Instructions for Dancing(63)

We spot Cassidy standing by the stage scowling. Her parents are next to her, chatting up Principal Singh.

I overhear her mom thank him for all he’s done for her little girl.

Cassidy scowls harder. Her mom has no idea if Principal Singh did anything at all for “her little girl.”

Martin and I pull her into a hug a couple of feet away.

“They came,” Martin says, meaning her parents.

Cassidy shrugs like it’s no big deal, but I can see that she’s relieved they’re here. “They got in last night.”

“I’m glad,” I say, since she’s not going to.

“They leave again in the morning,” she says. Then she takes a deep breath. “I think I’m going to go with them. Japan, Korea, China. Might be fun,” she says.

I smile too bright at her.

“I’m sorry about the road trip, Evie,” she says. “I know how much you wanted to do that.”

I wave her off. “Listen, I’d go to Asia with my superrich parents too.”

We hug. I know it’s the last time we’ll be this way together. When she gets back from Asia, she’ll be different. We all will be.



We find Sophie surrounded by her parents and her sisters. She’s holding a bouquet of pink roses and still wearing her graduation cap.

Just like we did with Cassidy, we abduct her for a hug.

“Can’t believe this day is finally here,” I say.

“Me neither,” she says with a sniffle.

Martin hands her his handkerchief. “No crying,” he says. “We still have summer.”

She wipes her tears but then sniffles some more. “Olivia asked me out,” she says.

“Our valedictorian Olivia?” Martin asks.

She nods. “Did you know she’s going to Stanford too?”

We did not know that.

“And did you say yes?” I ask.

“Yup,” she says with a small smile. She looks around the yard for a second and then turns back to us. “Did you guys see Cassidy?” she asks.

“Yeah. Her parents came,” says Martin.

“That’s good,” she says.

I decide against telling her about Cassidy’s trip to Asia. Their lives are separate now.

The three of us hug again. I wish Cassidy were here. I want one last Sunday at Surf City Waffle with the four of us. I want one more bonfire. One more Tipsy Philosophical.

But I can’t have that. I think back to the day I made up with them at Cassidy’s house. I remember how we hugged right before I left. We were all full of waffles and the sun was bright and we smelled like sunscreen and pool.



Mom said just because a thing ends doesn’t make the thing any less real. Just because everything is different now doesn’t mean we didn’t love each other once. Maybe we will again.





CHAPTER 57





Two Dresses



DANICA KNOCKS ON my door the Friday night before Dad’s wedding. She’s holding two dresses. One is a simple lavender sheath trimmed with lace. The other is a complicated teal-blue-and-silver mermaidlike thing.

At first, I think she brought the lavender one for me, since it’s my kind of dress. “Dani, I haven’t changed my mind,” I say.

“No, I want you to help me choose,” she says.

I eye both dresses again, not sure why she’s asking me to decide. Teal is her favorite color, and complicated is her favorite style.

I choose the teal one.

“Thanks,” she says, and hangs the dresses on the back of my door. She sits down on the edge of my bed. I scoot over to give her more room.

“I broke up with Archer,” she says.

She looks sad but not devastated. “How come?” I ask.

She gathers her hair into one hand and then lets it loose again. “It just wasn’t that much fun anymore. Every time we were together, I just wanted to be with my other friends. I kinda think he felt the same way.”



“I’m sorry,” I say. And then I have a thought. “This might be too soon to ask…but how long do you think it’ll take you to get over Archer?” I ask.

“A few days. Why?”

“You know my friend Martin?”

“Of course.”

“He’s liked you since the dawn of time.”

“He has?”

“Come on, you must’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

Her eyes are smiling. “I wasn’t sure.”

“You think he’s cute,” I say, taking a guess.

“I think he’s…interesting,” she says, with a grin. “I’ve never seen so much tweed on a teenage boy in my entire life.”

I laugh and laugh. Of course she would notice the way he dresses.

“How come you never went for him?”

Her smile dims. “He’s your friend. I didn’t think you’d like it if we got together.”

She’s right. I wouldn’t have liked it. I would’ve been afraid of what a relationship between them would mean for my friendship with Martin. We wouldn’t be as close anymore. I’d be on the outside.

But as much as I want to, I can’t stop the world from changing. Time passes. People change. Lives move on.