揥hat is it for??Jane asks.
I flip open my booklet, and the giggle erupts as I read the first page. Dances, it says in a pretty, bold font, and then there are six numbered lines. 揑t抯 a dance card.?
揓ust like Elizabeth Bennett,?Dahlia says proudly. 揑 don抰 really expect you to use them. I just thought they were fun.?
揑抦 totally using mine,?Jane says. 揑t抣l be a good place to get numbers.?
Violet lifts her plastic champagne flute with a laugh （Jane also bought boxes of those梩he heavy plastic kind that almost looks real）。 揟o Elizabeth Bennett.?
By midnight, our house is filled with classmates and friends, and friends of friends. Some dressed up, others are casual, but everyone is having a good time.
Jane has her dance card tucked into the cleavage of her dress, and as promised she抯 taking down numbers in it.
Dahlia is wearing one of her own creations. A baggy sweatshirt in a light gray with a black pleated skirt. She hangs off to the side of the dance floor, but she抯 smiling.
Violet steals the room in a black lacy dress that hits above her knee and bright purple heels. She and Jane are currently in the kitchen drinking champagne and talking to two guys that are friends with Eric.
And me, well, I抦 watching it all with a bittersweet happiness stirring inside of me. I sit on a stair halfway up to give me a nice bird抯-eye view, sipping champagne and sketching in my dance card. I glance up from time to time to make sure I抦 getting the details just right. I don抰 want to forget this moment or the looks on my friend's faces.
Violet appears at the side of the staircase with a tipsy smile. 揇aisy, there you are! Come dance with us.?
She gives me a playful, pouty face, and then Jane joins in.
I tuck my dance card away and let them pull me to the center of the dance floor. Dahlia comes, too, and we form a circle, linking arms and belting out the lyrics to three or four songs in a row.
揑 need a drink.?I hold a hand to my dry throat. In the kitchen, I refill my flute and sip, letting the sweet bubbles dance on my tongue.
揟his was perfect,?Violet says, leaning her back against the counter and sighing. 揟hank you for doing this.?
揥e all did it. Together.?
揧es, I know, but after the way things went down the last time, you had little reason to want to go through it all again.?
揑t wasn抰 the best night of my life,?I admit. 揃ut it made me realize how much we all needed it. You said it earlier this week, come as you are. And people did.?
揧eah,?she says the word softly.
I bump my hip against hers. 揂re you okay??
揧eah. Tonight has been a blast. I抦 going to remember this forever, but I hate seeing you like this.?
揑抦 fine,?I insist. 揙r I will be.?
揧ou didn抰 tell me that he said he loved you.?
揌e said a lot of things. Who knows how much of it was true??
She nods. 揅ome with me.?
She goes to the back door. The rain held off, but the temperature has dropped, and the wind has picked up.
I haven抰 gone out there since the night I screamed until I lost my voice, but I go with her now. She steps outside, and I follow, clutching my bare arms to my stomach as the breeze nips at my skin.
The tree house is lit up like it has been every night since Jordan strung the lights, but tonight lanterns pave a path from where we stand to the ladder. My heart squeezes in my chest. I can抰 see inside of the tree house, but I know he抯 there the same way I know my name.
揑 don抰 know if he was telling the truth or not when he said that he loved you, but if he doesn抰， then he抯 really committed to the lie.?A small smile tugs at the corners of her mouth.
揃ut what about jocks being evil and all that??
She laughs outright. 揧ou know I don抰 really believe that. It抯 just easier to hate a collective group than letting one person have so much power over your emotions.?
I get that.
Violet squeezes my arm. 揘o matter what, you always have me.?
揂nd us,?Dahlia says. I look back to see her and Jane in the doorway.
揧ou guys all knew about this??
Vi shrugs. 揑 called him.?
My eyes widen.
揑f you really don抰 want to see him, I抣l go tell him to leave, but if you抮e only staying away because of the things I said厰 She looks down. 揑t wasn抰 fair of me to judge him because of something someone else did.?
揌e screwed up all on his own,?I say.
揑 know, and I抳e got one eye on him.?Violet grins. 揃ut you were happy. And that抯 all I want.?
揂ll that we want for you,?Dahlia says.
揑 know a guy who knows a guy who has a cousin that works as a hitman,?Jane says it loud enough that I抦 sure Jordan can hear. 揓ust in case.?
揑 love you guys.?
The three of them crowd around and hug me.
I let out a breath. 揘ow what??
揋o hear him out,?Dahlia encourages.
Jane squeezes my arm. 揋ood luck.?
35
JORDAN
Her steps are light on the ladder. So quiet I almost miss the sound （it could also be that my heart is pounding so hard it抯 drowning out all other noise）。
I go to the ledge and offer my hand. She slips her fingers into my palm, and my pulse jumps.
揌ey,?I say in a rough scrape of my voice.
揌i.?Her blue eyes bore into mine, pupils wide. Her gaze flickers to the lights strung up from the ceiling before coming back to me.
揧ou look beautiful.?I don抰 drop her hand. I glide my thumb along her finger, and she stares at our joined hands. 揝orry for showing up like this. It looks like some party in there.?
She says nothing. I never felt like I needed to fill the silence between us before, but right now, I need something before I lose my mind.
My voice cracks as I continue. 揑 had to come see you in person and apologize again, and tell you something I should have said weeks ago. I want to be the guy that shows up for you. Tonight. Tomorrow. Every day. I want to be your person that抯 there for the good and bad, for all the fully clothed things. I抳e played it in my mind a million times. What if this or that, but I refuse to believe that there抯 any scenario that wouldn抰 have led me here. I love you, Daisy. In a sexy red dress, in white cotton panties, and everything in between. And I抦 sorry that I wasn抰 honest with you, but I wouldn抰 wish it away either. Spending those nights studying with you changed my life.?I take a breath. 揟hat抯 it. That抯 my big speech.?
I force myself to stop rambling and give her a chance to speak. It felt longer in my head, but now I worry it isn抰 enough. That I抦 not enough.
Her bottom lip trembles. I resist the urge to lift the pad of my thumb to it. I抦 perfectly still and waiting.
She抯 quiet for so long, I think, well, there抯 my answer. My heart drops. I knew there was a chance she didn抰 feel the same or couldn抰 forgive me, but I climbed up this tree, refusing to accept it. Swallowing thickly, I loosen my grip on her fingers and let my hand fall.
I didn抰 plan for this. Climbing down this ladder with a boner was more comfortable than standing here while she figures out how to tell me to fuck off.
I start to move my hands to my pockets at the same time she launches herself at me. Arms around my neck, Daisy crushes her body against mine, throwing me off balance and into the wall where she continues to press into me.
揟hank you for coming,?she breathes the words against my jaw.
A whoosh of air leaves my lungs. 揑 thought you were about to kick me out of your favorite spot.?
揑t isn抰 my favorite spot anymore without you.?
揑抳e missed you so much. I was trying to give you space, but棓