Falling for Juliet had been as organic as getting older. It was nothing he could have helped. He didn’t remember meeting Juliet, as they’d been first at the same daycare and then in the same kindergarten. They’d been thick as thieves, getting into trouble, making messes in the kitchen, and running through the woods. Even their mothers had gotten along before Juliet’s had passed away. They’d done everything together, from swimming lessons to basketball teams to a few plays. When had Callie come into the picture? He remembered meeting Callie for the first time when they were ten or eleven, maybe. He’d thought Callie was so quiet and meek. Forgettable, even.
How had he spent so many years of his life wrong about her?
Callie and Theo clinked milkshake glasses and congratulated one another on the mural.
“I’m going to be so embarrassed when they unveil it tomorrow,” Callie said, blushing.
“But it’s good work. I mean, aren’t you proud?” Theo asked.
Callie nodded sheepishly. “Yeah. I am. But I’m sort of worried about what Juliet will say?”
“Don’t let her get to you,” Theo said. “She’s just stressed about her interview.”
She’s worried that she won’t get everything she ever dreamed of. And what happens to the rest of us when she doesn’t? Will we have to pay for that? he thought.
Their food arrived, and their conversation turned to other topics, including Callie’s reluctance to attend NYU and Theo’s fears about culinary school.
“It isn’t far away,” Theo reasoned with himself aloud. “But I’m sort of panicked about it. What if I’m not good enough to keep up with those guys? I mean, there are so many skills I haven’t mastered.”
“You’re the best chef I’ve ever met!” Callie said. “And you go to culinary school to learn to get better. I don’t think you should question it.”
Theo leaned back in his chair, trying to count in his mind how many times he’d actually cooked for Callie. Each time had been actually for Juliet, he realized, with Callie coming in halfway through and taste-testing something. He wondered what it would be like to cook for Callie and Callie alone. He wondered what she’d say about the flavor pairings. He wondered how specific she’d get about his creativity with spices and herbs.
“Maybe you could come to my place for dinner next week?” Theo asked.
Callie’s eyes widened with surprise. Theo half expected her to ask whether Juliet could come, or whether Theo had already planned to ask Juliet. But somehow, she understood what he meant.
Theo Maddox was asking Callie on a date. And Callie said yes, without question.
Theo’s stomach flipped upside down.
Was he really going to do this?
That weekend, Juliet invited Callie and Theo over to her place to watch DVDs and talk about her interview with the agent. She was glum about it, saying that he’d tricked her on a few questions and made her feel stupid. Theo knew better than to ask, Isn’t that kind of their game? Isn’t the modeling world made up of sharks? Instead, he made nice snacks for them and agreed to watch whatever Callie and Juliet wanted. He and Callie did a very good job of pretending they didn’t have a date that Tuesday. Juliet didn’t guess a thing.
But on the afternoon before Callie was meant to come over to his place for dinner—a dinner he’d bought almost everything for already, an al dente penne pasta with a specially made ragu sauce—Callie cornered him by his locker with a panicked, “Juliet’s asking me what I’m doing after school. I don’t know what to tell her.”
Theo shrugged. “Just tell her you can’t.”
“But I don’t want to lie to her,” Callie whispered.
Theo sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. In truth, he didn’t love lying to Juliet either. He’d hardly slept last night, alternating between excitement for his date and fear of what Juliet would say. But he was tired of Juliet’s power over them. He was tired of how driven she was.
He wanted small-town romance. He wanted to own his own restaurant. He wanted to marry the art teacher (in this story, Callie) and have a bunch of small-town kids.
Was that too much to ask for? Juliet would probably think it was stupid.
“Listen, Callie,” Theo said, touching both of her shoulders and gazing into her eyes. “I don’t want Juliet to come over. I only want you.”
Callie gaped at him with surprise. Theo guessed that nobody had ever chosen Callie over Juliet, and that hearing it like this made Callie think she was in the midst of a practical joke. But Theo maintained eye contact to echo how serious he was. And she fell into his embrace, shaking.
“I’ll make something up,” she said finally.
After the bell rang, Theo walked straight home from school, praying that Juliet wouldn’t chase him. When he arrived, he said hello to his mother in the living room, then got to work on prep. There were onions to chop and garlic cloves to peel. The sauce needed to simmer for a good ninety minutes to bring out its exquisite flavor. Frequently, his mother poked her head into the kitchen and smiled knowingly at him. She’d already asked if he was cooking for Juliet, and when he’d said no, she’d gotten excited. She’d always thought Juliet was too headstrong. She’d said, “She’s not the kind of woman you get together with.”
Theo had resented it, till now.
Just as she’d said she would, Callie arrived at half past six. She wore a simple black dress that buttoned all the way to her neckline, and her blond hair curled down her shoulders. She carried a bottle of diet soda, pretending that it was a bottle of wine, maybe. She looked nervous. Theo guessed it was her first date. It was certainly his.
