Page 58 of Why Not Now?

“Is someone pressuring you to have sex, Lacey?” I ask gently into the silence that’s descended.

“No. I’m only curious. A, uh, friend, has a boyfriend who’s asked a couple of times, but she’s handling it.”

“I see. Well, you tell this friend, if she’s not ready to have sex and her boyfriend is being a dick about it, he’s not really her boyfriend. He’s just a dick.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes.”

She’s quiet for a moment and I can tell she’s considering asking something else, so I wait.

Very quietly, she says, “Youneverwent further than she wanted to go?”

“No, Lacey. I didn’t. Has anyone gone further than you want to go?”

“No.” But she says it too quickly.

“Lacey, look at me.” I wait until she does. “Do I need to have a talk with someone?”

She huffs a laugh. “That’s okay. I can handle it. I just wanted to make sure I was thinking of this the right way.”

“Have you talked to Ava?”

She looks out the window again. “No.”

“Why not?”

She shrugs. “It’s hard to talk to her. When she’s around, I think about it but I need to psych myself up. By the time I’ve done that, she has to go.” She turns back to me. “I don’t blame her,” she says quickly. “I understand. She has to work. It makes it hard to have serious conversations though when she’s so busy. And I guess I also kind of wanted a man’s perspective.”

“You can ask me anything you want, Ace. I’ll try my best to answer. But you need to talk to your sister. She’s your guardian. If you don’t tell her how you’re feeling, nothing is going to change.”

She twists her hands together in her lap. “What if I tell her and nothing changes, anyway?”

“Then at least you’ll have a conversation aboutwhy.”

She nods and we get out of the car.

“Listen,” I say as we walk to the door. “My friends and I have this thing we say to each other.I’ve got your back, no matter what. Even if you fuck up.That goes for you, too, all right?” I stop and turn to her, locking eyes to make sure she understands. “No matter what.”

I hold out my hand and she shakes it.

“No matter what,” she repeats.

I open the door and we go in. As we start to climb the stairs, Lacey says, “So you had a crush on Ava fortwo yearsbefore you asked her out?”

“Hey. I thought we had a deal.”

“Derek?” my mom calls from the kitchen, saving me from needing to say more. “Is that you?”

“Yeah, Mom. I brought a friend.”

She comes out and pauses, looking from me to Lacey.

“Do you remember Lacey Calligan?” I ask.

Her eyebrows lift in surprise before she schools her features and smiles. “Of course I remember Lacey. Look at you. You’re practically all grown up.”

And because she’s my mom and the coolest person in the world, she comes and gives Lacey a hug, welcoming her to her home.

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