Free Never Let Me Go by Jasmine Carolina

and then I pick her up in the afternoon—I’m sorry. I just think it’s best if I don’t introduce her to someone right away.”
    I nodded, understanding his reasoning. I could remember meeting a bunch of my dad’s girlfriends as a child, and how much it fucked me up inside when things didn’t work out between them. Besides that, my mom always moved way too fast with guys—six men had lived with us in ten years, and she’d gotten married to two of them.
    “I totally understand.”
    “How’s Monday for you?”
    I shook my head. “Monday’s no good. I have an interview with Pat at Buck and Doe’s and if things go well, I could be starting work that same day.”
    I felt his chest rise and fall as he huffed in frustration. His lips were on my hair as he kissed my head. “So then when can I see you?”
    I turned around, using his knees to push myself up to my feet. I stood in front of him, taking his hands. He got to his feet as well, pulling me flush against him. “How about this? You get Skylar back on Sunday and I have to work Monday. I’ve no idea what my schedule is going to be like if I even get the job, so how about after the interview—which is at noon—you give me a call. I’ll let you know how everything went, and then we’ll go from there. If I got the job, we’ll go over my schedule and make plans. If I didn’t get the job, then I’ll be free anyway.” I laced my fingers at the base of his neck, grabbing a tuft of his slightly curly hair. “Whatever we have to do, I don’t care. I had a wonderful time with you, Hayden, and I would love to do this again sometime.”
    He leaned forward, resting his forehead against mine. “Is that so?” When I nodded against him, he placed his hands at the small of my back. “I’m glad you had a great time, Michele.”
    He leaned forward, and, unsure about whether he was trying to kiss me on the lips or on the cheek, I pulled away immediately.
    I closed my eyes as I recalled the last time that I’d been kissed.
    “I love you,” I said, my hands tugging at tufts of Brody’s sandy brown hair. His arms encircled my waist, holding me close as we swayed to the song that was playing. “I couldn’t imagine a more perfect way to spend this night.”
    “Me too,” he said.
    The words were like an iron fist in my gut. We’d been together for two years and I’d tried to get past the fact that he’d never told me that he loved me. It hadn’t bothered me too much at first, because I knew how hard it was for him to admit how he felt about people. However, we were about to start our senior year, we were going to graduate soon, and I needed to know how he felt. I needed to know if he saw a possibility of a future with me so that I could make a decision about our relationship.
    “Brody, seriously, tonight has been perfect. Thank you so much for everything.” I rested my head against his chest.
    I stopped talking immediately as the music stopped playing and someone tapped on the microphone. I removed my arms away from him, turning so that I was beside him, my arm draped lazily around his waist.
    “Ladies and gentlemen, could I please have your attention for the crowning of junior prom king and queen!” Mr. Matthews, our vice principal said. “This year’s junior prom king is—Brody Durham!” I turned to Brody, a giant smile plastered on my face as his eyes lit up in surprise. “This year’s junior prom queen is—Michele Taggaro!”
    I squealed loudly, grabbing Brody’s hair and kissing him on the lips. His arm circled my waist, pulling me closer as our lips embarked on a lover’s dance. It only took a few seconds for me to realize that his fervor wasn’t matching mine.
    He was stopping.
    Why was he stopping?!
    His hands moved from my waist to touch my shoulders. He pushed me away just as the spotlight descended upon us. His eyes were wide and searching, his expression far away, as though he was there with me, but he wasn’t really there. “Michele,