Rory retrieved the phone from the back of her closet, and jabbed anxiously at the button. "Hello?"
"Want to take a minute to catch your breath?"
"No. You talk," Rory wheezed.
"Okay. So I'm going out with Henry this weekend. Or I will be, if you do me a massive favor. Although not really massive...."
"What?"
"Come with me."
"Wha-- This is a favor how?"
"Well, it would make my date a whole lot more fun. I was supposed to be meeting this girl I know from Bible Camp, but she had to cancel, and my mom doesn't know."
"What an oversight."
"Once in a lifetime opportunity, so I arranged to meet Henry instead. The problem is, he already had plans, and he doesn't want to blow the guy off entirely, so if you could come along, make it sort of a double date?"
"Well--"
"Henry was going to call you, but I figured I could pull off the guilt-trip better."
"Doesn't the fact that you've just told me what you're going to do reduce its effectiveness?"
"Not at all; you're a sucker."
"Thanks, Lane." Rory shook her head, bewildered. "Sure, I guess." She ignored Lane's high-pitched squeals. "Do I know him?"
The commotion ceased. "Yeah. That's why it's not such a big thing to do. It's Tristan."
"Tristan."
"You like Tristan."
"That I do. I'll talk to you later Lane." Rory hung up the phone, heedless of Lane's squawk of protest, and dropped onto her bed. She stared blindly at the wall, not thinking at all.
**********
Rory shifted in her seat, trying to concentrate on the movie. The time-line was confusing her. It shouldn't have been, but she hadn't seen more than five minutes at a time. She wished she was sitting on the other side of Lane and Henry. This movie was supposed to be good, and it wasn't fair that she was missing it. It was all his fault.
Tristan was slouched beside her, the flickering light from the screen sending his features into sharp relief, making him look slightly ghoulish. The film held him rapt; his eyes darting to follow the action, his lips parted. She studied him cautiously, on guard for any lapse in his attention that would alert him to her regard.
His face was usually expressive of his personality, displaying the stubbornness and confidence that was habitual to him; now relaxed and off-guard he looked years younger, like the child he was close to being. Softer. She wanted to reach out and touch him, find out if he felt as soft as he looked in that moment.
She really should be paying attention to the film, it wasn't something she could turn her brain off for. She glanced back at the screen impatiently, trying to figure out what was happening, to ignore his arm resting next to hers.
Maybe she didn't have to change seats; maybe she'd be all right if he'd just stop hogging the armrest.
The credits rolled before she could catch up on the plot, and she turned to him in relief. "Well that was fun. Ready to go?"
He stretched lazily, and her eyes slid over his body rapidly, before they returned to his face. He hadn't noticed. "Yeah, I'm ready." Standing up, he turned towards Lane and Henry. "Hey, are you guys.... Obviously they're not."
Rory leaned forward to see what he meant, but quickly averted her eyes. "Maybe we should give them a minute."
Tristan agreed, moving down the aisle. "They can find us in the lobby."
They stood propped against a wall in silence, Tristan staring off into the distance blankly, Rory watching the people in line for the refreshment stand. Mostly teenagers; couples on dates, groups of younger girls. A few parents with their children. A few people she recognized from Chilton.
Getting out of the chair was supposed to have improved matters, but they were closer now, jostled together. The lobby was full to overflowing, and she couldn't move away. It wouldn't have been so bad if Lane hadn't pitched this as a date. Rory couldn't help making comparisons to the couples she saw milling around, couldn't help wondering if Tristan had been told the same thing.
God, why hadn't Lane and Henry been rousted out by the usher yet?
Speak of the devil. Lane motored towards Rory, dragging Henry in her wake. She was flushed, and grinning, but made no reference to the cause. "Hey guys. You ready to go?"
Tristan grinned at her. "Yeah, just about."
The cause spoke. "Hey, you mind giving Rory a ride home? I want to take Lane to meet my sister."
Even Rory knew that Henry didn't have a sister.
**********
The car rolled to a stop in front of Rory's house. The lights were on, but nobody was home; her mother was out on a date too. Not that Rory was on a date. She knew that this wasn't a date.
It did feel like one. There had been polite chit-chat, staring, couple-dom, and all the awkwardness that traditionally accompanied first dates. And now this. Goodnight. Did she want a kiss?
She was leaning against the door, facing Tristan. She could sit up, lean over, and kiss him. Simple, easy. She could part his lips with hers and find her answer. She could reach out and touch him, slide her hands up under his shirt, over his warm stomach. She could pull him down to her, on top of her, and trail her fingers downwards. Her mother wouldn't be home for hours; she could invite him in and -
She straightened hurriedly, smiling tightly at him in the darkness of the car. "This was fun. We should do it again some time. With Lane and Henry maybe, although probably not, to celebrate our survival of the season. Or maybe there'll be a party, in Luke's, with everyone there, all the town, although probably not my grandparents, and you could come to that, or - "
He interrupted her babbling. "Sounds like a good time."
"If it happens, it will be. Would you like to come in?"
The silence stretched. "I don't think that would be a good idea. Your mother would probably have me stuffed and mounted."
"Right." Taking advantage of her momentary lack of something to say, she hauled herself out of the car. "Well, I'll see you in school on Monday."
"Tomorrow."
Miss Patty. Right. Dancing. "Tomorrow."
Spinning around, she sprinted to the house, fumbling with her keys, finally managing to fall inside and get the door safely closed. After a moment's debate with herself, she peered cautiously out of the side window for a last glance of Tristan. The street was empty.
"Want to take a minute to catch your breath?"
"No. You talk," Rory wheezed.
"Okay. So I'm going out with Henry this weekend. Or I will be, if you do me a massive favor. Although not really massive...."
"What?"
"Come with me."
"Wha-- This is a favor how?"
"Well, it would make my date a whole lot more fun. I was supposed to be meeting this girl I know from Bible Camp, but she had to cancel, and my mom doesn't know."
"What an oversight."
"Once in a lifetime opportunity, so I arranged to meet Henry instead. The problem is, he already had plans, and he doesn't want to blow the guy off entirely, so if you could come along, make it sort of a double date?"
"Well--"
"Henry was going to call you, but I figured I could pull off the guilt-trip better."
"Doesn't the fact that you've just told me what you're going to do reduce its effectiveness?"
"Not at all; you're a sucker."
"Thanks, Lane." Rory shook her head, bewildered. "Sure, I guess." She ignored Lane's high-pitched squeals. "Do I know him?"
The commotion ceased. "Yeah. That's why it's not such a big thing to do. It's Tristan."
"Tristan."
"You like Tristan."
"That I do. I'll talk to you later Lane." Rory hung up the phone, heedless of Lane's squawk of protest, and dropped onto her bed. She stared blindly at the wall, not thinking at all.
**********
Rory shifted in her seat, trying to concentrate on the movie. The time-line was confusing her. It shouldn't have been, but she hadn't seen more than five minutes at a time. She wished she was sitting on the other side of Lane and Henry. This movie was supposed to be good, and it wasn't fair that she was missing it. It was all his fault.
Tristan was slouched beside her, the flickering light from the screen sending his features into sharp relief, making him look slightly ghoulish. The film held him rapt; his eyes darting to follow the action, his lips parted. She studied him cautiously, on guard for any lapse in his attention that would alert him to her regard.
His face was usually expressive of his personality, displaying the stubbornness and confidence that was habitual to him; now relaxed and off-guard he looked years younger, like the child he was close to being. Softer. She wanted to reach out and touch him, find out if he felt as soft as he looked in that moment.
She really should be paying attention to the film, it wasn't something she could turn her brain off for. She glanced back at the screen impatiently, trying to figure out what was happening, to ignore his arm resting next to hers.
Maybe she didn't have to change seats; maybe she'd be all right if he'd just stop hogging the armrest.
The credits rolled before she could catch up on the plot, and she turned to him in relief. "Well that was fun. Ready to go?"
He stretched lazily, and her eyes slid over his body rapidly, before they returned to his face. He hadn't noticed. "Yeah, I'm ready." Standing up, he turned towards Lane and Henry. "Hey, are you guys.... Obviously they're not."
Rory leaned forward to see what he meant, but quickly averted her eyes. "Maybe we should give them a minute."
Tristan agreed, moving down the aisle. "They can find us in the lobby."
They stood propped against a wall in silence, Tristan staring off into the distance blankly, Rory watching the people in line for the refreshment stand. Mostly teenagers; couples on dates, groups of younger girls. A few parents with their children. A few people she recognized from Chilton.
Getting out of the chair was supposed to have improved matters, but they were closer now, jostled together. The lobby was full to overflowing, and she couldn't move away. It wouldn't have been so bad if Lane hadn't pitched this as a date. Rory couldn't help making comparisons to the couples she saw milling around, couldn't help wondering if Tristan had been told the same thing.
God, why hadn't Lane and Henry been rousted out by the usher yet?
Speak of the devil. Lane motored towards Rory, dragging Henry in her wake. She was flushed, and grinning, but made no reference to the cause. "Hey guys. You ready to go?"
Tristan grinned at her. "Yeah, just about."
The cause spoke. "Hey, you mind giving Rory a ride home? I want to take Lane to meet my sister."
Even Rory knew that Henry didn't have a sister.
**********
The car rolled to a stop in front of Rory's house. The lights were on, but nobody was home; her mother was out on a date too. Not that Rory was on a date. She knew that this wasn't a date.
It did feel like one. There had been polite chit-chat, staring, couple-dom, and all the awkwardness that traditionally accompanied first dates. And now this. Goodnight. Did she want a kiss?
She was leaning against the door, facing Tristan. She could sit up, lean over, and kiss him. Simple, easy. She could part his lips with hers and find her answer. She could reach out and touch him, slide her hands up under his shirt, over his warm stomach. She could pull him down to her, on top of her, and trail her fingers downwards. Her mother wouldn't be home for hours; she could invite him in and -
She straightened hurriedly, smiling tightly at him in the darkness of the car. "This was fun. We should do it again some time. With Lane and Henry maybe, although probably not, to celebrate our survival of the season. Or maybe there'll be a party, in Luke's, with everyone there, all the town, although probably not my grandparents, and you could come to that, or - "
He interrupted her babbling. "Sounds like a good time."
"If it happens, it will be. Would you like to come in?"
The silence stretched. "I don't think that would be a good idea. Your mother would probably have me stuffed and mounted."
"Right." Taking advantage of her momentary lack of something to say, she hauled herself out of the car. "Well, I'll see you in school on Monday."
"Tomorrow."
Miss Patty. Right. Dancing. "Tomorrow."
Spinning around, she sprinted to the house, fumbling with her keys, finally managing to fall inside and get the door safely closed. After a moment's debate with herself, she peered cautiously out of the side window for a last glance of Tristan. The street was empty.