of her life.
“What about it?”
“Well, you never told me the story behind it, and now he's back, and you just seem ...” Anna stopped speaking as she searched for the right word. Dulcie felt her pulse quicken.
“I seem like what?” she demanded. She thought she'd been doing a damn fine job of seeming like nothing was different.
“I don't know, distracted. I haven't seen you sketching anything, you haven't taken any pictures. I just thought maybe … maybe there was more than just that kiss. Thought maybe you'd like to talk about it,” Anna offered.
Dulcie knew she took the other girl for granted. Anna had been there before Dulcie's “stock had risen”, as it were. She deserved a better friend, really, someone who could handle sleepovers and giggle about boys. Someone with some warmth.
“No,” Dulcie said, then she looked around to make sure they were alone before stepping closer to her friend. “We only ever kissed. But it was … intense. Remember how my camera got broken? Cause he bumped into me? When we were in detention, he looked through my sketchbook, and it was like … he just understood, you know? He didn't think it was weird, he didn't question anything. He saw everything exactly how I saw it. That's why I dressed up for the dance, because of a picture I'd drawn of the two of us. He did the same thing. That's why we wound up under those bleachers.”
“Oh my god,” Anna gasped. It wasn't the whole story, but it was juicy enough for the other girl. “Oh my god! So like, it was a thing! Oh my god, he got in trouble that night, didn't he? Oh my god, what if he hadn't? What if you two had gone out? What if you were like meant to be together and have a hundred babies and that night ruined it? Oh my god does Jared know!? ”
“No! No, he does not, and I don't want him to,” Dulcie replied quickly.
“Do you still like him?” Anna asked. Dulcie glanced around again.
“I'm not sure I ever liked him. We were just … something weird. We barely ever talked, before that and after that, even now. He graduated and left without even saying goodbye,” she explained. Anna winced.
“Harsh.”
“But then two weeks later, he sent me a new camera and told me to make sketches of the pictures I took.”
“ Oh my god he's totally in love with you you should go have all the babies with him. ”
When Anna got excited, her speech would approach light speed. Spaces between words and breathing became optional.
“He is not in love with me. I never heard from him again after that, not once, not till he came back to town. Like I said, it was just a weird thing, and it happened a long time ago. It's done, it's over with, and now you know, so now we don't ever have to talk about it again,” Dulcie said, her voice growing hard.
“But what if -”
“I'm serious, Anna.”
Anna tried to glare, but being upset wasn't in her nature. She pouted her lips and sighed dramatically, then finally laughed.
“Okay, fine. So he doesn't like you.”
“Yes.”
“And you don't like him.”
“Correct.”
“So you won't care that he's hitting on Frannie McKey right now.”
Dulcie froze for a second. Of course when they'd first gotten to the party, she'd scanned the area, looking for him. She hadn't seen him in the crowd, though she supposed he could've been in the mine, or off in the woods. She'd halfway hoped he hadn't come.
But mostly really hoped he'd be there.
She glanced over her shoulder, trying to be nonchalant. Probably failing. He was standing maybe fifteen feet directly behind her. A girl was next to him, her back against a tree, and he was leaning over her. Smiling his evil little smile, his arm braced against the trunk over her head. Frannie beamed back at him, laughing and flirting. Dulcie remembered they'd dated briefly, when Con had been a junior. There'd been wild stories about the two of them getting caught in some interesting “situations” in the boys' locker room.
He's only ever kissed
“What about it?”
“Well, you never told me the story behind it, and now he's back, and you just seem ...” Anna stopped speaking as she searched for the right word. Dulcie felt her pulse quicken.
“I seem like what?” she demanded. She thought she'd been doing a damn fine job of seeming like nothing was different.
“I don't know, distracted. I haven't seen you sketching anything, you haven't taken any pictures. I just thought maybe … maybe there was more than just that kiss. Thought maybe you'd like to talk about it,” Anna offered.
Dulcie knew she took the other girl for granted. Anna had been there before Dulcie's “stock had risen”, as it were. She deserved a better friend, really, someone who could handle sleepovers and giggle about boys. Someone with some warmth.
“No,” Dulcie said, then she looked around to make sure they were alone before stepping closer to her friend. “We only ever kissed. But it was … intense. Remember how my camera got broken? Cause he bumped into me? When we were in detention, he looked through my sketchbook, and it was like … he just understood, you know? He didn't think it was weird, he didn't question anything. He saw everything exactly how I saw it. That's why I dressed up for the dance, because of a picture I'd drawn of the two of us. He did the same thing. That's why we wound up under those bleachers.”
“Oh my god,” Anna gasped. It wasn't the whole story, but it was juicy enough for the other girl. “Oh my god! So like, it was a thing! Oh my god, he got in trouble that night, didn't he? Oh my god, what if he hadn't? What if you two had gone out? What if you were like meant to be together and have a hundred babies and that night ruined it? Oh my god does Jared know!? ”
“No! No, he does not, and I don't want him to,” Dulcie replied quickly.
“Do you still like him?” Anna asked. Dulcie glanced around again.
“I'm not sure I ever liked him. We were just … something weird. We barely ever talked, before that and after that, even now. He graduated and left without even saying goodbye,” she explained. Anna winced.
“Harsh.”
“But then two weeks later, he sent me a new camera and told me to make sketches of the pictures I took.”
“ Oh my god he's totally in love with you you should go have all the babies with him. ”
When Anna got excited, her speech would approach light speed. Spaces between words and breathing became optional.
“He is not in love with me. I never heard from him again after that, not once, not till he came back to town. Like I said, it was just a weird thing, and it happened a long time ago. It's done, it's over with, and now you know, so now we don't ever have to talk about it again,” Dulcie said, her voice growing hard.
“But what if -”
“I'm serious, Anna.”
Anna tried to glare, but being upset wasn't in her nature. She pouted her lips and sighed dramatically, then finally laughed.
“Okay, fine. So he doesn't like you.”
“Yes.”
“And you don't like him.”
“Correct.”
“So you won't care that he's hitting on Frannie McKey right now.”
Dulcie froze for a second. Of course when they'd first gotten to the party, she'd scanned the area, looking for him. She hadn't seen him in the crowd, though she supposed he could've been in the mine, or off in the woods. She'd halfway hoped he hadn't come.
But mostly really hoped he'd be there.
She glanced over her shoulder, trying to be nonchalant. Probably failing. He was standing maybe fifteen feet directly behind her. A girl was next to him, her back against a tree, and he was leaning over her. Smiling his evil little smile, his arm braced against the trunk over her head. Frannie beamed back at him, laughing and flirting. Dulcie remembered they'd dated briefly, when Con had been a junior. There'd been wild stories about the two of them getting caught in some interesting “situations” in the boys' locker room.
He's only ever kissed
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