Page 16 of Kissing is the Easy Part
“Lindsey, seriously, back off.”
Too late. She lunges again, and in the struggle her thumb double taps the screen. A bright red heart pops up.
I freeze.
“Oh no,” Lindsey says gleefully. “What now, should I unlike it?”
I yank my phone back, my face flaming.
Grinning, she pulls out her own phone and wastes no time searching Flora’s handle, then, like a traitor, turns it to the group. The adults merrily peruse Flora’s feed and bond over my agony. Mom seems particularly impressed by a rose-colored drink at a café where Flora was biting into a croissant.
“Stunning girl,” she says. “Is she a friend from school? Wait, Josie’s in this one.”
I shift in my seat. “Yeah, we’re all friends. We’ve been hanging out a little, that’s all.”
“You’re hanging out with people in a different tax bracket now?” Grandpa chuckles.
“Et tu, Grandpa?”
Dad, without missing a beat, lowers his voice into a deep narrator tone. “And on this day, Sean vowed never to play with his device in the presence of his meddlesome family again.”
Lindsey snorts, always appreciative of Dad’s humor. “I wonder what filter she uses. Her skin looks perfect.”
“That’s exactly how she looks.” A lie. If anything, the pictures don’t do her justice. They don’t capture how the light shifts in her hazel eyes and the sound of her laugh.
Our food arrives.
“Phones away. Time to eat,” Dad says, snapping his napkin across his lap. He reaches for the hot sauce while Mom passes out forks and knives.
With how many followers Flora has, my accidental Like will drown in a flood of notifications.
I pull my plate toward me. My phone buzzes in my pocket.
Ignore it.But my heart’s already racing.
Five minutes. Wait five minutes and—
“Be right back.” I slide out of the booth and head to the bathroom, ducking behind the corner to check my phone.
Flora:Stalker
Thumbs flying, I type:Who’s the mysterious heartthrob next to you?
The reply is almost instant.
Flora:He’s an incredible kisser too. Can’t wait to see you again. Can we hang out?
The corner of my mouth twitches. I lean against the wall, typing.I want to see you too. I can’t today, but we have a practice game tomorrow after school. Come see me? We can get dinner after.
Flora:I’ll be there. See you at school
Sure. Enjoy your day.I hesitate for a second. Then I type one last message:P.S. You’re a cute button.
She hearts my message, and I slide my phone back into my pocket and head back to the table. My eggs are cold by now, but I don’t care.
Chapter Five
Flora
