A Prom to Remember(68)

Otis and Luke looked at each other.

“Go!” Madison insisted.

And who were they to disagree?

Paisley

Playing video games back at Henry’s house was much more Paisley’s speed. Though there was a feeling that she couldn’t quite shake, like she should have socialized more at the prom.

Being home was definitely more Henry’s speed, too. He’d calmed way down after the whole bathroom thing, but it took until he was out of his tuxedo for him to shake off that last edge of anxiety.

“This is so much more comfortable than my dress,” Paisley said, gesturing at her T-shirt. She’d changed into one of her It’s not you, it’s prom T-shirts as soon as they’d gotten to Henry’s.

Before Henry could respond, his mom came in the room holding her phone. “Did you hear about what happened at the prom?”

Henry and Paisley looked at each other and shook their heads.

Henry’s mom gave them the brief version and then continued. “Jacinta’s mom called to tell me what happened and to say that she hoped you were okay. I said you’ve been home for an hour. She said you should come over and join the party.”

“Um, no,” Henry said. “No thanks.”

“Suit yourself,” Henry’s mom said with a shrug as she turned and left the room.

“Dude,” Paisley said. “What is your problem?”

“We can’t go. That’s a pity invite from Jacinta’s mom to my mom. It has nothing to do with Jacinta or me or you. They do this all the time. Jacinta and I have this unspoken agreement to not let our moms interfere.”

Paisley looked at him.

“Don’t give me that look,” he said.

That just made her look at him harder.

“What?”

“We have to go,” she said. “Come on. Turn this crap off. We have things to do.”

“Nah, not really,” Henry said.

“Come on, Henry.”

“I thought you hate everyone.”

Paisley shrugged. “Turns out I made some snap judgments. Turns out I might miss people. Maybe they’re all not terrible.”

“Oh. You mean like Amelia?”

“No, she’s terrible.”

“I mean that you talked to her about me.”

“Oh right, right. I did that. But she yelled at me to never tell you. I can’t believe she brought it up. That’s a little bit two-faced, come to think of it.”

“See? People are the worst. You’re right to be wary of them.”

Paisley thought about that for a second. “They are. They can be. But I bet Amelia will not be at Jacinta’s house, and I think we should go. And maybe prom wasn’t as terrible as I thought, and I kind of want to have one last hurrah with a bunch of crazy, maybe slightly drunk, soaking-wet people who I might not ever see again after graduation.”

Paisley looked at her friend and did her best to read his mind. But then she looked away. Maybe she didn’t really want to go too deep into the mind of an eighteen-year-old boy. Even if that boy was Henry.

“Fine,” he said without any further prodding. “But this feels pathetic. Going to a party thrown by someone only because their mom invited us.”

“You’re not pathetic. You’re with me.”

Henry rolled his eyes. “My mom will force us to take something with us, like soda or Rice Krispies Treats, and we’ll look dumb.”

“I won’t look dumb. I never look dumb. And I love Rice Krispies Treats.”

He crossed his arms.

“This is pretty much our last chance to hang out with everyone like this. Let’s not skip it.”

“Yeah, but there’s still the problem that her mom invited me through my mom. Jacinta didn’t invite us.”

His phone pinged at that moment. He looked at it.

“It’s a text from Jacinta.”

“Oh, that’s weird.”

“Kind of feels like a sign,” Henry said.

“Well, don’t just sit there staring at it, read the message.”

He unlocked his phone. He was taking for-freaking-ever, so Paisley lunged at him and grabbed it.

“Hey, what are you up to?” Paisley read, leaning away from Henry as he ineffectively tried to grab his phone back. “Everyone is coming over to my house. You should, too. I think we might go swimming if it’s not too cold. Bring Paisley, too!”

Paisley swatted Henry’s hand away. “Totally. Can’t wait,” she texted back, saying the words out loud. “And send.”

Henry buried his face in his hands. “This is the worst!”

“It’s not. I promise it’s not. This is the best.”

“Do I really have to go?”

“Well, no. You don’t. I just think it’s good to push your boundaries sometimes. And that you might have fun. Jacinta’s house shouldn’t be too far out of your comfort zone. And I’ll be there.”

“It’s still the worst,” Henry said.

“It really isn’t. Now stop being dramatic, go get your bathing suit, take me home to get mine, and let’s get our asses over to Jacinta’s house.”

“Fine,” Henry grumbled. He pretty much grumbled the entire way there.