Free The Clearing by Heather Davis

before—work boots, brown pants, suspenders, a white shirt with the sleeves rol ed up over his strong forearms. Man, he was solid.
    "Hey." I returned his bright smile.
    His face was tan, which made his blue, blue eyes stand out and his teeth look white as milk. "Wel ," he said, clearing his throat, "you're al gussied up this evening. What's the occasion?" He brushed a hand through his sandy blond hair to smooth it. I figured al my staring must have made him self-conscious, but I couldn't help it. How had I not noticed that Henry was super cute?
    I laughed and wrinkled my nose at him. "I wouldn't cal this gussied up."
    "What do you mean? Look at you—you're shiny."
    "It's cal ed a scarf. It's just got a few sparkles." I tugged at the ends of the accessory that was draped over my plain white tee and black zip sweatshirt.
    "No, you look shiny." He pointed at my lips and then sort of blushed.
    "Oh." I shrugged. "Gloss with gold flecks. It's my going-out look."
    "So you're going out on the town?"
    "Nah, just to Lori's down the road. That's why I came out to get you. I wondered if you might want to go."
    "Oh, I see." He rubbed a hand across his jaw line.
    I bit my lip, waiting for Henry's answer. I mean, not that I cared. We were just friends, but stil . "It's probably going to be lame," I said, starting to feel heat creeping into my cheeks. "You don't have to go."
    "It's very kind of you to invite me," Henry said. "But, I'm sorry. I can't accompany you."
    "Okay. I understand," I said quickly.
    Henry took a step toward me. "Amy, I real y would like to go with you."
    "It's okay, you don't have to explain," I said, just wanting to run now.
    "Wait a second," he said as he reached out for my hand. "Real y. If I could, I would." His hand felt warm and dry, and feeling him touch me was strange, but not uncomfortable. I got the sudden urge to hug him.
    "I just wanted to go ... as friends," I said, easing away.
    He shoved his hands in his pockets. "I wasn't expecting anything else."
    I looked up at him. His eyes were focused on me intently, and there was genuine warmth there. I never used to believe it when people said that someone had kind eyes, but just then it made sense, because Henry had them.
    "You go on and have fun," he said. "I'l see you here again. Wil you come tomorrow?"
    I nodded and walked off toward my side of the clearing.
    I knew he was watching me. It felt good. And terrifying.

    ***
    "Ohmigosh! Cute scarf!" Lori met me at her front door, pul ing me inside, where a virtual mass of kids was churning like an ocean. Loud country music blasted from a stereo somewhere, barely covering the roar of conversations and laughter.
    "Just a few friends?" I reached into my bag and pul ed out a jar of strawberry preserves, which Mae had insisted I bring to Lori and her folks.
    Lori shrugged and abandoned the jar on a bookshelf next to a mini-statue of a jumping trout. "It's a little bigger than I planned," she said, throwing up her hands. She steadied herself against the bookshelf and tugged at the back of her tights. She'd gone from jeans and T-shirt at school to a short black dress and wobbly high heels. And she was extra wobbly, from what I could tel .
    "Yeah, it's packed. Are al these people your friends?"
    Lori reached out and put her hands on my shoulders, pushing me into the mass of kids. "Booze in the kitchen," she shouted, melting into the crowd herself.
    I stood there for a minute, getting jostled and feeling total y out of place. After the second elbow to my side from a wild dancer, I forced my way through the partygoers and found the kitchen. A girl I remembered seeing in my AP English class handed me a can of beer. I took it from her, but I didn't crack it open; I was too stunned by her completely chugging down the one she'd taken for herself. Laughing, she threw the empty can into the sink and then fel into the arms of a guy in a Rockvil e Roosters shirt who escorted her off toward the living room dance floor.
    "Hi," I