“So you’ve never been on a real date with someone you actually chose? You’ve never had a real girlfriend?”
“I’ve been on real dates and I’ve had real girlfriends. The fake girlfriend thing is mainly for when I’m at a public event, like a charity function or a big social function, like this party I’m going to later. Basically any place that photographers might show up. But still, when I’m dating someone for real I try to hide it, especially from my dad.”
“Is this just something your family does or do other people do this?”
“Everyone at my prep school had a fake girlfriend or fake boyfriend. It’s just something wealthy families do. It’s stupid, I know. But it’s all about image—who you’re seen with and how it will benefit the family. So we all go along with it and try to secretly date other people on the side.”
“Did your dad ever find out you were dating someone he didn’t pick?”
“Yes, but in high school I dated girls at my school so my dad didn’t say anything because they all came from rich and powerful families. If I screwed up and someone got a photo of me with one of those girls, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. But he’d never let me take one of them to a public event. I always had to show up with the girl who was picked for me. I still do, which is why I’m stuck with Courtney today.”
“Are you making this up?”
“Why would I make this up? I shouldn’t even be telling you this. This is one of those secrets that’s never supposed to get out. Don’t tell anyone this, by the way. I’m serious. I’m only telling you this because I feel like I owe you the truth.”
A gust of wind blows Jade’s hair over her cheek. I reach over and tuck it behind her ear, leaving my hand on the side of her face. “I want you to trust me, Jade. I know that won’t happen overnight but if you give me a chance, I want to try to earn it back.”
“So what are you proposing?”
“Let’s just hang out like we did before and get to know each other. Hopefully you’ll see that I’m not just a name. And that I really didn’t mean to hurt you by not telling you the truth.”
She’s quiet and her silence makes my heart pound faster. She needs to say yes. I’m not ready to give her up. But she’s not saying anything and I’m thinking that means she wants to end this. That she doesn’t even want to be friends. Shit.
I continue to wait. And then she finally breaks her silence.
“If I agree to this, are you gonna make me watch one of those cartoon movies you love so much?” She smiles and I feel a warmth fill my chest. I don’t know what’s causing it. Happiness. Relief. The feeling I get whenever I see that smile.
“I told you to never bring that up again.” I wrestle her to the ground.
She fights back but she’s laughing. “I don’t care if you like talking dog movies. I am kinda curious to see what’s so great about it. And I’d love to know how dogs fight crimes. Do they sniff for clues or—”
I laugh. “Okay, you’re done. No more talking about that movie.” I pin her arms down and hover over her.
I want to kiss her. It’s not a want. It’s a need. I need to feel her lips again. I need to feel her tongue, her breath. I give her a look, begging for permission, and for a moment I think she’s going to let me, but then she turns her head.
She’s not ready. I need to gain her trust back before she’ll even consider being more than friends. So I’ll wait. I’ll wait as long as she needs.
I move off her and shift onto my back and we lie there next to each other.
“So I talked to that girl you like.” As she says it, I look over and see that her eyes are closed. “She said you could start hanging out with her again. Maybe even right now if you’re not too busy. But if you need to head back to your room, that’s okay, too.”
I stare up at the tree, then close my eyes, a big grin on my face. “Tell her yes. I can hang out now. Or any time she wants. Maybe you could ask her if she wants to have lunch before I have to go.”
“She says lunch would be good.”
I don’t say anything more, but I slide my hand over the blanket and slip it under hers, threading our fingers together.
I got her back. I got Jade back in my life.
Now I just need to not screw this up.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
A couple hours pass and I check my watch and see that I need to leave soon. I sit up and look over at Jade. “Ready to go to lunch?”
“Not really.” Her eyes are sleepy, a slight smile on her face. “I’m kind of enjoying this too much.”
“Me too. But I have to be at my house at 1, so if we want to have lunch we should get going.”
“Do you really have to go?”
I smile when she says it because it means she wants me to stay. She actually wants me around.
I lie down beside her. “Why? Are you wanting more time with me?” I run my hand down her arm, feeling her soft skin. Then I hold her hand, which is so small, and yet it fits my big hand perfectly.
“Maybe.” She pulls her hand away and flips on her side. “Or maybe I’m just curious why you’re leaving so early.”
I was hoping she wouldn’t ask about the party. I don’t want to talk about it. I just want to get it over with.
I take Jade’s hand back because I’m not ready to let it go and I like the feel of it in mine. “This stupid party Courtney’s family does every year is practically an all day event. They invite people over for food and drinks by the pool in the afternoon, then everyone comes back later that night for a formal dinner and dance.”
“So do you drink at this event?”
“It’s the only way I can get through it.” I didn’t want to admit that, but it just came out.
“And the adults don’t care?”
“By dinner half of them will be drunk themselves.”
Jade’s quiet and I’m wondering if she’s pissed at me now because of the drinking. But I’m trying to be honest with her, and the truth is I’m not willing to give up drinking. It’s not like I need to get drunk every night, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with having a few drinks now and then.
Jade sits up. “Would you do something for me?”
“Probably. What is it?”
“Would you try not to drink at this thing?”
I let out a sigh as I lie down on my back. “Come on, Jade. I need at least two drinks just to put up with Courtney.”
“No, you don’t. Believe me. I’ve been through way worse things than that and I’ve never had a drop of alcohol. And as you can see, I managed to survive.”
I sit up. “You’ve never had a drink? Not even a beer? Or a sip of wine? Nothing?”
She shakes her head.
“Wow. That’s impressive. But I don’t know. I don’t think I can go that whole time without a drink.”
“Will you at least try?”
I think about it. A whole day with my family? A whole day with Courtney hanging on me? Without alcohol? That’s nearly impossible, but I agree to it.
“Okay, I’ll try.” I stand up, then offer Jade my hands and help her up.
She grabs our notebooks. “I don’t want Professor Hawkins to see what I wrote. I’m going to rip out that page and write something else, okay?”
“Maybe we should get our own notebooks. Ones just for you and me.”
“What for?”
“Sometimes it’s easier to write stuff down than to say it out loud. We might need to do that again.”
“Yeah. Okay.”
I’m surprised she agreed to it, but I think it’s a good idea. Jade has a hard time expressing herself, especially if it’s anything personal, but maybe putting her thoughts on paper will help her open up to me more.
We go inside to the dining hall and I follow Jade through the food line. Then I watch to see where she sits. She goes and takes a seat across from Harper, who’s eating lunch by herself and reading a book.
Jade told me a little about Harper after we saw her in the hal
l that day she was sick. At the time, I thought I knew her from somewhere but I couldn’t figure out where. Then I looked her up online and realized she’s the daughter of Kiefer Douglas, a Hollywood producer.
I met Kiefer and his wife, Kelly, at a charity event a few years ago, and they’ve been to my house a few times. I’d never met Harper but she looks just like her mom, which is why I thought I knew her when I saw her in the hall that day.
I set my tray on the table and sit down next to Jade.
I smile at Harper. “Hi. We haven’t met but Jade has told me all about you. I’m Garret by the way.” I glance at Jade. “In case Jade hasn’t mentioned me, which knowing her, she probably hasn’t.”
“Um, no. She’s mentioned you,” Harper says. “Nice to meet you.”
“Harper, right?”
She’s staring at me, not saying anything. Then she finally says, “Yeah. Harper. Harper Douglas. I’m from LA.”
“Is your dad Kiefer Douglas? The director?”
“Yeah. How did you know?”
“Your dad’s been at some fundraisers at my house. I’ve met your mom, too. You look just like her.”
“All us girls do. I have two sisters.”
“So how do you like Connecticut?”
“I like it. I needed a break from the whole LA scene. I wanted to try someplace completely different than what I was used to. My dad actually suggested I apply at Moorhurst. They have a good communications program here, which is what I want to do. Plus they let me play on the tennis team.”
“How long have you played tennis?”
“Ten years. But I’m not that good. Moorhurst doesn’t exactly have the best team. I just wanted to be on any team.” She moves her fork around in her salad. “So are you two going to that party tonight down on Beech Street?”
“Garret already has plans,” Jade says.
I look at Jade. “You should go to the party with Harper.”
“No, I don’t feel like going.”
Harper sets her fork down and pushes her tray to the side. “I’ve asked her repeatedly to go to parties with me and she always says no.”
“I have homework to catch up on and then maybe I’ll watch TV.”
“You don’t even have a TV,” I tell her.
“I know, but I’ll use the TV down the hall.”
“I have to go.” Harper gets up. “I’ll see you guys later.”
When Harper’s gone, I turn to Jade and say, “I’ve got an idea. I’ll give you my key and you can use my room tonight. Watch all the TV and movies you want. I have at least 100 movies in that box and my TV is brand new. Hi-def. Surround sound. The works. What do you think?”
“You don’t care if I’m in your room without you there?”
I thought she was kidding but she’s totally serious. The way Jade worries about shit makes me laugh. “Why would I care? Are you gonna trash it or something? Throw a party in there?”
“No, I just wanted to make sure it was okay.”
“I’m the one who suggested it.”
“Then, yes. I’d like that. Thanks for offering.”
An idea pops in my head and I check the time. “I have to get ready.”
“You’re leaving already? You just sat down. It’s only 11:45.”
“I’ve got some things to do. I’ll stop by on my way out and drop off the key.”
My idea is that I’m going to make Jade a concession stand. It’s something my mom did when I was a kid. My mom and I loved going to the movies but my dad refused to go. He couldn’t stand the sticky floors at the theater and the strong smell of popcorn and people who made noise during the movie. So we didn’t go to the theater much, but we had movie nights at home. And to make it more like a real movie theater experience, my mom would set up a concession stand. We had this long fold-out table and she’d set up all different kinds of candy and soda on it, and of course, popcorn.
We had movie night once a week, usually on Fridays. I’d sit in front of the TV in a bean bag chair and my parents would sit on the couch. Sometimes I’d look back and see my mom in my dad’s arms and he’d just be looking at her as she watched the movie. I always wondered why he looked at her that way. What he was thinking.
Occasionally, I’d catch them kissing and I’d tell them to stop because I thought it was gross. My mom would just laugh and kiss my dad again and he’d kiss her back. They were so happy together. We were all happy. Sometimes I can’t believe that used to be my life. It almost seems like someone else’s.
Making Jade’s concession stand means I’ll be late to Courtney’s party, but I don’t care. I don’t want to be there anyway.
I go to the grocery store and buy a bunch of different sodas, licorice, some bags of popcorn, and five bags of potato chips. The potato chips don’t fit the concession stand theme, but Jade seems to really like potato chips and she already ate the bag she bought. Now she’ll have five bags. Those should last a while.
I look for some candy in boxes, like they sell at the theater, but the grocery store doesn’t carry them. The check-out guy tells me the drugstore sells them so I stop there on the way back to campus.
I clear off my desk and set everything up. I take the licorice out of the bag and arrange it in a tall glass I bought at the store. I figured Jade could use the glass for the soda if she wants. I find a piece of paper and make a sign that says Concession Stand. Then around the words I draw those cartoon popcorn and soda people you see at the movies. My mom always had me make a sign like that for movie night so I got pretty good at drawing those popcorn and soda people.
I tape the sign to the wall above the snacks. Then I write a note that says, Sodas are in the fridge. Enjoy your movies!—G.
I put the sodas in the mini fridge with another note that says, Wasn’t sure what you liked so I got one of each.
Jade will probably think I’m crazy for doing this, but whatever. Maybe she’ll like it.
I take a quick shower and shave and throw on some clothes. It’s getting late and I need to head to the party. On my way out, I stop down at Jade’s room to drop off the key. When I was at the grocery store, I had a spare key made at the customer service desk. I could’ve just given her mine but she might want to use my TV some other time so I wanted her to have her own key.
I knock on her door and when she opens it, I hand her the key. “Here you go.”
“Thanks.” She takes it and sets it on her desk. She’s got textbooks laid out all over it, and one of them is open, like she was studying. I think she studies a lot.
“Try not to trash my room too much.” I laugh when I say it.
But Jade’s face is serious as she meets me back at the door. “I won’t. I swear. In fact, maybe I should just stay here and study tonight.”
“Jade, I was joking. I know you won’t trash my room. And if you did, I totally wouldn’t care.”
“I should still probably stay here and study.”
“You can’t study on a Saturday night. I think that’s even in the student handbook.”
“It is?” She laughs. “I guess I missed that.”
“I have to go, but I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I head out to my car. I’m already late to the party. I was supposed to be there a half hour ago and it takes a half hour to drive there.
I’m wearing tan shorts and a white t-shirt so I should go home and change, but I don’t have time. I know I’ll get in trouble for it, but whatever. I shouldn’t have to get dressed up to stand around outside in the heat of the afternoon.
Right now is the poolside party and then everyone goes home and changes into different clothes and comes back for dinner. So I’ll be forced to wear a suit and tie later.
Courtney comes up to me as soon as I arrive. She’s wearing a sleeveless white dress and heels with a white hat on her head, tilted to the side and pinned in place so it won’t move. She looks like she’s going to afternoon tea, not a pool party.
“Why are you so late?” She stands back, inspectin
g me. “And what are you wearing?”
“Shorts and a t-shirt. It’s a pool party. That’s what people wear to pool parties.”
She grabs my arm. “I told you to wear a suit!”
“That’s for tonight, not this afternoon.”
“I told you to wear your casual suit. The beige linen one that Katherine bought you.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I called Katherine because you wouldn’t return any of my calls. I had her buy you the suit so we’d coordinate for the afternoon photos. Didn’t she tell you?”
Katherine left me at least 10 messages the past couple days and I ignored all of them. Guess they were all about this stupid suit.
“I didn’t get the messages.” I turn to walk away but she holds my arm even tighter.
“The photographers are here! You can’t be dressed like this for the photos!”
“Well, I am, so get over it.” I yank my arm back and head over to the bar. I need a drink. Just one, to make it through this party.
“Garret!” Courtney comes up behind me, grabbing my arm again.
Does she really think I’ll listen to her when she keeps yelling at me and grabbing my arm and acting like she owns me?
“You need to change clothes. You’re humiliating me! I can’t be seen with you looking like this!”
“I’m not changing. There’s nothing wrong with what I’m wearing. It’s all designer. You want to check the label?” I pull on the neckline of my shirt, exposing the label, which I know will embarrass her even though nobody’s watching.
“You’re impossible!” She stomps off.
I go up to the bar.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asks.
I see the bottles all lined up. Premium liquor, right there waiting for me. It’s so damn tempting.
“I’ll take a Coke.”
The guy looks surprised and I almost change my mind but then I think of my promise to Jade and I stick with the Coke. The guy hands it to me in a tall thin glass with a skinny straw.
“Kensington.” I hear Blake’s voice behind me. I didn’t think he’d be here. I knew his parents would, but I didn’t think he would. He usually skips out on this stuff.
Garret Page 13
