After the guests had gone home and the mess was cleaned, I snatched up my Seventeen and bolted to my room. I desperately needed to know what kind of advice it would give me in this issue. I flipped on my bed side lamp and started skimming though the pages. I always read the love advice section first. The head line on the page was 'How to Find the Perfect Man'. Hmpf, I already knew who my perfect man was, but I read on.
"To find the guy of your dreams, go to places that interest you, like a museum. If you truly enjoy what you're doing, there's bound to be a boy there that likes the same thing."
What a load of crap. There is no way in hell that I was going to a museum to look for a boyfriend. The last thing I needed was some Soc that everyone would want to beat up. Moving on. 'What Makes You Irresistible' was the next heading that I read.
"To make you irresistible to his kiss, follow these simply steps.
Have kissable lips! Always have a thin layer of lipgloss on, but not too much.
Bat your eyelashes! Look him in the eyes and give him a coy smile, you will look super cute.
Touch him! Break the touch barrier. Bump into him or something to let him know it's okay to touch you back.
Look at his lips! While you're having a conversation, casually glance down to his lips. Draw attention to yours as well by biting your bottom lip or licking them."
This actually sounded like it could work. I wonder who I could use it on, considering I could never get alone with Dally. Whatever. I shrugged my shoulders and continued flipping though the magazine, stopping here or there to look at new hair-dos or makeup tips. My eyes gradually closed and the magazine slipped through my fingers and shut on my thighs.
Tap, Tap, Tap. I peeled open my eyes. What was that noise? Tap, Tap, Tap. I saw something moving outside my window. I stood up and slowly crawled over to check it out. Oh God, I hope it wasn't a Soc looking for a fight. I didn't want to be the one to wake up my brothers in the middle of the night. I peeked my eyes over the window sill and looked out into the dark. A bulky creature stepped in front of my sight. I let out a small scream and ducked back down to where I couldn't see it. I heard a chuckle from the other side. It was a human. I heard a few more soft knocks and looked up again. I recognized the face instantly. What was he doing here? I forced my window open a few inches. Still on my knees in front of the window in my room I said, "Why are you here, Dally?"
"I came to see my favorite Curtis on her birthday." He grinned.
I turned and looked at the clock on the wall, 12:21. "My birthday was technically yesterday. And you missed the party." I responded curtly.
"Awe, come on Jilly. Don't be a party pooper." He pouted. "Come out and see what I got for you!"
"Fine, but I need put shoes on though." I huffed. I tip-toed to my door and opened it as silently as I could. I poked my head out to check if the coast was clear. When I saw no one awake, I took a step into the hall. I made my way to the living room to get to the front door. I stepped on a creaky board and stopped. I had the distinct feeling that someone was watching me.
"Whatcha doin' Jill?" I heard a voice coming from the couch that made me jump.
"Jesus, Johnny. You scared me. What are you doin' here?" I whispered.
"Just didn't want to go home. But what are you doing up?" He asked.
"Dally just knocked on my window and wants me to go out and see him." Johnny's eyes widened. "Please don't tell anyone." I waited for him to nod, and slipped on some shoes. Dally met me by the front door and we walked around back to the old swing set. He broke the silence.
"I see what you got for your birthday." He motioned towards my chest. I was only wearing a thin tank top to sleep in and unfortunately didn't think to put a bra on before going outside. I'll just say that it was a bit cold outside. I hit Dally's arm and sat down on the rickety old swing. "So why are you really here?" I asked.
"Can't a guy just come and wish his friend a happy birthday?"
"Yeah, on their actual birthday. Like every one else did!" We sat in silence. I knew he wouldn't say sorry for not being at the party and for waking me up now, it just wasn't in his nature to be sorry for anything. After a couple more seconds of hearing the creaking of the swings, I took it upon myself to strike up a conversation.
"So you said you got me something?" I peeked over at him. He was staring at the ground, digging his shoes into the dirt.
"Uh, yeah. I did." He said, kicking up more dirt.
"Well, what is it?!" I playfully punted a gob of filth at him.
He inhaled deeply. He pulled himself off of the wooden plank and went to stand behind my swing. My back hit his front and I stopped moving. His hand pulled something out of his pocket and placed the object around my neck and fastened it. He pulled my dark brown hair out of it and splayed it on my back again. I looked down. It was a simple silver chain with a small oval hanging at the bottom. No, it couldn't be. I whipped my head around and stared at Dally's chest. It wasn't there. Which means that this was the necklace that never left his body.
"What? Dally, this is your most prized possession. You're never seen without it. Why'd you give it to me?" I asked.
"Well. The truth is... I don't want to be seen without you." I gasped. Did he really just say that? The serious look on his face tells me that he did. I smirked at the thought of my childhood dreams coming true. He cupped my face with his warm hands and brought his lips to mine. He didn't try to push to far; he didn't move his hands from my face. It was just a simple kiss. But it was my first, and it was Dally. The one I waited for. I could not have been happier in this moment. I thought back to the Seventeen living in my room. I didn't need those tips after all.