It is finally the end of class and for Natalie, it means time to dress up. While the party is an exciting prospect she is looking forward to it. It is really the chance to dress up and mess around with her friends that has her jittery and enthusiastic. Not to mention, this is the first time she’ll see Jace since their awkward encounter in which he invited her to the party.

Somehow, during the couple days between the conversation and today, they didn’t really get a chance to talk or do anything more than waving to each other. If Natalie was more in tune with her emotions, she would realize that she sort of missed him and their random conversations. And if she was more mature, she would admit that she was upset at his sudden avoidance. Jace went from unabashedly being physical with her—dare she say caressing her, to completely fleeing from any kind of contact with her, both physically and verbally.

But now is not the time for wasted thoughts over dense and slow-witted boys. Now is her time to pretty up and experience her first highschool party with her friends. And so she shakes off any thoughts of Jace and begins preparing.

She showers off her gloominess and puts on her favorite pair of jeans. It hugs her waist just right but has a loose fit around her legs. Then she puts on her the black lace crop top she found from the thrift store. At the last second, she forgoes putting on makeup for fear of messing up. She usually had help from Min, who had a magical touch when it came to makeup.

Natalie checks her phone and sees no messages from her friends, who planned to drive together. It would be 8 o’clock soon and here she still sat on her bed.

But it was considered fashionable to come late, she thought. But they could at least shoot her a text if they were running late, especially Kelly who was usually fussy about punctuality.

She continues mindlessly scrolling through her phone before her mom calls her down. Finally, her friends remembered about her. She huffs and stumps downstairs. The sight that she is greeted with is startling to say the least. The last person she expected was apparently going to be the one to drive her.

Her mom waves Jace to come in before walking back to the kitchen, leaving the two well-dressed teenagers in a silent, uncomfortable staring contest.

Her confusion and disbelief must be clear as day on her face because it has Jace smiling nervously and rubbing his neck awkwardly. When Jace doesn’t grace her with a greeting, she sputters an unelegant “hey.”

“Um…” she stalls, at a loss for any words, “I didn’t know you were going to drive me.”

His mouth curls into a quiet “oh.”

“I thought they would tell you.”

“They” likely being her heinous friends who took pleasure in torturing their innocent friend.

“No, they didn’t,” she says. Jace shifts and wipes his hands on his pants.

“Umm…” he begins to mumble something, but trails off, embarrassed and uneasy. Natalie doesn’t know how to respond, but decides to take pity.

“So!” she promptly cuts him off as if he hadn’t said a word, “should we leave soon?”

He nods enthusiastically, happy to be let off the hook.

“Ok, let me just tell my mom.”

She walks to the kitchen, which she finds is barren of her mom. So, she opts for the popular method utilized in her house and shouts loudly.

Her mom yells in response, telling her to wait for a second. Somehow during her conversation with Jace, her mom had managed to sneak up the stairs without either of them noticing. Natalie hears light, brisk footsteps, signaling her mom.

“I have something for you and Jace,” Debra informs her daughter.

They walk out of the kitchen and back into the foyer. Jace makes eye contact with her, a question in his eyes to which Natalie shrugs.

“Darling, take these.”

Her mom presses several small, thin squares covered in plastic into Natalie’s hands.

“What is…?” her voice trails off as soon as she sees the packaging.

Condoms. Her mom had given her condoms. And if she read those words correctly, they were for both males and females.

“Mom!” she shouts, scandalized, and glares at her mom, who merely shrugs.

“I just want you two to be safe,” she says in her gentle, mom voice like she was giving them a light scolding and not mortifiying her daughter in front of her crush.

Debra continues, not noticing or deliberately ignoring her daughter’s indignant protests, “I would rather you explore your feelings in a safe and protected manner.”

Natalie chastises her mom while Jace’s face blooms into a blood-red tomato. Debra walks them out and waves her daughter a goodbye. When she shuts the door close, stammering apologies fall out of Natalie’s lips while she shoves the offending packages into the deep cervasses of her bag, never to be seen again.