Never Always Sometimes - Adi Alsaid Page 0,89

said, still looking embarrassed, which was the

only time Julia ever saw similarities between him and Dave. He was

DAVE & JULIA 297

bigger and more self-assured, but right now she could see a flicker of

insecurity, too. She wasn’t sure why she’d never thought of it before,

but Brett had at one point lost his mom, too.

They walked slowly, not saying much until they reached Julia’s car.

“I know you said I don’t have to make it up to you,” Brett said,

breaking the silence. “But I want to anyway. I know up until the

promposal, you and Dave were always planning on going to prom

together. Now you need a date. How about I take you? Not like a pity

thing,” he added quickly. “This is a little embarrassing, but I’ve had a crush on you for a while.”

He wasn’t nervous, like Dave might be. But he wasn’t as sure of

himself as usual. He gave her a smile, raised his eyebrows. “What do

you say? I know you were looking to go with the future prom king, but

maybe a past one will do?”

Julia smiled. “That’s so cheesy.”

“Dammit, I know.”

She took her keys out of her bag and played with them, rubbing her

fingers over her keychain amulet.

“No,” she said firmly. “I appreciate the gesture, though. That’s nice

of you.”

“Oh.” Brett lowered his head, nodding like he’d seen it coming.

“It’s been a pretty crazy few weeks for me. I need some time to

just”—she gestured with the hand not holding her keys, searching for

the word—“float.” The sound of that felt great. It put an image in her

head of a lake on a windless day, not a single ripple on the surface.

298 NEVER ALWAYS SOMETIMES

Brett nodded, almost eagerly. “Fair enough,” he said, scratching at

his chin, which, like Dave’s, could barely grow any facial hair. “That

makes sense.” He lingered for a second before saying good night and

turning away.

When he was about to turn away, Julia stopped him. “Thanks for

keeping me company,” she said, standing on her toes to plant a kiss on

his cheek.

Brett smiled, looking momentarily dazed. “Anytime,” he said finally,

putting up his hand as a wave before going back the way they came.

Julia watched him retreat down the street, taking long, hurried

strides to return to his friends. He pulled a beanie out of his back pocket and slipped it on before he reached the growing crowd of midnight-showing attendants, still visible among them thanks to his height. Julia opened her car door and slid in, taking a moment to mentally recover

from the quick exchange, reassessing what she knew about Brett. Then

she put the key in the ignition and started the car, buckling her seat

belt in and lowering the windows. Her phone remained in the center

console, quiet and ignored. The dads knew she’d gone to a movie, and

they wouldn’t worry about her for a while. She had the rest of the

night to just float.

DAVE & JULIA 299

PROM

DAVE AND GRETCHEN were walking to school, the sound of their

dress shoes clunking down the sidewalk. Gretchen was in a blue dress,

which was more of a nice dress than a prom gown. Her hair was done

up in curls and she was wearing a light smattering of makeup. She

looked beautiful, and Dave caught himself glancing thankfully at their

hands clasped together.

Dave himself was in a tuxedo, a cliché he felt okay taking part

in. He loved dressing up and often wished people still wore suits

everywhere they went. It was light out, though, and tuxedos looked

significantly less impressive during the daytime. Tuxedos were meant

for the glamour of nighttime, and Dave looked forward to when the

sun would set and the tuxedo would finally fit perfectly.

They’d skipped the limo, and the pictures on the front lawn.

Corsages matched up with boutonnieres were tacky, so they’d skipped

that, too. It seemed lame to show up to prom early, but it was in their

nature to avoid being late, so they were walking there slowly.

“Do you think there’ll be snacks?” Dave asked.

Gretchen thought about it for a second. Her eyes flicked up, like

she was looking for the answer somewhere right above the tree line. “I

don’t know. I feel like prom at our school will be too classy for a bowl full of chips, but not classy enough for hors d’oeuvres.”

“Really? Half the reason I’m going to this thing is because I’m

expecting fountains.”

“Oh, those will definitely be there. As soon as we get there I’m

jumping into the milk-chocolate one.”

“Jumping in? Gretchen, what do you think a chocolate fountain

looks like?”

“No, I know they’re small. I’m jumping in anyway.”

“Do I get to lick the chocolate off you?”

“Only the spots I can’t reach.”

“Awesome. Chocolate