Evie and PJ had been laying out in the sun most of the day. The house they had rented for vacation was right by the beach. They had a very secluded part of the beach and had decided to take their tops off. Marilyn and Lisa had been out with them until the other two succumbed to the sweat and the heat before going back 's hair was tied up in a bandana and she was wearing a small, trendy pair of sunglasses. Even though their aim was to soak up the sun, they both had been religiously reapplying their sunscreen. They had briefly dipped in the ocean only to find it far too cold for any substantial swimming.

The music stopped playing abruptly and Evie picked up her phone to see what the cause was. It was her mother calling.

Evie answered easily, "Hi Mom."

"How's my little superstar?" Agatha was in a light mood. "How is vacation treating you?" The two continued to chat about the cottage, the ocean, and even the weather. Agatha even clicked her tongue when she heard how long Evie and PJ had been sitting in the sun. "Are you sure you've been reapplying consistently? Anybody, any age is susceptible to skin cancer, Evelyn."

"Mom," Evie dragged out the syllable as long as possible, "I'm being responsible. Besides, I have a date tonight and I wouldn't risk showing up looking like Larry the lobster."

"A date? Who is it? Is it one of the girls?"

"No mom," Evie turned to PJ and crossed her eyes in a playful gesture. PJ returned it by making a kissy face toward Evie. "I'm going out with a man. In fact, I think you might know him."

"Evelyn, everyone I know is old. Please don't tell me he's old. "

"No. He went to Tatnall with me, before I transferred for the academy," she paused then. There was a chance that her mother didn't remember Jake's name and if she did she probably didn't remember prom night. With any luck, Agatha wouldn't remember at all and Evie would have to fill her. Not all of it of course. "It's Jake Seresin."

There was silence on the other end for a moment before, "That little PRICK. Evelyn, please tell me Ashton Kutcher is there and I'm getting punked. Where did you run into him? He dared to show his face!"

"MOM. It's ok. He didn't know the others were gonna do that. He apologized and we talked about it. We're adults now and it's all water under the bridge."

Agatha hummed with disapproval. "If you say so," she had taken on a uniquely disappointed maternal tone, "you're an adult and you can make your own decisions. I can't stop you."

"I love when people give up on me," Evie replied in a sarcastic tone.

"Ok, well. I'm gonna let you go because I've got a pot of applesauce almost done on the stove. Have fun. I love you."

Evie smiled to herself, "Love you too, mmm bye." As Evie ended the call, the music started playing again only for PJ to reach over and hit pause.

"It's almost four," PJ said, "we should head in and catch showers." Evie agreed and the two went inside. Marilyn and Lisa were in the kitchen, still in their bikinis as well. Lisa was making something in the blender and Marilyn was bent over her phone at the kitchen island. She had a small smile playing on her lips and she typed something quickly. Marilyn's attention shifted to Evie and PJ as they walked through the door.

Marilyn whistled as she took in the two without their tops. "You two are so hot. I might have to fight Jake for you myself!"

"Does anybody want a margarita?" Lisa interjected as she stepped away from the blender, "I've made plenty." Evie and Marilyn both opted for a drink.

"Is that the guy from the bar last night," PJ directed her question to Marilyn who had returned to her screen.

"Yea," she said in a warm tone. "Last night I kind of just wanted the attention, but he's actually really sweet. He was so nervous at first it was kind of freaking me out and now I just think he's never talked to a woman in person for more than 15 seconds."

"So you're taking home a stray?" drolled Lisa. "Are you going to make him lunch? Obviously with the crust cut off.

"Guys don't be jerks about it," replied Marilyn in a firm voice. "I might actually like him. If it doesn't go anywhere, then at least he's made contact with the opposite sex and some other girl will get a nice guy."

"I think that's very noble of you," PJ aired. The conversation moved along into a discussion of surf lessons and parasailing before Evie excused herself to take a shower.

The shower was fancier than anything she could afford in New York and nicer than any hotel the company had shelled out for. There was no tub and the shower walls were glass from floor to ceiling. The shower head was mounted on the ceiling and it gave the bather the impression they were caught in a very warm rainfall. Evie silently noted that if she lived in a house this nice she would never leave.

Water was exactly what she needed. She took her time washing off the layers of sunscreen and scrubbing her skin until it was smooth again. Finally stepping out, she hastily wiped off the steam from the mirror. Evie always admired how she looked when her hair was wet against her head and her skin was still plump from the heat. Going about her typical routine, her hair in a towel, lotion all over, and a lip scrub, she hummed an old Christmas carol to herself. She checked the time on her phone and noted that she didn't have a text from Jake. They had a plan, but Evie was a romantic and she liked when a guy texted her before going out with her. No sonnets, but just something to let her know he was excited.

She tried not to let that bother her. She had two hours before he would be here and she didn't want to spend it annoyed. She wanted to be giddy and mildly nauseous. The cloud of her past with Jake started creeping up on her. As she readied herself, the night of prom came back to her, mostly in the form of feelings and sensations. She felt inadequate and worthless whenever she remembered that night. She did her best to stamp on the growing concern that history would repeat itself. This would be a ridiculously, elaborate way to make a fool of her again. And why? If he didn't hurt her the first time, then he wouldn't hurt her this time. That made the most sense, but sometimes the most logical explanation is the hardest to reconcile.

When Evie was ready, she went back downstairs and was greeted with hoots and hollers from her friends. She hadn't dressed up too much, mostly owing to the fact her suitcase was full of leotards and sweatpants. She had on a pair of plaid, bellbottom, slacks and a cropped white long sleeve. Her hair wasn't straightened, but she had softened her curls and added small pieces of gold jewelry.

"Oo, hot for teacher!"

"If I could rearrange the alphabet, I'd put 'U' and 'I' together!"

"What have you done with Evie?"

The chorus of approvals made Evie feel a little bit better about her date. She joined the girls in the kitchen and Marilyn poured a little of the wine they were sharing. They were still chatting and giggling when 7pm came and went, then 7:15, then 7:30. Evie tried to act like she either didn't notice or wasn't bothered, but the other girls knew. No one said it, but they knew. The dips in their conversation grew longer as they all avoided the elephant slowly taking up more of the room.

Just when Evie was about to excuse herself to go back upstairs, a knock came on the front door. Evie didn't want to be hopeful, but as she peered through the peephole she saw exactly who she wanted to see. Then, she didn't want to be mad and took a second to settle before opening the door. When she did, she found Jake standing there, still in uniform, shifting his weight between his feet. The sky was trying its best to rain and a few drops of moisture had clung to Jake's hair. He looked worn out and there was a slight slump to his shoulders.

They stood in silence for a moment, each taking the other in. Jake swallowed nervously before he spoke, "I'm late."

Evie gave it a beat. She was waiting for him to say something else. Perhaps something along the lines of an apology. When it became clear she wouldn't get anything else, she spoke, "I know." Evie didn't really consider herself an angry person and typically didn't like to yell, but there was a little speech building in her. "Is that all? Is that all I get? You're 45 minutes late and all I get is an admission of that fact." She paused, again allowing him a chance to defend himself, and was only met with silence before she proceeded. "I don't necessarily think I need an apology. I get it. Shit happens and we've all been late to things, but usually you let the other person know you're running late."

"You know Evie there's bigger things in the world than the structure of your evening," he spat it at her. Jake looked up from the ground and took in Evie's face. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that it was ungentlemanly of me." A more relaxed energy settled between them as they had now both gotten something off their chests.

"I thought I was being stood up," Evie blurted out before she could stop it. "I know it was a long time ago, but last time…" When she couldn't finish her sentence, Jake stepped closer to her. Something had just clicked into place behind his eyes.

"I should have called. I should have known this might be, um, weird for you," Jake whispered close to her face. "I'm sorry for that too. I was just too caught up in my own stuff. I do that sometimes."

"It's ok we all do that. It makes us human."

"I just have so much on me right now and I feel like I have no one in my corner," he found a little more voice and Evie thought she could feel his voice rumbling in the shrinking space between them.

"Why? Why is there no one in your corner?"

"They don't like the way I fly, but I can't be any different," he stopped and disappeared into his own mind, "I can't lose another one."

"Another one?" Her voice seemed to pull him from his thoughts and back into the present. He tensed his jaw briefly and leaned away.

"I don't want to talk about it. I'm sorry I said it. I'm sorry that I'm sorry about so many things."

"It's ok we don't have to talk about it," she murmured. When Evie said it she meant it. She wouldn't have just said things to be comforting. She meant it. It was his own business.

"Are you still up for a date? It's getting late, but I can improvise."

"Yea." He took her hand as she shut the door behind her.