When I get to the school, PJ is sitting in my favorite spot along the brick wall. He is dressed in his trademark shorts and the golden hair on his arms and legs shines in the sun. He jumps for the car when he sees me and gets in. We both lean in.
“That was our second kiss,” I say excitedly.
PJ looks at me with a devilish grin and says, “Three is a better number than two, don’t you think?” He leans in again and goes for a third kiss. But this time he slips the tip of his tongue in my mouth. I haven’t done this in a while and never with a boy. It feels super sexy, and I fidget in my seat with excitement. It is now crystal-clear what Hector was getting on about in his texts last night.
“Okay, hold on,” I say. “If you keep that up, I won’t want to go and introduce you to Mags and Neel anymore.”
“Well, then, something to look forward to in the future,” PJ teases as he sneaks in another quick kiss on the cheek.
I love the scratch of his stubble on my smooth cheek; I wish I had stubble too. I could kiss him for hours and hours. This state of being, alternating between arousal and being scared shitless, seems to be my new normal. As my arousal gives way to the alien twisting and turning in my gut, I shift about in my seat uncomfortably and hope PJ doesn’t notice my restlessness. I need to stop kissing or thinking about kissing, so I ask PJ if he is nervous about meeting my friends as I begin our drive to Columbia.
“I am,” he says, “so that’s why I would rather…sing along!” He cranks the volume on the car stereo.
We are still singing along with Hedwig about the origin of love when we pull into Neel’s driveway. I honk my horn, and Neel comes out, followed by his mom. Mrs. Gupta stands in the doorway and waves goodbye. She calls out to me, so I turn down the music.
“What?” I say back to her.
“She is asking what you’re listening to,” Neel conveys.
I call back, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.”
She shakes her head and Neel laughs.
“Just go. Go!” Neel says. He fist bumps with PJ. “Hey, man! So, you and Heartbreaker, huh?”
“Heartbreaker. Yeah, I heard about that,” PJ says.
“What else do you call a guy who has left a trail of broken hearts and emotional wreckage all over Howard County?” Neel responds gleefully.
“Don’t listen to Neel. It’s all hyperbole. There will be no more broken hearts,” I say.
“There better not be,” PJ retorts as he grabs my hand and holds it.
Neel makes gagging sounds in the back seat and claps PJ on the back, hard. Wow, that is something Mags would have done. It’s fascinating how the dynamic is different without Mags here.
“Just giving you a hard time, man. I like you, and I’m happy for you and the little nerd here,” Neel says. “Also, my mom is right. What the hell are we listening to? This is weirder than the stuff you usually listen to. Wait, what the fuck? Did he just say he has an angry inch?”
We don’t stop laughing until we pull into Mags’ driveway. We walk up to her front door and ring the bell. In seconds, Mags flings open the door.
“Okay, where are you? Let me get a good look at you,” she says.
PJ plays along. He steps forward, turns around slowly, and finishes with a bow.
Mags looks him up and down with one inquisitive eye. “So, this is the boy called Pajamas.”
I try to tell her his name is PJ and I’m the only one who is allowed to call him Pajamas, but she puts her hand up to my face while keeping her eye on PJ.
“Okay, I have one thing to say.” Mags gets close to PJ’s face. “Just so you know, I will be calling you Pajamas too. Do you have a problem with that, Pajamas?”
“Nope. No problem at all,” PJ says with a grin.
Mags spreads her arms wide. “Okay, I like this one. I approve. Come here, Pajamas, and give Mags a hug like we’re lovers reunited after being separated by war.”
PJ hugs Mags and lifts her off the ground and twirls her around.
I interrupt the unexpected lovefest. “Uh, what if I have a problem with you calling him Pajamas too?”
They ignore me and continue to twirl around the front yard. When PJ puts Mags down, she walks in front of me.
