Protect My Heart by Judy Corry
Emma
Friday,AKA day sixteen of my boy-cleanse, came fast with all the things I had going on. Only five more days until I conquered my own twenty-one-day boy fix. I was killing it!
Maya and I had handed out the rest of the fliers, and the kids at school seemed excited about the date auction. Actually, quite a few had volunteered to be auctioned off. And Maya was still getting texts from all the college kids who wanted to be part of it as well. This whole thing was going to totally rock!
At Maya’s invitation, Arie joined our table during lunch the last half of the week. I wasn’t so sure about it at first, worried I might get lost in those sparkly blue eyes of his as he sat across from me, but so far it hadn’t been an issue.
After school on Friday, I went on a quick shopping trip for groceries with my friends, and then we hurried to my room for some last-minute primping.
“I’m so excited Arie’s coming tonight,” Maya said as she sat in front of my vanity, touching up her makeup.
“And I’m excited to hang out with Conner!” Kathryn looked like she was about to burst at the seams with excitement. “Thanks for getting me to invite him. I don’t know what I was so afraid of in the first place.” She stood behind Maya, trying to figure out which way to wear her hair, holding it up one moment and then letting it fall around her shoulders the next.
“Lucky for Emma, he’s bringing Troy.” Maya glanced back to where I sat on my bed, already wearing my hooded sweatshirt with my hair in a ponytail. Thanks to my boy-cleanse, I had no reason to primp. “I bet he’ll be more than happy to keep you warm by the fire.”
“Thanks, but I think I’ll stick with my trusty blanket.” I rolled my eyes.
“Suit yourself.” Maya turned back to the mirror, applied her red-wine lipstick, and then smacked her lips together. She was daring when it came to makeup. She went all out, and it looked good on her. I, on the other hand, usually focused on my eyes. I felt way too overdone if I used lipstick. To be honest, I didn’t feel comfortable wearing it. I was always worried it would get smudged, or I’d press my lips together without thinking and end up looking like a clown and not even know it.
Once they finished their preening, we went to set things up outside. My house was in the older part of town, so our backyard was a lot larger than the yards of the newer houses in Maplebridge. We had a grassy area right outside the back door, and to the right, there was a cement pad with a fire pit my dad had built when I was younger.
We arranged the bags of chips, hot dogs, and buns on the patio table nearby, and then we gathered a few benches and camp chairs from the shed to set around the fire pit.
“Do you think we should start the fire before the boys get here?” I asked, looking at the progress we’d made. I had never built a fire myself, so I didn’t know how long it would take to get it burning.
“We should wait and let the guys show off their man skills,” Maya said.
I laughed. “Maybe we should let them carry the firewood over, too.”
“Of course!” Kathryn said. “Gotta let them show off their muscles.”
“Good thinking, Kathryn.” Maya rested her hands on her hips. “I definitely wouldn’t mind seeing Arie put his muscles to good use.”
I shook my head. I really hoped Maya wouldn’t be too disappointed once she discovered what kind of a guy Arie probably was. I should warn her, but I didn’t want to ruin her night before it even got started. She was tougher than me anyway. While I had barely been able to think of anything to say when I caught Nick and his good friend making out in his car outside his house, Maya had gone right up to him, knocked on his car window, and told him off. Maya was a firecracker, even if she didn’t look it in her petite body. If she did end up in some sort of relationship with Arie, she could handle it.
I set one last chair around the fire pit. “I think we’re pretty much done out here. Let’s go inside and wait for the boys.”
We’d only been inside a few minutes when the doorbell rang.
My heart pumped with anticipation, and we rushed to the living room. “We got it,” I called to my parents before they could try to answer the door. We didn’t need them giving the guys a full-on interrogation like they always did. My parents were cool and all, but sometimes it would be nice to not be watched so closely all the time.
Maya opened the door to find Arie holding a plate of brownies awkwardly in front of him. “Hey, Arie, come on in.”
“Thanks.” He stepped through and held the plate out to me. “My aunt said I should bring something over. I hope you like brownies.”
“I love brownies, actually.” I squinted at him. Was there some secret handbook guys had that told them how to weasel their way onto a girl’s good side? Because if there was, Arie definitely had it. Actually, he’d probably written it. He was too nice, and guys were only nice like that when they wanted something. “How did you know brownies are my favorite?”
He frowned. “I didn’t.”
Maya glared at me, and I knew she was wondering why I was acting so weird. But I couldn’t help it. Normal high school guys didn’t do sweet things like bring brownies to a cookout.
Maya scooted up to Arie’s side. “We’re out back.” She took him by the arm and guided him to the back door. “Do you think you could help us carry some firewood over to the pit?” Maya asked, and then she turned around to wink at Kathryn and me before stepping outside.
Conner and Troy arrived a minute later and we led them out back. As I shut the back door, I caught a glimpse of my parents spying through the kitchen window as we joined Maya and Arie. My parents were so weird.
“It looks like we have more than enough firewood,” I commented as I set the brownies on the table. Next to the fire pit, there was a pile of wood big enough to start a bonfire. “Thanks for helping us out.”
Arie gave Maya a crooked grin as he dusted his hands off on his dark jeans. “Maya kept telling me to get more while she sat and watched as I worked.”
I bet she did.
“I thought I’d let you impress me with your mountain-man skills.” Maya grinned. “Plus, you wouldn’t want me to get my new shirt dirty, would you?”
“Now that would be a tragedy,” Arie said sarcastically and plopped down in one of the camp chairs.
I bent over the fire to roast my marshmallow until it was perfectly golden brown. It was dark now, with only the light of the fire to see by. I loved campfires. There was something about them that made me feel happy and content. The sparks flying up in the air and away into the night, the crackling of the wood, and the campfire smell were soothing to me.
When I turned around to go back to my seat next to Maya, Troy had stolen it and was now flirting with her. The only seat vacant was next to Arie, so even though it was against the rules of my boy-cleanse, I had to sit there or risk looking rude.
Arie was looking around my backyard as if there was something interesting to see, so I took the opportunity to study him while he was distracted. He had been the perfect gentleman all evening, helping us carry out the salads my mom had made for us, running after napkins that blew away in the wind, and other things like that. He hadn’t shown a single symptom of being the egocentric jerk I’d made him out to be in my mind. I probably shouldn’t have been so hard on him from the beginning—even if I had kept most of my skepticism to myself.
He turned toward me and began cleaning his roasting stick in the ashes. “How are you getting to the All-State Choir practice tomorrow?” he asked.
“Kathryn and I are driving down together.”
“Oh.” He nodded. He pursed his lips as if debating whether to say something. “Do you guys have room for an extra? I still don’t really know anyone in choir yet.”
If I hadn’t been thinking so many bad thoughts about him all week, I probably would have already thought to invite him. I’d started my boy-cleanse as a defense against getting hurt again, but all it seemed to be doing was turn me into someone I didn’t like. “Of course. I should have invited you sooner.”
“Awesome.” The firelight danced across his face, making it hard not to stare. Seriously, his jaw could have been chiseled from stone.
“Should we pick you up at your house, or would you rather meet here?” I asked.
“I’ll meet you here. My house is only a couple of blocks away.” He set his stick on the ground and then leaned back in his chair.
“Really? Where do you live?” I leaned back in my seat as well, feeling more comfortable around him now I’d let down my guard a little.
“Just over on Miller Circle.” He motioned with his hand in the direction of that street. “It’s the brick house at the end of the cul-de-sac.”
“I think I know what house you’re talking about. Anyway, practice starts at nine, so we’ll need to leave here around eight. Do you want to meet a couple of minutes before that?”
“Sure.” A gust of wind blew a cool breeze through the trees. Arie pulled the hood of his jacket over his head, casting even more of a shadow across his face.
“Where are you from, anyway?” I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought to ask him before now.
“I grew up in central New York, just outside of Syracuse.”
“Really? I hear it’s beautiful there. I’ve always wanted to visit back east where everything is so green.”
“It is beautiful, but it sure rains and snows a lot.”
“I don’t think I’d mind the rain, we don’t get nearly enough here in Maplebridge.” I sighed. Utah was one of the driest states in the United States, so I couldn’t understand how some people could get sick of the rain. “What brought you here, anyway? You mentioned something about your aunt earlier…”
A guarded expression spread across Arie’s face under his hood. He didn’t answer right away. He was opening his mouth to speak when Maya turned to us.
“Troy and I were talking and thought it would be fun to play campfire games.” Maya’s eyes brimmed with mischief and delight. “How do you guys feel about going back to our elementary days and playing Telephone?”
Arie raised his eyebrows and looked at me as if asking whether Maya was serious.
“Come on, it’ll be fun,” I said. “Embrace your inner child.”
He shook his head and smiled. “Okay, let’s play Telephone. I don’t think I’ve played it since I was ten.”
“You’ve been missing out. We play Telephone like every day,” I said.
“Seriously?”
“Right after we play with dolls in my old playhouse.” I pointed a thumb over my shoulder in the direction of the wooden playhouse my dad had built for Lily and me when we were younger.
“You’re hilarious, Emma.” Arie smiled in a way that made my heart stop one second, then double its pace the next.
“Well, you know.” I shrugged, hoping I wasn’t blushing. “Life’s too short to be serious all the time.”
A second later, Maya started the game off. She placed an arm around Arie’s shoulder and a hand next to her mouth as she leaned in close to whisper in his ear. Arie smiled and shook his head like he couldn’t believe what he’d been roped into saying. A moment later, he leaned right next to me and whispered in my ear. A whiff of his cologne wafted to my nose, and man, did he smell good. If I’d had my guard up right then and remembered my boy-cleanse, I would have recognized it as Sign of a Player Number Fifty-Six: they always smell good. But my guard was lower than low at that point.
I didn’t quite catch what he whispered because I couldn’t seem to focus with the way his hot breath in my ear sent chills down my spine. It sounded a lot like, “Big crowd bears match me baboons.” It didn’t make any sense, but maybe that was Maya’s strategy. Plus, it was the best I could do at the moment. I turned to Conner and whispered the sentence into his ear, then he turned to Kathryn who then whispered in Troy’s ear.
Troy scrunched up his face and shook his head. “Was it supposed to be, ‘Big crown beards match my balloons’?”
“How in the world did it end up like that?” Maya asked. “That’s not even close!”
That was probably my fault. “What was the sentence supposed to be?” I asked, hoping it wasn’t me who’d completely botched it up.
“Being around barns makes me croon,” Maya and Arie said in unison.
I was way off. “Oops.” I smiled guiltily and shrugged.
“Did you purposely sabotage my game?” Maya asked, crossing her arms.
“Of course not,” I said. “I think my brain shut down temporarily.” Definitely a sensory overload with Arie nearby. I resolved not to be so pathetic again.
Later, as everyone was putting the camp chairs back in the shed, I noticed Conner pull Kathryn aside.
I couldn’t help but watch them as they stood under the big apple tree a few yards away. Conner rubbed the back of his neck before stuffing his fists in the front pockets of his jacket. He appeared to be speaking rapidly. Kathryn nodded to whatever he was saying, and then a huge grin spread over her face. When they finished their conversation, Conner, Troy, and Arie all said goodbye and slipped out the side gate.
Once the guys were out of sight, Kathryn walked up to Maya and me. “Guess what?” She practically trembled with excitement. “Conner asked me out on a date for tomorrow! A real live date!”
Maya and I squealed.
“I knew he liked you,” I said.
“I can’t believe this is actually happening.” Kathryn shook her head in awe. “Are you sure I’m not dreaming?”
Maya pinched Kathryn.
“Ow!” Kathryn jerked away and rubbed her shoulder.
“Nope. Looks like you’re awake, definitely not a dream,” Maya said with a smile. “Conner really asked you out.”
“Did he tell you what you’ll be doing?” I asked.
“No, he said it was a surprise. He did tell me to dress warmly, so I assume we’ll be outside for at least part of it.”
“I’m so excited for you!” It was wonderful to see Kathryn finally get what she wanted after crushing on Conner for forever. I turned to Maya. “How do you think tonight went with Arie? Do you think he likes you?”
Maya thought for a second before shrugging. “I don’t know. It was fun and all, but I had a hard time getting a read on him. He seemed distracted whenever I talked to him. Actually, I noticed his eyes wandered to you quite a few times.”
“I highly doubt that.” I laughed. Guys never looked at me when they could check Maya out instead.
Maya shrugged. “Maybe he has a girlfriend back home. A guy like that would have no trouble finding a girl to fall in love with him.”
“That’s probably it,” I said, not sure how I felt about that possibility. “I mean, we don’t know everything about him yet.”
“You guys need to find out tomorrow. You’re all going to Ridgecrest, right?” Maya asked.
“We’re actually going to carpool with Arie.” I turned to Kathryn. “He asked if he could ride down with us, so I told him to meet here tomorrow at eight.”
“Sounds good. I guess I better get home and get some beauty rest if I’m going to look good for my hot date tomorrow night,” Kathryn said, smiling.
“Make sure to hydrate your lips before going to bed. You’ll want them nice and supple for Conner,” Maya said.
“Ooh.” Kathryn’s eyes grew big and she wrung her hands in front of her. “You don’t think he’ll try kissing me on the first date, do you?”
“You never know.” Maya winked and smiled wickedly. “It’s always good to be ready though, just in case.”
Kathryn looked like she was about to jump out of her skin.
“Don’t worry, Kathryn,” I said. “I’m sure he won’t try anything you don’t want. He’s a good guy.”
This seemed to calm her down a little. “I really better get going, though I’m sure I’ll never sleep now!”
