October 19
Twenty-Four Years Ago
11:15 P.M.
They ended up playing truth or dare, because it turned out that no one could say no to Shona. Leo sat cross-legged against the wall. So far, the bottle had eluded her, and she had watched in amusement as a few of the boys failed at some party tricks, and a few of the girls flashed their bras or had to pull their underwear up from their jeans to show them what they were wearing.
The bottle landed on Scott, one of the lacrosse players on Brooks’s team. “Truth or dare,” said Andie, the bossy senior who seemed to run the game.
“Truth,” said Scott.
“Who do you think is prettier, Leo or Mish?” asked Andie.
The crowd hooted. Pitting two girls against each other was a favorite question. So far, they’d done Megan versus Shona (Megan), Andie versus Lila (Lila), and now Leo versus Mish.
“You don’t have to answer that,” said Leo, shaking her head.
“Oh, but that one’s easy. Leo,” said Scott with a grin.
“Fuck you, Scott!” said Mish from the back, where she was cuddled with Brooks.
Leo laughed, trying not to feel too pleased, too smug. The bottle spun again, and the next few people chose dares, which were pretty mild. Dave Griffin had to sniff everyone’s armpits, Olivia Chang had to do four cartwheels in a row, then Deacon Walker had to switch clothes with Avery O’Rourke, which took a while since they had to trade turns in the bathroom to do it.
While they were waiting, the seniors started talking about—what else—college.
“So are you doing Early Decision or Early Action at Brown?” Shona asked Dave.
“Probably Early Action; I don’t want to be tied down too much. What if I get into Harvard?” he said.
“My mom is going to kill me if I don’t get into Yale,” said Olivia, who was probably going to be valedictorian.
“Same,” lamented Andie. “What about you, Brooks?”
“U of Michigan is my top choice; my dad went there. Notre Dame is my safety,” he said.
“What about you guys?” Shona asked, turning to Mish and Leo. “I mean, I know you guys are sophomores, so you have some time.”
Mish snort-laughed and didn’t answer. Leo hid her face behind her hair and took another sip of her beer. “I don’t know, maybe just Lake.”
“The community college?” gagged Andie, overhearing their conversation.
“Harvard on the Hill,” smirked Dave.
Shona slapped him on the arm. “RUDE! What’s wrong with Lake?”
“Nothing but everything,” joked Deacon, returning from the bathroom, wearing Avery’s tube top.
“Lake! Ew!” laughed Avery, who was swimming in Deacon’s striped rugby jersey.
Leo cringed, and Mish met her eyes. Leo understood now, how hard it was for Mish to hang out with Brooks’s crowd.
The bottle spun again. This time, the dares were less innocent. The boys began to demand time in the bathroom. The girls shrieked and protested, but they went into the bathroom with the boys anyway.
Leo, who was still smarting from the embarrassment of the Lake College situation, wasn’t paying attention when the bottle landed on her.
It was Dave’s turn. But before she could choose truth or dare, he didn’t give her a choice. “I dare you to kiss me in the bathroom. Come on.”
“Leo—no!” said Mish. “Leave her alone, Dave! Leo, you don’t have to!”
But everyone had done it. Andie had gone in with Deacon. Shona with Scott. Why should she be any different?
Dave looked her over coolly. Leo didn’t like the way he was looking at her, but she ignored it. He’d ignored her at the mall and all night, but now she had his attention. Plus, she was just trying to fit in. It was only a few minutes alone in the bathroom. What were they, in middle school? She could handle him.
She stood up and followed him into the bathroom.
Dave locked the door behind him.
He turned the lights off.
Leo braced herself for a kiss. She’d already kissed one boy tonight, what was another?
But before she knew what was happening, he’d pushed her down on her knees and unzipped his fly. His hand was on her head, insistent.
What was going on, what was happening? This wasn’t what she’d agreed to, and her heart was pounding. She was woozy, and a little scared.
Why had she volunteered to do this? How did she get here? On her knees in Stacey Anders’s guest bathroom with some jock asshole’s hand on her head?
She scrambled, but Dave held her there, in front of his crotch. There was an edge to his voice, a menace she hadn’t noticed before.
“Come on, kiss me.”
She did.