Heart Like Mine A Novel - By Amy Hatvany Page 0,34
the youth group gathered in the basement.
Her mother kissed her forehead as they parted ways. “We’ll see you in a couple of hours,” she said, and Kelli nodded, wondering if God would strike her down for telling a lie.
* * *
By the time Kelli arrived at the gym, the game was already over. After her parents disappeared around the corner of the church hallway, she had slipped out the side door and walked as fast as she could across town to the school. Halfway there, she hid behind a huge rhododendron bush and took off the stupid blouse she’d put on over Nancy’s tight pink sweater, which she’d worn again that day. There was nothing she could do about the black slacks she had on—her jeans wouldn’t fit beneath them and her parents would have suspected something was up if she had brought a bag to youth group. She swiped on a bit of red lipstick and took her hair out of the low ponytail at the base of her neck, letting it fall around her shoulders. She hoped Jason would still think she looked pretty. She hoped he might kiss her.
When she got to the school, people poured out of the gym doors into the parking lot and Kelli scanned the crowd for Jason, knowing his dark head would be easily seen. She saw Nancy and beckoned her friend over.
“Oh my god!” she squealed. “Your parents let you come?”
“Not exactly,” Kelli said, then told Nancy what she had done.
“You are going to get in so much trouble,” Nancy observed, cracking the piece of gum she had in her mouth and fluffing her hot-rollered black curls.
Kelli sighed. “I don’t care. I’m sick of never getting to do anything.”
Nancy’s eyes got wide and she smiled, looking just over Kelli’s shoulder. “Hi, Jason,” she said, reaching over to pinch Kelli quickly on the arm.
“Hey,” Jason said, and Kelli whipped around to face him. “You missed the game,” he said.
“Yeah.” Kelli tried to sound nonchalant. “I had to hang out with my parents for a while.”
“That’s cool,” Jason said. “You want to go for a drive?”
“Sure,” Kelli said, her cheeks flushing from more than just her hurried walk to the school. She looked at Nancy. “I’ll call you later?”
Nancy nodded, and Kelli let Jason take her hand and lead her to his green truck. Jason Winkler is holding my hand! She straightened her spine and lifted her chin as they walked, hopeful she looked natural alongside him. She felt the eyes of the other students on them, and it made her feel important. She knew her parents would be furious with her, but in that moment, it didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was how Jason looked at her as he opened the truck door. Like he wanted her.
“What a gentleman,” she remarked with a playful lilt in her voice.
“I try,” Jason said, smiling. He shut her door and loped around the truck to the driver’s side.
“Where are we going?” Kelli asked as he started the engine.
“I know a spot where we can go to talk,” he said. “And get to know each other better.”
Kelli smiled and crossed her legs, tucking her hands between her thighs. Her muscles sparked with excitement—she was going to be Jason’s girlfriend, she just knew it. “Did we win the game?” she asked, remembering from Cosmo how much boys liked it when you asked them questions about their interests.
“Yep,” he said, pulling out of the school parking lot onto the main drive of town. “Seventy-four to sixty-two. I shot twenty of those points.”
“Wow,” Kelli said. “They’re lucky to have you.”
“I’m the lucky one,” Jason said. “Look at who’s riding in my truck tonight.”
Kelli flushed with pleasure and giggled. They were silent awhile, listening to the radio as Jason drove them off the main drag and out of town. A small panicky fire ignited in Kelli’s stomach. “I can’t stay out too late,” she said, keeping her voice light. “My parents don’t know where I am.”
Jason laughed. “You snuck out?”
“Sort of,” she said. She glanced out the window into the dark. “Where are we going, again?”
“Just a spot off the highway,” Jason said. “It’s quiet and a really cool place to look at the stars.”
“Okay,” Kelli said, but she looked at her watch. She’d left the church about an hour ago, which meant she had another hour before youth group was over and her parents realized she was gone.