He took my hand and looked closely at the two scars on my fingers. ‘Looks good. No more pain?’
‘Not so much anymore.’ I took the chance to step a little closer to him. ‘What made you decide to tell everyone else tonight?’
‘I told the guys on the team last weekend,’ he said. ‘Everyone was cool with it, but there was less stress because it didn’t matter if they shunned me, since hockey season’s over. And James spends his time in the locker room loudly rating the other guys’ butts compared to the Rock, so he’s at least a two on the Kinsey scale. Also, his rankings were all kind of right?’
‘Isthatthe way the scale goes?’
‘I figured, school’s ending, I might never see these people again. What the hell? Sorry, I should have told you first, shouldn’t I? I mean, I thought it would be kind of fun to just not tell anyone and have us dance, but I didn’t realize that’s me pulling you into my narrative.’
Wow, he really was in therapy. I shook my head. ‘No, no, you’re good. And I …’ I lowered my voice. ‘I was kinda part of your narrative before anyway.’
He laughed, and it sounded different from the Brad laugh I had known. He was so much happier, more comfortable than he had ever been. But still so adorable. My heart felt like it could burst, I was so happy for him.
‘So where are you going anyway?’ I asked. ‘After all this?’
‘I got into Brown!’
‘Get the shit out! Congratulations – that’s, like, areallygood school, right?’
He frowned. ‘You say that like I’m not smart.’
‘No! I just mean it’s Brown University. Ivy League. Shit, that’s awesome.’
‘It is. And I got a hockey scholarship.’
‘Well, go … What’s the mascot up there?’
‘The Brown Bears.’
I smirked. ‘Very apropos.’
He swatted my shoulder gently. ‘Shut up.’ He tried to hide a smile, and his cheeks flushed in the light of the mirror ball. ‘Where are you going?’
‘Johnson & Wales. They have areallygood culinary program. I got word back in April.’
Brad seemed to think for a moment. ‘Was that the one you told me about last year?’
‘No, they rejected me.’
Brad’s eyes clouded, and his jaw dropped. He said, a little too loud, ‘What!’ Everyone around us turned to look, expecting a fight. I laughed, and when one of the lights lit up his face, I noticed his cheeks were a little red. He lowered his voice. ‘How could they reject you?’
I shrugged. ‘It’s fine.’ It was actually a lot more than fine. ‘I probably would have gone if they’d accepted me. But them rejecting me – removing that choice from me entirely – was a surprising relief, if that makes sense?’
‘Well, it’s their loss,’ Brad said.
Then everything suddenly clicked. Brown University was in Providence, Rhode Island. So was Johnson & Wales.
Brad and I were going to be neighbors next fall.
The song faded into something upbeat, and I expected Brad to excuse himself, but he took my hand and twirled me, making me laugh, and we started dancing faster.
Brad handed me my soda, then downed his water in three quick gulps before asking the woman at the bar for another one. We had ended up dancing so long even Ava came over to join us. But now we stood by the bar at the far side of the room. A junior girl and her senior boyfriend walked past us, and Brad turned to look at them, suddenly uncomfortable.
‘Um,’ he said, chewing his lip again. ‘Can we … Do you mind if we go someplace quiet and … talk for a bit?’
Our code. Oh, he wanted to make out now. And, yeah, I could make out for a bit. Oh no, was that me assuming again?
‘Don’t take this the wrong way,’ I said. ‘And regardless, the answer is yes, but do you mean go somewhere and talk, or go somewhere and “talk”?’ Instead of doing air-quotes, I just put my two index fingers together in the universal signal forjamming our hot dogs together.
