Free The Tailgate by Elin Hilderbrand Page A

secured a spot as a feature writer for the Yale Daily News . He had been a superstar in high school—a “hundred-year genius,” their English teacher Mr. Kane had called him—and apparently his star shone just as brightly in New Haven. Dabney had been salutatorian to Clen’s valedictorian but had gotten into Harvard, whereas Clen had not, but she found that her skills and intellect were average, nothing special. Her only standout talent was her matchmaking; she had already set up two couples in Grays Hall and had another potential match brewing. This hobby of hers was local legend back home and the source of Clen’s nickname for her: “Cupe,” short for “Cupid.”
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    The game, the game! It was the perfect opportunity for Dabney to visit New Haven. Everyone from Harvard was going. By the time the week of the game rolled around, Dabney was able to tell the guys from Owl that she had found another ride, one that would be far more palatable to Clen. She would drive to New Haven with her roommate, Mallory, and Mallory’s boyfriend, Jason, who was first line on the ice hockey team.
    Just like Oliver Barrett! Dabney had swooned the morning after Mallory had first hooked up with Jason.
    Mallory had looked at Dabney with the vacant expression that occasionally overcame her pale, pretty face. Once or twice a week Mallory exhibited behavior that made Dabney question how she had gotten into Harvard. She was from Bozeman, Montana; that was, quite possibly, the answer.
    â€œOliver Barrett?” Dabney prompted. “From Love Story ?”
    Mallory shrugged. She was tired and hung over, her impressive mane of permed hair mussed from love gymnastics with Jason the hockey player. “Never seen it,” she said.
    Dabney didn’t know why she felt surprised. She had found few of her classmates were versed in the classics. Like much of the student body, Mallory was more interested in Howard Jones and Top Gun.
    Dabney then discovered, on a weekend when she, Dabney, gave Jason a ride to visit his sister at Tabor Academy, that Jason hailed from Ipswich, Massachusetts— just like Oliver Barrett! Dabney started calling Jason “Preppie.” Mallory didn’t like when Dabney used this nickname for her boyfriend, nor did she like it when Jason offered to take Dabney to the game. But, as Jason pointed out, he owed Dabney a ride.
    Dabney thought that riding to the game with Mallory and Preppie would be fun. She would do it.
    She would do it!
    Every Monday afternoon, Dabney spoke for fifty minutes to her therapist, Dr. Donegal. These calls she took on a private line in the Office for Student Life. Unlike Clen, Dr. Donegal never tired of discussing Dabney’s issue, her rare form of agoraphobia, or maybe he did, but it was his job. He couldn’t “fix” the problem—after eight years, they had learned it was something that couldn’t be fixed—but he helped Dabney manage it.
    â€œI’m going to New Haven,” she announced to Dr. Donegal the Monday before the Game.
    â€œExcellent,” Dr. Donegal said. “It’s a big step. I’m proud of you. Are you driving?”
    â€œNo,” Dabney said. “I’m afraid if I drive myself, I’ll panic and head for home. So I’m going to catch a ride with my roommate and her boyfriend.”
    â€œMallory and her boyfriend? The hockey player?”
    Dabney loved how Dr. Donegal remembered the details of her life. He was a very good therapist.
    â€œYes,” Dabney said. “His parents just gave him a Camaro for his birthday.” Dabney had a bit of a car fetish and was a devoted Chevy girl. In truth, the idea of riding in Jason’s new Camaro thrilled her, even though she would be smushed like a thirteenth donut in the backseat. “Camaros are actually very safe cars.”
    â€œIndeed they are,” Dr. Donegal said. “You’ll be