While Peyton went to grab them some punch, Micah absentmindedly traced the heart she had drawn when she had signed his cast.
It had been a couple of weeks since the incident in the canyon, and Micah’s broken arm was slowly getting better. He couldn’t wait to get the cast off, but the doodles and Get Well Soon wishes of his friends and classmates made it tolerable.
What was really amazing, though, was that Trevor had made an almost complete recovery from his snakebite in time for homecoming. He was still feeling weak, and he had frequent physical therapy appointments for his leg, but all things considered—he had been incredibly lucky.
Micah noticed Trevor standing on the edge of the dance floor, talking to a guy from their chemistry class. They were too far away to make out what they were saying over the music, but from Trevor’s dramatic hand gestures and the astonished look on the boy’s face, Micah could guess that Trevor was using the snakebite story to his advantage.
The other guy turned to head out on the dance floor, and Trevor followed. Micah caught his friend’s eye as Trevor walked by. He flashed him a cheesy thumbs-up, which Trevor returned excitedly.
“Trevor blushes almost as badly as you do,” Peyton said as she appeared suddenly at Micah’s shoulder and handed him a cup of punch.
Micah chuckled. “At least some good came out of that whole awful ordeal.”
“You can say that again!” Peyton hooked her arm through Micah’s and shot him a half smile, her eyes bright.
“For the record, I was planning to ask you to homecoming anyway,” Micah said as they finished their punch.
Peyton stifled a laugh. “Sure, I bet you were,” she said, pretending to be serious.
“I really was!” Micah protested, laughing. “Ask Trevor if you don’t believe me!”
Peyton giggled, wrinkling her nose at him. “Well, I guess we’ll never know for sure. Either way, it doesn’t matter since I beat you to it,” she said, turning to him and wrapping her arms around his neck.
Micah could feel himself blushing as Peyton kissed him, but he didn’t mind.
Peyton smiled mischievously. “You really should have invited me to come climbing with you guys. I bet I could have gotten us all out of the canyon in record time.”
“Indoor climbing isn’t the same thing as the real deal!” he teased.
Peyton rolled her eyes. “You’re just worried I’m a better climber than you!” she said, slipping her hand in his. They headed out onto the dance floor to join Trevor and his date.
Even as he danced, Micah was already daydreaming about how fun it would be to bring her along next time he and Trevor went climbing.