at least ten minutes. And no exclamation points. Ever. Enthusiasm is way too desperate.”
“You know who he is, actually,” Hannah answers. “We saw him at Dunkin’ Donuts. The morning after, well.” She clears her throat and looks at Danielle before continuing. “After Andrew’s party.”
“I REMEMBER HIM!” Ava shrieks, almost spilling the bottle of nail polish in her hand. “Cheekbones for days.”
“He went to EVmU, right?” Danielle asks.
“Yeah, he’s a junior,” I answer.
“Oh,” she says. “Interesting.” She hands the phone back to me with a blank expression.
“What?” I grab for it, relieved to have his messages back in my possession. “Do you know him or something?” I think about how she almost approached him but then changed her mind at the last second.
“No, it’s nothing.” She shrugs and rummages through the box of nail polish.
“What?” I ask again. “Just say it.”
She grabs a little bottle of black nail polish and then looks up at me.
“It’s just . . . well . . . he’s in college and he’s probably been with his fair share of girls. I mean, he looks like a model.”
“What, are you saying I’m not good enough for him?”
“Keely, you’re beautif—” Hannah begins to say, but Danielle speaks over her.
“You’re a virgin. That matters.” She shrugs. “He doesn’t know, obviously, so he’s probably trying to sleep with you and turn you into a steady hookup. But if you tell him you’re a virgin, it could only go two ways: he’ll be weirded out and lose interest, or he’ll take your virginity and never speak to you again. Neither of those are good scenarios.” It’s blunt, but it sounds true, and it’s completely discouraging. “I just doubt he wants to teach you how to have sex. He’s got too many options to be interested in that.”
“You don’t know him,” I say sharply. “What if he actually likes me? What if he wants to do things the old-fashioned way?” Three faces stare back at me blankly. Danielle begins to laugh.
“You’re saying this hot college guy, who probably has his pick of every girl on campus, suddenly starts texting you, and wants to take you out for a nice steak dinner? Do you want him to give you a promise ring? Maybe you guys can hold hands and then after you can write about it in your diary.” She’s still holding the unopened bottle of black nail polish in her hands and she shakes it as she speaks, the click click click emphasizing every word. “Sorry, Collins, it has nothing to do with you. You’re totally datable. It’s just—a guy like James Dean doesn’t want to date anyone.”
I sigh and look down at my phone. “Well, I need to answer him. It’s been too long.”
Ava clicks her tongue. “The longer you make him wait, the more he’ll sweat.”
“Give me the phone.” Danielle sets the nail polish aside, her hands still dry. Then she holds her palm out to me.
“Wait, what are you going to say?” I drop the phone into her hand, hesitant.
“You just have to come across as more experienced,” she says, typing something onto the screen and then turning it to me.
I’m on a date, but it’s kinda boring
She presses SEND and we all inhale at the same time, staring at the phone. Danielle puts it down on the rug in the middle of us and we don’t speak, willing it to vibrate. After three tense minutes, it does, and we all lunge for it. Danielle reaches it first.
“Let me have it!” I say.
“What does it say?” Ava says, her hands wet with nail polish. “Someone show me!”
We’re having a party tonight. You should come by when you’re done. I promise not to be boring
We let out a collective shriek. I feel a nervous excitement bubbling up inside of me. There’s no mistaking the tone