Page 134 of Let's Pretend I'm Okay

“Those are cute,” Annie says.

I make a face and gesture toward her. “Do you want to wear them?”

She laughs. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. I’m letting you curl my hair. I think that’s enough change for one day, don’t you think?”

“One day, I’ll get you to wear one of these, mark my words,” I say, laughing too.

She looks down at her book. “We’ll see about that.”

After I finish changing, I go back to curling Annie’s hair. Itdoesn’t take very long, which is good because it gives us time to head downstairs and have breakfast with Mama. Then we head to school.

As per usual, I stop at my locker to put away my backpack and Annie heads to the library. Almost as soon as I open the locker door, I’m wrapped in a hug and Daniel’s scent fills my senses. He kisses my shoulder.

I smile.

“Hey, you look cute.” He smiles back. Lopsided grin and all. And just like that, I’m caught in a daze. It’s only Daniel and me, and everyone else disappears. I spend our first period class being distracted by his hand grabbing mine behind the lab table. He walks me to every class after that even if that means running from his class to mine to catch me walking out of the door. By lunch I’m sure the entire school knows Daniel and I are together. Cameryn corners me at one point, demanding details, and I love it. I feel like a regular teenage girl.

At lunch Daniel sits with Annie and me, and somehow this seems like the way it should have always been. There’s no awkwardness. Daniel and Annie are getting along, and we all laugh at each other’s jokes. Annie even joins in the conversation instead of hiding behind her book. It fills me up inside, making me wish it could always be like this.

Olive comes running up. Her long hair flies wildly behind her as she comes to a full stop at our table. She’s grinning from ear to ear. Her eyes find Daniel. “Guess what.”

“What?”

She hugs a stack of papers close to her chest. “I got it.” She set the papers down on the table, revealing a drama title on the front:My Fair Lady. She bounces, so giddy from her excitement that she can’t stand still.

A smile stretches across his face. “Yeah?”

She nods. “I start rehearsals next week.”

“I’m happy for you,” he says.

Olive slides into the seat across from us and next to Annie.

“This is my sister, Annie,” I say, gesturing.

Olive leans on the table. “Oh, I know. We’ve already met.”

“When?” I ask, jaw dropping.

“When Daniel asked us for—”

“Tell us about your play,” Daniel says.

I glance between all three of them and their varying expressions. Daniel’s face is turning red, Olive raises an eyebrow, and Annie laughs behind her book.

“What’s going on?” I ask.

Daniel shrugs. “I’m just curious about the play.”

“Uh-huh,” I say. I lean closer to Olive. “What happened? What did Daniel ask for?”

Daniel tugs on my arm. “No, wait.”

I playfully jump back and cover Daniel’s mouth. “Tell me.”

Olive glances at Annie, who nods, and then back at me. “He wanted advice on where to take you for your date.”

Daniel groans.

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