My phone ringsjust as I pull into my driveway.
“I’m so sorry about tonight,” Jonathan says quietly, like he’s trying not to be heard.“I promise to make it up to you.”
“It’s okay,” I tell him.“I know it wasn’t your fault.Collin had dinner with me.And then you will never believe what we did.”
“What?”he asks in a whisper.
“We streeked.”The smile has been plastered on my face since I left his house.
“You did what?”Jonathan asked, like he didn’t hear me right.
“Street-skiing,” I say with a laugh.Collin decided to shorten it to streeking.He thought it was hilarious.Tonight, it felt so freeing, being pulled around on that board, the wind in my hair, my heart racing with every swerve Collin made on his bike.And he never ditched me.He was careful.Can’t say the same when I tugged him around.I didn’t mean to run him into the mailbox.It’s just been too long since we’ve done it.And the streetlight wasn’t working—I could barely see where he was behind me.“It was so much fun.Although I almost knocked Collin out.”
I laugh again, picturing him rolling into the street to avoid the collision.Jonathan’s quiet.
“Sorry I missed it.”
“Me too.”
Chapter Eleven
Why can’t we come watch you dance?”
“It’ll make me too nervous, and I’ll get the hiccups,” I tell Collin for the hundred millionth time.“You won’t like it anyway.”
“You don’t know that,” Jonathan says.“We might.And Jonathan knows how to cure the hiccups.”
“You can’t,” I say adamantly, ending the conversation.
“Fine.”Collin crosses his arms, sulking.
“Good luck, I guess,” Jonathan says with a shrug, like he’s not quite sure the right thing to say.
“Yeah, break a leg,” Collin says grumpily.
“They don’t say that in dance,” I tell him.
“Good, ’cause that sounds stupid,” Collin returns like he is smarter than I am.
“Why don’t we say something else then?”Jonathan suggests.
“Like… something about how you dance really good.And fast.And light the stage on fire.”
I laugh.“My feet don’t move that fast.”
“It’s ballet, not tap dancing,” Jonathan tells him.“But I like the idea of lighting it up.Or… burn it down.”
“Yes!”Collin says excitedly.“We’ll say burn it down.”
I laugh again.“Okay, sure.”
“What other weird thing do they do?”
I think for a moment.“They give us flowers after, which is weird because what am I supposed to do with flowers?I mean, they’re pretty, but then they die.Wish we could get something more fun, like candy or jewelry.”
“Or jewelry made of candy,” Collin adds with a huge smile, revealing the Twizzlers hiding his teeth.
“Don’t worry, Collin.I’ll get you something sparkly to match your eyes,” Jonathan teases.
