sierra
SUMMER BEFORE JUNIOR YEAR
Ismoothed my hands down the front of the flowy blouse Alyssa let me borrow for the concert we were going to tonight. The rose-colored top was so different from anything I had in my closet, with a frilly lace trim at the bottom and a deep V-neck that seemed to draw attention to my small chest in a negative way. I paired it with a pair of dark-blue bootcut jeans and my dark-brown cowboy boots.
Alyssa told me to leave my hair down and maybe put some curls in it. I wondered if Hayden would like it that way—not that I was trying to impress him or anything.
After giving myself a once-over in the mirror, I crept down the stairs. I’d heard my dad leave the house earlier, probably to buy cigarettes or beer at the gas station, but my mom was home, and I didn’t want her to ask questions about why I was dressed up so nice to go to a fake shift at the hotel where I was a part-time front desk associate.
I made sure the coast was clear at the bottom of the stairs, but right before I headed out the door, I called out, “I’m leaving, Mom! I’ll see you later!”
“Okay,” she sighed from the kitchen, her voice gravelly and flat. “See you later.”
I’d noticed she’d been acting a bit sluggish lately. Maybe she was just sick or wasn’t getting much sleep.
I asked Hayden to pick me up at the hotel, so if either of my parents happened to drive by, my car would be there. He was already waiting when I pulled into the parking lot, a wide smile spreading across his face when I got out of my car.
Instead of letting me get in the passenger side, he rolled down the window. “Hold on, don’t move.”
I tilted my head to the side. “Why?”
He rolled the window back up, opened his door, and jogged around the front of his pickup to mine. “Okay, now you can get in.” He gestured to the passenger seat after he opened the door, holding it for me. “Your carriage awaits.”
My cheeks heated as I slid inside the cab. “Thanks.”
“You look cute,” he said, a bit breathlessly.
“Alyssa let me borrow this shirt.” I fidgeted with the hem as I laughed nervously.
He nodded like he recognized the shirt. “Yeah, it looks like something Alyssa would have. It looks good on you, though.”
I hoped my face wasn’t as red as it felt. “It’s a little out of my comfort zone, but she said I needed to dress up for the concert. Then she told me to do my hair like this.” Normally it was pulled back into a braid or ponytail. If I kept it down, I kept it straight. Sometimes it had a slight wave because I had a bad habit of sleeping with wet hair, but it was rarely ever curled like it was today.
“I like it. I mean, I like how it looks on every other occasion, too, but yeah. It looks really nice.” He stumbled over his words, a pink flush creeping across his cheeks.
“Thanks.” Heat rose to my face in what I could only assume was a blush that mirrored his. “We should, uh, probably go?”
“Oh, yeah.” Hayden gave me a small grin before putting his pickup in reverse. His right hand found the back of my seat as he turned over his shoulder to look out the rear window, and I swore my heart was beating a hundred times as fast as it normally did.
When we got to the fairgrounds, Alyssa, her boyfriend Dean, Keenan, and the girl he brought with him were already waiting for us.
“Dude, what took you guys so long?” Keenan teased, ruffling Hayden’s hair when we got close.
Hayden pushed his hands away and smoothed out his hair. “Nothing, we’re notthatlate.”
“Uh-huh. Are you sure you two weren’t—” Keenan started puckering his lips and mimicking exaggerated kissing noises.
I pretended to gag, gently pushing on his shoulder. “You jealous, Kee?”
“Nah, I’ve got my own girl.” He winked at the redhead with him. “This is Ivy.”
“Hi.” She raised her hand in a small wave.
“Come on, guys. Let’s go in, or else we won’t be able to get a good spot!” Alyssa tugged on our arms as she passed by with her boyfriend.
We all followed behind the pair, handing our tickets to the fair employee at the arena entrance. We arrived a little too late to get right up front by the stage, but I didn’t really want to be up there anyway. Big crowds made me uneasy because I didn’t have a quick exit route. Part of me thought Hayden knew that, so he purposelymade us a little late.
He squeezed my hand three times, giving me an understanding glance when we stopped on the edge of the crowd. I squeezed his hand back, a silent gesture of appreciation.
