Free The Last Boy and Girl in the World by Siobhan Vivian Page B

the guys. They’d drink anything.
    I was happy to see that our running through the rain had inspired other juniors and seniors to leave their cars, because the gym was now way more crowded than it had been when we first came through the doors. Elise claimed us one of the last open café tables set up along the sidelines of the gym. I slipped off my rain boots and rubbed my bare feet back and forth against the wood floor to try and warm them up. I had a pair of sneakers in my locker that I thought about changing into, but I figured other girls would take off their shoes eventually, once people started dancing.
    I looked around for Jesse, finally spotting him along the wall where the wrestling mats were folded in a tall stack. He had changed out of his button-up shirt and pants and into an Aberdeen High hunter green and gold wrestling singlet with his argyle dress socks and loafers. I guess that was his only option. I saw the lines of his tighty whities through the spandex. Any other boy would have looked gross, but Jesse, well . . . of course he looked handsome. Handsome and hilarious, which was my favorite combination. And it felt good that, just like me, Jesse was down to keep having fun tonight, wet clothes be damned. I tried to catch his eye so he’d see me laughing, appreciating his new outfit, but he was either talking with the guys or posing with random girls who came over to take pictures with him with their phones.
    The DJ put on a fast song. I wanted to sit and wait for Jesse to notice that I’d come back, but that would have been lame. It would be better if he saw me having a blast out on the dance floor. So I said to my friends, “Come on. Let’s get some blisters.”
    Elise stood right up with me, but Morgan scrunched up her face. “Maybe in another song or—”
    I grabbed her hand and dragged her out to the center of the basketball court.
    After a few songs, if it was still raining, I had no idea. I was too busy dancing. Elise mostly swayed to the beat, but Morgan and I used to dance in her basement when we were little, and we had a few routine moves down pat that I eventually forced her into doing with me. I’d always been jealous that she got to take real-deal dance lessons, but she let me wear her costumes, and she’d teach me the moves she learned and it ended up feeling like I’d taken the classes too. We’d even put on performances for her grandmother.
    As much as I was there in the moment, every time a song ended, I’d wonder if Jesse would come find me. When he didn’t, I’d think about going to grab him. Could I be that brave?
    But then a new song would come on and we’d scream, because it would be absolutely the one song we needed to hear right then. I guess because we’d started late, the DJ was focusing on keeping us dancing and not trying to mix in slow songs, which I was grateful for. A bunch of junior girls eventually made a circle and I kept being pushed into the center. I’d try to make Morgan dance there with me, but she always found a way to shimmy back to the edges. I hoped Jesse was watching.
    A slow song finally came on. I pulled Morgan close, but she wriggled free from my arms. “Keeley!” she whispered suddenly. “Here he comes!” And this time, she hurried to the table before I could grab her again.
    Jesse popped up in front of me. Still in that wrestling singlet.
    â€œYou look ridiculous,” I told him, but of course I was smiling.
    â€œRidiculously . . . hot?” He took my hand and led me to the center of the dance floor.
    The crazy thing was, he did. Because he was handsome and confident and funny and God, could he freaking rock a singlet.
    He put his hands on my waist, finding the little divots in my hips so fast and sure that it took my breath away. I lifted my arms up around his shoulders. And we began to slowly tip our weight from side to side.
    We had a good bit