I looked around, feeling the pressure building. “Why, I’ll bet there’s not a single
cloud in the whole sky.”
This time Jamie didn’t respond, and we sat in silence for a few moments.
“Landon,” she finally said, “you didn’t come here to talk about the weather, did
you?”
“Not really.”
“Then why are you here?”
The moment of truth had arrived, and I cleared my throat.
“Well . . . I wanted to know if you were going to the homecoming dance.”
“Oh,” she said. Her tone made it seem as if she were unaware that such a thing
existed. I fidgeted in my seat and waited for her answer.
“I really hadn’t planned on going,” she finally said.
“But if someone asked you to go, you might?”
It took a moment for her to answer.
“I’m not sure,” she said, thinking carefully. “I suppose I might go, if I got the chance.
I’ve never been to a homecoming dance before.”
“They’re fun,” I said quickly. “Not too much fun, but fun.” Especially when
compared to my other options, I didn’t ad d.
She smiled at my turn of phrase. “I’d have to talk to my father, of course, but if he
said it was okay, then I guess I could.”
In the tree beside the porch, a bird started to chirp noisily, as if he knew I wasn’t
supposed to be here. I concentrated on the sound, trying to calm my nerves. Just two days
ago I couldn’t have imagined myself even thinking about it, but suddenly there I was,
listening to myself as I spoke the magic words.
“Well, would you like to go to the dance with me?”
I could tell she was surprised. I think she believed that the little lead-up to the
question probably had to do with someone else asking her. Sometimes teenagers sent their
friends out to “scout the terrain,” so to speak, so as not to face possible rejection. Even
though Jamie wasn’t much like other teenagers, I’m sure she was familiar with the
concept, at least in theory.
Instead of answering right away, though, Jamie glanced away for a long moment. I
got a sinking feeling in my stomach because I assumed she was going to say no. Visions
of my mother, puke, and Carey flooded through my mind, and all of a sudden I regretted
the way I’d behaved toward her all these years. I kept remembering all the times I’d teased
her or called her father a fornicator or simply made fun of her behind her back. Just when I
was feeling awful about the whole thing and imagining how I would ever be able to avoid
Carey for five hours, she turned and faced me again. She had a slight smile on her face.