You Asked for Perfect(59)

“This is going to be the most epic thing ever!”

“Really? You’re excited? I wanted to get us tickets to Harry Potter World, but my parents weren’t thrilled at the idea of us having an overnight together.”

Amir laughs. “I don’t think mine would’ve been okay with that, either. Though, maybe after graduation we could…”

My stomach flips. He’s thinking of a we after graduation.

“Ariel, you’re the best boyfriend in the world.”

“Boyfriend?” I ask.

“Will you be the Harry to my Cedric?”

“Okay, but they never actually—”

“Shh!” Amir says. “Will you?”

I smile and take his hand, our fingers threading together. His skin is warm and his eyes are warmer.

“I will,” I say.

“I know I’ve said it before, but Ariel—” He takes a deep breath, looking solemn. “I’m really glad you’re bad at calculus.”

I snort, and Amir laughs, too. “You’re the worst,” I say.

He grins and steps forward. Our feet bump together, then our chests. My heart skips. “You’re the best,” he says.

And then he kisses me.

*

“What are we doing?” Rachel asks again. It’s Saturday night. We just picked up frozen yogurt to go and are pulling up to the church’s soccer field. The JCC field is locked down at night, but this one is closer to home anyways, and a giant floodlight keeps the dark away.

“Ariel…” Rachel says, sliding out of the car. “Tell me!”

“Hold these?” I pass her the yogurts, then open the trunk and grab a soccer ball and worn beach towel. The tacky grip of the ball makes my pulse skip. It’s been months since I’ve laced up cleats and played. I take a quick breath, a smile drawing to my lips, then tell Rachel, “Okay, c’mon.”

We walk in silence to the center of the field. It’s quiet. The night is so still I can hear the grass fold under our feet. We sit on the towel and look up at the dark sky, a smattering of stars dappling the inky black. Rachel passes me a spoon and my yogurt. There are sour gummy bears on mine. “Cheers,” I say.

“Ariel.” Rachel dips her spoon into her cup. “Why are we at a church soccer field?”

“To have fun.”

“Fun?”

“Well, at least I’m going to have fun. When I beat your butt in soccer after finishing this yogurt.”

Rachel giggles. “You can’t beat me!”

“Oh, yes, I can.”

There’s a competitive glint in her eyes. She eats her yogurt faster, as if suddenly ravenous. My phone buzzes, and I check it. A text from Amir: Last night was magical. Thank you.

We stayed at the gallery until midnight, a dozen of us sitting in a circle on the floor, shoes kicked off, talking about photography and art and life. Amir’s hand stayed clasped in mine the entire time. I can still feel the trace of his touch. My cheeks warm, as I think about seeing him tomorrow. And the next day and the next.

“I’m a better player,” Rachel says, drawing my attention back to her.

I raise my eyebrows and put my phone away. “You sure about that?”

We finish eating, taunting each other the entire time. Then we get up and kick the ball around, playing on half the field, blocking each other and dribbling the ball toward the net. Rachel cheers as she sinks a goal soundly into the corner. Her curls bounce as she makes her victory lap, both arms pumped in the air, a giant smile on her face.

And I see it, then, a glimpse of what our lives could be.

Rachel passes me the ball, and I run forward.





Dear Reader,

As you now know from reading You Asked for Perfect, Ariel and I are big fans of matzo ball soup. After all, it is the best food in the world. And I realized it was wrong to talk about its deliciousness so often without sharing a recipe. So, I present to you my nana’s (great-grandmother’s) matzo ball soup.

This is the first time my family is writing down the recipe. It’s possible this recipe came from generations before my nana. We don’t use exact measurements. It’s a Schütteherein, which is a Yiddish word to mean it’s cooked without a recipe, a pinch of this and a bissel of that, so don’t take any measurement too strictly.

I hope you all will enjoy this soup as much as my family has for generations.

Love,

Laura





Yetta “Recht” Eisenman’s Matzo Ball Soup


Makes 12 servings

For the Soup 2 pounds bone-in kosher chicken*

1 large yellow onion

7? quarts water

6 to 9 Telma chicken stock cubes (to taste) 3 to 4 large carrots

3 to 4 large celery stalks

? ounce dill

Bissel of pepper

Peel half the skin off the chicken (so it isn’t too greasy). Peel the onion, but keep the onion whole.

Bring the water, Telma cubes, chicken, and onion to a boil in large saucepan, then cook for 90 minutes on medium heat.

Peel the carrots, then chop the carrots (not too small!). Slice the celery stalks lengthwise and then chop each piece about 1/3 inch long.

Remove the chicken from the pot to cool.

Add carrots, celery, dill, and pepper to the pot and continue cooking on low to medium heat.