Cops? Holy balls. My parents would flip. “Wait, we were at the Phellston Fundraiser. We got locked in the yard and the sprinklers came on … If-if you call the house and ask for either Rex Tallac or Portia Rickard they can confirm we were their dates tonight.”
“Stay here, let me ring the house,” the guard said.
“Do you get in trouble on all your dates?” Trey’s lip turned up at the corner.
“Only when I’m with you,” I said.
The guard returned a moment later. “Mr. Tallac and Ms. Rickard confirmed you were guests. Please accept my apology. They asked that you wait here for them.”
A few minutes later, Rex’s jeep came into view and him and Portia hopped out. Rex took one look at me and Trey and frowned. “Ready to go home?”
“Yeah, I think I’ve had enough fun for tonight.”
When I got to his vehicle, he asked what happened and I explained Trey and me deciding to explore the grounds after him and Portia disappeared. Then I had to tell him how we got locked out.
He chuckled. “I’m sorry, but that’s pretty funny. And I have to admit, I’m thankful it happened, otherwise, I’d be stuck at the damn party all night.”
When we pulled into my driveway, Rex leaned over and planted his mouth on mine. His tongue grazed my teeth. He tasted like a mixture of punch and mint. Not a good combo at the moment.
“You know, I could probably come in if you want? Or better yet, maybe you can get changed and come back to my house. At least there we could be alone.”
“Actually, I think I’m gonna take a shower. I’m wearing half the Phellston’s yard on my legs.”
“Are you sure? We could watch a movie or something. Maybe go in the hot tub or pool. Clothing optional.” He grinned.
My hands clenched hold of the door handle. “Sorry. I really just want to get cleaned up. I’ll see you later.” I gave him a quick hug and another peck on the lips then hopped out of the vehicle.
I stood on the porch and watched him pull out. Right as he left, I noticed Trey drive up in his truck next door.
Trey saw me and sauntered over. “Well, that was an eventful night.”
“I’m sure we made great impressions on Rex and Portia’s families.” I plopped down on the top stair.
“If you count almost having the cops show up as impressive, then yeah.” He sat beside me. “So what are we gonna do next weekend? Maybe break into a prison? Rob a bank?”
I rammed my shoulder into his. “Admit it, before me your life was boring.”
“Boring isn’t always bad you know.”
My gaze met his. “I know. Believe it or not, I don’t mind staying in and playing video games.”
“Speaking of which, we still need to beat that level on Dwarves of Iconia. Maybe we can do that tomorrow.”
“Sure, but don’t you dare knock on my door before eleven. I need my beauty sleep.”
“See you, Del.” He climbed to his feet and swaggered back to his house. My eyes followed him until he went inside.
I realized something huge. Tonight had been a blast. Not because of Rex. But because Trey made it that way. I also discovered something problematic. I. Delyla Denson. Had a huge, massive crush on Trey Garrett.
My cell buzzed in my pocket. I took it out and answered. “Hello?”
“Delyla, it’s Kevin. I wondered if you might have a second?”
“What’s going on?”
“I finally asked Melanie out on a date.”
“That’s awesome.”
He sighed. “Well, it would be if I could figure out where to take her, which I’m hoping is where you come in with some advice.”
“What kinds of things does she like?”
“Rock music. Art. And she loves horror movies, especially the classic ones.”
“There’s this freaky wax museum, about two hours from here. A lot of the figures are based off of old horror movies and stuff. I can send you a link to their website if you want to check it out.”
“That’s perfect. You know, I wouldn’t have gotten the courage to say anything to her if it wasn’t for you. So, thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Hope you have fun.” When I hung up, I scrolled through the internet, copied the link for the wax museum, and then sent it to Kevin.
Once I finished, I decided to go down and grab some lunch with my parents. Mom had a salad and soup sitting on the table.
“Hey sweetie. Didn’t think you’d be home today,” she said.
I smiled. “I just finished up some homework. C.C. is supposed to stop by in a little bit for some help on something.”
“We haven’t seen Rex around much lately.” Dad peeked over the top of his newspaper. “Are you two still together?”
“Yeah. I’ve just been busy with school stuff.”
“You’ve been hanging out with Drake’s friends a lot more,” Mom said. “Which, I think is good. They’re a bunch of nice boys. Sometimes I worry about Rex. His parents are gone an awful lot.” She scooped some salad into a bowl for me, then slid it across the table. She glanced at me and frowned. “You didn’t stop hanging out with Rex because he tried pressuring you into something, right?”
“No. We’ve both been busy with sports and homework.”
“Are you sure? Because we can talk if you need to.” Mom sat across from me.
