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iii. dismissal's couples

For the rest of the school day, I didn’t even think about Reese around my friends out of fear that they would gang up on me and throw me into the deep end with the worse dare that would ever exist—me talking to Reese Jamison. The thought alone has officially made this year the most terrifying.

I’m not afraid of Reese. I’d just like to avoid the same outcome and possible humiliation like the last time I’d spoken to him. But even with that, I don’t let my guard down all the way that Gina won’t mention it to the girls.

One of their favorite things is to watch me suffer, and I won’t be surprised when the time finally comes. Whether it’s at dismissal or ten minutes left to sunrise—I’ll be solid and ready for whatever they throw my way.

Only one dare was successfully dished during school. It isn’t uncommon. We tend to wait it out to see if something better comes along than what we have planned.

Unfortunately, we went against Jodene’s wishes. Actually, Von went against Jodene’s wishes. She dared her to do the exact thing that Jodene had dreaded that very morning; Jake had gotten involved.

Yvonne had told our dear friend to walk across the cafeteria to where the adorable, dark-haired, brown-eyed boy had been sitting with his lacrosse buddies, and talk to him for five minutes before asking him for his number.

We all knew Jodene didn’t have his number. She was always a big wuss and never asked him for it when they’d had that project together and had to meet up. She did it the old fashioned way and sought him out during school and they figured it out. It was pitiful.

So we’d all watched our friend hyperventilate for almost ten minutes, making sure her cheeks were only slightly flushed and not stop-sign red like they had been before, touched up her makeup, stood up on wobbly legs, and strutted across the cafeteria as confident as she could muster.

Okay, so it wasn’t that easy. She’d gotten up and sat down a number of times, muttering “I can’t do this”, and we had to kindly reminded her that she wasn’t asking the guy to marry her, and that we all thought he liked her.

We weren’t just saying that either. They’d never spoken before that project, but they didn’t go back to being strangers after it. He’s never passed by her once and never said hi if he saw her, and he’s invited her to parties on numerous occasions. Regularly we’d catch them grinning and blushing at each other like fools, so it’s high time something happens.

We hadn’t doubted she’d get it, especially when he’d turned to look at her and his face lit up like northern lights before he’d gotten up from his chair to face her directly.

We were all grinning when minutes went by and she finally handed him her phone, both of them laughing to themselves like the love-struck teens they were.

I hate to admit, I all but melted off my chair when he leaned down and kissed her cheek before whispering in her ear. And I didn’t hide my grin at how red her face was when she finally came back to our table.

Suffice to say, Jodene is practically skipping on clouds as we head for Yvonne’s convertible in the school’s parking lot at dismissal.

“Guys, we’ve been texting all day,” she says with a giddy grin, walking backward in front of us. We look at each other briefly with knowing smiles.

Jodene points at us with her phone. “Don’t even do that. You guys!” She rushes forward, forcing us to a stop and pulling us into a small circle.

We look down at her in amusement. Jodene is the shortest one in our group by a few inches but it shows. While she stands tall at 5’3, the rest of us are at 5’7 and 5’9 with Yvonne being the tallest. But even with Jodene’s height, she has muscles on her that even we can’t fight off sometimes.

She wraps her arms around us and we finally do the whole, squealing and jumping up and down thing, drawing attention from other students maneuvering the lot.

“You can’t even begin to understand how happy I am, you guys,” she says, stepping back and beaming.

“I think we have an idea,” Gina says teasingly.

“I thought it would be a horrible idea, but,” she pauses and looks at all of us one by one before finishing, “thanks for not listening to me.”

“Our sole purpose is to make each other miserable in the best possible ways, I thought we established that,” I say with a dramatic sigh. We all laugh and begin walking again, already planning our next set of activities for the day.

We agree to drop by Starbucks for an hour or so, before Jodene’s name is being called from across the parking lot. Instinctively we all turn to see who it is.

“Look who can’t get enough,” Von says with a laugh.

Jodene slaps her arm halfheartedly and quickly blurts out, “I’ll be right back,” before making her way over to Jake. He’s all smiles and dimples the closer she gets.

A loud sigh takes my attention away from them and I snicker at the dreamy look on Gina’s face.

“Can I have someone’s son look at me like that?” she retorts, hugging her phone to her chest.

“Gina, you’re drooling,” I mock, taking a drink of water from my cup when she turns to me with a sarcastic smile.

“Funny you.”

“Maybe we’ll find the love of your life at Starbucks,” Yvonne offers.

Gina nods to herself, her eyes becoming distant again. “Some really good-looking people pop up there.”

Laughing, I throw my arm around her shoulder and urge her forward. “Come on, dreamer. I’m sure you just need some coffee in you, and you’ll have all the love you need.”

“Aren’t we supposed to be waiting on Bora?” She hesitantly starts to walk with me.

‘Bora’ is Jodene’s last name and is usually what other people address her by. We rarely do since we’re inside circle and all.

“We’ll wait for her at the car,” I tell her. A cool breeze picks up and I hum. “Summer is the best time of year and don’t argue with me.” I rest my head against Gina’s curls and inhale the floral scent of her hair. I’m a creep like that when it comes to my friends.

“I second it.”

“No objections here.”

Von unlocks her car when we’re close enough and gets in the driver’s seat. Seconds later, the top lifts up and off, exposing the red, leather interior. I toss my bag into the back and climb in, hoisting myself over the car door, to sit on the flat surface on the back of the car between the headrests.

Gina places her things on the back seat also but doesn’t get in, while Yvonne nods to the soft music coming from the car’s speakers, her head tilted back and a pair of shades already covering her eyes.

I lean back, resting my weight on my palms and bob my head to the heavy rock tune. I let my eyes wander the packed parking lot and the traffic of cars and school busses following the narrow exits onto the main road. This is one of the main reasons why I hate parking in the front parking lot.

There are more exits in the back lot and it’s bigger. But does anyone listen to Kira? No. At least we’re sitting here waiting for Jodene to come back instead of the line to get shorter.

At the thought, my gaze drifts to where Jodene is. She’s standing in front of Jake, both of them wearing wide smiles and talking animatedly. Despite my not so great history with the opposite sex, I smile.

Jodene’s never had a real relationship and while it wouldn’t be a great idea to get into one right before college, I’m happy for her. From the rare times I’ve spoken to Jake, I can say he’s a genuine, nice guy, so I won’t be entirely against it if they happen between now and the end of summer.

I look away from them and roam the cluster of kids still leaving through every exit of the school. Then I spot them. My lips twitch and I shake my head.

Their names I know. Chris and Ariana. They’re probably one of the most talked-about ‘couples’ in our grade. Technically, she’s a junior and they aren’t dating—at least not to the public—but their closeness… doesn’t connect with their claims.

It’s one of the great mysteries since the beginning of senior year. I couldn’t care less, but it’s great to see how riled up people get when they’re not in on other people’s business, especially since these two don’t hide their intimacy at all.

For example, now as they’re next to his car, hidden from the rest of their friends, his hands are clutching her hips and his mouth is at her ear. They’re both sporting huge grins at whatever he’s saying.

I slide off the back of the car and force myself between the front seats. I lean closer to Von, not taking my eyes off the couple. “How long do you think before those two get… discovered?”

Yvonne lowers her glasses on her nose, peering at them, as the girl spins around and pushes herself back from one of the hottest guys at Davenport but leaves her hand on his chest.

“My bet is, they’re already doing it.” She pushes her shades back up and places her legs inside the car, adjusting herself before closing the door. “And their friends already know. There’s no way they can’t. With the way they look at each other?”

“What are we spying on?” Gina hops into the passenger seat and leans her head toward us. She catches on quickly. “Oh,” she drags out. Then she lets out a blissful sigh when Chris snatches his girlfriend’s hand and kisses the inside of her wrist with a smile that I can’t deny makes my head go dizzy. The guy is dreamy, that I can admit. Then again, so are the rest of the guys in their intimate little group. It’s unfair if you ask me.

“Do you think she’d share him?” Gina says, her voice breathless.

“Why not? Besides they are just friends,” Yvonne says, turning her gaze toward us. “Trust me, I’ve gotten close enough to them to know she won’t mind.” She’s sporting a mischievous grin now and I can’t help but fall back with a laugh when Gina shoves her.

“You’re such a homewrecker,” Gina says with a laugh.

“What?” Von holds her hands up defensively. “I swear to you they are! It’s obvious they like each other. Like a lot. And they like to tease each other, it’s nothing new if you’ve been around them as much as I have. I think they’re cute.” She shrugs. “Annoying because they constantly try to downplay their feelings for each other, but cute.”

“Then why are you telling me to go for it?” Gina laughs again, throwing her hands up incredulously.

“It was a joke!”

They go back and forth for a moment, but I don’t hear any of it. Instead, I throw my head back and laugh until tears are in my eyes.

“Okay, okay, guys!” I cut into their shout-fest and lean forward again between the seats. My eyes snap between the two a few times before I look back at the car and the two people we’ve been observing. They aren’t there anymore. “How about, none of us go for him, okay?” I look between my friends again, grinning in amusement. “Matter of fact, let’s not go for any of the guys in that group. They’re much too close to the girls for comfort, anyway.”

“I don’t know,” Yvonne says, almost singing the words. Her head tilts. “Nathion is quite,” she pauses, running her thumb over her lips, “special.”

“Ew!” Gina and I exclaim, shoving Yvonne together this time before falling into a fit of giggles.

Yvonne stopped talking about her flings a while ago after she went into too much detail about one particular night. She concluded that if she couldn’t get down and dirty with the truth, she won’t bring it up again.

Of course, we all tried to talk her out of it, but when Von’s mind is set, that’s it. She’s one of those people who doesn’t get shaken by peer pressure. If anything, it makes her more solid in her decision. So, we gave up trying to change her mind and just wait for her to break and spill. She hasn’t though, which is a little surprising but not unbelievable.

“Tell us!” Jodene is next to me in the back seat in no time. Her arms snake around the passenger seat as she hugs Gina around the chest, and pushes herself forward. “What’s so funny?”

“Yvonne’s tendency to not keep her vajayjay in her pants,” Gina says mockingly.

“Seriously.” I move forward more to see Von's face. “I’ve been struggling to remember the guy’s name and you two have possibly been hooking up this whole time?” I say incredulously.

Shrugging, she starts getting ready to pull out of the parking spot. I sit back to put my seatbelt on.

“You guys didn’t want to hear about my sex life anymore,” she says, buckling in too. We all go into a frenzy of disagreement.

“No! We said,” Gina says loudly, making us settle down. “Technically, Jodene was the one who said she didn’t need the gory details. I wanted everything to do with it, personally.”

“Okay! I take full responsibility for depriving the rest of you of Yvonne’s bedroom times with hot guys,” Jodene says as Von falls in line with the other cars. “As an apology, there’s a party tonight and Jake is inviting all of us.”

I turn to her, an excited smile already on my lips. “Who’s throwing?”

“Does it matter!” Gina shouts, throwing her arms up. We are on the road now and my eyes close as the cool wind whips across my face. “It’s going to be awesome!”

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