Virtually in Love

by A. Destiny

  “Definitely,” she said immediately. “It’ll be fun.”

  “Hold on.” Kaz sat up straight, looking interested. “My boogie shoes aren’t all that dusty. I could probably find the time to come over too.”

  “No way.” Vanessa giggled and winked at me. “No boys allowed! We need our girly time, right, Chloe?”

  “Right.” I was relieved she’d said that. Somehow I’d sort of forgotten the three of us normally did get ready for stuff like this together. But tonight? It would have been totally awkward primping and prettying myself up for Trevor with Kaz right there. “You shouldn’t see your date before it’s time to go to the dance, anyway. It’s bad luck.”

  “Isn’t that only for weddings?” Vanessa said. Then, apparently realizing what she’d just said, she blushed deep red. “And we’re definitely not—I mean, you know . . .”

  “Excuse me,” Kaz said, sliding out of the booth. “Be right back—I need to hit the head.”

  He scurried off in the direction of the restroom. I grinned at Van.

  “What do you know?” I said. “Apparently, it actually is possible to embarrass Mr. Kazuo Aratani!”

  Her face was still red, but she laughed. “Do I get an award?”

  “I think you should. I only wish I’d been filming, since nobody would ever believe it happened.”

  She looked alarmed at that. “You’re not going to tell anyone?” she exclaimed. “I mean, you know Kaz and I aren’t—That is, we don’t really—”

  “Relax, I won’t say a word.” I twiddled my fork, hoping our food came soon. All I’d had for breakfast back at home had been a glass of OJ.

  She shot me a sidelong look. “Are you okay? You seemed kind of—I don’t know, down or something when you got here.”

  “Actually”—I glanced in the direction of the restroom to make sure Kaz had really left—“you’re kind of right. Yesterday, well . . .”

  “What?” she prompted, her eyes soft and concerned.

  I shrugged, still playing with the fork. “I guess hanging out with Trevor this week hasn’t always been quite as nonstop perfect as I thought it would be, you know?”

  “Really?” She looked surprised. “But I thought he keeps holding your hand and stuff, and then he wrote you that song . . . .”

  “I know, I know.” I sighed and dropped the fork. “But the thing is, we spend pretty much all our time talking about his band. Which was fine at first, but I guess it would be nice if he seemed interested in anything else, you know? Maybe wanted to talk about me once in a while, or really anything but . . .”

  Vanessa cleared her throat loudly, tilting her head to the side. Looking that way, I saw Kaz returning.

  “Maybe we can talk about it later,” she said quietly.

  I nodded as Kaz reached us. It was probably just as well we’d been cut off. There was really nothing to talk about; it was just me being weird and looking for trouble. After all, nobody had ever said love was easy. Especially when it was mostly long distance, and we had to pack several months’ worth of true romance into a week.

  But that was okay. Trevor was worth it. I was still sure of that.

  • • •

  My parents and Timothy were just leaving as Vanessa arrived that afternoon.

  “Hi, Bells,” Vanessa said. “Bye, Bells.”

  My mother chuckled. “Be good, you two,” she said, pulling on her jacket. “We’ll be home late.”

  “Which means you’d better be home before us,” my dad added with a wink.

  “Unless you’re in jail,” Timothy said. “Then we’ll bail you out in the morning.”

  “Hardy har, you’re a laugh riot.” I gave him a little shove, and he kicked me in the shin before darting outside.

  “Where are they off to?” Vanessa asked as the door shut behind my family.

  “Movies,” I said. “Timothy finally talked them into taking him to some dumb double-feature monster film festival over on the other side of Smithton.”

  “Sounds kind of fun, actually,” Vanessa said. “Kaz would probably love to go next time.”

  I smirked. “Look at you, thinking of more stuff to do with Kaz now that you’re officially dating at all.”

  She blushed. “No, we’re not,” she said. “We’re just going to this dance together, that’s all. And only because you’re ditching us for Mr. Perfect.”

  “You sure about that?” I’d meant the question to come out light and funny, but it ended up a little more intense than that.

  Vanessa shot me a surprised look. Then she took a deep breath, and her mouth stretched into a shy smile. “Well, actually . . .,” she began.

  “What?” I leaned forward, suddenly nervous. “Actually what?”

  She shrugged. “I guess we can just see what happens,” she said, looking down and fiddling with her makeup bag so I couldn’t see her eyes. “For now let’s just say this is definitely a date, okay?”

  “Okay.” I wasn’t sure what else to say, especially since I couldn’t quite read the expression on her face for once. What was she thinking?

  I decided not to worry about it. “Come on. Let’s get gussied up for our fellas,” I said, grinning. “Last one upstairs has to deal with my hair!”

  Soon we were dressed in fuzzy robes and sitting in front of the big full-length mirror in my bathroom. Vanessa started working on my hair, smoothing its wild curls into soft ringlets.

  “So what did you and Kaz decide to wear in the end?” I asked, realizing I’d never heard the result of their discussions.

  “Still Great Gatsby,” she mumbled around the bobby pins in her mouth. “But I vetoed the cross-dressing thing. Not that it wouldn’t be funny. I just don’t want him wrecking my flapper dress.”

  I laughed, picturing Kaz, limbs and fringe flailing on the dance floor. “Good call,” I said. “Besides, you look superhot in that dress. I’m glad you’re wearing it again.”

  “I know I just wore it at the marathon.” She shrugged. “But I like it.”

  I smiled at her in the mirror. That was my Vanessa—some girls might be self-conscious about wearing the same dress to back-to-back events. But not her. She marched to her own drummer. We all did, really. That was part of why we got along so well.

  “Who else would have us?” I murmured with a smile.

  “Huh?” Vanessa looked up from my hair.

  “Nothing. Hurry up and finish so I can do your hair next.” I smiled at her again. “I want to have lots of time to take pictures before the boys get here.”

  • • •

  An hour and a half later we both looked fabulous. I’d teased Vanessa’s blond hair into an elaborate twist on top of her head, which made her look older and intriguingly exotic. She’d made my curls look like they were there on purpose. Our makeup matched our looks—mine modern and rock ’n’ roll, hers with the bold drama of the Roaring Twenties.

  “We are so hot,” I declared, snapping another selfie of the two of us in my front hall.

  Her phone buzzed. “It’s Kaz,” she said, scanning the text. “He says he’s already dressed and could come over a little early if we asked him nicely.”

  I laughed. Kaz had already called once and texted twice, but we’d declined all his requests to come over early. No boys allowed!

  “Tell him he can make it another fifteen minutes or so,” I said. “By then it’ll be time for him to come pick us up anyway.” Realizing what I’d just said, I shook my head and corrected myself. “I mean, pick you up.”

  I’d exchanged a few quick texts with Trevor earlier, arranging for him to come to get me. With Jon as chauffeur, of course. I wasn’t super-pumped about arriving at the dance in his smelly old car, but whatever. At least I’d be arriving with Trevor. That was the important part.

  “You’ll know it’s true on a magical night,” I sang.

  Vanessa joined in for the rest: “Whether sailing at sea or dancing in the moonlight. That’s when you’ll share a first kiss if you dare. Remember it always: t
rue romance is rare.”

  I grabbed the hairbrush out of Vanessa’s hand and used it as a microphone as we belted out the chorus:

  “True romance. It’s the air that we breathe. Just us two together. Yeah, just you and me!”

  Vanessa started giggling then, and we collapsed against each other, laughing so hard, we couldn’t breath. Finally I pulled back, tweaking a stray bit of hair back into her updo.

  “This was fun,” I said. “Getting ready, you know.”

  “I know.” She smiled at me. “Come on. Let’s go take more pictures outside while we wait for the guys. They’ll be here pretty soon.”

  I shivered with anticipation. Now that it was almost time for the dance, my earlier worries seemed silly. This was going to be a fabulous night—one Trevor and I would probably talk about for the rest of our lives. I couldn’t wait for it to start.

  I grabbed my phone and my purse and headed for the door. “Let’s go!”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Vanessa and I had fun for the next few minutes striking silly poses and snapping tons of photos and a couple of videos. If any of my neighbors happened to be looking out their windows, they probably thought we were insane. Finally I tucked my phone into my purse.

  “Enough,” I said, still snorting with laughter. “I don’t want to totally run down my battery before the dance even starts.”

  “Okay.” She put her phone away too. Then we settled ourselves carefully on the front porch steps to wait for our dates.

  After a moment of silence I looked over at her, wanting to ask how she felt about going to the dance with Kaz. Was she excited? Nervous? Did she think there was a chance they’d become an actual couple?

  For some reason, though, I wasn’t sure I was ready to hear the answer to that last part, especially after the way she’d acted earlier. So I kept quiet, and she was the first to speak.

  “I wonder what everyone at school will think of Trevor,” she said, giving me a sidelong smile.

  I shrugged, playing with the hem of my dress. “A lot of them have already seen him,” I reminded her. “At the marathon, remember?”

  “Oh right. I guess his guitar solo was kind of, um, memorable.” She giggled.

  “True.” I went a little starry-eyed at the memory. “I just wish he’d been there when we played ‘True Romance.’ That would’ve been epic!”

  Vanessa nodded. “Do you think the DJ will play that song tonight?”

  Before I could answer, there was a weird honking sound from the end of the block. It sounded like a goose with emphysema.

  Jumping to my feet, I peered in that direction. “Whoa, what is that?” I exclaimed.

  A car was coming our way. It was one of those old-timey antique ones, with a bright yellow body and a black hardtop and funny bicyclelike tires.

  It honked again and then pulled to a stop in front of my house. With a flourish, Kaz jumped out of the passenger seat.

  “Your chariot awaits, milady!” he called, striding up to Vanessa and sweeping into a deep bow.

  “Wow.” I stared at the car idling loudly at the curb. “Where’d you come up with that thing, Kaz?”

  He grinned, looking pleased with himself. “It’s the closest I could come to a Gatsby car,” he said. “I mean, it’s yellow instead of cream colored, and it’s not technically an actual Rolls-Royce, but . . .”

  “It’s amazing!” Vanessa said with a giggle, waving to the man in the driver’s seat, who tipped his hat to her. Yes, he was wearing an actual hat—one as old-fashioned as the car, and pretty similar to the one Kaz had paired with his own dapper Gatsby suit. Which he looked pretty great in, by the way.

  “Who’s that?” I asked, giving the driver a wave myself.

  “His daughter is one of my dad’s patients,” Kaz said. “When he heard about our outfits, he offered to play chauffeur.”

  I wasn’t surprised. Kaz was that kind of person—everyone loved being part of his schemes, since they were usually a lot of fun. Just look at the dance marathon, for instance. The whole school—the whole town, really—was still buzzing about what a blast it had been. And it had all started with Kaz, like most of the fun stuff around here.

  Vanessa laughed again, looking a little breathless and pink cheeked. “I guess we shouldn’t keep our chauffeur waiting.”

  “Right. Sorry I was a little late, but I figured you wouldn’t mind when you got a load of our ride.” Kaz gallantly offered his arm. “Shall we depart?”

  Kaz’s mention of being late reminded me to check my watch. He was right—it was almost ten minutes after the time we’d told both guys to pick us up. So where was Trevor?

  Vanessa seemed to be thinking the same thing. “Want to ride with us, Chloe?” she asked. “You could text Trevor to tell him you’ll meet him at the dance.”

  I hesitated, tempted by the offer. It would be a blast to show up at the dance in that car with my two best friends. Just like old times.

  But this wasn’t old times. Things were different now. Trevor was expecting to take me to the dance. And besides, I shouldn’t horn in on Kaz and Vanessa’s first real date. Not if they were going to have a chance to really see if they wanted to be together.

  “It’s okay,” I said, ignoring the unpleasant little twist in my gut at the last part. “I’m sure he’ll be here soon.” I pulled out my phone to double-check for texts. “He’s coming straight from his family reunion, so he’s probably just a little behind.”

  “Rock ’n’ roll time, right?” Kaz winked and grinned. “Sure you don’t want to catch a ride with us? It’s not every day you get to ride in one of these babies.” He gestured toward the antique car, then turned and smiled at me.

  That smile. It was killing me tonight for some reason, even though I’d seen it a zillion times before. How lucky was I to even know a guy like Kaz? Suddenly I was afraid I might start bawling right then and there. Which was weird, since I hardly ever cry.

  Then again this was a special night. I was probably just letting my excitement over the big date with Trevor get to me. Or maybe I was getting emotional at the thought that my two best friends might fall in love tonight. That would be enough to make anyone a little weepy, right?

  “Thanks,” I said. “You two, go ahead. I’ll see you there in a bit.”

  “Okay.” Vanessa gave me a quick hug and then stuck her arm through Kaz’s. “Shall we depart, sir?”

  “Indeed, madam.”

  That little gut twist hit me again. They were so cute together. But it still bothered me to think of things changing. Of the two of them having secrets I wasn’t part of.

  Get over it, I told myself. Things change. That’s life. You should be happy for them.

  And I was. Except . . .

  I watched with a forced smile as the two of them marched over to the car. When they got closer, the driver hopped out and opened the back door for them.

  “Please, dude—allow me.” Kaz took the door handle and ushered Vanessa into the backseat himself. His hand grazed her bare shoulder, and I shivered, almost able to feel the touch on my own skin. But I kept the smile on my face as Kaz tipped his hat to the driver and climbed in after Vanessa. The driver closed the door, then got back in and started the car.

  I waved as they drove off in a cloud of fumes. There was one more goose honk, and then the yellow car disappeared around the corner, and I could finally relax.

  What was wrong with me? This was supposed to be an exciting, romantic night for me and Trevor. So why was I suddenly obsessing over my friends’ date instead of my own?

  Maybe because it could have been me, I thought before I could stop myself. I could be in that car right now instead of Vanessa.

  That thought made me feel like the worst, most hateful, and petty friend in the world. How could I be jealous of my two favorite people? It had been my idea for them to go to the dance together, and now here I was wishing I’d never mentioned it.

  It was getting a little chilly, so I went back inside to wait
for Trevor. The house was still and silent, which made my mood drop even further. Pulling out my phone, I brought up Trevor’s band’s version of “True Romance” and cranked up the volume, humming along.

  But for once, the magic of the song didn’t work. Every time I tried to picture myself slow dancing with Trevor, I kept imagining my arms holding someone else.

  Kaz.

  “Oh no!” I said aloud, my voice echoing through the quiet house. “I think I’ve made a huge mistake!”

  My heart pounded as I tried to tell myself it was nerves talking or anticipation or just a plain old psychotic break.

  But no. I couldn’t deny the truth any longer. I was sitting here waiting for Trevor . . . and wishing I were with Kaz instead.

  At that moment I heard a loud backfire from outside, and when I stepped to the window, Jon’s car was pulling to the curb in front of my house.

  I gulped. What in the world was I supposed to do now?

  Chapter Eighteen

  When I swung open the front door, Jon was right there. “Gotta use the john,” he muttered with a scowl. “Where is it?”

  “Uh, come right in.” I stepped back to let him pass. “The bathroom’s down that hall past the stairs.”

  His only response was a grunt as he took off in that direction. Trevor came in behind his cousin, looking apologetic.

  “Sorry about Jon,” he said. “He and his girlfriend had a huge fight on the phone right before we left the reunion. He’s not in the best mood.”

  “I can tell.” I tried to sound normal, but it wasn’t easy. My mind was still spinning with the revelation that had just hit me. How was I supposed to act now that I knew I was going to the dance with the wrong guy?

  Then again how could I do anything else? Trevor had come all the way here just for me. I couldn’t just blow him off now.

  Besides, there was no point thinking about what this night might have been like if I were with Kaz. Because he was at the dance with my other best friend. And I wasn’t about to do anything to hurt Vanessa, especially if she was starting to have feelings for Kaz too. I wouldn’t do that to her—to either of them.