just seemed like too much hard work. I’d love to hear your brother play.”
“Well, we can ask him when he comes back. Feel like a snack?”
The thought of food distracted her, and I led her into the kitchen, where Ivy had thoughtfully laid out assorted muffins and a fruit platter. My siblings had finally recovered from the incident at the party and had accepted Molly as one of my friends. Although they didn’t have much choice — I seemed to have developed an inexorable will of my own these days.
“Oh, yum!” said Molly, taking a bite of a blueberry muffin and rolling her eyes to emphasize her appreciation of Ivy’s cooking. She froze suddenly and looked forlorn. “This doesn’t count as salad, does it?”
At that moment Gabriel appeared at the back door, lugging a surfboard, his damp T-shirt clinging to his taut body. He had recently taken up surfing as a way of releasing pent-up tension. Of course, he hadn’t needed to take lessons. Where was the need when the waves themselves would do his bidding? Gabriel was very active in human form; he needed physical activity like swimming, running, or lifting heavy objects in order to quell his restlessness.
Molly surreptitiously dropped her muffin onto her plate as Gabriel wandered into the kitchen.
“Hello, Molly,” he said.
Nothing ever escaped Gabriel’s notice, and his attention was drawn to the discarded muffin. He must have wondered what he’d done to make her lose her appetite. “Bethany, perhaps we can offer Molly something else,” he said very politely. “She doesn’t seem to be enjoying Ivy’s muffins.”
“No, they’re delicious,” Molly cut in.
“Don’t worry, Gabe,” I said with a laugh. “Molly’s on a crash diet for the prom.”
Gabriel shook his head. “Crash diets are very unhealthy for girls your age,” he said. “Besides, I wouldn’t recommend weight loss — in your case — it would be completely unnecessary.”
Molly stared at him for a moment before speaking. “You’re just being nice,” she said. “I could afford to lose a few pounds.” She pinched the flesh around her waist between thumb and forefinger to illustrate her point.
Gabriel leaned against the kitchen counter and studied her for a moment. “Molly,” he said eventually, “the human form is beautiful regardless of size or shape.”
“But aren’t some forms more beautiful than others?” Molly asked. “Like, you know, supermodels?”
“There is nothing more alluring than a girl with a healthy appreciation of food,” Gabriel said. The comment surprised me; I’d never heard him express any sort of opinion about what constituted feminine appeal. He was usually completely immune to any sort of female charm or attractiveness. It was just something he never noticed.
“I totally agree!” said Molly and she resumed nibbling at her muffin.
Gabriel looked pleased at having conveyed his point and headed out of the kitchen.
“Wait! Are you coming to the prom?” Molly called out after him.
Gabriel turned to look at her, an expression of mild amusement flickering around his silvery eyes.
“Yes,” he replied. “Unfortunately it’s part of my job description.”
“You might enjoy it,” she suggested coyly.
“We’ll see.”
Despite the noncommittal nature of Gabe’s answer, Molly seemed hugely satisfied by it. “I guess I’ll see you there then,” she said.
We spent the rest of the afternoon thumbing through fashion magazines and Googling images on Molly’s laptop, looking for hairstyles to replicate. Molly was definite that she wanted to wear hers up, either in a French roll or a crown of curls. I wasn’t sure what I wanted but knew I could rely on Ivy to come up with something.
“I’ve been thinking about what you said,” I blurted out suddenly as Molly was printing a photo of Blair Waldorf from
“Oh my God,” Molly squealed. “Tell me everything. How was it? Did you enjoy it? It doesn’t matter if you didn’t. You can’t expect the first time to be good. It gets better with practice.”
“No, no, nothing’s happened,” I replied. “I was just wondering whether I should bring it up with Xavier.”
“Bring it up? What for?”
“To find out what he’s thinking.”
“If it bothered him, he would have brought it up already. What are you stressing for?”
“Well, I want to know what he wants, what he expects, what would make him happy…”
“Beth, you don’t have to do anything just to make a boy happy,” Molly said. “If you’re not ready, you should wait. I wish I’d waited.”
“But I want to talk to him about it,” I said. “I don’t want to seem like a little kid.”
“Beth.” Molly closed the Web site she was exploring and swung around to face me wearing her sober counselor face. “This is something that all couples have to talk about eventually. The best way is just to be honest, don’t pretend to be someone you’re not. He knows you’ve had no experience, right?” I nodded mutely. “Okay, well, that’s good, there won’t be any surprises. You just need to tell him that it’s been on your mind and ask him how he feels. Then you’ll know where you both stand.”
“Thanks.” I grinned at her. “You’re the best.”
She laughed. “I know. By the way, did I tell you I’ve come up with an awesome plan?”
“No,” I said. “What’s the objective?”
“Getting Gabriel’s attention.”
I groaned inwardly. “Molly, not this again — we’ve been through this before.”
“I know, but I’ve never met anyone like him. And things are different now… I’m different.”
“How do you mean?”
“Well, I’ve realized something.” She grinned. “The only way I can get Gabriel to like me is to be a better person. So… I’ve decided to develop a social conscience, you know, show more
“How exactly do you plan to do that?”
“By doing some volunteer hours at the nursing home. You have to admit, it’s a great strategy.”
“You know, most people don’t take up community service as a strategy,” I said. “You shouldn’t do it as a ploy. Gabe wouldn’t like that.”
“Well, he doesn’t know, does he? Anyway, I’m doing it for the right reasons,” she said. “I know he doesn’t see me the way I see him right now, but one day he might. I can’t expect that out of the blue he’ll suddenly just change his mind. I have to show him I’m worthy.”
“But how will you be showing him that by faking it?” I asked.
“Maybe I really want to change.”
“Molls,” I began, but she cut me off.
“Don’t try and talk me out of it,” she said. “I want to follow this through and see where it goes. I have to try.”
“You don’t know anything about Gabriel,” I said. “He’s not what he seems. Gabriel has as much feeling as that stone angel in the garden.”
“How can you say that?” Molly exclaimed. “Everyone has feelings — just with some people, they’re harder to get in touch with. I don’t mind waiting.”
“You’re wasting your time with Gabriel,” I said. “He doesn’t feel things like ordinary people.”
“Well, if you’re right, then I’ll let it go.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I’m not trying to upset you. I just don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“I know it’s risky to like him,” Molly conceded. “But I think it’s a risk I’m willing to take. Besides, it’s too late for me to back out now. How am I supposed to look at anyone else after him?”
I looked at Molly closely. Her face was so open and genuine that I couldn’t help but believe her. Her eyes were shining with anticipation.
“Has he given you any reason to think something might happen?” I ventured.
“Not yet,” Molly conceded. “I’m still waiting for a sign.”
“Why do you like him so much?” I asked. “Is it just the way he looks?”
“At first it was,” Molly admitted. “But now it’s something more. Whenever I see him, I get this weird sense of
