Chapter 9B: You and me

With my head on the pillow, staring straight ahead, one of Milo's unfinished portraits of Hangman cove was directly in my line of sight, and I studied it carefully, trying to ignore the way that my throat was dry and my head was pounding, while equally trying to focus on the way that a finger was tracing lines over my bare back. For ten minutes now, I'd let Milo think I was still asleep as he drew pictures I couldn't see over my skin. Every once in a while, his finger would dip low and he'd trace the elastic band circling my waist, sending a chill through me, and when he was feeling brave, he'd dip the tip of his finger beneath my red boxer briefs and trace the line there, reaching just above the rise of my ass. I was enjoying myself, if the bulge steadily stretching my underwear was any indication, but I was also afraid that he'd stop if I told him how much, and I was way too hung-over to deal with Milo if he suddenly decided that he wanted me out of his bed, and then out of his house. But then, I had a headache, and I felt like shit, and I probably wasn't giving him enough credit. From what I remembered he'd taken care of me last night. Hell, he'd sat in his car with me because he wouldn't wake me up. Anyone else probably would have left me there in the front seat and gone to bed. Except Caleb. Once when I'd been drunk enough to pass out, Caleb had dragged me into his house, dropped me on the floor, and then he went to bed.

I sighed, and finally let him know I was awake by asking a question that had been on my mind since I opened my eyes and found the light from the window was enough to warm the room. "What time is it?"

Milo's hand withdrew from my back and I felt him shift on the bed. "It's almost twelve."

That got my attention. By now I figured that at least someone would be looking for me. My parents would have at least tried to call my friends to find out why I never came home or called. I turned over to face him. "That's kinda late," I commented, and then paused for a long moment to take in the way that Milo looked in the morning. His thick lashes shaded his eyes, which were only half-open and his skin glowed from sleep. For the length it was, his hair remained relatively neat, but seemed wavier than normal, and could have definitely used a comb, but I liked him that way. I probably would have tried to kiss him if I wasn't aware that my breath was potently disgusting.

"I can take you home," Milo said. "Whenever you're ready."

I closed my eyes momentarily, trying to determine how sick I was going to feel if I sat up. When I opened them again, I found Milo's eyes intently on me. "Do you have toothpaste somewhere around here?" I finally asked. I'm pretty sure it was the lecherous way I was suddenly looking at him, and not my words, that had the corners of his mouth turning up before he slowly left the bed and started to move across his room in black-and-gray-checkered boxers.

I got up a lot slower than Milo did, but I managed to get dressed on my own, and he even directed me down the hall to a small bathroom with a green shower curtain and matching rugs. It was a clean little space, and definitely Milo's if the cup full of paint brushes right next to the glass toothbrush holder was any indication. His bathroom seemed a lot more organized than his room had been when I'd first walked into it. He even had a whole drawer full of spare toothbrushes. Not just a couple of them, but an entire drawer. When I asked him about it he quietly explained that he collected them, ever since he was six. It seemed that his dentist had been his first real crush. I'd laughed at that, because I'd been terrified of my first dentist. Milo insisted that I'd gone to the wrong one, because he still saw his regularly. We brushed our teeth together, and when we were finished, Milo flashed a large smile at me. When I was younger, I'd flashed that same kind of smile at my parents after brushing my teeth for the usual inspection. I gave Milo a different kind of inspection.

He dropped his toothbrush when I suddenly turned towards him and my hands went to his waist over his gray t-shirt as I pinned him against the wall opposite the sink--but it wasn't like he'd have to go out and by a new one. The water was still running, and he was startled, but instead of pushing me away he reached out long enough to shove the bathroom door closed and his fingers settled over my shoulders as his lips parted against mine. Between the two of us, peppermint toothpaste tasted strong as I moved my tongue coaxingly against his. It wasn't a very long kiss, but it was a good one. I just wished that he hadn't heard Juanita moving around downstairs and insisted that he should get me home.

The drive from Milo's house to mine was a silent one, but that was probably my fault. I felt like I hadn't slept at all the night before, the way that my head was pounding so bad that it made me sick. It didn't help that I still didn't have my coat. The sun was bright, but the air was cold, and I was feeling it, even inside of his car. Milo had turned on his heater when I crossed my arms over my chest and snuggled back against the seat; but we were halfway to my house before it even warmed up, and by then I'd come to the conclusion that if I was going to have fun at homecoming at all, I needed a hot shower, bread products in my stomach, and more sleep. And when it came to homecoming, I was still thinking about the dance, which was now hours away, when Milo pulled into my driveway and came to a stop in front of the garage, right next to my own vehicle.

"Do you wanna come in for a while?" I asked him.

I couldn't even try to explain why he seemed surprised by the invitation.

"Aren't you busy or something--homecoming and all..."

"That's later," I replied. "Wanna come in?" I was feeling tired, and hoped that I hadn't managed to sound short with him.

He seemed to think about it for a moment. "I'll walk you," he offered.

I smiled at that. "My door's just right there," I pointed out. "I think I can make it."

He looked over at me, leaning back in his seat after putting the vehicle in park. "There's some stuff I needed to do today," he explained, and when I openly appeared disappointed, he added, "Maybe later."

I thought on that for a moment before nodding. "Are you going to homecoming?"

"I wasn't planning on it--Jame wants me to go."

"He's going?" I asked, surprised. I rarely ever saw Assface at school functions.

"He has a date with some girl--Veronica."

I tried not to look as shocked at that as I was. I'd heard about Assface having a date about as much as I saw him at school functions. "Well," I decided, "I actually agree with him this time--you should come."

Milo shrugged at that. "Maybe I will; maybe I'll find a date."

My brow flew up at that. "A date?"

"You have one," he pointed out.

"I'm going with Haily. That's different," I insisted, crossing my arms stubbornly.

"No it's not," he replied quietly. "Haily likes you. Everyone knows."

I studied him for a long moment, surprised that he'd notice that about Haily at all. "Does it bother you I'm going with her?" I asked pointedly.

"I don't know," he said, looking away from me. But, before I could respond to it, he quickly continued. "If I go, Jame's gonna expect me to hang out with him."

"So?"

"So, it wouldn't be like..."

"Going with me?" I finished for him, and then shrugged. "It sucks, Milo," I admitted. "But sometimes... it's just good to see you, ya know?"

He cocked his head at me. I just smiled.

"Just make sure your date isn't like... a date," I added, somewhat uncertainly. I wasn't really even sure if I had the right to say that to him at this point. "Are we together, Milo?" I asked. "It's hard to tell."

The awkward expression on his face suggested that my bold question had put him on the spot, but I couldn't quite hide my smile when a pink blush colored his cheeks. At least he had the decency to look like he was thinking about my inquiry.

"I don't know," he finally replied. It was an uncertain answer, and not one I particularly cared for. But I nodded, and as I opened the passenger door and glanced back at him before getting out of the car, I found myself hoping that that answer would change, hopefully sooner rather than later.

"Hey..." I said as I shielded the sun from my eyes. "I hope you come tonight--but if I don't see you, I'll call."

"Sure," Milo replied, and after a long moment of staring at him, I resisted the urge to ask him in again and let out a breath.

"Thanks for last night," I told him, and then sheepishly added, "And... I'm sorry about last night."

A faint smile crossed his mouth over that. He gave me a slight nod, and after I closed the door I stepped back and watched as he backed all the way out of my driveway, gave a small wave, and then disappeared.

When I got inside, I gave my parents the short explanation of why I hadn't come home. I couldn't drive, and I slept at a friend's house. I would have told them that that friend happened to be Milo, but I wasn't in the mood for questions as I went about trying to make myself feel better. I took a long shower, standing under the water until it ran cold, and then I had three large pumpkin muffins for breakfast before I tucked myself into my own bed--which decidedly, wasn't as comfortable as Milo's--and passed out for a while. A while, was three and a half hours until Caleb barged into my room wanting to know if the god-awful red jacket he'd chosen for homecoming was going to terrify his date. I assured him it would and gave him one of my black ones. It was a tight fit on him, but it worked. He hung around while I got dressed, following me between my room and the bathroom upstairs, and when I demanded to know why he'd ditched me last night, he swore up and down that Brandon Sholer had insisted that I wanted to stay. This reminded me that I'd more or less ditched Brandon the night before, but seeing how just about everyone had been completely wasted, I had a feeling that he wouldn't even remember. Besides, that didn't seem to be as big of an issue as it was to calm Caleb down over the idea that he'd ditched me. He was still talking about it after my mom had taken our pictures and we headed outside to our respective vehicles. Caleb was going to pick up Rebecca, and I was supposed to collect Haily, and then Joe and his date.

"Did Brandon at least get you home?' Caleb wanted to know. "He said you were gonna crash there or something.

"It was fine, Caleb, ' I insisted. "I was just wondering, that's all. And I was too trashed to go home last night, anyway. I crashed at Milo Trust's place."

That announcement caused Caleb to stop just before he opened his door. He looked back at me skeptically. "I didn't even know he was at Brandon's last night."

"He got there after you left," I explained. "He drove me home this morning, so no worries, okay? I'll see you at the school."

Caleb frowned, but waved as I dropped into the front seat of my car and went to collect my passengers. Joe was in an oddly good mood, but I had a feeling that that was because as soon as Kelly had climbed into the back seat with him she mentioned that she wasn't wearing underwear under the red dress he told her that she looked good in. When I picked up Haily, I spent ten minutes inside so her mom could take pictures of us together. She had chosen a dark green dress with her mother, and I told her I liked it, but I didn't tell her that that was because the fabric was the color of Milo's eyes. She seemed to like the compliment, though. And, I was pleased because once we reached the school, I felt like I was with Haily my best friend, not Haily, a girl who liked me, and it was all because she became self-conscious when people began to compliment her hair. She'd left it down, and in her usual braid it was hard to tell just how much she had. She did look pretty tonight, I decided, and told her so as I talked her into entering the auditorium with me.

The student council had done a pretty good job with homecoming. They'd kept it simple, offering various beverages and live music which alternated between a local rock band with a few members that had been in school with my brother, and the school choir, so at least there was variety. Decorations had been left simple with alternating lights and bouquets of purple and orange balloons ready to fall during chosen dances; and along the walls there were tables set up for anyone looking for a break. Caleb had already claimed one with Rebecca, and for the first half hour we were there that's where I remained, talking to my friends, and saying hello to others who had shown up. When we finally did start to dance, Caleb was already saying that he was ready to leave. He wanted to go down to Hangman, like a lot of other guys, but since Rebecca was up for homecoming queen, we were all staying for her. Personally, I'd voted for Christina Randelle, the redhead who'd shown up on Brandon Sholer's arm. But that was mostly because she'd taken piano lessons from my mom, and she'd always been really nice to me--not that I was going to try to explain this to Caleb, who'd recently voiced his dream to nail the homecoming queen. If Rebecca won, I suppose it would make that easier for him. But if there was anything that I figured Caleb didn't need help with, it was getting laid.

Brandon Sholer waved to me, but I didn't get the idea that he thought I'd ditched him last night, so I didn't find it necessary to apologize to him. I was too busy trying not to step on Haily's dress, anyway, which seemed to have an extra-long skirt. Haily was in a good mood, and it was nice to feel like I could just hang out with her again as we spent our time dancing and making fun of everyone else's dresses. Still, though, when Ryan Archer asked to dance with Haily I was quick to bow out and let him. Haily had shot me a dirty look for that, but she didn't look entirely put out about dancing with someone else, especially when Derek Oton was the next to ask her, much to his own date's chagrin. Haily seemed to be getting a lot of attention tonight, and she seemed to like it, so I was happy for her.

Another twenty minutes later and I was back at our table and sipping on my sixth cup of fruity red punch, talking to a few seniors who wanted to know how my brother was doing, when a girl from Brandon's party the night before approached me, wanting to dance. Seeing that Haily was actually dancing with Caleb now, I went with the short brunette. But, our dance didn't last very long. I hadn't even started to get winded before Caleb suddenly had his arm around my shoulders and he was pulling me away and turning me to face a less populated area of the dance floor, pointing at something that he obviously wanted me to see.

"What is she doing?" he asked over the music, his voice sounding blank.

"Who?" I asked, confused.

"Assface," Caleb said. "She's... with... Assface."

I looked at Caleb, not sure what he was talking about. I figured that it wasn't good if Jame Graham was involved, but it was the perplexed and incredulous look on Caleb's face as he stared straight ahead that told me it really wasn't good. I tried looking again, this time searching the crowd for a familiar face with fat cheeks.

Jame Graham wasn't very hard to spot. He was the only one in the vicinity terrifying people with his dance moves. His arms were swinging wildly as he hopped up and down aimlessly, and all the while his body wriggled around like a hypnotized cobra. I'd never seen anything like it, and couldn't quite help the way I laughed. But when Caleb dropped his arm from my shoulders and scowled at me I forced myself to stop and pay more attention. Obviously, it wasn't Jame's dancing that was bothering Caleb. In fact, I doubted that Caleb even noticed the dancing since the girl Assface was dancing with happened to be Ronnie. It took me a minute to figure it out. Like Haily, she didn't really look like herself all dressed up. But, it was Ronnie. Definitely Ronnie. And... Caleb was pissed.

My best friend hadn't talked about Ronnie lately. Every once in a while, he'd mention that she still wasn't talking to him, and while he was at it, he'd mention that he didn't care. But even I noticed the way that his head tended to turn every time we passed her at school. Which is why it was no surprise that he was now speaking through gritted teeth.

"What is she doing?" he wanted to know.

"Caleb..." I said carefully. "Where's Rebecca?"

"She must really hate me," Caleb remarked, still staring at Ronnie and Assface, shaking his head now.

"Milo said that Jame was coming with some girl named Veronica," was all I could think to say.

Caleb frowned at me. "Ronnie's name is Veronica."

"Oh... hey! I didn't know, Caleb," I stated when he looked at me accusingly. "I didn't. Maybe she's just trying to make you jealous," I suggested. "She was pretty upset when you asked Rebecca to homecoming."

"She's not trying to make you jealous," Haily said, joining the conversation as she appeared on the other side of Caleb. "If she wanted to make you jealous, she would have shown up with anyone else looking like that. It would have worked just fine--and, you would have deserved it."

"Hey!" Caleb protested, about to cry Judas at Haily.

"Well you would have!" Haily informed him. "You should have been here with Ronnie in the first place. She's nice Caleb, and you like her. She likes you, too. She's just mad as hell at you. That's why she's trying to piss you off."

"What?" Caleb demanded. I looked at Haily, as curious as Caleb was. She just rolled her eyes.

"She's been watching you for the last hour, Caleb," Haily explained, looking exasperated.

"You saw her with Assface and didn't tell me?" Caleb demanded, and when his face began to turn red, even under the strobe lights, I found myself moving between my two friends.

"Caleb..." I started.

"I didn't want you getting into a stupid fight," Haily informed him. "You know that Jame will just look for reasons to get to you. And you're with Rebecca--by choice. Deal with it."

"Haily..." I thought that was a little harsh, true or not.

"Deal with it?" Caleb demanded. "Assface, Haily! Deal with it? What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, you blew it, Caleb," Haily responded. "If you didn't want Ronnie dancing with him you should have asked her yourself."

"Maybe I'll ask her now," Caleb responded, as if it were supposed to be a threat. He took only one step in Jame and Ronnie's direction before I grabbed his shoulder.

"Caleb! Don't," I insisted, looking at him seriously when he turned to face me. "Please... talk to her later. Just, go find Rebecca."

"Assface," Caleb said again, even as I turned him around. Fortunately, Haily was finished scolding him and took it upon herself to help me.

"Come on, Caleb," she insisted. "We'll find Rebecca and see when they're going to do this homecoming thing so we can get out of here. My dress is starting to itch, anyway."

"I'm gonna use the restroom," I said. "I'll catch up to you guys in a few minutes."

"Hurry up, Nels," Haily called after me as we separated. "If we can't leave I wanna dance some more."