says something to you, you really listen, you know?”
He stares directly at Hannah until she stops scratching her arm and looks up at him. His eyes are intense behind the lenses of his glasses, and Hannah gets the strange feeling, like she sometimes gets around Wally, that he sees her differently than she sees herself.
“I’m really glad I came over,” he says, one corner of his mouth lifting upward in a smile.
“Yeah,” she says, trying on the skin of the girl he must see when he looks at her. “Me, too.”
Hannah and Joanie lie around watching TV on Tuesday, neither one of them having showered, both of them rocking messy buns, both of them waiting for word from Clay. He finally texts their friend group around six o’clock, asking them to come over to help him set up. “I get shower first,” Joanie says, jumping up from the couch and sprinting upstairs, and Hannah runs after her, yelling at her to hurry up and to not spend ten minutes conditioning her hair.
They tell their parents they’re going to Clay’s house to watch a movie. “It’s a really long one,” Joanie says. “Like, longer than Titanic , even, so we won’t be home until late.”
“What’s the movie?” their dad asks, sincerely curious.
Joanie’s mouth hangs open for a long second. “I don’t know—some weird one Clay wanted to watch.”
“Text us when you get there,” their mom says. “And no drinking .”
Hannah texts Baker just before she and Joanie walk out the door. We’re heading over, are you there yet?
At Albertson’s getting Sprite for the drinks , Baker writes back. Be there soon. And I’m bringing you a surpris e .
What’s the surprise? Hannah asks.
Baker replies a minute later. Nope , she writes, don’t even try.
Wally and Luke’s cars are already in the driveway when Hannah and Joanie arrive. They find the three boys in the family room, moving furniture against the walls and listening to booming music—Madonna’s “Like a Prayer,” which radiates outward from Clay’s speakers system. Hannah pauses in the hallway when she realizes that all three boys are singing and haven’t noticed her yet. Joanie bumps into her from behind and opens her mouth to yell at her, but Hannah pinches her arm and points at the boys.
“Best part,” Clay says, pushing back from the sofa he and Wally are moving. “Listen—this part, right here.”
Clay starts to jump in place, singing the lyrics, at the same moment that Wally leans forward and drums his hands on the air. Luke ambles over to them, adapting his voice to a high pitch to match the singing of the background choir. The three of them stand in a loose triangular formation, each one of them playing some kind of air instrument while they sing. Hannah holds her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.
Luke jumps onto the sofa and holds his arms out to the open space of the room while he belts the song. Clay and Wally each grab one of his arms and wrench him down so that Luke gives an inadvertent yelp that sends all three of them into a fit of laughter.
“Oh my god,” Joanie laughs behind Hannah, and the boys look up from the sofa, all three of them startled.
“So manly,” Joanie says when she realizes she has their attention.
Luke recovers first. “Very manly,” he says, walking over to kiss Joanie hello.
“Do y’all always listen to Madonna like this?” Hannah says.
“No,” Clay says, holding his hands at his waist. He grins sheepishly. “Only sometimes.”
“You surprised us,” Wally says, sliding the bridge of his glasses back up his nose. “If we’d known you were coming over this soon, we would have played some Tina Turner, too.”
He walks over and hugs Hannah, and she can smell the cologne on his clothes. It’s good , she tells herself, breathing in his scent. It’s good. It’s good.
Baker breezes into the house a few minutes later, grocery bags cutting into her arms and long brown hair falling over her
He stares directly at Hannah until she stops scratching her arm and looks up at him. His eyes are intense behind the lenses of his glasses, and Hannah gets the strange feeling, like she sometimes gets around Wally, that he sees her differently than she sees herself.
“I’m really glad I came over,” he says, one corner of his mouth lifting upward in a smile.
“Yeah,” she says, trying on the skin of the girl he must see when he looks at her. “Me, too.”
Hannah and Joanie lie around watching TV on Tuesday, neither one of them having showered, both of them rocking messy buns, both of them waiting for word from Clay. He finally texts their friend group around six o’clock, asking them to come over to help him set up. “I get shower first,” Joanie says, jumping up from the couch and sprinting upstairs, and Hannah runs after her, yelling at her to hurry up and to not spend ten minutes conditioning her hair.
They tell their parents they’re going to Clay’s house to watch a movie. “It’s a really long one,” Joanie says. “Like, longer than Titanic , even, so we won’t be home until late.”
“What’s the movie?” their dad asks, sincerely curious.
Joanie’s mouth hangs open for a long second. “I don’t know—some weird one Clay wanted to watch.”
“Text us when you get there,” their mom says. “And no drinking .”
Hannah texts Baker just before she and Joanie walk out the door. We’re heading over, are you there yet?
At Albertson’s getting Sprite for the drinks , Baker writes back. Be there soon. And I’m bringing you a surpris e .
What’s the surprise? Hannah asks.
Baker replies a minute later. Nope , she writes, don’t even try.
Wally and Luke’s cars are already in the driveway when Hannah and Joanie arrive. They find the three boys in the family room, moving furniture against the walls and listening to booming music—Madonna’s “Like a Prayer,” which radiates outward from Clay’s speakers system. Hannah pauses in the hallway when she realizes that all three boys are singing and haven’t noticed her yet. Joanie bumps into her from behind and opens her mouth to yell at her, but Hannah pinches her arm and points at the boys.
“Best part,” Clay says, pushing back from the sofa he and Wally are moving. “Listen—this part, right here.”
Clay starts to jump in place, singing the lyrics, at the same moment that Wally leans forward and drums his hands on the air. Luke ambles over to them, adapting his voice to a high pitch to match the singing of the background choir. The three of them stand in a loose triangular formation, each one of them playing some kind of air instrument while they sing. Hannah holds her hand over her mouth to keep from laughing.
Luke jumps onto the sofa and holds his arms out to the open space of the room while he belts the song. Clay and Wally each grab one of his arms and wrench him down so that Luke gives an inadvertent yelp that sends all three of them into a fit of laughter.
“Oh my god,” Joanie laughs behind Hannah, and the boys look up from the sofa, all three of them startled.
“So manly,” Joanie says when she realizes she has their attention.
Luke recovers first. “Very manly,” he says, walking over to kiss Joanie hello.
“Do y’all always listen to Madonna like this?” Hannah says.
“No,” Clay says, holding his hands at his waist. He grins sheepishly. “Only sometimes.”
“You surprised us,” Wally says, sliding the bridge of his glasses back up his nose. “If we’d known you were coming over this soon, we would have played some Tina Turner, too.”
He walks over and hugs Hannah, and she can smell the cologne on his clothes. It’s good , she tells herself, breathing in his scent. It’s good. It’s good.
Baker breezes into the house a few minutes later, grocery bags cutting into her arms and long brown hair falling over her
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