Page 38 of Our Moon
“Me, too,” I say. And I do like it. But I also know this is trouble in the making.
“I feel a little better. I’ve got to get to my next class, though. Thanks for calling me, Chase. It means a lot.”
“Anything for you, baby girl.” We say our goodbyes and hang up.
I have no idea what this thing is between Ally and me, but it feels right. Even though I know I’ll be mincemeat if Trevor and Alex ever got wind of it. Not to mention Mr. Monroe. The Monroes all love me, but that doesn’t change the fact that I’m twenty-one and Ally is only seventeen. Not only is a relationship illegal, but it also borders on perverted. What the hell am I going to do?
Ally laid low the rest of that week. The band played a couple shows at a local hot spot since some of the college crowd were back in town for break, but our sets were over by ten, since Alex had school in the mornings. Ally didn’t attend a single show, and for no reason apparently, since we never saw dipshit Blake.
***
A few weeks after the college spring break is the high school spring break. Since it’s Alex and Ally’s last high school spring break, Mr. and Mrs. Monroe rent their usual summer cabin at Lake Lure and invite everyone to join the family for the week. Joey and I join them, and Ally invites her friend Lucy, but she declines because her family is going on a trip as well. I can tell Ally is bummed, but since she’ll be with us, I know she’ll have a good time anyway.
We spend our days hiking the neighboring trails and boating on the lake. The water isn’t warm enough to swim in, so our watersports are limited. We visit nearby Chimney Rock and hike to the top, taking pictures of all of us on what appears to be the top of the world. But most of our time is spent at the cabin hanging out, talking, playing games, and, of course, music. I can’t remember the last time I had had so much fun.
We’re leaving on Sunday, and Mr. and Mrs. Monroe surprise us all that Friday night, announcing that they’re spending the night at a nearby resort that specializes inDirtyDancingnights. It’s not the same resort that’s in the movie, but apparently there’s some obscure connection to the area, andDirty Dancingis one of Mrs. Monroe’s favorite flicks.
“You’re gonna be gone all night?” Alex asks, completely surprised at the turn of events.
“Yes,” Mrs. Monroe answers. “Trevor, Chase, and Joey are all adults. You and Ally are close enough. You’re good kids and hang around alone at home enough. We trust you.”
“Just behave yourself, Alexander.” Mr. Monroe gives Alex a stern look, and I smirk. I know exactly what’s going through Alex’s head; he wishes he had met some chicks on this trip so he could party it up with them. I’m sure Trevor and Joey share similar thoughts.
“We’ll be good, Mom,” Ally assures her.
“I know you will, angel,” Mrs. Monroe says back as she kisses Ally on the forehead.
“We will be back early tomorrow afternoon,” Mr. Monroe says as he scoots his wife towards the door. “Make sure you clean up any mess you make.”
“Have a good time,” Trevor tells them as they walk out the door.
Their parents really don’t have anything to worry about. We’re good kids. Well, we’renot exactly kids anymore, but you know what I mean. We don’t drink excessively or do drugs, and we don’t party with the rough crowds.
We end up hanging around the cabin watching reality TV, before finally watching a bad horror movie on demand. I’m cursing the movie choice until a scene startles Ally, who is sitting next to me on the couch, and she practically jumps into my lap.
Our eyes meet and she blushes, before breaking eye contact and scooting away from me. Before I can stop myself, I drop my arm that was resting on the back of the couch down to her shoulder and pull her back into my side.
Her eyes widen and she quickly looks around the room to see if anyone has noticed our new position, but they’re all staring at their phones or the TV. She looks back at me, and I just shrug and go back to watching the movie. She eventually does the same.
When the movie is over, Ally bolts off the couch, out of my embrace, and brings the popcorn bowl into the kitchen. Joey suggests a fire in the pit on the back deck, and we all agree. We start the fire, and Ally comes out a few minutes later with all the makings for s’mores.
“You freakin’ rock, little sis!” Alex says as he pulls her into a hug and spins her around.
“You’re like four minutes older than me, Alex.”
“That’s still older,” he grins.
“How is it you failed math freshman year? You’re so smart.” she taunts.
“Because that’s the year you grew boobs, and people stopped thinking I was you and you were me.”
“Alex, that doesn’t even make sense,” Joey adds.
“Yeah it does,” Alex starts. “Before she had boobs, they’d think she was me so I’d get her good grades.”
“That would only make sense if I ended up failing my tests,” Ally says rolling her eyes. “And I never fail. Plus, we write our names on our papers, and we were never in the same classes.” She pops him on the back of the head a minute later, making him drop his marshmallow into the fire. “And don’t talk about my boobs!”
We all crack up at that. Alex and Ally bicker like cats and dogs, and most of the time it doesn’t make any sense at all, but they’re entertaining to watch. They’re so similar in some respects, like their facial expressions and some of their mannerisms. But they’re extremely different in the most overt ways, like their personalities. Alex is so outgoing he’ll talk to anyone, while Ally is more reserved and saves her carefree attitudefor those who are closest to her. Which basically means that when they’re around us, they’re more similar than not.
