The music cue sounds, but when I look to Sumner, he doesn’t seem nervous. His fingers thread through mine as he takes the lead and aligns us on the dance floor among the rest of the students. Every movement is intentional and precise. Not a single step breaches the choreography I’ve painstakingly learned.
“You’re good at this.”
“Don’t sound so surprised,” he says. “It’s geometry, really. Angles and patterns in a certain order.”
“Oh, is that all?”
“I may have asked William to walk me through it last week,” he admits. “There are only so many times I can take being called a dungeon rat, Carmichael. Sue me for doing something about it.”
A quiet tension folds over the evening, right as the bidding begins. Sumner and I join my family at their table, where Jared takes immense pleasure in whisper-shouting, “I knew it.”
“What are you even doing here?” I say as he scoops me into a hug.
“Took the train,” he says, high-fiving Sumner before pulling him into a quick, shoulder-slapping embrace. “Got a job off campus—nothing fancy, just retail—but I wanted to at least put some of what I’ve earned toward bidding. Think fifty bucks can get me a yacht?”
“Is your dresswet?” Madelene runs a hand over the fabric near my shins. “I swear, you have no idea how to care for nice things.”
“You’re a nice thing and I care about you.” I force her into a hug, squeezing her with so much enthusiasm that she groans. I kiss the top of her head. “Thank you.”
She struggles out of my grip. “What would you do without me?”
I don’t know, and I don’t ever want to find out.
Sumner’s shaking my mom’s hand, visibly nervous. “I don’t quite know how to put into words how much your daughter means to me—”
“So he’s going to try yodeling it.” I raise my eyebrows. “Prepare yourselves.”
He crooks an arm around me, playfully pinching my side.
“This is sickening,” Madelene says, delighted. “I’m obsessed.”
My mom only smiles. “I see the light you bring out in her,” she tells him. “I couldn’t have asked for anyone better.”
The string quartet starts up again. My stomach tumbles uneasily as attendees move around the room, reading the biddingsheets and everything they offer. Every so often, Headmistress Ellerby and Mrs.Vidar-Tett bend their heads together in discussion before parting ways, tending to approaching alumni.
From underneath the table, Sumner squeezes my hand. We’ve done everything we can.
Dinner is served, and I’m listening to my mom tell a story about a library patron when I spot Analiese across the room.
I scoot from my seat. “I’ll be right back.”
She offers me a hesitant smile as I approach. “If you tell anyone I pulled the fire alarm, I’ll deny it.”
“I would never. In fact, I’d say it’s your greatest feat of all time.”
Her eyes scan the room. “So—it worked?”
I nod. “Listen, I know our paths diverged this year, but I guess I had a lot to figure out. And I’m sorry I didn’t let you in.”
“I’m sorry, too,” she offers. “I could have tried harder to look past what I wanted to achieve to understand how you felt. And—well. If you’re up for it, I’d love to hear everything that happened with—you know. Not for the paper. For me. Also?” She mimes locking her lips and throwing away the key. “It stays between us.”
“I’ll tell you everything,” I promise.
Someone calls her name, drawing her attention. She holds up a finger to sayone second.
“This was a great idea. You should try to enjoy it, at the very least,” she says before dashing away.
Later, when there’s a flurry of bidding happening, Sumner and I find Sabine and Inessa near one of the auction tables.
