Free Always You by Missy Johnson

hard.
    I nodded and got out of the car, closing the door. He drove off, and I
stood there on the curb, staring until I could no longer see his taillights.
Once he was gone, I stepped into my car.
    I sat there, trying to digest what had just happened. Kissing him had
evoked everything in me. It felt like a hurricane of feelings and emotions had
ripped through my body, leaving me a muddled mess inside.
     
    I reached into my purse and pulled out my phone. It had been on silent
since I’d arrived at the theater. There were six missed calls from Kassia, and
countless texts, all conveying the same message; call me.
    I dialed her number. She answered on the first ring.
    “Where the hell have you been?” she shrieked loudly.
    “What’s wrong?” I asked, alarmed at her tone.
    “What’s wrong? Fuck, Wrenn. If you’re going to tell your aunt you’re
going out with me, at least clue me in on it.” She sounded frustrated and
annoyed.
    Shit.
    I hadn’t even considered the fact that Layna was friends with Kass’s
parents.
    “Shit, it didn’t even occur to me,” I groaned, slapping my forehead.
    “It’s okay. This time. I
covered for you. I’m sitting in a diner just out of town, freezing my ass off
for you. You so owe me,” she grumbled. “Get your ass over here now.”
    ***
    I slid into the booth opposite
Kass, handing her my spare jacket. She took it gratefully and slipped it on.
    “You so owe me a dessert,” she grumbled, still pissed.
    I smiled. “Sure. Get whatever you want.” I sat back, running over the
night in my head. That kiss . . . I shivered as chills danced down my spine.
    “Oh, I plan on it.” She reached for the menu to survey her options. “So,
spill.”
    “Huh?”
    “Where were you, and who didn’t you want your aunt to know you were with?
And don’t even try to lie to me,” she
warned, her brown eyes narrowing.
    I glanced around the empty diner, fighting myself on how much to tell
her. I could trust Kass, and I needed to tell someone. I was desperate for someone else’s opinion, and there was
nobody who would give it to me straighter than Kass.
    “Promise this doesn’t go further than you and me,” I said, leaning across
the booth.
    She did the same. “I promise,” she said, her eyes wide.
    “Okay. I was with Dalton.”
    She looked confused, so I added “Reid.”
    Her eyes grew even wider. “As in . . . ”
    “Mr. Reid,” I agreed.
    “Tell me everything! Leave nothing out!” she hissed as I giggled,
relieved by her reaction.
    “It’s hard to explain. We’ve had this kind of flirting thing going on for
weeks now. I called him and asked him to a movie, and he said yes.”
    Kass’s mouth dropped open.
    “Kass, I feel so . . . I don’t even know how to explain it. And when we
kissed—”
    “You kissed him?” she squealed.
    I blushed and shot her a look. She immediately clamped her mouth shut.
    “It just kind of happened. Now I have no idea where I stand.”
    “Forget dessert. Stay at my house tonight. We need to hash this out.” She
grabbed my arm and steered me over to the counter. “But first, you need to pay
for the five coffees I had while waiting for you.”
    ***
    Kass’s bedroom was bigger than our living room at home. It was fucking
huge. She had her own bathroom and balcony. Her king-sized bed barely took up
any of the room. A large TV hung on the ivory-colored wall above a fireplace.
    “Okay, so tell me everything,” she said, wriggling out of her jeans and
into a pair of gray sweatpants.
    I lay down on her bed and told her everything—from the movies, to
him coming over, to how I felt when I was around him. It was like a weight had
been lifted off me. I’d needed to get all this out, and if not Kass, then who
was I going to tell? My aunt? I snorted at the thought. I could talk to Layna
about many things, but a crush on my teacher was not one of them, especially
when I had just kissed said teacher.
    Kass collapsed dramatically on the bed beside