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sure it was hers, too. Her full, pink lips felt perfect. I slowly pulled away, expecting her to be smiling, but she wasn’t. Instead, her stiff right hook landed on my arm. She turned on her heel, her ponytail whipping around, and stormed off.
    Well, I definitely hadn’t expected that to happen. Rubbing my arm, I stared down at my sneakers, wondering what I did wrong. I’d asked Rob. I’d watched movies. I was sure I did it right. I couldn’t believe this was the way she’d be leaving. “Drew?” Piper called out my name, causing me to look up. She was in front of me in two seconds, not giving me time to say anything. She slid her hand in my hair and pulled me to her mouth. As soon as her tongue touched mine, I realized how sad and lame my kiss was. My toes curled in my sneakers. I was only fourteen, but I was thinking about things I knew I shouldn’t be. I was never going to see her again, so I had nothing to lose. I wound my hand in her ponytail, taking control of the kiss. I heard her release the smallest, sweetest little moan as we stopped. She leaned her forehead against mine and held it there for a few seconds. Our little trance was broken when her mom honked the car horn. I put my hand on her cheek, and her lips turned up in a cute smile. Then she was gone.
    But now she was back, just inside. Suddenly, the light in the window flicked on, her silhouette in front of the sheer curtain. I didn’t want her to slip through my fingers again. Bending down, I picked up a tiny pebble and threw it at her window. It landed dead center, so I threw another and another, each landing in the same spot. Jack was right. I did have a good arm.
    Piper slid her curtain back and looked down, and I gave her a little wave. I knew I looked like a complete fool standing in freezing weather in just a t-shirt and jeans, but she gave a little smile as she held up her finger for me to wait. I wasn’t sure what I was going to say to her, but I needed a friend, and she’d been one of my best as kids. She stepped out onto her porch in a coat and boots and quietly closed the door behind her. I could barely make out her face, the only light from the twinkling bulbs decorating the house.
    “Drew, what’re you doing here? It’s close to midnight.”
    “I was just. . . .” I trailed off as I shook my head. I didn’t have a good answer. I turned around to leave.
    Piper rushed off her porch and grabbed my elbow. “Come inside, it’s freezing.”
    “That’s all right. I don’t want to wake up your granddad.”
    She gently rubbed my forearms, and I felt my muscles shake slightly. It seemed my body remembered her somehow. I’d read about muscle memory but never quite understood it until now. My body, my mind, my heart all remembered her. She took my hand and led me up the porch then opened the door and reached inside, pulling out her grandfather’s plaid coat. “Put this on.”
    It was freezing out, so I wasn’t about to object. I buttoned it all the way up, knowing I looked like a nerd in an old geezer’s coat. “Sorry about dinner.”
    “Which part? Fighting with Rob or fondling me under the table?” Piper asked, sitting down on the front porch swing.
    For the first time in hours, I smiled. She was like air—fresh, clean air. “Not the fondling.” She giggled. “You seemed familiar last night in the bar. I wish I’d known it was you.”
    “It’s been a long time. I was barely in a training bra last time you saw me.”
    I chuckled then looked out to the huge Magnolia tree on the side of the house. “Remember we promised no big, sappy goodbyes? You told me not to even come the day you left.”
    “I remember. You didn’t listen,” she said, her head leaning onto my shoulder. I leaned my head down on hers. This was the way we sat together for hours talking. It was so natural to fall right back into that place.
    “I was so sick to my stomach the morning you left. I knew if I didn’t say goodbye, I’d regret it