Page 96 of The Do-Over

Things were feeling better, so this celebration was like a little punctuation mark on my life’s refresh. I’d worn an adorable new black-and-white dotted dress that made me feel like Audrey Hepburn, and the ruffled cardigan I paired with it made me feel a little Taylor Swift, as well.

“I’ve got to get to class,” I said, pulling my bag over my shoulder. “Meet you here after school?”

“You got it,” Chris said, grinning at Rox like they were hilarious before walking away with her.

I had Lit after that, then—ugh—Chemistry.

I went straight to my stool, pulled out my book, opened it to the correct page, and then immediately started scrolling on my phone. Like I’d done every day for the last couple of weeks.

I’d just opened Instagram when Nick said, “Emilie.”

I stopped scrolling but didn’t look up. “Yeah?” Did he need a pen or something?

“Happy birthday.”

I raised my eyes and said, “Gee, thanks.”

But in that half-second before I looked back at my phone, my brain archived his serious blue eyes, clenched jaw, black hoodie, and the gravel in his deep voice.

“Is it—”

“Please don’t.” I slow-blinked and managed, “You’ve said all you’ve needed to say, okay? We’re good.”

He didn’t say anything, but just swallowed and gave me a nod.

Bong came in and started lecturing, and I forced myself to forget about Nick and think about how much fun I was going to have with Chris, Alex, Rox, and Trey after school. We were going downtown for a birthday dinner at Spaghetti Works—my favorite restaurant—followed by ice cream at Ted and Wally’s.

I couldn’t wait.

When class ended, I gathered my things and got out quickly, just in case Nick tried to make himself feel better again. The day dragged by so slowly—probably because I was beyond excitedfor it to end—but eventually the final bell rang.

“Finally,” I said, smiling as I saw them waiting at my locker. Alex was quickly becoming part of our little friend group, mostly because he and Chris were inseparable, and I felt lucky that we’d found him.

“Let’s go, Birthday Girl.”

They let me select all the songs on the radio as we drove through the streets, which was my favorite thing in the world. We had a blast singing at the top of our lungs, but I swallowed hard when we got downtown.

Because my favorite place was now stained with memories of him.

I looked out my window and there was the bank building, hovering above us with the vivid recollections of Nick doing the awful Cupid Shuffle, giving me a piggyback ride, almost kissing me in the elevator, and racing me up the stairs.

It’d been the best day.

I forced myself to put those events out of my head and focus on fun with my friends.

We rummaged through antique stores, vinyl shops, and expensive boutiques before finally going into the restaurant.

“I’m starving,” I said, breathing deeply as my favorite smells in the world found their way to my nose.

“You’re always starving when carbs are involved,” Chris said, and he wasn’t wrong. He actually attempted to eat healthy and had always been disgustedly amused by my utter lack of caring.

“Have you ever had their chicken strips?” Alex asked as we followed the hostess to a table.

“You’re inSpaghetti Works,” I said, rolling my eyes and making a face at him. “Please do not embarrass me and order chicken.”

“I wouldn’t test her,” Rox said, holding hands with Trey as they followed behind us. “She’s absurdly loyal to this place.”

“Noted,” Alex said.

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