Maggie walks me through getting the machine threaded, and then I run scraps of fabric through over and over until Maggie’s satisfied. A skirt is probably eons away, and a dress light-years longer than that, but I feel less stupid than the last time I tried this. And, the more I think about it, if Maggie had already bailed on the idea of me winning the job in the fall, she wouldn’t be so patient and giving right now, would she? Or is this a bad sign that I’m learning how to sew instead of doing the thing I thought I was actually brought in to do?
Is it terrible how badly I still want the job? I’d be taking it away from Jordi. I’d be winning over my girlfriend. (I can’t believe I have a girlfriend.) But she’ll understand. After all, I’ll understand if she’s the winner.
Won’t I?
I get summoned to the pool again this week, because I think that’s potentially all that rich kids do with their time off from school. And, somehow, this is also my crowd now. I ask Maliah if I can bring Jordi if she’s free.
Fine. Tell her not to burn down Trevor’s house.
I mean, if you’re going to be mean, at least be funny or clever about it.
When I get to Jordi’s, she opens the door and steps aside. “Are we in a hurry?”
“No, why?”
“My parents are at work and Christian’s at his friend’s,” she says.
I think I actually squeal aloud. “Oh my god, I get to make out with you in the Hello Kitty bedroom?”
“There’s not that much Hello Kitty,” Jordi says as we race down the hallway. I’m only wearing shorts over my yellow and white striped swimsuit, and now that we’re kissing, I’m aware of just how much skin’s showing. It’s like a wave; my worry starts off small and then as Jordi’s hands grasp my sides, it’s bigger, except then we keep kissing and my mouth aches and my arms are wrapped so tightly around her shoulders that I’m on my tiptoes. And then the fear’s washed away.
“Do you want to sit there?” Jordi asks and nods to her bed. We kissed for a while in my room on Sunday, but we were standing the whole time.
“Yes,” I say and wait for her to sit first. “I’m not ready to take off any of my clothes yet.”
I wonder if I was thin if I would be. I really hope not.
“Well, me either,” Jordi says with a smile, and immediately I feel less like my fatness is some kind of problem for us. “I’m in no rush for anything.”
And so we kiss until our lips feel chapped, and then we kiss a little more. Our hands skim each other’s arms and backs and sides, but we’re still in very G-rated territory with each other. Well, I’m very aware that my boobs are smooshed against hers, but where else would they go? I’m glad that we’re on the same page, but I’m also glad I said something to begin with. It’s crazy how quickly someone can feel so safe.
When we’re at Trevor’s gate, I text Jax instead of Maliah, and it feels like he appears in record time. “Hey. Mal said I could bring Jordi.”
He shrugs. “There’s not a guest list. And any friend of Abby …”
Jordi waves. “Hey.”
Jax nods at me. “Nice.”
“Dude,” she says. “I’m standing right here.”
“It was a compliment,” he says. “I’m Jax.”
She grins. “Of course you are.”
“Bam. My reputation proceeds me.” He gestures through the gate. “Come on back.”
I slip my arm through Jordi’s. “Is he as bad as you imagined?”
Jordi laughs. “About as bad. Potentially worse.”
Maliah glances over from her spot on the brick wall as we walk into the backyard. “It’s about time.”
“If you always say that, it’s not very effective,” I say. “Also, hi.”
“Hi,” she says coolly. “Hello, Jordi.”
“You’re the girlfriend?” Trevor asks her. I swear that his bicep is like the size of Jordi’s head so it’s weird to see him standing near her.
“That’s me.”
Jax brings us a couple of beers, and I pop mine open without thinking about it. Jordi shakes her head, though.
“I’m cool. Is there water?”
“Anything for Abby’s girl.” Jax swaps the can for a bottle of water. I will say that the boys are very good at providing beverages to guests. “Abbs, my dad says we’re doing good work on Best Blank.”
“How is it work?” Maliah asks. “Don’t you guys just eat burgers and rate them?”
“It’s a five-pronged system.” Jax holds up his hand and counts off each one. “Taste, quality, service, value, selection.”
“I don’t get why you need Abby to do that.” Maliah unwraps a popsicle that seems to have appeared from nowhere. I would love a popsicle right now. “Can’t you just look up every burger place and guess?”
“This is important,” Jax says, and his normal bro tone sounds a bit dialed up. “My dad told me to input real data so when this launches for real, people can rely on it. Also, Abbs and I are having a good fucking time. Why you wanna take that away from us?”
“Yeah, Mal,” I say. “Why you wanna?”
“You guys are so weird,” she says.
“Does anyone actually get in the pool?” Jordi asks.
“Yeah, you wanna get in the pool?” Jax pulls off his Westglen Prep T-shirt. “Cannonball you.”
“What? That isn’t a verb.” Jordi shakes her head, though she does step out of her shorts and hand them to me. Is it weird that I like being in charge of Jordi’s shorts?
Jax races her to the pool, and before long, they’re both in and splashing at each other. Also, Jordi looks skilled and strong in the water, and I like that people know she’s with me.
“Her suit’s cute,” Maliah says, which feels like a huge step forward.
But I need to clear up important matters first. “Where did you get the popsicle?”
I find a ton of instructional sewing videos on YouTube, and when I post to Tumblr that I just got
