“We did.” Henry rubbed Nolan’s shoulder.
“Actually,” Ethan said, chuckling to himself. “they consummated their relationship right where you’re sitting.”
Matty squirmed in his seat, but he forced himself to remain the calm and polite guest. And Coop was laughing!
“Don’t worry. They’ve had the car cleaned since then,” Ethan said, lounging comfortably in his clean seat.
“Actually,” Nolan said. “We did it on your seat Ethan. And no, I haven’t gotten my car cleaned since then.”
“What?” Ethan screamed. “That’s unsanitary!”
“So is doing it in the library,” Henry said.
“I told you that in confidence! And I feel like you’ve told so many people that someone’s probably written a book about it!” Ethan crossed his arms and huffed, which only made everyone in the car laugh harder. Matty couldn’t help but join in. Laughter vibrated in the seats, off the windows.
“I haven’t toldeveryone. Don’t be so dramatic,” Henry said in a kindergarten teacher voice. “And to be fair, you started it.”
“I-You—” Ethan slumped back in his seat. “I hate all of you.”
“So now you know about us,” Henry said to Matty and Coop, back in smalltalk mode. “What’s your major?”
That sent them all into hysterics. Matty’s stomach cramped with the heaving breaths of laughter. Tears beaded at his eyes. Matty wished the car ride could go on, that this high could last. But then he remembered they had a whole city ahead of them.
“Are you cramped back there?” Henry asked. His eyes drifted down to Matty’s hulking backpack, the contents bursting at the zipper. It rested between his ankles, making his legs squeeze against the car door and middle partition.
“I’m fine,” Matty said.
“You should’ve thrown your backpack in the trunk.”
Matty fiddled with the frayed straps on his backpack. “I should have.”
Henry tapped at Nolan’s shoulder and had him pop the trunk. Matty got out and threw his backpack in the trunk. He heard the textbook thunk against the floor, but shut the trunk before he could give it another thought.
“All right. I think we’re ready to hit the road!” Henry said.
“Finally. Let’s go. I don’t want to get caught in traffic.” Ethan was still in a pissy mood that all of them seemed to find humorous.
“You really are horny,” Nolan said and hit the gas.
* * *
Two hoursand twenty-two minutes later, according to Ethan’s precise timekeeping, they arrived in Philly. Matty stared at the buildings of downtown stretching into the sky. Their downtown wasn’t much different from Dallas’s. He supposed it was all the same. Big buildings surrounded by highways.
It took them a good ten minutes to find a parking spot on the street. The parking signs had a laundry list of rules and exemptions. Nolan read them extra carefully lest he be stuck with a parking ticket, which they’d all have to split. Ethan burst from the car as soon as it came to a stop.
They climbed up two flights of stairs in an old row house that had been converted into apartments. Greg, who reminded Matty of a taller, leaner version of Coop, answered the door. He greeted Matty and Coop with hearty handshakes.
Greg gave them a quick tour. The apartment was shaped like a tunnel with rooms off to the side, almost like a train car. At the end of the train was a living room with sliding glass doors and a fireplace. Two tan sofas sat L-shaped and an air mattress was inflated on the floor.
The guys dropped their stuff, while Ethan brought his bag into Greg’s room. Henry and Nolan picked the air mattress. Matty breathed a sigh of relief. That thing looked like it had seen better days a few decades ago.
They all went out to get cheesesteaks. Matty got to yell out his order to the man behind the counter, who had no time for lollygagging. Matty snickered while waiting for his. Coop also had a goofy smile bunching up his cheeks. The others couldn’t figure out what was so funny.
They walked around the city for a little bit, exploring the main touristy sites like the Liberty Bell. Also, Matty had never seenRocky, but couldn’t not see the famous Art Museum steps. Coop ran up them and jogged in place with his arms raised high.
A few hours later, Matty’s heart raced with anticipation as he and Coop waited on line for Dr. Kobayashi’s presentation. The line stretched around the building, nestled deep in the heart of Penn’s campus. The architecture was older than Browerton, and Matty soaked in his academic surrounding.
Matty smelled the shaving cream that Coop used earlier. He got himself all cleaned up, even wore his nicest pair of jeans. Other kids wore ratty jeans and baseball hats, but Matty wanted to look nice for Dr. Kobayashi.
