I frowned, taking a step back and folding my arms across my chest. “Since when do you have a problem with me bringing people here? You’re always complaining that we hang out at everyone else’s house, and now you don’t want us here?”
Her jaw twitched back and forth, the muscle pulsing a time or two. She shifted her weight to another leg and said, “What happened to all the people you hung out with on Senior Committee?”
“What do you mean?” I asked, my lungs squeezing as I knew where she was going with this. Instead of responding, I waited, wanting her to say what she felt for once.
“I mean, I know Penny is dating Jake and all, but did you all have to start taking on with the baseball kids? They aren’t the best influence in your life.”
Frustration surged in my throat, and my cheeks heated, knowing I was going to be replaying this moment for days after this.
“Mom, they’re good kids. They’re not as crazy as you make them sound, and I really like hanging out with them, especially Dax.” I bit down on the side of my lip, wishing I could go back and unsay those last two words. It would tip her off like a rabid dog.
“I get that, Kate. But you have a future. You have so many possibilities, so much potential for a great life. Don’t waste it like I did.”
“Are you saying you regret your time with Dad?” My tone bit, and from the shocked look on her face, it bit hard.
She shook her head and reached out to me, rubbing her hands up and down my upper arms. “No, of course not. I’m just saying there are things I wish I would have done. Finishing my degree would have been one of them. So that when things happened, I wouldn’t have had to scrape to get us by. Preparation is the key, just like I always say.”
“Okay, Mom. What are you saying?”
“I’d prefer you don’t get attached, not yet anyway. Just have fun. Enjoy your last year and leave the relationships to the future.”
Tears surged to my eyes, and I turned, walking back into the theater room without giving her a response. I suddenly wished I could just go upstairs and cuddle up in my blankets instead of playing hostess, but I would just have to grin and bear it, like I did with so many other things in my life.
When I sat next to Dax again, I curled up closer this time, grateful when he draped his arm over me. Too many emotions were pumping through me, trying to win out, and I was just too tired to care right now. I’d figure things out in the morning, but for now, I enjoyed the comfort I felt sitting right next to Dax.
Chapter 21
Dax
Iwasn’t sure what had changed when Kate left the room for a few minutes and then came back, but I wasn’t going to say no to her snuggled next to me. I’d wanted to follow her out and help with whatever, but when I saw her mother there next to us, I knew it was a conversation best left to them. But I could tell something was bothering her when she returned, as her laughter always came a half-second later than everyone else’s.
The movie was loud and long, and Kate falling asleep against me was the best feeling in the world. I loved the smell of her, the way she looked so peaceful like she wasn’t trying to please the whole world at the same time.
When the movie finally ended and someone turned on the lights, Kate only shifted, staying asleep next to me. I didn’t want to wake her up, but I needed to get a ride home at some point. I could always go with Penny and Jake and crash at his house for the night. With his dad moved out, he was more willing to have me over than before, something I could relate to. Well, the knowing why he hadn’t wanted anyone over before.
“Hey, Sleeping Beauty,” I said, shifting my shoulder up and down to try and wake her.
She blinked a couple of times, her eyes small slits against the bright lights above. “Is the movie over?” she asked, sitting up and staring at me as much as she could while blinking.
I nodded. “News flash: they got together.”
We’d watched some romantic comedy that all the girls agreed we should watch, and I’d actually kind of enjoyed it. I hadn’t had time to watch a movie in longer than I could remember, usually running from one thing to another.
The thing that surprised me most was that I hadn’t fallen asleep as well, but it must have been the excitement to be there with Kate that kept me watching the show, not the fact that the movie had been about some mystery crush and how they’d handled that situation. It only made me want to keep our first kiss a secret even longer.
She smiled, rubbing her eyes with her fists, and then stood, reaching her arms high into the air to stretch. “It’s one of my favorites.”
“What is it that you like about it?” I ventured to ask. There were several things that intrigued me, and I wondered if that was really how girls thought about love and relationships.
“I guess it’s the fact that her best friend was the guy she fell in love with. It’s just so cute how she doesn’t realize it until the very end.”
I pinched my lips together. Was she saying she could only like a guy if he was her best friend first? “What about the mystery? He’d been writing her notes for a long time, and she didn’t even try to investigate who was sending them to her.” I was getting dangerously close to spilling the secret at this point, and I needed to be careful.
Her mouth opened and closed, but nothing escaped. This was the first time I’d ever seen her flustered, and I wondered what she would say.
“Maybe she just liked that it was a mystery, something to get excited about. But if she found out who the person behind the letters was, it would ruin the magic.” She kept her gaze a couple inches to the right of me, and a stab of sadness pierced my chest. I’d hoped she would remember the kiss from last spring. But Nate’s phrase about her friends telling her to get over the Masked Kisser came to mind. Had she actually done it and moved on? So was she hanging out with me because she wanted to or to irritate her mother?
I could just move on, make sure I graduated, and figure out the rest of my life. I didn’t have time for waffling.