I turned off the lights and climbed up onto my bunk. I stuffed the package down between the wall and my mattress, right next to the Ryan Dean West Emergency Gatorade Bottle Nighttime Urinal repository full of pee.
I thought, pretty soon I’m going to run out of sleeping space.
I slipped out of my clothes and listened to the rain until I fell asleep.
Chapter Forty-Six
I SAW ANNIE AT BREAKFAST in the morning.
Everything seemed to click back into place and get better on the spot. The whole school was buzzing with the rumors of the “Rugby Riot,” and I heard all kinds of bullshit stories from people who weren’t even there, about Kevin Cantrell almost dying, and how “the gay kid” started a fight.
But Mr. Farrow had already told us before we left for school that Kevin was fine and would be back in O-Hall on Monday, so I just shut up when I heard the ridiculous versions circulating, except I did push one boy and call him an asswipe for saying Joey started the fight.
I sat down across from Annie. We held hands on top of the table. Isabel, the constant, fuzzy-lipped-flying- monkey companion, sat beside her. Seanie, Joey, and JP were there too.
JP noticed we were holding hands, gave me a dirty look, and then turned his face away.
“Hey,” I said. “Are you feeling good today?”
“I was back at school yesterday,” Annie said.
“I scored a try for you, like I said I would.”
“I heard all about everything from Sean,” she said. “Are you ready for today?”
“Oh my God, Annie. I’ve been ready for a week.” I fired a look at JP. He wasn’t watching, but I
“Let’s meet at the front of the office at the start of lunch,” Joey said.
Kids who flew home usually rode to the airport together, since seniors were allowed to leave their cars at PM. I didn’t even find out until after the arrangements had been made that Joey would be driving Chas Becker’s SUV and taking me, Annie, Chas, and Megan to the airport with him.
Chas Becker’s driver’s license had been suspended. Go figure.
Joey was going home to the Bay Area, Megan lived in Los Angeles, and Chas, I assumed, would be going with her, but I didn’t care and wasn’t going to ask him. I just wanted to get out of there, even though I dreaded the awkwardness of the long drive to the airport and sitting in the same car with Annie and Megan. But I did come up with a couple perverted fantasies involving getting stuck in a snowdrift and sending Chas and Joey out into the cold to search for help. Unfortunately, the first snow hadn’t fallen yet.
“Did Isabel give you my note?” I asked.
“Nice Space Needle cartoon,” Annie said. “But you are a total liar about not knowing what was going on the other night, Ryan Dean West, and you know it.”
I stared right into her eyes, giving her my most innocent look. I even leaned forward over the table, just like she did to me that night outside O-Hall when Madam-Frosty Mrs. Singer caught us as we were about to kiss.
But, God! I really wanted to kiss her so bad.
“Oh, really?” I said.
“Yeah,” she said. “Two times balls equals
Then Isabel laughed.
“Score,” I said. “Made you talk about my balls. And, anyway, Seanie’s making that up. It’s a Princess Barbie Band-Aid.”
Then I gave Seanie a dirty look and nonchalantly scratched the bridge of my nose with my middle finger. I stood up. It was time to go to Conditioning.
Chapter Forty-Seven
ANNIE AND I PASSED NOTES to each other all during Mr. Wellins’s American Literature-slash-Sex-Ed class; and I could tell JP was getting pretty ticked about it. Oh, well, I thought, I’ve got all weekend, buddy, and by the time we get back to Pine Mountain she won’t even know you exist.
-- Less than forty-five more minutes of sex talk about how gay Henry David Thoreau was and we’re out of here.
-- We don’t have to just talk (wink).
-- And your gay dog. Just remember, I am here to help you through this Intense-Need-to-Kiss-Ryan-Dean obsession you have.
-- Want me to draw you a picture?
-- You want perverted? I can do.
-- Here you go. Love, Ryan Dean West (fifteen more minutes!!!).
In your dreams, maybe, West!!! Love, AA
Chapter Forty-Eight
