I note the panic in my voice and clear my throat to cover it up.
He laughs. “I know. I hate all the rules. You should just call someone when you want to call someone.”
Rules? What rules? There are rules for calling people? Why didn’t I research this? Damn teen dances. My impulsivity clouded my judgment.
“It’s loud where you are,” I say and expect to hear Nancy’s screech throughout the house any second.
“I’m at a bonfire out on Nauset Light. If you’d called earlier I would have invited you. You need four-wheel drive to get out here. Do you have access to an SUV or anything?”
“No, it’s um, actually hard to get a car right now. I’m at the mercy of the family this summer,” I think up quickly. Be Scarlett. “Guess you’ll have to pick me up for our date.” Wow, that was forward. I hold my breath.
Party chatter echoes in the background for a second.
“Definitely,” he says, and I like that there’s a lightness in his voice.
I must have been walking in circles because the inertia of my body pulls at me when I stop. I’m smiling big now, and when I glance through the skylight, I’m right underneath the Big Dipper. I stand here, with facial muscle exhaustion from talking to a boy who is not Tucker. My cheeks hurt.
“When are you free?” he asks.
I nudge my toe into the carpet. “Oh you know, whenever.”
“How about Friday night—” There is a crash of something glass in the background and Andrew’s laughter echoes out of the phone again. “Wow,” he says, “my friends are idiots. Remind me not to introduce you.” He laughs again and says, “You can show me these famous stars of yours.”
“Great!” I say, rocking on the balls of my feet a little. “We can actually go to Nauset Light. It’s the equinox and Jupiter is really bright and—”
He laughs again and it reminds me of a teddy bear, a big teddy bear laughing at me through the line.
“Wow,” he says. “You are smart. Hey, I have to go, Star Girl. Where should I pick you up?”
Damn. Friday is my birthday. I know we’re not officially celebrating until Saturday, but I’m sure we’re doing something. There’s no way I’m going to reschedule with Andrew. I’ll make it work.
The thought of Andrew coming to the door makes my stomach clench. Mom would insist on saying hello and Dad, too, with his Einstein hair. Oh God, and Nancy would want to talk to him just so she can see me interact with someone of the opposite sex. Then, to add insult to injury, someone would call me “Beanie.” He would know I’m not eighteen in two seconds.
Even worse? Scarlett would answer the door and Andrew would know we were sisters. He would probably like her better than me.
“I’ll be in town so why don’t you pick me up in front of the Bird’s Nest?” I finally say and add as a joke, “You know, for old time’s sake? How about seven thirty?”
“See you there,” he says. “Oh yeah, and be hungry.”
When I hang up the phone there is a tingling in my chest. Like the moment before the results of an experiment, when all of the elements coalesce. Coalesceeee. Scarlett would say that word sounds epic. . . . She always knows what to say.
The secret of my date makes me giddy. I nearly jump down the stairs.
In the living room, Mom and Dad watch the end of a Red Sox game. Dad’s hair sticks up from over the lounger in zigzag strands. He snores, which is par for the course at the eighth inning. I slip my phone in my pocket and plop down on the couch next to Mom.
“I’m sorry we didn’t tell you about the dance sooner,” she says, putting her hand on my back. “Nancy was insisting that you would have a great time.”
“It’s no big deal,” I say. “Thanks for letting me stay home.” I tuck my feet under the blanket with Mom. I lean my head on her shoulder and fall asleep just like that.
Warm. Comfortable. Happy.
NINE
THE NEXT DAY, DAD DRIVES US TO FALMOUTH. The Alvin is finally at WHOI, so I jumped at the opportunity to go to work with Dad. As we drive, we pass by the ferry that takes tourists to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. We pass my favorite restaurant, Allen’s, and of course the best coffee shop in Falmouth, Coffee Craze. The brownies there are the best.
Once we