Free Getting In: A Novel by Karen Stabiner Page A

in her sophomore year. “Some of us aren’t really ready to make a decision this early, and the six extra months gives us time we need to mature. I’m a different person today than I was last year, right?”
    “Right,” allowed Deena, wondering what trap she was stepping into.
    “Then I’ll be a different girl when the letters come out next April than when the early ones come out in December, right?”
    “I guess so,” said Deena, although she had no idea if she really believed it. At some point the apocalyptics of growing up steadied into a more manageable rhythm—in Dave’s case, they had congealed into an infuriating sameness. Why not assume that Chloe would still essentially be Chloe next spring and go for early decision? Deena had no patience for the subtleties of a real college strategy, but she understood dating. Schools wanted to say yes to kids who definitely would say yes to them, not to kids who might have their heads turned by a more handsome suitor. That was what early decision was all about, at least at schools where an average student like Chloe might stand a chance.
    “Excuse me?” said Chloe. “You guess so?”
    “I’m thinking about what you said.”
    “Yeah, but while you’re thinking I’m not getting my homework done.”
    Chloe retreated to her bedroom, closed the door, and sent Lauren an instant message to see if she was home. Before the parking-lot argument, Chloe had had friends over all the time, but once she moved to Ocean Heights she had started inviting herself to other people’s houses. It made her parents feel bad, which never hurt, and it reminded her friends of how drastically Chloe’s life had changed, which was always good for a little attention.Lauren’s parents only minded company during midterms and finals, and occasionally on the night before a big test or paper, which, happily for Chloe, this turned out not to be. As soon as Lauren messaged back, Chloe threw her laptop into her bag along with her calculus binder, cell phone, a twenty, and her driver’s license. She ducked into the bathroom and rubbed her face with a dry towel until her cheeks and forehead colored up, and she ground a fist into each eye socket to make the whites redden, just a bit. She stood for a moment behind her bedroom door, as generations of actresses have stood in the wings before a big entrance, and then she rushed into the kitchen, looking suitably distressed.
    “I can’t believe it,” she said to her mother. “My calc binder is at Dad’s.”
    “How can that be?” said Deena. “Honey, you really have to—”
    “It’s not my fault. Daddy always double-checks, or he said he does, I don’t know, oh, Mom, I have to go get it right now.”
    Deena dried her hands and tossed the dishtowel on the counter. “I’ll drive you over. This has got to stop. I’m going to talk to him, sweetie, really, we’ll figure this out for you…”
    Chloe startled her mother by wrapping her in a hug. “Oh, Mommy, you are the best, but you don’t have to drive me all the way to the Valley. I’ll talk to Dad. Really. I have to learn how to take responsibility for myself.”
    “It’s seven thirty,” said Deena, thinking that it had been a while since Chloe had called her Mommy. “Really, I can take you.”
    “If I leave right now it’s a half hour to Dad’s, and maybe I’ll study when I get there instead of waiting until I get back, and then a half hour back, so I’ll be home by ten.”
    “What if he’s not home?”
    “Then I won’t have to take any extra time talking to him. I can be the world’s most efficient calculus student.” She grabbedthe car keys off the little hook by the kitchen door and sealed the deal with a kiss on Deena’s cheek. “Love you, Mom. Bye.”
     
    Communications technology was kind to high school students: instant-messaging, texting, and the vibrate feature on cell phones made it impossible for a parent passing by the closed door of a child’s room to