Senior Year Box Set

“The buses have just arrived. Anyone who plans to drink will be given a wristband on the bus. Buses will be returning on the hour, starting at three. The last bus back will be at six.”

When Lexi returned to my table, I gave her a questioning look.

“I thought this was going to be an alcohol-free event.”

She looked confused.

“This is a senior skip day, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Ignore him. He’s just being a goody-two-shoes,” Cassidy shared.

“Lighten up, David. It’ll be fine,” Tim assured me.

“I don’t know. There might be liability issues,” Dare worried.

“Let me give you a tip,” Wolf said with a grin. “If Dare’s worried, do the opposite.”

Less than two weeks ago, my dad had called me on the carpet for being irresponsible. I looked around the table and was about to tell them ‘no.’

“Sometimes you gotta say, ‘Screw it,’” Gina said, surprising everyone.

“Yeah, David, screw it,” Wolf said.

“This is going to come back on me somehow,” I predicted.

“Let’s get on the bus before he changes his mind,” Tim said.

◊◊◊

Lexi must have had the whole day planned because once we were on the buses, she made everyone change seats. You had to sit with someone you didn’t know very well, with the intention of creating a new friend on the ride there.

I found myself sitting with Maryanne Webber when no one else would.

Let me explain Maryanne. She was by far the ugliest girl in our school and probably the dumbest. I don’t say that to be mean, but to set the record straight. Someone had said she got straight ‘D’s. The rumor mill had it that the teachers didn’t want to flunk her and have her back in their class the next semester, so they passed her on.

Maryanne was also socially awkward. The school cafeteria put out a vat of peanut butter for kids who couldn’t afford lunches. She had been known to lick the spoon in the vat and stick it back in for the next kid to use. There was also a rumor that she planned to take her cousin to Prom.

When I sat down next to her, she gave me the evil eye. This would be a long trip if she was going to stare out the window all the way there. I started to get up, but Lexi pointed at me to sit back down.

When I thought about it, it surprised me that Maryanne had decided to go with us on Senior Skip Day. I wasn’t sure if she actually had any friends.

That made me feel guilty. I’d never even thought of talking to her much over the past four years. Then something tickled the back of my mind. Could this be like Lisa Felton? Rumors had said Lisa was a slut. Was everything I’d heard about Maryanne the same?

“What’s up?” I asked, deciding to try to get to know her.

“Don’t bother trying to be nice to me.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“What’s with the attitude? I’ve never been mean to you.”

“You’ve never talked to me, either.”

“I’m sure I haven’t talked to everyone.”

“Really?” she asked in disbelief. “Don’t you go to every table and talk to everyone?”

She might have me there.

“Okay, in that case, I would like to make amends. I’m sorry if I didn’t talk to you,” I said sincerely.

“Why bother?” Maryanne asked.

“I figured it would be better than putting in my earbuds and listening to music for the next hour.”

“Listen to your music.”

Oh, well, I tried.

◊◊◊

When the bus pulled up, we got off at the road and had to walk through the woods to the house. I had to pause a moment to take in the transformation of Tracy’s property. It looked like she was having her own personal county fair, minus the rides.

My mouth watered because there were a couple of smokers and what looked like a hog roaster giving off wonderful smells.

The front yard was dominated by a beer tent that had a stage at one end. I spotted members of our school’s band setting up to play. As I walked around back, I saw several different activities to choose from. Some cost money, while others were free, like cornhole—the beanbag-toss game.

“Look,” I pointed out to Wolf and Tim. “Pretzels.”

Tim and I cracked up, while Wolf shoved us both. I doubted we would ever let him live down his pretzel incident where the guy offered to buy him one for, let’s say, a ‘favor.’

“I bought my own,” Wolf said for the millionth time.

“Sure you did,” Tim said as he danced out of Wolf’s reach.

“What should we do first?” I asked.

“Let’s get tattoos,” Tim said, pointing to a tent.

It advertised both tattoos and piercings.

“I’d look good with a diamond stud,” I teased.

“You would,” Tim agreed.

“But we want to be there when you get home,” Wolf added.

“No,” Lexi said, coming out of nowhere.

All three of us jumped.

“David pays me to make sure he doesn’t make mistakes like that,” Lexi explained to my friends.

“But you have piercings,” I blurted without thinking.

“You can get one in your dick,” Lexi compromised.

All three of us flinched. I sometimes forgot that Lexi could dish it out as well as take it. She won this round.

“Tattoo it is,” I decided and led the way.

◊◊◊

The tattoo tent offered both permanent and henna tattoos. I was happy to see Paula, who’d given me a henna tattoo a couple of years ago.