Page 22 of Wish For Me

“See the Big Dipper there?” I lean in and point out the constellation. “Most of those are about 80 lightyears away. But that space in between? It goes on forever. The possibility of what’s in there is infinite.”

“Whole other galaxies,” she says next to me, her voice soft.

“Yes. With other solar systems. Maybe one with a planet, just like this one, where our doppelgängers are looking back out at us.” I hesitate. “Only they didn’t get caught by their family members with their pants off.”

Noelle throws her head back and laughs. I wish I could hear that sound forever. I wish I could bottle it up.

When she looks at me again, her face is a lot closer than it was a moment ago. Right next to me, since I’m resting my elbows on the railing.

“Don’t most astronauts want to do things like collect rocks and take measurements?” She asks. “Science things?”

I smile. “Sometimes. Usually they have questions they want to answer.”

Noelle looks to the stars again. “Like the meaning of life?”

I tear my eyes from her to look with her. Only Noelle could distract me from the stars. “Yeah. And why life matters so much. Why we’re here on earth. Why we feel, why we get sad. Why we love. Why we have wishes, and…why we look to the stars to answer them.”

Noelle’s quiet, and I feel my cheeks heat.

But when I look at her, her eyes are on mine. “I understand the philosopher part now,” she says softly.

My stomach plunges with heat. I want to kiss her. Does she want that? Or was that a one-time thing?

Her lips part, and I decide it has to be at least somewhat mutual. I reach out and brush a hand over her hip, grazing my thumb over her, remembering the last time I touched her there, with far less clothing.

She lets out a little breath, and I can’t stop myself. I feel myself inching toward her.

Then a hinge creaks behind us.

We jump apart.

“I’m so sorry to interrupt,” Connie says softly. I can’t see her face since she’s backlit, but I can hear the tone of her voice well enough. “We’re starting up again, but you two don’t need to join us if you don’t want.”

I look at Noelle, who smiles.

“I couldn’t possibly keep the guest of honor away,” she says. Then she turns on her heel and heads back inside, leaving me lost in infinity.

CHAPTER6

Noelle

ONE YEAR LATER

“Ishouldn’t be this nervous seeing a friend.”

“A friend, huh?” Mom brushes blush onto my cheeks. She insisted on helping me get ready for dinner with Leif tonight.

Butterflies dance in my stomach. “Heisjust a friend. We haven’t talked in a year. I don’t think you can be friends with someone you’ve only seen a handful of times, let alone more than friends.”

“You don’t go on dates with friends, Noelle!”

“Mom. It’s not a date.” I’m really trying hard to remember that. “We haven’t even exchanged phone numbers.”

Over the living room speaker, Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song comes on. Mom closes her eyes, inhaling happily. It’s one of her favorites.

“He has our landline,” she argues.

“That’s just because Dad’s friend’s with his grandfather. You know, I knew I should have called one of my high school friends to help me get ready.”

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