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Saturday? Around one or so?”
    “This Saturday?”
    Will nodded, his expression blank. He hooked a thumb into his jeans pocket, waiting there, looking awkward.
    “Okay, that would be great,” I agreed, and then remembered my speech, quickly launching into it. “So about getting paid—”
    He shook his head and waved me off. “Don’t worry about
it. I’ll pick you up at your house,” he said, reaching toward me, and his fingertips grazed my arm.
    My heart responded by pounding hard.
    “Do you mind?” he asked, gesturing at his truck.
    I was blocking the door. “Oh. Sorry,” I said, embarrassed, and stepped aside. The door opened and shut with a loud groan as he got in. “See you Saturday then,” I added, though I don’t know that he heard me. Will didn’t look back. Not once.
    I watched as he drove away.

8
    HOW IT ENDS
    The next morning I raced past Will like yesterday’s conversation had never happened. He was walking across the lawn, far enough away that I felt my ignoring him wouldn’t be overly conspicuous. I didn’t know if we were supposed to act differently now that we had plans for Saturday, or just the same as always, barely acknowledging each other’s existence. Luckily I didn’t have long to debate this because Chris’s SUV was already idling in the street, waiting to take me to school.
    “Hey, babe, how are you?” he asked as I climbed inside.
    I responded with an all too enthusiastic “I’m great!” because I was feeling uneasy about my Will-and-Rose field trip. I knew I should tell Chris that I would be missing his football game again , and that, by the way, it was because I was going somewhere with Will Doniger, but as we raced toward the end of the street, these things went around in my mind and stayed there.
    “You’re in a good mood again,” Chris observed. “It’s nice.”
    I tried to force myself to tell him, but all I managed was “Sure. I guess I am.” We came to a stop sign and Chris pulled me toward
him, laughing softly in my ear. He placed a hand on my cheek and turned my face toward his, leaning in for a kiss, and for the first time in months I made myself kiss him back like I always used to.
    “Maybe we should take advantage of your good mood tonight,” he said, a thread of hope running through his voice. When he settled back into his seat and stepped on the gas, the anticipation on his face was reflected in the window.
    I wanted to make him happy, and I wanted to make me happy, too. Maybe if I just dived back in, things would return to the way they used to be between Chris and me, so out of my mouth came the only word Chris wanted to hear and that I was capable of getting out at the time. “Okay,” I agreed, and shut my eyes tight.
     
     
    Chris and I were standing by my locker when Krupa appeared. My back was against the metal and Chris’s hands were pressed against it on either side of my head. “So I’m done at practice around seven,” he said, and smiled at me.
    I knew that look. “See you then,” I said.
    “Absolutely.” He gave me one last kiss and sauntered away, giving Krupa a nod.
    “Now that is something I haven’t seen in a long time,” Krupa said, spinning the combination into the lock and opening the door.

    “I know. But I think things are starting to go back to the way they used to be,” I said. “He’s coming over tonight.”
    Krupa raised her eyebrows. “Really.” She grabbed her chemistry textbook and slammed the locker shut.
    “Really,” I said, even though unease settled over me like a dark cloud.
    “I hope you know what you’re doing, Rose,” Krupa murmured, and took off to class.
     
     
    By eight o’clock Chris and I were in the basement watching a movie on the old, scratchy orange couch that had a spring poking up just under the fabric, the only light in the room coming from the television. We lay there, talking occasionally, or getting up to grab more soda from the fridge upstairs, and everything was fine. At