ChapterOne
NADIA
“Oh, I love that one on you.” My sister beams at me, and I think she might be more excited about this than I am.
“It’s short.” I pull at the bottom of the dress, which is also a bit flashy. It’s more of her style since my sister Kat loves anything that sparkles. I think it’s a habit she formed when she used to be a bottle girl. She’d cover her skin in glitter because she said it bounced off the lights of the club. She hasn’t been a bottle girl in almost a year now. Not since Luke came and swept her right off her four-inch heels.
We went from living paycheck to paycheck to the high life. Luke doesn’t care that my sister and I are a package deal. I’ve been with her since I was thirteen and one day our mom never came home.
Luke and Kat got married in one of those wedding chapels on the Vegas strip. It was all a bit of a whirlwind. Especially the part where we were leaving Vegas. Luke wasn’t from there, and with a snap of his fingers he had us out to Seattle with most of our things. A lot of stuff wasn’t worth taking, so it was left behind with everything else. I can’t believe it’s happened, but I’m kind of excited about this fresh start.
The only downside to all of this is starting a new school for my senior year. It wasn’t any high school either. It's some fancy one that requires a uniform. I’ve been there for two months and haven't made any friends since everyone already has their groups established. Then out of nowhere, Kyle Insley started talking to me. He’s one of the most popular guys in school, and for some reason he asked for my number one afternoon when I was in the library. I didn’t know if I should give it to him, but I was on the spot, so I did it. He’s been texting me randomly since.
“If you don’t like it, try something else. You want to feel good in what you’re wearing.” She slips off my bed and goes into my closet.
I swear she’s always putting new things in there. I was given a credit card to use when I needed money, but it felt awkward. Luke didn’t marry me, he married my sister and kind of got stuck with me for the time being. He’s never said anything like that to me before, and he’s actually a pretty cool guy, but I feel awkward taking his money. To be fair, I’ve felt awkward for most of my life, so that's on me, not him.
“This.” She comes back out with a pink and white dress covered in flowers. “Put it on first. It’s better, I swear. Turn around so I can tie the back.” I wiggle out of the dress I have on and slip into this one. She ties the back and pulls the top tight while the bottom stays loose and flowing. It falls a little above my knees and dips low in the front, but Kat always says I have great boobs. I suppose it doesn’t hurt to show them a little.
“Oh.” I turn to glance in the mirror and I’m surprised by how pretty it is. “I like this one.”
“See, I know what I’m doing.”
My phone vibrates on my desk and a text from Kyle comes through.
Kyle: I’m here.
“Is he going to come in?” My sister reads my phone over my shoulder.
“Let’s not. Please,” I beg her.
She’d talked me into this in the first place. If I want to meet people, I have to put myself out there at least a little bit. The thing is, Kyle is weird with me. He’ll blow my phone up with texts and even plays video games with me online, but oftentimes when we’re at school he’ll only give me a chin nod when we pass in the hallway. It’s strange, but what do I know about dating?
“Fine,” she huffs.
“Thank you.” I kiss her cheek before I grab my bag and phone, then slip on some sandals. When I open the front door, Kyle is parked outside in his white BMW. Music blasts from it, and I walk over to open the passenger door before getting inside.
He doesn’t say anything since all his attention is on his phone as he taps on the screen. He’s in jeans and a polo, and his blond hair is messy. I’m pretty sure he styles it that way on purpose.
“Hey,” I finally say, but I’m not sure he hears me over the music. A minute passes before he finally turns the music down and puts his phone in the holder.
“Dress is cute.” He smirks.
“Thanks.”
“Do you always need glasses?” he asks as he looks at them with mild annoyance.
“If I want to see properly.” I actually love my glasses, and these are new. I haven't had a new pair of glasses in years. I don’t need them all the time, but oddly they give me this level of protection. I know it’s not real, but I sense it, and when I take them off I feel bare.
“You’ve got contacts, though, right?”
“I have some.”
“You should wear them.” He puts his car into drive and takes off. I’m not sure how to respond to this. The contacts irritate my eyes, and it’s creepy putting them in. I think it’s something I’d have to get used to. “I’m having a party tomorrow. You can come if you want.”
“Okay.” Does he want me to come? It doesn’t sound like an invitation but more of an offhanded comment.
“I’m hosting so I might be busy most of the night, but I want to end it with you.” He winks at me as he puts his hand on my thigh. I tense, but he doesn’t seem to notice. Thankfully his phone rings, so he removes it to answer. “Yo,” he says loudly. “Nothing just hanging.” He’s quiet for a moment. “Nah, I’m staying in tonight. All right, later.” He ends the call and I notice he doesn’t mention me.
“Staying in?” I ask. “I thought we were seeing a movie.”
“We are. At my place.”
“At your place?” I ask, but he’s already turning the music back up.
It's cool, Nadia, it’s only hanging out. This is what normal people do. I glance over at Kyle and my eyes go to his mouth. I don’t feel any desire swirling inside of me to know what it would be like to kiss him. Maybe I read too many romance novels. What else could it possibly be? Every girl in Harvest High swoons over Kyle. What is wrong with me? Could my vagina be broken? That’s not likely because sometimes I get turned on when I read.
I don’t know anything about dating, but what I do know is I’m not so sure I want to waste my first kiss on Kyle. Then again, what if this is my only chance?