Free The Last Dance by Kiki Hamilton

everything had changed for me.
    I’d tried to be nicer to Ivy, even though I didn’t talk much. I was ashamed of myself the way I’d acted, but apparently she either really held a grudge or just wasn’t the warm and fuzzy type. Because the only talking she did was to answer any questions I had on the assignment. I swear she made a point not to ever look at me—like I was invisible. Maybe it was better if we weren’t friends anyway.
    When Ivy sat down in the chair next to mine in science on Friday, I made an extra effort to be nice to her. I didn’t smile, of course, messed up lips and all, but I did say ‘hi’ as soon as she sat down. She didn’t smile either. Just mumbled ‘hi’ as she got her notebook out.
    I studied her out of the corner of my eyes as she was taking notes, wondering what went on in her head. She looked just as normal as any other girl in school but she had to have a super-computer for a brain to be able to keep up with her classes and tutor me on top of it all.
    The teacher stopped talking and told us to work with our partners. Ivy slid her notebook over so I could read what she’d written about the project and started explaining what we were going to be doing in class. Her handwriting was small and neat. Her voice was lower than I would have expected and kind of husky, like she’d had too much Cuervo. I laughed in my head. As if.
    I scooted my little desk over closer to look at the diagram she’d drawn and caught a whiff of her perfume. She smelled like those white flowers in Hawaii—what were they called? Couldn’t remember that either. She was still talking about control sampling when it came to me.
    “Plumeria.” The word popped out of my mouth like there was a hinge between my brain and my lips. Great. I couldn’t remember for shit when I wanted, but nonsensical bullshit poured out of my mouth without any effort at all.
    “What did you say?” Ivy gave me a WTH? look but I thought I could see the faintest hint of a blush on her cheeks. So I was right. I grinned at her before I caught myself.
    “Your perfume.” Now she was definitely blushing. I was just going to tell her it was nice when the door at the front of the classroom swung open. Laurel glided in to deliver a note to Mr. Pruitt and I froze, my eyes locked on her. I’d heard she’d asked Josh Hendershot to the upcoming Sadie Hawkins dance. She looked great in a pair of tight jeans and a white Eagles sweatshirt, her blond hair pulled back in a ponytail. My stomach twisted in the way it used to do before a big game.
    I’m not sure if it was my devouring stare or if she knew I was in the class, but after she handed the note to the teacher she glanced straight at me. Her gaze shifted to Ivy and her eyes narrowed in a frown, then she turned away as if she hadn’t seen me at all.
    Somebody let out a wolf whistle from the back of the room. Laurel turned on her cheerleader smile and tossed her ponytail as she strutted back out the door, one hand on her hip. I was still staring at the spot where she’d disappeared into the hallway when Ivy cleared her throat.
    Embarrassed, I looked over to find her eyes on me for the first time since we’d met in Principal Decker’s office. Her eyes were dark and mysterious, ringed with thick black lashes. The kind you could get lost in, trying to figure out what she was thinking. When she looked at me in Mr. D’s office I could see surprise and a wordless evaluation. Now—I saw pity. I wasn’t sure which was worse.
    FIFTH PERIOD WE went to the music room and I worked on playing the piano. Talk about death by humiliation. I used to be able to hit CJ in the numbers with a football from forty yards. Now, I couldn’t get my freakin’ fingers to press down on two keys in the proper sequence to save my ass.
    After messing up the same three line song for the fifth time, it was all I could do not to slam my hands down on the keys.
    “Listen,” I said. My head was pounding and I knew the only