Ford takes a deep breath when his dad is gone.
“That wasn’t too bad.” I take his hand, squeezing it.
“No, it wasn’t. Come on, let’s head over to your house.”
“Sounds good.”
24. Awkward
When I turn onto Hannah’s street, cars are parked all around her house. “You’ve got to be kidding me?” She scrubs a hand down her face.
I rub my hand along her knee. “Where should I park?”
“Let’s see if my spot next to the garage is still empty.” The main driveway is clear, but where Hannah usually parks is a white jeep, and parked behind, it is Dave’s old Honda Accord.
“Are you serious? Just park in the main driveway, and I’ll move my car after everyone leaves.” Hannah doesn’t wait for me to help her out of the car. I can tell she’s upset by all the people here.
I grab her hand, pull her back to the car, and press her against it. “Hold on.”
Hannah crosses her arms over her chest, a frown on her face. She’s upset about all the people here. “Did you guys plan this?”
“No. I promise. We didn’t say anything. I think word spread about how we don’t like the parties on the bluff anymore, and what we did last weekend.”
“So they all just showed up here uninvited?”
“I didn’t invite them, and Jack didn’t tell me anything about inviting people. Honestly, I’m surprised, so many people are here. The bluffs are for partying, drinking, and having sex. They can’t do any of those things here.” I rub my hand up and down Hannah’s arms. She softens the tension, leaving her. I lean in, kissing her. She twists a hand in the front of my shirt as our mouths glide together. “It will be okay. Let’s try to have a good time. It’s been a great night so far.”
“It definitely has.” Hannah reaches up, giving me another quick kiss.
We walk around to the side door, going in through the garage because Hannah doesn’t want to go in the front door, which is fine by me. Mrs. Clark is in the kitchen baking cookies and looking a little haggard. “Hi,” Hannah says, walking up to her mom and giving her a side hug. “Are there a few people here?” Her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“A few? Try a complete basement full. Were there these many kids at your party in June?” Mrs. Clark asks.
“Um—yeah—give or take a few more.” Hannah’s mom’s eyes get wide. “I didn’t invite anyone over. I promise we didn’t plan this.”
Mrs. Clark runs a reassuring hand down Hannah’s back. “It’s okay. Jack already explained. Don’t worry about it. I don’t have enough cookies for everyone, so I’ll put them in the pantry when I’m done. You’ll have to sneak up here to eat them.”
“Sounds good.”
“Thanks, Mrs. Clark.”
“You’re welcome. You had a great game tonight, Ford.” Mrs. Clark pats my shoulder.
“Thank you.” We walk together over to the basement stairs. “I’ll follow you.”
“Okay,” Hannah breathes. I take her hand, and she leads me downstairs. I need everyone to see this. To see me following Hannah, for all the girls to know, I’m taken, and I like it.
“Clark! There you are. We wondered where you were?” Leah runs up to Hannah. She’s changed out of her cheer uniform and is wearing super tight jeans and a low-cut top. As I look around, I notice that all the cheerleaders here have changed out of their uniforms.
“Sorry, we stopped at Ford’s house so he could shower and change.”
“Cross! Where have you been?” Cameron comes up to me with a hand stretched out, and we do our usual handshake.
“I got stuck at the school talking to a few people.”
“Dude, you’ll never guess what happened tonight,” he says.
“You got an offer?” Cameron is super animated.
