Page 18 of Now and Again

India looked bamboozled. ‘Do youwantto be a ballerina?’

Riley shrugged. ‘I did when I was six. But I gave up on it. Which proves my point,’ she finished with a chuckle.

India looked like she didn’t know what had just happened. Had she been insulted? Should she kick off? In the end, she settled for a light, tinkling, fake as hell laugh. ‘Probably for the best. You’ve got two left feet.’

Riley laughed along with the room. Juliet’s heart returned to a normal rhythm, knowing her comment was forgotten. As Riley leaned back in her chair, she caught Juliet’s eye—for the briefest moment, blink and you’d miss it, but Juliet didn’t miss a thing. Riley wasn’t just debating for poops and giggles; she was saving Juliet’s arse.

***

Juliet lingered after class, letting the room get half-empty while she waited to ‘accidentally’ find herself walking out with Riley. She was a bit too successful. They tried to walk through the doorway at the same time and got wedged.

‘Oh! Hi,’ Riley said, shoulder to shoulder with Juliet.

‘Hi,’ Juliet said, waggling her shoulder to let Riley through. Eventually, they both popped through the doorway, out into the busy hall.

‘How’s it going? You finish that book?’ Riley asked easily, and Juliet was struck by Riley’s gift of making any situation less awkward.

‘Finished it last night,’ Juliet was pleased to say.

‘Sad ending, isn’t it?’ Riley said, dropping her bag on the floor and beginning to rifle through it, looking for something.

‘Very,’ Juliet agreed. And then couldn’t seem to say anything else. Riley had passed her a topic, and she had nothing. This was ridiculous. ‘So, err, you really helped me earlier.’

‘Did I?’ Riley said, still pawing through her bag, tampons and tissues flying. Juliet didn’t have her full attention, which made this all the more awkward. ‘Yeah. India, she… she doesn’t like me very much.’

Riley pulled out her phone and slid it into her back pocket, standing up. ‘Doesn’t she?’

Juliet shook her head. ‘No, she’s kind of… I mean, she can be a bit… Well, anyway, I’m not sure what she would have said if you hadn’t stepped in.’

Riley nodded thoughtfully. ‘Yeah, I guess she can be a bit… I mean, I don’t wanna bitch because she’s a mate, but she’s not always… She can be a bit thoughtless,’ she admitted.

Juliet thought that was putting it mildly, but she was kind of amazed Riley was saying anything critical of her at all, so she’d take it. She nodded. ‘Yeah, so, well, I just…’ Juliet was forced to take a deep breath. She was getting in a tangle. ‘Thanks, anyway. For helping me out.’

Riley grinned. ‘I owed you one, didn’t I?’

Juliet had to laugh. ‘Not really.’

‘I feel like I did,’ she smiled, glancing down the hall. ‘Right, I have to get to my next lesson.’

Juliet fully expected Riley to dash away with a quick bye. Which would have been fair. All debts were now settled. But before Riley legged it, she said, ‘Are you going to that thing tonight?’

Juliet didn’t have the first clue about any ‘thing.’ Her face must have betrayed that because Riley clarified, ‘Leila Bridgestock, you know her, right? Her parents are away on holiday, so she’s gonna live the cliché and have a massive party.’

‘That sounds fun,’ Juliet said, in the same tone as she might have said, ‘That sounds fun,’ if she heard someone else won the lottery. It was never gonna happen to her, was it? It was the lifestyles of the rich and popular. She was broke and invisible.

‘Yeah, so, you going?’ Riley asked.

Juliet was unable not to burst out laughing. ‘I think my invite probably got lost in the post,’ she finally managed to say.

Riley chuckled. ‘OK, I know they’re not your crowd. But a party as big as Leila wants it to be? If you know someone who’s going, it’s practically the same as getting invited.’

Juliet blinked several times while her brain processed what was happening. ‘Hang on. Are you asking me to come?’

Riley smiled. ‘What, you think I just like to list social events to people for fun?’ She checked her watch. ‘Shit, I gotta go. Tell me your phone number, quick.’

Juliet, as though in a dream, recited her number to Riley, who tapped it into her phone. ‘I’ll text you the address,’ Riley said and then ran off down the hall.

Juliet watched her go, her head swirling with shock and happiness. But as she turned to go down the hall, she had a premonition. Riley wouldn’t text her. She’d forget they ever had this conversation.

---