“Yes!”
Grace’s heart was still pounding and Taylor patted her knee. “Relax.” He smiled. “It’s a good thing.”
They started toward the mall with Rose talking the whole way about the prom. It calmed Grace a little to take her mind off Sal and the enormity of what she’d been thinking all this time but Taylor forced her to confront. She was falling and she was falling hard.
Grace smiled, trying to push aside the memories of her own bittersweet prom night. For the first time, something had actually gone perfectly for her. Her date was wonderful, her dress—spectacular. It was everything a girl that age could dream of, and then just as they were on their way to the after party, she got the devastating call that her grandmother had suffered a heart attack. She swallowed back the lump that had begun to grow in her throat. She wouldn’t ruin this for Rose.
After several hours of shopping, they stood in line to buy tickets to the show. Her phone buzzed and she checked the text, feeling that familiar sputter of her heart that was happening all too often these days.
I miss you.
She smiled allowing herself to feel what she’d been so afraid to until now. Now that she knew Sal was genuinely interested in a relationship with her, she was happier than she could ever remember being. She texted back.
I miss you too. Can hardly wait to see you tomorrow.
After sending it, she glanced up. Both Rose and Taylor were staring at her, smiling. “What?” She felt her face warm.
“Wow,” Taylor said. “Look at you.”
Grace rolled her eyes but knew exactly what he meant. Excited didn’t even begin to explain how she felt about the whole situation with Sal.
“Grace, you’re glowing,” Rose said.
“I am not!” But she felt it.
It finally hit her. She and Sal were an actual couple now, and Sal wanted everyone to know it. As if her heart weren’t already racing her phone buzzed again.
Tomorrow? =( I don’t think I can wait until then. What have you done to me Gracie?
She brought her hands to her mouth, smiling, and took a deep breath. She didn’t care that Taylor and Rose were still staring at her. The movie would be over a little after seven. She just might be able to work something out.
~*~
This was crazy. He’d just seen her a few hours ago. He spent the whole day with her and here he was waiting impatiently outside the movie theatre. When Grace mentioned that the movie was ending early, Sal jumped on it, asking if he could meet her after somewhere. She agreed to have him pick her up. Taylor would take her sister home and she and Sal could go out to dinner.
He saw them come around the corner and immediately he smiled. Her sister was a younger version of Grace, just as pretty.
Grace smiled when their eyes met. The second she was close enough, Sal reached for her hand. “Sal, this is my sister, Rose.”
“Hi, Rose. It’s very nice to finally meet you.”
Rose smiled, a bit timid, but gave him a little wave. “Hi.”
“So how was the movie?” Sal asked them all.
“It was okay,” Grace shrugged. “Kind of cheesy.”
“Aren’t all chick flicks cheesy though?” Taylor asked.
“I liked it,” Rose announced. “I bet you Joey would’ve liked it too.”
“Oh God,” Taylor laughed. “He so would’ve, and he probably would’ve been the loudest one laughing. And crying.”
Both Grace and Rose laughed. “You know he’s gonna be mad we saw it without him,” Grace added.
“I’ll come watch it with him again,” Rose said with a smile.
After explaining to Rose what to tell their mom when she got home, Grace and Sal said goodbye to Rose and Taylor and started toward Sal’s car. The second they reached it, Sal had to stop and kiss her. It was a bit alarming how much he felt for her so fast, but he didn’t care if she noticed.
She smiled when he finally pulled away. “Your sister seems sweet, and she’s almost as beautiful as you are.”
“I’ll tell her you said that. But I’ll leave out the almost.”
“Yeah, don’t tell her that part.”
They got in his car and he started it up, turning to her. “What do you feel like eating?”
Grace gave him a wicked smile. “Pastrami?”
“That sounds good. I know just the place, too.”
“You think maybe we can go through a drive-thru and go some place where we can be alone?” Grace squeezed his hand with a hopeful expression. “I’ve had enough crowds for the day.”
She’d read his mind. He wanted nothing more than to be alone with her. “We could take the food back to my place if you’d like. Unless you’d rather not.”
“No. I’d love to check your place out,” She grinned. “I’m nosey like that.”
“All right then, my place it is.”
They picked up the pastramis and headed to his house and Grace told him about everything they bought for her sister, mentioning how she’d have to pay Taylor back since he offered to pay for the dress that just wasn’t in Grace’s budget. “Your mom didn’t pay for any of it?”
Grace rolled her eyes. “My mom hasn’t paid for anything extra for me and Rose in years. The only thing she paid for since I got my first job, was the tuition for me to get my bartending license. And even that wasn’t a selfless act. She did it so that I could get a better paying job to help her pay the bills.”