35
Jessica
“If you put off dress shopping any longer, I’m going to write a nasty rumor about you in my column,” Crystal said, sliding into the booth next to me. It was after school, and, for once, I’d taken the time to hang out with my only friends.
“I can’t go tonight,” I said. “I’m busy.”
“Jess,” she whined like a child. “You promised you’d go before prom, and it’s two weeks away.”
“Which means we have two weeks to shop,” I said, drumming my nails across the sticky table. She glared at me, and I sighed. “I promise I’ll go, just not tonight. Please.”
Robb joined us with burgers as Crystal flicked her tongue over her lip piercing. “But I want to go tonight.”
“I’m busy.”
“With what?” she asked. “You’re always busy, and you don’t even tell me why.”
I sighed. “It’s nothing, really.” Just searching for my parents and hesitating to ask for your mother’s help.
“Then ditch it,” Crystal said, and Robb groaned.
“Leave it alone, Crystal,” he said, biting into his cheeseburger. “I’m sure Jess has good reasons. Right, Jess?” He winked.
I dropped eye contact. “Right.”
Crystal sighed and picked at her fries. “Fine,” she said. “But I expect you to go next weekend, no arguments.”
“Deal.”
Crystal reached over and grabbed the ketchup, filling her plate with it. “So,” she began, twirling a fry in the mess. “Have you found a date yet?” she asked me, and Robb choked.
“No,” I said, ignoring his reaction. “I’m kind of a go-single-to-avoid-drama sort of a girl.”
“Good,” Crystal said, munching on her food. “I was afraid you’d bring some random guy with us.”
“It’s not like I even know anyone else,” I said, and Crystal rolled her eyes.
“For all I knew, you had a boyfriend from Georgia that was coming up.”
My jaw opened. “Don’t you think I would’ve mentioned that?”
“No,” Robb and Crystal spoke at the same time.
I dropped my gaze. I guess I didn’t tell them as much about my life as they’d told me about theirs. “Well, I don’t—have a boyfriend, I mean.”
“Do you want one?” Robb asked, and Crystal sat up, leaned across the table, and smacked his arm.
“You have Linda,” she said, and he shrugged.
“Our relationship isn’t defined,” he said, and Crystal’s eyes turned to slits.
“Would she say the same thing?”
He didn’t react, and Crystal smacked herself on the forehead. “You’re impossible, Robb.”
“What?” he asked, and fries fell out of his mouth. “Prom is the best time to meet new friends.”
“You mean girls,” Crystal said, curling her lip.
“Friends,” he repeated.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know friends sucked one another’s faces off,” she said, and he threw his hands in the air.
“I don’t suck face with them,” he said, stumbling over Crystal’s diction.
She held her hand up. “Don’t defend your raging teenage-boy hormones,” she said. “I’m sick of it. You always bring girls around.”
His brown eyes blinked. “I’m not bringing anyone to prom.”
“Not yet.”
“Come on, guys,” I said, waving my hand between them. “Stop arguing.”
“Easy enough for you to say,” Crystal said. “You haven’t watched Robb drool over every girl with two legs since you were able to walk yourself.”
Robb sighed. “I’m not that bad.”
Crystal flayed around. “You flirted with my cousin.”
“So?”
“You were fourteen,” she said, leaning on her hand. “And she was twenty.”
I giggled, slapping my hand over my mouth. “That’s pretty ridiculous, Robb,” I said, and he grinned.
“You didn’t see her cousin,” he said. “She was hot.”
Crystal banged her forehead against the table. “That’s my family member you’re talking about.”
“Well, you have a hot family.”
She groaned. “I don’t even know why I’m friends with you.”
“Lighten up, Hutchins,” he said, chewing on his burger. “I’m only joking.”
“Your joking is about to make me sick,” she said, glancing up from the table. “And that cousin is an alcoholic stripper now.”
Robb chuckled. “Explains why she was so much fun.”
Crystal sat up to hit him again, but I pulled her back. “Relax,” I laughed, and she groaned, leaning against me.
“Let’s go do something else, please,” she said. “This burger joint is too small, and I don’t like where this conversation is going.”
“Okay,” Robb said, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket.
The waitress darted our way.
He cursed, and Crystal’s jaw dropped. “Don’t tell me you forgot your money again.”
He smiled. “Don’t worry,” he said, returning his wallet. “I got this.”
“Watch this,” Crystal whispered as the waitress neared our table.
“Here’s your check,” she said, and Robb stood up, inches from her.
“Greta,” he said as I recognized her from school. “I had no idea you worked here.”
Her pasty cheeks burned crimson. “Yeah,” was all she could manage.
Robb ran a hand through his thick hair. “I wish I’d known you worked here. I’d come in more often.”
Greta lit up. “You would?”
“Definitely,” he said. “I really enjoy talking to you in—math—er—history class.”
“Art class,” she corrected, tilting her head. “And I don’t think we’ve talked before.”
Robb smiled, leaning closer. “We should.”
If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it. He had this girl completely under his spell, utterly and pathetically love struck. She might as well have been hypnotized.
“So we should chill sometime,” he said, flipping open his empty wallet “Let me write down my number.” He stopped. “I don’t have any paper.”
She fumbled with the check and turned it over. “You can write on this.”
“Thanks,” he said, stealing the pen right off her ear. She shuddered.
Please.
“Call me tonight; we could do something,” he said, handing it back to her as he stared into his wallet. “Or not.”
“What’s wrong?” she asked, and he revealed the emptiness.
“Looks like I can’t afford it,” he said. “I left my money at home.”
“Don’t worry about it,” she said, laying her hand on his shoulder. “I’ll take care of the bill. You can make it up to me when you can.”
He raised his brow. “I can’t let you do that.”
“I insist,” she said, and he nodded, smiling.
“Thanks, Greta.”
“See you later,” she said, bounding off to the kitchen.
Robb fell back in the booth and laid his arm on the back of the chair. “Told you I’d take care of it,” he said, and I shook my head.
“I cannot believe you.”
He shrugged. “I got you two out of your bill, too.”
“It’s the only reason I let him get away with it. I couldn’t afford burgers without his charm,” Crystal said, scooting out of the booth. “Let’s get out of here.”
I sprang up, ready to leave. I’d feel too guilty watching Greta walk around in her bliss. Robb would break her heart, and he probably wouldn’t lose sleep over it. But he was my friend, and so was Crystal. My life was finally coming into place, but I couldn’t feel more unsettled.
If I’d learned anything, it was how easily life could turn around. When everything was right, something was bound to go wrong. I could only hope it wouldn’t be as bad as I was expecting.