Free Miss Taken by Sue Seabury Page B

mud.
    So the first batch of chocolates was a total
waste, from the point of view of giving them a gift. For better or
worse, I have no problem eating unattractive candy. Anyway, I had
to eat it to get rid of the evidence because that stuff stunk to
high heaven. However, now that a constellation of pimples have
erupted on my chin, I think I would have been better off chucking
it into the backyard for the skunks to have a party with.
    My determination to get the recipe right
redoubled after Ned left me the cutest card at my locker, signed “a
secret admirer.” At least, I’m pretty sure it was from Ned. When
the thought that someone else might have left it appeared, I poked
in its variegated eyes and focused on Ned’s big brown ones instead.
I went straight home and made up a card for Ned “from a secret
admirer” to stick in his locker the next day.
    Tuesday, I found a cute little heart lollipop
on my desk in French class. I was amazed that Ned had been able to
make it all the way across the school to put it there...I risked a
sideways glance at Kyle in the darkened room. He seemed pretty
intent on the film. Mirabelle was moving about with unnecessary
vigor, showing off her backless sundress but giving us plenty of
front view as well. I shifted a little in my chair, making the
metal foot squeak. Kyle raised his eyebrows and smiled, but not in
a way that told me he put the candy there.
    I had to wonder though.
    Ned got my card and loved it. He said if all
goes well we would be able to go out Friday, starting right after
school because his parents were going to let him drive that day! I
was totally psyched. My second batch of chocolate turned out better
than the first, but still not as pretty as I wanted them to be.
    I did not eat these rejects, however. Between
the pimples and the waistband of my jeans digging into my side, I
needed to lay off the candy. Somehow I was going to have to find
time to work some calisthenics into the schedule as well.
    I decided to bring round #2 in to school on
Friday to share with whomever, Diana, Hannah, even Kyle since they
weren’t bad, they just weren’t up to snuff for my boyfriend.
    My third attempt wasn’t a total success, but
I was now officially out of time and whiskey, so I decided that
truffles that were neither perfectly round, oval, square or any
other recognizable shape had a certain rustic charm.
    Anyway, that’s my story and I’m sticking to
it.
    I brought the rejects to share too, but of
course I couldn’t do that in math since Ned was there.
    Although the chocolate-making had used up a
lot of time, I still found a few minutes to create a smashing
ensemble to wear out on our date. The base was my red crinkle
sheath dress. Even though it had betrayed me on the first day of
school when it got tucked into the back of my jeans and made me
look like a strutting peacock, it is flattering to my skin tone and
a classic for the holiday. I paired it with a multi-colored beaded
knit shrug (some of the beads exactly match my new Caribbean blue
eyes) and black parachute pants. After all the candy I had eaten,
it was important to wear the most slimming color. Plus it was
pretty chilly. If Ned was planning another outdoor picnic, I wanted
to be prepared.
    My hair wasn’t a great success, but it never
is, and what with all the time I spent on the truffles and the
outfit, I really didn’t have time to mess with it. I clamped on a
chip clip and forgot about it.
    Ned was clearly impressed with my attire.
When he squeezed my hand, I felt full-body tingles in anticipation
of the big event coming up in a mere six hours. Ned wasn’t dressed
any special way, but that’s his style, forever casual, if not to
say totally mismatched.
    Sofagirl was watching us as I whispered sweet
nothings in his ear. I made a remark about the creepy way she is
always staring us with those giant eyes of hers. “Sofagirl is so
skinny, maybe she is going to eat us up.” I giggled.
    Ned pulled away a little.