A Prom to Remember(26)

“Hey,” Cameron said, keeping his hands busy.

“I know you asked for June first off,” he started.

“Yes. It’s prom night.”

Eddie sighed. “I’m sorry. But I don’t have anyone else to work that shift. You know how it is. But I can get someone here around six to relieve you.”

“Oh,” Cameron said. “That’s okay, I guess. The dance starts at seven, and we can’t get in after eight. But if someone comes in at six, that gives me plenty of time.” Cameron was babbling; he knew it, Eddie knew it, but he had to talk his way through his nerves.

“Good,” Eddie said. “You keep working on those pizzas.”

Cameron nodded.

He squeezed Cam’s shoulder before he left. “Maybe someday you’ll have my job if you keep working so hard.”

Cameron schooled his face to keep from cringing as the door swung closed behind Eddie. He worked all these jobs to get out of this town, not to take over Eddie’s job managing his pizzeria.

Not that there was anything wrong with owning a pizzeria. Cameron just had his sights set to something different. He didn’t know what that was, but ever since Laptop Girl had asked him what he wanted to do with his life way back at the beginning of the year, he’d been rolling a bunch of different ideas around, and none of them included owning a pizzeria in the town he grew up in.

Laptop Girl.

What was he going to do about Laptop Girl?

Did he risk losing his anonymity by warning her he might be late for the prom? What if he missed the first slow dance because he couldn’t leave work when he needed to?

Maybe he needed to consider a different way of identifying each other.

After work that night, he sat down and typed a message on his phone so that the next time the laptop cart was out in English class, Cameron would be ready with an amendment to how he and Laptop Girl would recognize each other.

I had a new idea, his message began.

Or not a new idea. But an amendment due to my concern that one of us will get stuck in traffic or something the night of the prom and miss the first slow dance.

The “or something” made it less of a lie, Cameron told himself.

It’s hard since I don’t know exactly what this room looks like, but why don’t we meet at 8:15 somewhere near the DJ station. And we’ll still both have something lime green to recognize the other. And who knows, maybe we’ll notice each other long before then. I feel better about having a more concrete meeting time rather than just waiting for the first slow song. What if they don’t play any slow songs?! I know, I know. It’s the prom, they’ll play slow songs.

Anyway, hopefully you’re into the idea. I still can’t wait to meet you.

Cameron felt better already.

Cora

Cora was in the back seat of Teagan’s car after the baseball team’s big win at semifinals. It was dark outside and cozy in the car after the long afternoon spent cheering Jamie and the rest of the team on at the game that would help send them to the first round of the state championship.

This was one of those times that Cora had special dispensation to be out on a school night, and she had convinced her friends to go to the game with her so she wouldn’t have to drive with Jamie’s parents. Teagan and Josie were happy to oblige.

After stopping for dinner on the way home, Teagan was speeding so that she’d be home in time for her favorite Tuesday night show.

“But don’t you record it? And can’t you just watch on the Internet tomorrow?” Josie asked.

“Obviously, but half the fun is watching it with everyone else on Twitter,” Teagan explained. “Like what did people do during commercials before live tweeting?”

“I think I’m going to break up with Jamie,” Cora said. As soon as the phrase left her lips she felt a wave of relief fall over her, like all the tension she’d been holding in her shoulders for the past month was gone.

“What?” Teagan and Josie said at the same time.

“But he’s perfect,” Josie said, shaking her head. “Everyone wants a Jamie.”

“Well, maybe it’s time for someone else to have a Jamie. Maybe that’s my gift to the world.”

Teagan looked at Cora in the rearview mirror. “Seriously? You’re not joking?”

“I’m not joking. And he’s not perfect for me anymore. Something has changed with us lately. I don’t even know what it is, but every time I think about spending the next four years with him at school, it’s like I feel tied down or something.”

“Wow,” Josie said. “I feel like my parents are getting divorced.”

“Your parents are divorced,” Teagan said.

“I feel like my parents are getting divorced all over again,” Josie amended. “Happy now?”

“Yes,” Teagan said. “But not about Cora and Jamie breaking up. It feels really abrupt from the outside.”

Cora shrugged. “Not to me it doesn’t. I’ve been thinking about it for a while. It’s like, I love him but I’m not in love with him. And because he’s great doesn’t mean we’re great together or that we have to stay together forever.”

“That’s pretty brave,” Josie said.

Cora tipped her head to the side. “Is it, though? Like, we’ve been together a long time, probably too long by high school standards. And we made all these plans to stay together in college. Is that even healthy? There’s like a huge buffet of people out there. I might not even really like boys?”