And because she’s a redhead, I dress her up in red.
Because I’m so over the stereotype that redheads can’t wear red. If it’s the right shade of red, they can fucking wear it. So I give her a red dress with more purplish tones than orangish, and complete her look with brown strappy sandals from Prada that I have.
As for me, I’m dressed up in my Friday best: a short fit and flare dress with a V-neck. It has black denim and purple suede patches on the skirt and adorable short cap sleeves, one made of denim and the other made of suede. I’ve paired that with my Prada suede heels.
Oh, and let’s not forget my purple lipstick.
Tonight’s shade is called Young and On Fire.
I know sneaking out tonight, specifically after what happened last night and what I now know about why he is here, is risky. Plus I had to sit down with Janet for over thirty minutes while I described all the ways that I’ve been able to sneak in and out, which means all my pathways have been compromised.
Well, except for one.
Because obviously I didn’t reveal all of my secrets.
Obviously.
But I’m not letting him control me any more than he already does.
So risky or not, we’re going.
Callie’s blinding smile is the first thing I see as soon as we step in through the door at Ballad of the Bards. That and her blonde hair flying behind her as she rushes to hug me. Tightly.
I do that too.
In fact, I think I hug her back even more tightly.
And then we break apart, only for me to get enveloped by another set of arms. This one belonging to my second best friend, Wyn, and her hug is just as tight.
“God, Poe,” Wyn says, still hugging me. “I missed you so much.”
I clench my eyes shut at her words.
Because if I don’t, I’ll start crying.
And I don’t want to ruin the mood. But I do want to tell her that I missed her too. So somehow, I manage to push past the lump of emotions and whisper, “I missed you too.”
That gets me a squeeze like she understands what I’m feeling. Because she’s feeling it too.
Then moving away, she grins. “You’re here. I can’t believe you’re here.”
Callie chimes in from beside Wyn, “I’ve honestly been counting down days to Friday.”
“Me too,” Wyn adds.
“Now if only Salem were here,” Callie says and my heart twists.
Because our third best friend is the only one not here tonight.
Wyn frowns. “I know. I miss her so much. And California is so far. I really wish she hadn’t had to leave so soon.”
“Well, it was either us or her hunky soccer player of a boyfriend,” I quip. “Of course she had to leave.”
Even though we all miss Salem with an ache, we understand why she had to leave so soon.
Because of a guy named Arrow Carlisle.
Who also happens to be a pro soccer player who plays for the LA Galaxy, and even though I have zero knowledge of soccer, I still know he’s one of the best players in the country. But more than that, Arrow is the love of my best friend’s life.
Has been for nine years actually.
So of course she had to go.
And both my friends agree with me as we stare at each other with sad, understanding smiles. Before breaking down and falling into another group hug.
Because holy fuck, this is the first time we’re seeing each other since school ended.
While Callie had moved away from campus in the middle of our senior year — she had reasons — Salem and Wyn still lived on campus with me. So when they found out that I wasn’t going to graduate with them, they made sure to linger — even Salem — as much as they could after school ended.
As a sign of solidarity.
Eventually, Salem had to move to California though. And Wyn had to leave her dorm room as well. I had the option of going back home for a few days before summer school started last week but I refused. Because I knew he was back and I was so angry at the time — still am — that I didn’t want to be under the same roof as him.
So I chose to linger at St. Mary’s until classes restarted.
When we’re all done hugging and laughing and crying, I step back to introduce the two new friends that I’ve brought with me. I clap my hands and point to them one by one. “Okay, so I come bearing gifts. This is Echo and that is Jupiter. They’re both unfairly stuck doing summer classes with me. So I brought them here tonight because we all need to become best friends and live together happily ever after.”
Wyn smiles and waves in her usual shy fashion. “Hi. So nice to meet you both.” Then, “Although, I think we were in a lot of classes together, right?”