Page 28 of Friends with Benefits

Theo is so thrown by this question—byEvelynasking this question. “Prom?”

Whatever his reaction is, he knows it’s wrong by the way her cheeks tint pink before she says, “It’s dumb. I know. But I already bought a dress and… we should go! As friends, obviously. It could be fun? Unless…” Her eyes meet his and see the answer to the question she hasn’t even asked. “Caro?”

He picks up a taste of ube brownie, the tail of the question mark, and nods.

“I told you.”

“She literally just asked today. After the littles left.”

Theo student teaches with Caroline Shapiro-Huang every Wednesday before his studio time with Evelyn. He takes a city bus to the studio straight from school and hangs out with tinydancers between the ages of six and ten, leading warm-ups and tying tap shoes alongside Caro—a former dance friend, current real friend, suddenlycutefriend. Caro’s dad has Hodgkin’s lymphoma and it’s nice talking to someone who gets it, but alsonottalking to someone who gets it.

Not that Evelyn doesn’t get it.

She loves Lori, too.

But she can’t—won’t—speak the worst possible outcomes out loud.

What if her doctors missed something?

What if it comes back?

What if she dies?

Caro’s dark sense of humor about it all is disarming. So is her melodic laugh, her obsession withI Love Lucy, how she has a silly nickname for every tiny dancer. Goose. Joker. Roo. Stella pays student teachers in the form of a generous tuition discount, but it’s sofun, just being around Caro and the kids, that Theo would honestly do it for free if he didn’t need the discounts because cancer is expensive.

“Was it at least this cute?” Evelyn asks, then reaches for one of the ube brownie samples and throws it back like a shot.

“What?”

She takes another. “The promposal?”

Theo shrugs. “She just asked.”

In the parking lot, they confirmed plans to hang out later tonight, like they have been every week for the past month. She honked at him after he walked away, toward the studio, toward the next two hours with Evelyn, and he turned to find Caro hanging out the window of her Ford Bronco and shouting a question at him across the parking lot.

Do you have a prom date?

His response,Do I?, triggered her super-specific laugh.

You do now.

Evelyn nods. “Cool.”

She has almost finished theP. Unsure what to say next, Theo swallows and opts to hand her an earbud. She takes it and they watchSurvivorin silence. Is she watching it? Theo’s not. He’s stuck on the promposal written in his favorite ice cream flavor that she’s currently scarfing down one letter at a time, so confused because she seems disappointed, so confused because helikesthat she’s disappointed… and does that mean that he should’ve said no to Caro? Is this Evelyn’s way of asking him if he feels the flutter, too? Because the answer isyes.

Yes.

Yes.

Yes.

Evelyn pausesSurvivorbefore Jeff even snuffs a torch and he wonders if this is it, the moment that two best friends acknowledge whatever this energy is between them and everything changes. But then she stands and he barely registers that she looks especially pale in the lamplight glow of Afters before she hurls into the trash can and the timing of this random Evelyn vom is impeccable, truly. Theo holds her hair back while she hurls, the once-blue tips now faded teal, and not even watching her vomit his favorite ice cream squashes the flutter. Concern creases his forehead because it’s been happening more often, the vomiting. So even when she insists that she’s fine after, as she always does, Theo drives her to the bungalow, where they watchThe Lizzie McGuire Movieuntil she falls asleep on his shoulder.

It’s not too late to still hang out with Caro.

Theo cancels on Caro.

7

---