Chapter 28

The spiked hair. The pale face. The leather. Ryan couldn’t see the titular Scissorhands over everyone’s heads but the leather was making him feel things he didn’t want to be feeling in a crowd like this. He had to get out of there. He ducked into the kitchen and focused on refilling his two Solo cups.

First off, Jacky had been smiling. Not like a wide grin, but a shy sort of smile. Ryan wondered how long it had been since people had looked at Jacky without treating him like a freak. It was almost like he couldn’t believe it was happening. Thinking of Jacky smiling made Ryan smile. Then he thought of the collar of that leather jacket fastened tight around his throat and the smile fell away.

He had only just started to fall for the way Jacky looked normally. Now to know that Jacky could look like this….

A few more swallows of beer. No one seemed to be paying attention to him, which was good. All he could focus on was breathing. And maybe how to get Jacky alone in this crowd.

No. He couldn’t do that. What if someone walked in on them? They could lock the door. But if anyone saw… he could only imagine the rumors that would fly.

He had two cups of beer in his hands. He could give one to Jacky. Like with Monica, it would let Jacky know he cared. Any maybe later, when everyone was obliterated by alcohol, no one would remember if he and Jacky sat down and talked. Or ended up in a room upstairs together…

Andrew didn’t know what to do. Every two seconds, someone else was coming up to him and telling him how awesome his costume was. He still hadn’t gotten out of the front hallway.

The Harrison mansion looked like a scene out of some John Hughes movie. He didn’t know parties like this actually happened in high school. All this time, he’d been missing out. “Holy shit, you look awesome!” said a guy Andrew used to know from the soccer team. “How have you been?”

It was strange. Like he’d been gone for the past two years, and this was his homecoming. Only he’d been here the whole time.

Cody, on the other hand, was loving this. “I did his makeup,” he told everyone who would listen.

“You should stop bragging about that,” Andrew told him during a momentary lull. “You want Nina to think you’re gay?”

That shut Cody up. Not that Andrew really thought Nina would think that – Nina had found them almost right away and she’d stuck with them ever since. “I miss you,” she had told Cody, laying a hand on his arm, and Andrew had to try hard not to laugh at the expression on Cody’s face.

The one person Andrew wanted to come talk to him hadn’t. He had glimpsed Ryan in the hallway shortly after Nina joined them, but Andrew hadn’t recognized him right away since he was wearing this weird black fedora, which then ducked into the kitchen, and it had been about fifteen minutes and still Ryan had not come out. Andrew knew Ryan had seen him.

“Hey, hey, hey!”

Andrew recognized that voice. Cody did, too. The speaker lifted a werewolf mask and revealed himself to be Darius Cruz.

“I thought that was you! Nice costume.”

“Thanks.” Andrew smiled. “I like your costume, too.”

“Yeah, well, you know my parents. They always have a ton of costume stuff lying around…” The Cruz family was notorious for doing a big haunted house in their yard and garage each year. Mr. and Mrs. Cruz were more into Halloween than any of their four kids. “But you! This is great. I have to tell you, I think about you a lot.”

“You… do?” Andrew wasn’t sure how to take that. Darius was most definitely not gay. His girlfriend was standing right there, wearing an old dress streaked with blood from a fake neck wound – like she’d been bitten by a werewolf.

“Yeah. You know, like, soccer is one of the few sports you don’t need your hands for. You could totally get back into shape for it.”

“Oh…. oh.” Andrew didn’t quite know what to say. He hadn’t even thought about any sports except skateboarding since the accident, and skateboarding wasn’t going so great.

“Hey, I don’t mean to cross any lines or whatever, but you know you were really good back in middle school. Just a thought. Uh, so I’m gonna get another drink.”

That was when a hand extended through the crowd, and Andrew looked up to catch eyes with Ryan. A cup of beer dangled out in front of him.

He was so surprised that he reached up to grab it with his prosthesis and the two pairs of scissors duct-taped to the claw. “Oops,” he said, and lifted his other hand, which held another pair of scissors. “Sorry.”

While he looked down for a place to stow the scissors, a belt loop or pocket or something, he heard Darius say, “I got it,” and when he looked back up, Ryan was gone and Darius was holding the beer for him.

“Anyway, think about it. You could come back to the team for the spring season.”

The beer, when Darius pressed it into Andrew’s empty hand, felt warm and sweaty. Andrew wondered how much of that was from Ryan’s hand. “Yeah, I’ll think about it,” he told Darius with as much sincerity as he could muster. It wasn’t like Darius hadn’t seen him at all over the past two years. They went to the same school. They would have been in the same gym class if Andrew ever went to gym class.

He turned to look in the direction he’d last seen Ryan. Damn it. Darius had effectively distracted him from seeing where Ryan had gone.

He stayed where he was and sipped the beer for a while, until he started to realize how hot he was in the leather jacket, especially with the neck all done up. The straps on the prosthesis were digging into his armpits and no amount of squirming was making it any more comfortable. He saw an out when a few of Cody’s buddies showed up. “Hey, man, wanna smoke up? We’re all in the back room.”

“I’m gonna find the bathroom,” he told Cody, who looked intent on getting Nina to join him.

“I do not like these drugs,” Nina was saying, so Andrew left them there and headed up the stairs.

He couldn’t see Ryan anywhere down below. No wait, he was looking for blond hair. Now he scanned for black fedoras. Nope. He continued up until he was out of view of the first floor. A balcony looked down over the foyer, but after that it was halls and rooms so lavishly decorated Andrew felt like he was walking through an interior decorating magazine.

At random, Andrew picked one and went inside.

It looked to be a guest room, with a nice view over the backyard. Andrew stepped up to the big window and looked out at the dimly lit people shadowing the lawn. Working a finger under the collar tight around his throat, he wished he had Ryan’s cell phone number. Why had they never exchanged numbers?

He heard voices in the hall and instinctively stepped into the shadows of the room. The folding doors of the closet were open, and as the voices grew closer, he stepped inside and slid them so they were a little more closed.

“Come on!” Andrew knew that voice. Irritating, too perky. Monica. Jesus Christ. He held his breath. “In here!”

No, no, no.

Through the slatted door, Andrew could make out Monica running into the room and jumping onto the bed. She giggled and waited. A shadow crossed the doorway. Andrew held his breath. “I thought you were dating Sullivan,” said another familiar voice.

Matt?

No. This was bad.

“Nope.” Monica giggled again and rolled around on the bed. The hem of her flapper dress rode up so high Andrew could see her underwear. He closed his eyes, tried to be invisible.

Matt still wasn’t entering the room. Good, Andrew thought. He imagined Cody would have a different take on the situation. If Matt cheated on Nina, then Nina would most definitely dump him, and Cody could be there to pick up the pieces.

For Andrew, however, everything about this felt icky.

“Come on. She’ll never know. She’s been hanging around the stoners all night.” Monica rolled off the bed and went back to the doorway. “I see the way you look at me. And I feel the same way.”

Andrew heard some sickening lip-smacking noise and screwed his eyes closed even tighter.

“Look, Monica, I like you, but Nina and I…. it’s complicated.”

“What’s so complicated about breaking up with her? I’m simple.”

Another voice, from down the hall. His ears twitched, catching on the familiar sound. “Hey, Matt… I forget, which door’s the bathroom?” Ryan. Fuck all, he needed to get out of this room.

“Oh, that one, I think.”

“Don’t go–” Monica whispered, but Andrew could see the shadow leaving the doorway. Monica turned around and flopped down on the bed, face first. “Fuck.”

For a long time she didn’t move. Andrew felt a drop of sweat roll down the back of his neck. He hadn’t moved in what felt like forever, because he knew if he did his leather jacket would creak and give him away. But Monica didn’t seem to be moving. Maybe she was passed out? She’d have to be pretty wasted to throw herself at Matt like that. The guy had a girlfriend. And not just any girlfriend. In a fight, Nina would totally slay Monica. Hands down.

Besides, Ryan was in the bathroom right down the hall. Maybe. Andrew hadn’t heard a toilet flush through the walls, anyway.

In his head he counted to thirty, watching Monica carefully through the slats. Zero movement other than breathing. He eased himself through the opening of the closet door, wincing at how loud he seemed to be. It would be quick, three big steps to the door and he could be out of the room in the time it would take Monica to lift her head.

Deep breath.

One, two –

“How long have you been standing there?” Monica said behind him, and he froze.

Shit, he should have just kept going. He cursed himself and turned around.

“Like, were you just standing in the closet staring at me?”

“No, I… I was just…”

Monica squinted at him. “Oh, Jacky? Geez. Okay. As long you weren’t some perv.”

“Um, yeah. Nope. Not me.”

Her eyeliner was smudged, making her look tired. Or maybe she was tired. “Just watching me make a fool of myself, then.” She flopped down on the bed.

“No! No, I… uh. I just panicked and hid in the closet. I didn’t see anything. Or hear anything.”Stop talking, he told himself.

“Yeah, right. Go ahead. Go tell everyone what a gross slut I am.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” he said, a knee-jerk reaction. Everyone already knows, I don’t have to tell them.

“Sure you wouldn’t.” She sat up again, wiped her face. “Because you like me so much.”

Andrew wasn’t sure what to say to that. He wasn’t about to deny that he didn’t like her.

“Can I ask you something, as a guy?” A sniff. “Am I fuckable?”

“Uh….” He took a step backward. “I don’t think I’m qualified to answer that.”

“I know, you’re gay. But if you weren’t, would you fuck me?”

He had never seen Monica look so raw. She looked like her last hope hung on his answer, and he wanted nothing more than to run out of the room. Instead he moved forward and sat down on the bed next to her.

“You’re really pretty,” he started.

She gave a hopeless laugh and wiped at her eye. Her fingers came away black. “Sure. That’s what everyone says. You’re so pretty. You could have any guy you wanted. Even my mom. If he’s not interested, you just need to push him a little.”

Suddenly Andrew realized what this was about.

“So I push and I push and he still doesn’t want me, and I throw myself at all these guys and none of them want me either. So I just want to know: is there something wrong with me?”

“You’re a little pushy,” Andrew said automatically, and winced down at the scissors taped to his prosthesis.

This time her laugh was more genuine. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” He smiled. “Look, I think Ryan is just going through a lot right now. Maybe you just need to give him some space, you know?”

“I know.” She sighed. “I feel like he’s slipping through my fingers. I mean, he’s the perfect guy. My parents love him. They’ve basically got our wedding planned.”

“Don’t they know you’re not dating anymore?”

She smiled wistfully. “No. I couldn’t bring myself to tell them. And I figured if I acted like it was no big deal, if I was the cool, casual girl, maybe he’d see what an awesome girlfriend I was. Now I can barely get him to look at me. I can’t get any guys to look at me. I’m practically a senior and I’m still a virgin.”

His jaw jutted out. “I’m a virgin.”

“Yeah, but…” She gestured to his scissored-up fake hand, and he pulled it away defensively. She sighed again. “Sorry. I guess you can add bitch to the list of what’s wrong with me. Ugh.”

“Who cares if you’re a virgin?” Andrew asked. “I mean…” If he hadn’t been buzzing off of one beer he might not have said it, but the words slipped out. “Everyone thinks you’re kind of a slut.”

“I know!” She slapped her leg. “Everyone thinks I’m this giant whore and meanwhile I’ve done nothing. And I mean nothing. Not even oral.”

“TMI,” Andrew said, and Monica laughed.

“Ryan was right, you are pretty cool when you’re not being a jerk.”

“Gee, thanks.” It came out bitter, but inside his tight leather jacket he felt a warm swell. Ryan had said that? Hopefully not the part about being a jerk. Hopefully Monica had called him a jerk and Ryan had stood up for him. He smiled down at the scissors in his lap.

“I think you’re the only person who’s ever been honest with me.” Monica pushed out her lips and twirled her hair around one finger. “But back to my original question.”

“Hey, Monica, I thought I heard your voice.” Ryan’s shadow darkened the doorway.

Andrew jumped up. “Uh, I was just leaving.”

It was hard to see Ryan’s face, but he looked concerned and more than a little confused. “Are you okay?” Ryan asked Monica.

Monica laughed. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Feeling a bit like a third wheel, Andrew edged toward the door.

“Wait, don’t go,” Ryan said. “I, uh, wanted to talk to you about something? In private?”

“Um, you want me to wait outside?”

“Don’t worry about it.” Monica stood up, smoothed down the fringe on her dress, and rubbed her hand along Ryan’s back. “I’m good. Back to the party for me.” She smiled – a big fake smile, Andrew could tell – and flounced out. On the way she flashed Andrew a different smile. A real one.

And Andrew found himself smiling back.