Kissing Ted Callahan (and Other Guys)(36)

“I knew they were one of your favorite bands,” he says, which is a fair guess given my multiple T-shirts and the button on my bag. “So I thought I’d check them out. I would have gotten here for the opening band, but I had to close at work.”

A rush of relief hits me that Milo’s busy with his tuba. I’d thought juggling was fine if your juggled items went to two different schools. “You’ll love them,” I say. “Where do you work anyway?”

“I, uh, I don’t really want to say.” Ted laughs. “I have to wear a pretty stupid hat.”

“Oh my god, now you have to tell me,” I say.

“It’s bad,” he says. “It was just the first place that was hiring when I went into the mall, and my mom said I had to get a job.”

I poke at his shoulder. “You have to tell me.”

“No, I’d have to yell it here, and I’m not yelling it.” Ted grins at me.

We get sodas, and I—AGAINST ALL MY BETTER JUDGMENT—lead Ted over to the spot the group’s got staked out. Everyone just greets him enthusiastically—well, except Madison, who gives him an expression-free nod. Lucy gives me the same look she gave me over the beer. Grinning back seemed to work before, so I do it again.

When Andrew Mothereffing Jackson’s crazy drummer counts off for the first song, I feel that switch flip in me. It’s so good to be standing here in this crowd—Madison included—even though she’s making an obviously forced bored expression and only vaguely nodding to the beat. The rest of us are jumping around and singing along, and it’s the best thing in the world how every good show becomes the best night you’ve ever had.

*

Ted is planning on taking the bus home afterward, so after bypassing pizza because it’s way too late to be out for even those of us with very lenient parents, I offer to give him a ride.

“I’ll tell you, if you don’t tell anyone else,” Ted says as I’m making a U-turn on Silver Lake Boulevard I’m pretty sure is legal.

I have no idea what he’s talking about, but I’m going to have a secret with Ted!

“Hot Dog on a Stick.”

“What?” I pull up to a stoplight and look over at him. “Wait, do you work at Hot Dog on a Stick?”

“You can’t tell anyone,” he says really fast.

“Oh my god!” Hot Dog on a Stick is this fast-food place in the food court that sells corn dogs and fried cheese—on a stick, of course, and deliciously tart lemonade. Also their uniforms are ridiculous. “Do you have to wear a striped fez?”

“No! Those are for girls! I just have to wear a baseball hat.”

I try not to laugh, but it happens anyway. “I’m sorry. Do you at least get free hot dogs?”

“Yeah, I get free hot dogs.”

“Do you have to wear those short-shorts?”

“No, those are also just for girls. My shorts are normal length.”

“But you wear shorts!” I’ve never seen Ted in shorts. My mind goes electrical imagining it. “Can I come in and see you work?”

He grins some more at me. “I can’t stop you.”

I am in love with grinning now. Also maybe Ted. No, Riley! Stop thinking about love!

“That was a great show,” I say. “Did you like it?”

I hold my breath because if he didn’t, where will that lead us, Ted, where?

“Yeah,” Ted says. “They were great. I looked it up, and actually they were at FYF Fest last year, too, while you were looking at wigs.”

“Colonial Williamsburg ruins everything,” I say, which makes him laugh.

“Thanks for the ride,” he says as I’m pulling up to his apartment complex. “See you tomorrow, Riley.”

I don’t have the right words, but I reach for his hand as he unbuckles his seat belt, and that must be good enough because he leans in and kisses me.

“Good night,” I tell him, obviously with my hands in his amazing hair.

“Good night, Riley.”

I wave as he gets out of my car. He glances back at me and waves again. And I suddenly don’t think I’m overreacting to think maybe it’s not yet but is turning into love.





CHAPTER FORTY-THREE



The Madison Thing, Continued, by Reid


After the Andrew Mothereffing Jackson show, I figure we’ll have to go home because everyone else says they have to, but once we’re in my car, Madison asks if I have a curfew. I don’t, but even if I did I would lie right now. I don’t think curfews seem especially manly.

So we discuss what’s still open, which is a list I’ve carefully cultivated, but Madison comes up with ideas I didn’t even know about. We end up just driving to that big fountain near the park by the 5. I figured late at night there’s probably drug dealers or prostitutes hanging around but actually it’s really safe, just people walking dogs.

We walk around and it hits me this is a really romantic place. So even though I prefer situations where you’re around 95 percent guaranteed to have a kiss welcomed (like, a girl says “kiss me” or at least you’re playing Seven Minutes in Heaven), I just go for it, and unbelievably Madison kisses me back.

It’s the best kiss of my life. We keep kissing, and Madison puts her arms around me like we’ve done this a million times. I go for her hair with my hands and then her face and then her back, like, in the safe back zone, not too close to her butt or anything, and we’re still kissing and it’s great.