"How about seven? We could go see the new Taylor Lautner movie. I heard he has his shirt off in like three scenes."
"I"m there."
"And I can tell you all about Jack."
Great, I get to hear about her new boyfriend. Then when it comes time for me to talk about my love life, I can change the topic onto more pleasant things, like war and famine.
At that moment I was going to back out, but looking at the excitement in her eyes, I knew I had to go with her. And it wouldn"t kill me to be a better friend.
"Let"s meet in front of the McDonald"s on 42nd at seven, okay?" Sara says eagerly.
"Sure, sounds good."
"And you can tell me about Jay and the other guys you hang out with now."
I know she"s thinking about one person in particular.
"The gorgeous one, Marcus. The new senior, h.e.l.lo?"
"Oh, him."
"Yeah, he was seeing a girl in his history cla.s.s."
"Wait, what do you mean "was"?"
"I saw them in the hallway having a huge argument. I think it"s over now."
"When did you see them?"
"It was sometime after lunch. She really seemed mad."
"What did they say?"
"I had already been late for gym twice last week, so I couldn"t stop and listen, but I heard her say something like, "It"s not sage.""
"What does that mean?"
"Maybe I heard wrong. All I know is that they weren"t sitting together in cla.s.s."
"We don"t have cla.s.ses with seniors, how do you know?"
"Joy told me. She"s in their history cla.s.s."
"Oh, no."
"What? What"s wrong?"
"Nothing, I just forgot I need to take care of something. I gotta go." I sprint down the hallway.
"Don"t forget about tonight," she shouts.
"I won"t, promise." I run as fast as I can to find Marcus.
I literally run into Jay first. "Hey, baby girl, slow down."
"Sorry." I"m out of breath. He gives me a moment. "What is it?"
"I have to find Marcus."
"This weekend with him wasn"t enough?" I look at Jay, shocked.
"C"mon. We"re a group of six angels with powers. And one of us can read guilt a country away," he says.
"Rio told you?"
"He said your wave changed suddenly. You were feeling an abnormal amount of guilt. And you and Marcus were alone after dinner...."
"Oh."
"Not to mention the fact that Ameana is so livid she almost deboned Reese when he Blinked in and made a joke about all the girls l.u.s.ting after Marcus."
"I have to find him. It"s all my fault. I don"t want them to break up."
"Really?"
"Not like this. He didn"t do anything. I was the one who was out of line, not him. I don"t want him to pay for what I did."
"He can handle hold his own against Ameana."
"Where is he?"
"He left."
"Did she go with him?"
"Yeah, I think so. I told Miku I"d take you home."
"You don"t have to watch me. I"m gonna be around people. I"m going out with Sara."
"When?"
"Later today."
"That"s later. Right now, I"m your escort home."
I look at him, pleading.
"You don"t want to go home do you?" He knows me too well for my comfort.
"No."
"You want to go find Marcus?"
"I have to make sure they"re okay."
"That"s the only reason?"
"Yeah, what other reason could there be?"
He raises his eyebrows. I hate him for knowing me so well. "Okay, I"ll take you to the house."
I give him a quick kiss on the cheek and say, "Thank you."
When we get to the house, everyone but Marcus and Ameana are there. I ask and they say that they just stepped out. I look at Jay. He shrugs. I tell them I"m gonna take a walk to the park near the house. I ask to do it alone, but they say no. I didn"t think they"d let me, but I had to ask.
Jay is with me as we go down to the park. It was cold but not bitterly, so I could leave my scarf and hat in the house. I step on dead bark that the wind had ripped from the trees and thrown carelessly on the sidewalk. I keep my head down. I count the number of steps it takes to get to the park. Jay can tell that I don"t want to talk. And really, what is there to say?
When we get to the entrance of the community park Jay takes my hand. "Are you sure you just want them to be okay, I mean as a couple?"
"Yes, I told you that. I don"t want them to break up for this. It was my fault."
"Well, good, then you can stop worrying; it doesn"t look like breaking up is on their agenda." I follow his gaze to the two figures, kissing in the center of the park. They are flawless in every way.
The tears running down my face are warm. Jay looks at me and says, "C"mon, the cold"s making you cry. We should get you home."
I agree and take his hand and head home. Once there, I throw my stuff down and run into my room. The cold makes me cry long after I have left it.
A knock on my door wakes me. "Come in."
My mom comes in and puts the phone to my ear. I"m still out of it. "Who is it?" I ask.
"It"s Sara. She says you"re late to meet her."
d.a.m.n. Sara...movies...better friend....
I take the phone from my mom. "h.e.l.lo?"
I look around my room. The alarm clock says 7:32 in bright illuminating red. I can"t believe I overslept.
"I"m on my way."
"Never mind, just forget it," she says.
"Sara, no. I took a nap and I overslept that"s all. I really want to go."
"I"m not gonna wait another half an hour for you. We made plans and you stood me up. I didn"t go inside because I was sure you wouldn"t do that to me, but I was wrong."
"I"ll take a cab and be there in ten minutes. I"ll pay for the movie too. And you don"t have to wait outside. Just go to the cafe down the street and get some hot chocolate. I"ll come find you."
"Forget it, I"m going home."
I try one last thing.
"C"mon, Sara, I"ve been dying to hear about Jack."
There was a pause. "Well...okay, but hurry up."
She hangs up. I knew that would do it. A girl can"t resist the chance to talk about her new guy. I am gonna listen to every mushy detail from how they met to their last date. I will be a better friend. I owe her that.
I hop in a cab and head to Times Square. Once there, I enter the cafe and immediately smell burgers. It makes my stomach growl. I realize then that I haven"t eaten anything all day.
"Emmy, over here," Sara says calling me over to her table in the corner. I wave at her and head over.
"I"m sorry I made you wait. I was knocked out." I take a seat across from her.
"It"s okay. I called Jack and told him I was waiting around and he offered to keep me company. Otherwise I would have been waiting all by myself," she says, digging the knife in playfully.
"I promise you my firstborn if I"m ever late again."
"That"s nice, but how about a really big tub of popcorn, extra b.u.t.ter?"
"You got it."
"Anyway, I"m glad we met up. Now you get to meet Jack."
"Really? Where is he?"
"He"s in the restroom. I can"t wait for you to meet him. He"s so cute and funny."
"Great. Is he seeing the movie with us?"
"Yeah, there"s one starting in an hour. Jack already got us all tickets. He"s nice like that."
She is beaming. She"s wearing mascara and a pretty shade of lipstick that I would love to borrow sometime. It"s nice to see her like this. And so what if I have nothing to report in terms of a guy in my life? I"m okay watching her be the focus.
"Before he comes back, let me tell you a little about him," she insists.
"Okay, I"m ready to hear all about Mr. Wonderful."
"His name is Jack O"Neal and I think I"m in love with him."
"Really? I didn"t know you two were that serious."
"He"s a junior at Claremont high. We met when I was waiting for you to take the bus home." Her voice reached a fever pitch and I had to squeal right along with her.
"We sat together and talked about school and stuff. He had me laughing the whole way. Then, when it was my stop, he offered to walk me home."