pull onto the driveway, then I bounded down the stairs to let her in, relishing being able to move again, and discovered Piper and Chloe on the door step as well.
‘Hi, come on in,’ I said, stepping aside. ‘Mum and Dad have already left so we’ve got the place to ourselves.’ I was still ushering them in when another car pulled up outside the house. The back door opened and a pair of long legs appeared, complete with fluffy leg warmers, signalling Flick’s arrival. ‘Perfect timing,’ I said as she walked towards the door. ‘So who’d like a drink?’
Gemma didn’t even give me time to close the front door. ‘Sod drinks! Show us the goddamn list.’ She took off up the stairs, her overnight bag hooked over her shoulder, and dragged the others in her wake in a race to be first.
Oh boy.
‘You guys go on ahead, I’ll catch up.’ The high-pitched squeals started before I’d reached the fourth step, so my snarky comment fell on deaf ears. When I walked into my room, I could see why. All four of them were huddled on my bed, poring over something with rapt, frenzied expressions on their faces, and I doubted very much it was the latest gossip mag that Chloe permanently seemed to carry around with her.
‘Who’s Nathan? Do I know him?’ Gemma asked, without tearing her gaze off the page. Her finger travelled down the list. ‘And what about this Ryan guy? Who’s he?’
‘I know Nathan Harrison from work. He covers the men’s section, so I wouldn’t have thought so,’ I said, sitting on the stool next to my dressing table because there was no room on the bed. ‘And I know Ryan from my track days, but he’s also in Upper Sixth, doing sports science and retaking his maths GCSE. No way is he boyfriend material, not with his reputation. But, wowee, is he hot!’
Flick’s eyes glazed over. ‘Oh, I know him. He’s always in the weights room when I go in there,’ she said. ‘I was ready to fall down and worship at his feet until he opened his mouth. All he talks about is sport, but the girls are lining up to go out with him. A few of the guys, too, to be fair.’
I laughed. ‘Yeah that’s him. But it’s not like I’d be going out with him for the stimulating conversation now, is it?’
‘Too true. He could pop my cherry any day, if I still had a cherry, that is,’ Flick said, reaching up to undo her immaculate bun and letting her hair fall down past her shoulders. ‘So long as I didn’t have to talk to him again.’ She gave Gemma a nudge. ‘What d’you reckon, Gemma?’
‘Huh?’ Gemma glanced up at Flick.
‘Earth calling Gemma,’ Flick said. ‘Have you been listening at all?’
‘Er, no … sorry, I got sidetracked by the Nathan bit.’ Gemma shrugged, then switched her attention to me, a huge question mark stamped all over her face. ‘Is he tall, about six foot? Brown spiky hair? Well groomed? Always smells nice?’
Uh-oh.
I laughed nervously. ‘That just about describes half the guys at college.’
‘The one I’m thinking of goes to uni, and I’m sure I’ve seen him in Topman a few times when I’ve been in there with Ben.’
Double uh-oh.
The intensity in Gemma’s stare made me squirm.
‘Yeah, it could be the same one.’
‘Excellent.’ A grin spread slowly over Gemma’s face and her eyes twinkled. Another of her harebrained schemes was taking shape. ‘And we only have to wait until tomorrow to find out.’
Triple uh-oh.
‘Why’s that?’ I asked, falling right into Gemma’s trap.
Gemma’s grin turned into a million-megawatt smile. ‘He’ll be at Jake’s party.’
Argh!
I forced the corners of my mouth up and tried to match Gemma’s jubilant smile but couldn’t make it reach my eyes. ‘That’s great!’
Flick frowned and cocked her head. Her stare alone told me she’d picked up on my slight hesitation, too intuitive for her own good, having read my body language in an instant. She appeared to be the only one—thank God—but then she opened her mouth to call me on it.
No!
I pleaded with her, using only my eyes, and watched her eyebrows change from a dipped V shape to two high arches on her forehead.
‘So what are you going to wear?’ she asked, keeping her voice light, in total contrast to the fierceness in her gaze. She held her glare just long enough to inform me she’d be catching up with me soon. Very soon. ‘It had better be something good.’
What was I supposed to tell her?
‘Oh, by the way, I’ve got a huge crush on Gemma’s big brother but please don’t tell anyone,’ wasn’t exactly doing it for me. Telling somebody would make it real. I couldn’t let that happen. My feelings for Jake were nothing more than a silly fantasy. They’d soon pass. They had to. Didn’t they?
‘I don’t know yet,’ I said, in answer to both of her questions, the spoken and unspoken one. Flick heard me loud and clear and gave me the tiniest of nods.
‘Seeing as we’re here, then, how about throwing us a fashion show?’ she said, trying to distract the others from dissecting the shortlist all night. Damn Flick and her freaky sixth sense. ‘We could help you choose.’
‘That would be great, thanks.’ I couldn’t fault her powers of redirection, though: the shortlist lay forgotten on the quilt as the others tuned into our conversation. ‘But d’you mind if we eat first? I’m starving,’ I lied. The pizza was more likely to get stuck in my throat and choke me.
Ugh, imagine dying a virgin.
Three Hawaiians, two garlic breads, a portion of potato wedges and a gallon of fizz later, we staggered back to my bedroom.
‘Oh, man …’ Piper clutched her belly and groaned. ‘I am never eating pizza again.’ She flopped backwards onto my bed and sent a piece of paper slithering to the floor.
The shortlist.
Damn it.
What could I do to distract the girls long enough to hide it?
Flick noticed me staring at the floor and followed my gaze. She took a step closer to the blasted list and my heart leaped into my mouth.
Busted.
‘It’s all right for you,’ she said, taking another step. ‘I’ve got to try and squeeze into my leotard again tomorrow. Madame would go nuts if she knew how much junk I’d just scoffed. I bet I break out in a load of spots before my exam on Wednesday.’
Madame would have been highly impressed with Flick’s perfectly stretched foot, though, and her agility as she toed the page under my bed, then pirouetted on the newly vacated spot before sinking onto my bed.
Yes, yes, yes.
She’d done it!
My new wingman—wingwoman—looked at me and winked, then darted a couple of quick glances to my wall and back. What the …? Oh!
‘So who’s ready for the fashion show?’ I strode over to my wardrobe and slid the mirror door open to reveal the overstuffed rails and piles of shoe boxes.
‘Whoa!’ Chloe said, her eyes wide. ‘That’s a lot of stuff.’
‘The perils of working in a clothes shop, I guess.’
Chloe edged off my bed and walked over to me, or rather to my wardrobe, arriving at the same time as Gemma. As they stood side by side, the contrast between their expressions was enough to put a natural smile back on my face instead of the fake one I’d been wearing since we got back to my room.
Gemma’s eyes narrowed. She scoured the contents, parting hangers and examining everything. ‘Some of these still have the tags on, Lena. You really need to get out more.’
‘Yeah, thanks for that. Rub it in, why don’t you? We don’t all have social lives like yours, you know.’
Gemma grinned, but then her express
ion turned serious. She lunged and grabbed a hanger, then spun to face all of us. ‘Now this is gorgeous,’ she said, holding up my black-and-white peplum dress. ‘I vote you try this on first. Who’s with me?’
Everyone raised their hand except me. The odd one out again.
Go figure.
‘Are you sure?’ I took the dress off Gemma and hooked the hanger over my head, then pressed it against me. ‘Isn’t it a bit too “dressy” for Jake’s party?’
Gemma scowled. ‘Too dressy? Are you kidding me? You’re trying to impress Nathan, remember?’
And Jake.
‘Oh, yeah …’
‘But,’ Gemma continued, ‘if you’re worried about pulling a Malice—’ our exclusive term for dressing slutty or over the top ‘—you could team it with a pair of opaque tights and some black ballet pumps.’ Ooh, actually, that would cover most of your bruises and you’d be able to walk without looking like a cripple.’
‘OK, I’m sold. So that’s option one sorted.’ I unhooked myself from the hanger and laid it on my stool. ‘What’s option two?’
‘It’s a good job we’re here all night,’ Flick said, coming to join the three of us at the wardrobe, whereas Piper was happy to shout instructions from the comfort of my bed. ‘You have too many great things to choose from.’
It descended into something from Next Top Model, all of the girls sitting on the bed, with me strutting my stuff in the U shape around the bed. Under instruction to pretend it was a catwalk, I had more fun than I’d expected, happy to parade in one outfit after another, especially if it made them forget about the list.
Exhausted didn’t even begin to describe the wreck formerly known as my body. We’d narrowed it down to four possible outfits, complete with shoes and accessories, by the time Mum and Dad got back. Their return signalled the end of the party—I should make them breakfast in bed as a thank-you or something—so Piper and Chloe took themselves off the spare room with its twin beds. Gemma and Flick were both bunking in with me.
Cosy, but I had a king-sized bed, so it worked out.
Being the piggy in the middle, I couldn’t reach my phone. I listened. Nothing. Either my folks had slept in or it was stupidly early. I turned and closed my eyes but my brain wasn’t playing ball. Then my heart got in on the act, thumping loud enough I feared it would wake Gemma and Flick. Chloe and Piper too if I couldn’t calm down.
Popping the Cherry Page 10