Chapter Seventeen
Nina
West read his book on the way to school. It was almost like yesterday never happened…like he’d never tried to kiss me. He had tried to kiss me, hadn’t he? Of course he had. Why else would he lean in like that? And the look in his eyes when he’d done it, like he saw something he wanted…someone he wanted. My face flushed as I replayed the scene in my head. Was West thinking about the not-quite-a-kiss, too, or was he reading his book. After a few minutes of silence I caved.
“Are you not talking to me?”
“I was waiting and saving my energy for when you launched into a we-must-keep-the-moldy-old-library open debate,” he said.
“I’m not typically a morning debater,” I said.
“I didn’t realize you had to schedule these things.”
I laughed. “Catch me around lunch and I’ll be ready to go.”
“Or you could just have your opinion, and I could have mine.”
“Yes, but yours would still be wrong. Next topic. Have you heard back about your car?”
“Nice segue, and yes, it shouldn’t take long to fix. They’re waiting on a part.”
“Good.” I prayed it wouldn’t be an expensive part. “I am really sorry about it.”
“I know,” he said. “It was a stupid mistake.” He emphasized the word stupid, like he was baiting me.
Game on. “One you could just as easily have made,” I said.
“But I didn’t. And I thought you didn’t like to debate in the morning.”
“I might have changed my mind.”
“Okay. Well there’s no way for you to win the argument about hitting my car, so feel free to move on to the library.” He cracked his knuckles and gave off an air of self-satisfaction.
“Smug much?” I asked.
“Only when it’s called for.”
Was it wrong that I was enjoying this? I cleared my throat like I was about to make an announcement. “First off, libraries are near and dear to my heart, so the idea of gutting one and turning it into a recycling center annoys me. I Googled it last night, and the nearest library is forty minutes away. So I’d like to file a complaint that the rehab date has been set when the new library hasn’t even been built yet.”
“And who would you like to file this complaint with? Because the last time I checked, that’s not my department.”
“Right now you are the sole representative of the anti-library coalition, so I’m filing the complaint with you.”
“I refuse to accept it.”
I laughed as I pulled into the parking lot. Once I found a spot and parked, I released my seat belt and turned to him. What would he do if I leaned in and kissed him? I could do it. Just lean toward him a little bit to see how he’d react…but what if he didn’t notice or, worse yet, blew me off? For now, I’d stick with talking. “Eventually, you’ll concede that I’m right and you’re wrong.” I grabbed my backpack and scooted out of the car. Before closing the door, I added, “And you’re still taking me to the Valentine’s Dance.” Just for fun.
I headed toward the sidewalk, waiting to see how West would respond. He caught up and fell into step beside me. “Interesting debating style. Make a grand announcement and then flee. Does it normally work?”
I grinned. “I haven’t tried it before, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
“You’re a fascinating girl, Nina. But I’m not taking you to the Valentine’s Dance.”
“Why not? What’s your objection?”
“It’s the principle,” he said. “Dances are ridiculous.”
I looked him up and down. “You can’t dance.”
“I can dance,” he said. “I choose not to.”
“Right.” I was having so much fun joking with West, I didn’t want to push my luck, so I let the subject drop for now.
For the rest of the week, I gave him a ride to school. We laughed and talked a lot, but he never tried to kiss me. I didn’t get it. It’s not like he was only hanging out with me because he was stuck with me. Right? I mean, sure we lived next door to each other, and I gave him a ride to school, and…I didn’t like where this line of thinking was taking me.
Friday, on the way home from school, West said, “So what are you doing tonight?”
Oh my God. Was he finally asking me on a date? Lisa and I had our Friday night bookstore plans, and I’d never cancel on her just because a guy asked me out. Maybe he’d want to do something on Saturday. “Lisa and I are going to the bookstore tonight. What are your big plans for the weekend?”
“The most exciting part of my weekend will be getting my car back, which means we won’t have to ride to school together on Monday.”
Oh. He didn’t have to sound so thrilled about it. “That’s cool.”
“You won’t have to wake up early,” he said. “I thought that would make you happy.”
“I hadn’t thought about it like that,” I said. “And I guess you can go back to arriving at school really early for no apparent reason.”
And the conversation kind of stalled out. He looked at his cell, and I tried to come up with something to say that didn’t make me sound desperate. When I parked, he didn’t look up from his phone. He just said, “See you later.” And he climbed out of the car.
Hmmm… I wish the conversation had ended on a more positive note. What’s done was done. Disappointment and doubt lapped at the corners of my mind. I did my best to ignore them. When I entered the house, Gidget ran to greet me. I sat down and hugged her. Dogs were good. Boys were confusing. And dating/not dating, or whatever it was we’d been doing, sucked.