Read Freshman Year & Other Unnatural Disasters Online
Authors: Meredith Zeitlin
“Yeah, maybe blow up those thumbnails every once in a while. As someone who has been the victim of repeated, um, photographic assaults—”
“If only more enraged people complained, maybe the
Reflector
staff wouldn’t be so lax. Maybe you should organize a group in your spare time. You know, when you aren’t busy sabotaging plays and the like.”
And … he’s back. Crinkly eyes, the smile, the whole bit.
God, he is SO CUTE!
“Yeah, good idea, thanks,” I tell him. “I’ll get right on that.”
I put my head on his shoulder and try to relax. I mean, this isn’t the time to be grouchy about
anything
. I’m dancing with Ben! At the prom! This is incredible!
Then one teeny,
tiny,
horrible thought creeps in. “Wait a second! Stop dancing!” I stop dancing. So does Ben.
“What’s wrong?”
I peer at Ben suspiciously. “You aren’t planning to put any pictures of me from the show in the paper, are you? In my costume, I mean? To be ‘nice’? Or for any other reason?”
Ben grins, puts his hands back on my waist, and pulls me toward him again. “I guess you’ll have to wait and see, Ms. Finkelstein. Either way, I bet you can handle it. Can’t you?”
Yeah, probably,
I think. I’ve definitely had plenty of practice in the dealing-with-abject-humiliation department.
I make a scowly face at him. Ben laughs, then gently tips my head onto his shoulder again. We sway to the music. And for the first time in maybe my entire life, my head isn’t filled with a thousand thoughts about how this is unquestionably going to end in disaster. I’m not worried about impressing anyone, or saying the right thing, or looking a certain way, or anything. Actually, at the moment, I feel pretty psyched about just being plain old Kelsey Finkelstein.
It is really, really great.
I think I’d better confiscate that camera, though. Just to be on the safe side.
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