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“Taking brunettes to prom counts for community service?”

Felicity looked around, then leaned in as if she were confiding something nobody was supposed to know. That pretty much ensured the information would be all over the gym within minutes. “When the situation is
this
pathetic? Absolutely. I mean, Gabby somehow made it onto the court, but then nobody even asked her to prom. Can you imagine doing the prom court dance
alone
? How embarrassing would
that
be?”

Cassie nodded solemnly, her eyes wide. “Wow. Your boyfriend is
really
nice. But you must be so bummed that he’s not with you!”

“I am. But he asked me for permission, and I said it was okay. Sometimes you have to give back to the community, you know? Help people less fortunate than you.”

“You’re right. Way to go, Felicity. You’re totally an inspiration.” Cassie beamed at her, then trotted off to join Savannah and Kendall. Felicity was pleased to see her gesturing at Brent and Gabby and talking a mile a minute. In the end, people wouldn’t remember her as the pathetic one.

The DJ put on the first slow song of the evening, and the dance floor flooded with starry-eyed couples. On the other side of the gym, Felicity watched Gabby wrap herself around Brent like an evil little tourniquet, and the few bites of dinner she’d managed to swallow churned in her stomach. “I need to get out of here for a minute. I’m going outside,” she told Ivy.

“Are you okay? Do you want me to come with you?”

Felicity would have liked the company. But Darren was tugging at Ivy, and she looked as if she wanted to give in to some long-dormant female instinct and slow-dance with him. Haylie was already entwined with Ryan, who was experimentally squeezing her butt. “No, I’ll be fine,” she said. “Go dance. I just need a minute alone.”

The front lawn and the parking lot were full of people, so Felicity circled around to the empty soccer field at the back of the building. Her high heels sank into the soft ground the moment she left the path, so she kicked them off and abandoned them where they fell. She dug her toes into the cool damp field, closed her eyes, and breathed in the quiet night air, perfumed with the scent of newly cut grass. It was a relief to let the painful forced smile fade from her lips. The thump of the bass echoed from the gym, but otherwise, the only sounds were those of the occasional car and her own rustling petticoats. She started walking out across the dark field, glad to be free of her classmates’ prying eyes.

By the time she’d reached the center of the field, far from the lights of the path, her petticoats were full of static and were bunching up around her hips. She glanced around to make sure she was alone, then reached up under her skirt and wrestled the frothy red fabric back into place. Just as she was adjusting the ruffles over her butt, she heard a noise and whipped around.

A guy stood on the path at the other end of the soccer field, staring out into the darkness.

Felicity quickly finished tugging her skirt back into place. How much had he seen? Was it someone from her class, or was it a teacher who could get her into trouble for being out here alone? She stood very still, hoping he hadn’t noticed her.

The guy walked to the edge of the grass, then stooped to pick up her shoes, and she silently cursed herself for leaving them by the path. “Hello?” he called. “Is someone out there?”

The voice sounded familiar. She couldn’t place it exactly, but it was definitely just a student. “I’m over here,” she called back. “Those are mine.”

He moved back and forth along the edge of the field, shielding his eyes and trying to see her better. Finally, he called, “Felicity? Is that you?”

It was no use hiding now. Felicity started trudging back toward the path with a sigh. “Yeah, it’s me,” she called back. She put her pageant smile in place and prepared to face yet another pitying look.

But when she got close enough to see the guy’s face, she stopped, surprised. “Jonathan?”

He looked different in a tux. Most of the guys she had seen tonight looked younger than usual in their formal wear, like kids playing dress-up. But the tux had the opposite effect on Jonathan, lending him an unexpected air of maturity and sophistication. Felicity had never seen him look so comfortable in his skin. Her candy-apple-red shoes dangled from his fingertips.

“Hi,” he said. He wasn’t wearing his glasses, and Felicity noted with surprise how long his eyelashes were. Then he smiled, and it suddenly occurred to her that Jonathan Lyons was very attractive. How had she never seen that before?

She stepped into the light and reached out to take her shoes. As Jonathan’s gaze swept over her, his face changed, as if someone had lit a match behind his eyes. “You look beautiful,” he said. “I mean, I love your dress.”

“Thanks,” Felicity said. “You look really great, too.” She leaned over, brushed the wet grass from her feet, and slipped her shoes back on. “What are you doing out here?”

“It was loud in there. And hot. And I don’t really do the whole dancing thing.” He shrugged. “Wait, what are
you
doing out here? Where’s Brent?”

It reassured her that there was at least one person here who hadn’t witnessed her moment of humiliation. “He brought Gabby Vaughn instead of me,” she said. “I’m surprised you haven’t heard. Everyone’s talking about it.”

Jonathan’s eyes widened. “He ditched you for
Gabby
? Really?”

“He didn’t ditch me. It’s a comm—” Felicity broke off just in time as she realized she couldn’t use the community service story on a dateless brown-haired guy. “It’s complicated. But yeah, he’s in there with her right now. You can go look for yourself.”

“I mean, I believe you. I just … I’m really surprised.”

“You and everyone else. Best gossip of the year, apparently.”

“Well, if it makes you feel any better, nobody was talking about you when I got here. Topher Gleason came in right behind me wearing this baby-blue dress that looked like a cloud. Everyone wanted to take photos with him. It was kind of amazing, actually.” Felicity laughed despite herself—the fact that there was already fresh gossip cheered her up considerably.

Her phone beeped, and she pulled it out to find a new text.

HAYLIE: prom court procession is soon, where r u?

Felicity sighed. “We should probably go back in. They’re announcing the king and queen in a few minutes. Are you ready?”

“Honestly, I don’t really care who the king and queen are. Do you?”

Felicity’s reflex was to say, “Of course I do,” but that wasn’t really true. She had counted the ballots herself; she already knew Georgia Kellerman and Zach Masters had won. And she could certainly live without seeing her rival parading her boyfriend around like a prize poodle.

“No, actually,” she said. “I don’t care at all.”

When Jonathan turned and looked her in the eye, the intensity of his gaze surprised her. “Hey, Felicity? I know this sounds kind of weird, and I don’t want you to take it the wrong way, but … tonight kind of sucks. Do you want to get out of here?”

For a moment, Felicity was at a loss for words. People didn’t just
leave
in the middle of prom. But when she thought about it, there was nothing Felicity wanted more than to escape from this horrible, humiliating night.

“Yes,” she said. “I would
love
to get out of here.”

F
ive minutes later, Felicity was sitting in the front seat of Jonathan’s dark green pickup truck. As they roared out of the parking lot, a bubble of happiness and excitement expanded in her chest, leaving no room for the hopelessness she’d been wallowing in all evening. She felt as if she had gotten away with a crime and was fleeing the scene, gloriously unobserved.

A small part of her knew that if she were really a good friend, she would have stayed to watch Haylie in the prom court ceremony. But surely Haylie would understand that she couldn’t possibly be in that room while the whole school watched her boyfriend dance with Gabby. If their roles were reversed, Felicity would let Haylie off the hook without question. So she sent an apologetic text telling her friend that she couldn’t handle the ceremony, dashed off a similar one to Brent, then banished all thoughts of prom from her mind. Jonathan hadn’t told her where they were going, but Felicity realized she didn’t even care. Anywhere but Scarletville High was fine.

Jonathan drove with a little half smile on his face, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel in time with the music on the stereo. Felicity didn’t recognize the song—it sounded like a love child of punk and pop, peppy and defiant in equal measures. It wasn’t the sort of music she’d expect Jonathan to play, but she liked it a lot. “Who is this?” she asked.

“It’s my friend Amy’s band, Sharks in Heaven.”

There was only one Amy in Jonathan’s class, and she was the captain of the debate team. “Amy Riley?” Felicity asked skeptically.

Jonathan laughed. “That’s a really funny image, but no, different Amy. She lives in Seattle. I met her at this summer arts program I went to in Boulder last year. What do you think of them?”

“They’re really great.” Felicity stuck her hand out the window to surf the air currents as they sped through the dark, then closed her eyes and let the music wrap around her. The combination of Amy’s strong voice and the wind against her palm made her feel exhilarated and free. When the song’s catchy chorus repeated, Felicity found herself humming along.

I won’t be your cookie-cutter girl,

can’t mix me from a recipe.

All the right ingredients in all the right proportions

sometimes make an anomaly.

I’d rather be a rock star than a groupie on the sidelines,

I look so much better with these blue streaks in my hair.

I’m not the perfect little princess you expected,

and if that means you can’t handle me,

I don’t care.

The lyrics were just right for her state of mind. “Hey, do you think you could burn me a copy of this?” she asked.

“Sure, no problem. I’ll burn you the whole album.”

Jonathan took the ramp onto the highway and sped past the
you are now leaving the red zone
sign. As they accelerated, the wind whipped through the car and peeled tendrils loose from Felicity’s complicated updo. There was no point in fixing it—she wasn’t going back to prom—so she pulled out all the pins and let her hair fall loose around her shoulders. “What was the arts program like?” she shouted over the rush of the air.

“It was amazing. Six weeks of pure awesome. We had class every morning in our own discipline, like music or dance or visual art or whatever, and then the afternoon was our studio time. I did a lot of my Art Institute portfolio there. You should have seen the supply room—it was like paint heaven. And there was a huge darkroom and digital printing labs and a big sculpture studio. You would have
loved
it. And every night, we’d share our work and talk about it. It was …” Jonathan shook his head. “It’s hard to even describe it. I had so many new ideas all the time, it felt like my brain was going to explode.”

Felicity had never experienced anything like that, but now that she knew it was possible, she longed for it. “That sounds unbelievable.”

“You could go,” Jonathan said. “You should. It’s called Tanglewilde. It’s too late to apply for this year, but you should go next summer. Your stuff is definitely good enough to get you in.”

Even though she knew she could never afford it, Jonathan’s words ignited a warm glow deep in Felicity’s center. “You think so?”

“Oh, for sure.”

When Jonathan put his blinker on and took the exit for the next town, a sleepy little place called Caldner, Felicity could no longer contain her curiosity. “Where are we going?” she asked. “What’s in Caldner?”

“You’ll see. We’re almost there.”

She was growing more intrigued by the minute. In addition to wondering about their destination, she was fascinated by this new Jonathan. It seemed that slipping on a tux was all it took to transform him from Awkward School Jonathan to Confident SuperJonathan.

They turned onto a street lined with dark shuttered storefronts. It ended in a cul-de-sac, and Jonathan pulled the truck into the last parking space before the curve. “We’re here,” he said.

They were parked in front of the Caldner Public Library. The breeze carried strains of muffled music and laughter, but Felicity couldn’t find their source. “Umm … where are we, exactly?”

Jonathan hopped out of the car and came around to the passenger side. “Come on, you’re gonna like this. I promise.”

Felicity opened the door and slid out of the pickup amid a rustle of petticoats. The evening air had grown cool, and she realized she had left her wrap on a chair at the back of the gym. She shivered a little and hugged herself.

“Are you cold?” Jonathan asked. “Do you want my jacket?”

She smiled. “I’ll be okay. Thanks, though.”

“No, really, it’s fine. You can have it.” Jonathan shrugged out of his tux jacket and draped it gently around her shoulders. It was warm from his body and fit her much better than Brent’s broad-shouldered one would have. She snuggled into it gratefully.

“Come on, it’s this way.” Jonathan led her around to the back of the library, where she spotted a turquoise house with a huge, flood-lit sign reading
fry me to the moon
. People sat at brightly painted picnic tables all over the lawn, lit by strings of novelty lights shaped like jalapeño peppers and flamingos. Light poured from the windows, revealing an explosion of color and activity inside, and the air was full of the mouthwatering scent of french fries. Felicity hadn’t eaten much of her dinner, but until that moment, she hadn’t realized how hungry she was.

They walked across the lawn and up the weathered stairs, which listed to the left and felt as if they might collapse any second. When Jonathan pushed open the screen door, the smell of fries intensified, but the décor was so overwhelming that Felicity barely noticed. Neon-pink and lime-green shelves lined the walls, all of them crowded with Pez dispensers and action figures. The tables were draped in plastic shower curtains printed with cupcakes, sea creatures, and maps of the New York City subway system. In one corner, a five-foot-tall Lego sculpture of a carton of fries sat on a glittery pink throne. Colored lightbulbs dangled from the ceiling, a sky full of schizophrenic stars.

Felicity instantly fell head over heels in love with it all.

“I hope you like french fries,” Jonathan said. He pointed at the wooden menu on the wall, which was hand-painted with lists of french fry varieties, dipping sauces, and milk shake flavors. If Felicity had been a cartoon character, her pupils would have turned into little hearts and started spinning.

There was another couple standing at the counter, and Felicity and Jonathan got in line behind them. The girl had a bright red ponytail, but Felicity didn’t recognize her from school. Just as she was wondering why someone with hair so red would choose to live just outside of Scarletville, a tiny blonde wearing an apron hurried out from behind the counter and threw her arms around the redhead. “Oh my god, Sienna, you finally did it!” she squealed. “That color looks
amazing
on you!”

“Thanks!” The girl fingered the end of her coppery ponytail. “I’m still getting used to it, but I think I like it.”

“I’m telling you, it’s awesome. Where’d you have it done?”

“Live Free or Dye, over on Orchard.”

Felicity suddenly realized what they were talking about, and she drew in her breath sharply. How could this Sienna girl
openly admit
to having dyed her hair? This was a public place, and anyone could be listening. Didn’t she know that hair dye should only be discussed in whispers in the privacy of one’s own home? Though the girl seemed totally at ease, Felicity flushed with embarrassment on her behalf. She had the urge to avert her gaze, as if the other redhead were doing a drunken striptease on the counter.

But at the same time, she couldn’t stop staring. Because even to her expert eyes—eyes that looked at dyed red hair every single day of her life—this girl’s hair color looked natural. And that meant there was someone right here in Caldner who was just as skilled with dye as Rose Vaughn.

Gabby had said she’d make her mom drop Felicity as a client if she refused to cooperate, but that threat was totally meaningless. Rouge-o-Rama wasn’t the only option out there. The realization shocked Felicity so much that her knees felt a little weak.

“You okay?” Jonathan gently touched her shoulder.

“What? Yeah. Sure.” Felicity realized the other couple had moved on and that she had been staring very intently into space. She tried to pull herself together.

The tiny blonde was back behind the register now, and she smiled radiantly when she saw Jonathan. “Hey, cutie! How are you? What’re you all dolled up for? Who’s your … um …
friend
?”

Jonathan grinned and looked at his shoes, and Felicity smiled to see a little glimpse of bashful School Jonathan peeking through the SuperJonathan exterior. “This is Felicity. She helped me escape from prom. Felicity, this is April, my brother’s girlfriend.”

April held out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Felicity. You have
such
gorgeous hair. Wow, two redheaded customers in a row. What are the odds?”

The question seemed ludicrous—at the stores and restaurants Felicity frequented, nearly
all
the customers were redheads. But as her eyes skimmed over the Fry Me to the Moon crowd, she had the startling realization that she and the ponytailed girl were the only redheads in the entire room. The lack of red made her feel a bit unsettled. “Crazy,” she managed.

“Why’d you guys need to escape from
prom
?” April asked. “Isn’t that usually a place people
want
to be?”

“Long story,” Jonathan said. “And we’re desperately in need of fries.”

“Well, you’re in the right place. What can I get for you?”

Felicity tried to focus on the menu, but it was overwhelming. There were at least twenty dipping sauces to choose from, and they all sounded equally delicious. She definitely needed some waffle fries, but was she in a jalapeño cheddar mood or a cinnamon barbecue mood? Maybe the spicy mayo was the way to go. Just as she was about to start asking questions, Jonathan said, “Well, since it’s Felicity’s first time, I think we better have one order of waffle fries with jalapeño cheddar and one order of sweet potato fries with cinnamon barbecue sauce.” He turned to her. “Is that okay with you?”

Felicity’s eyes widened. “How did you know what I wanted?”

“Trust me, those are the best. You want a milk shake?”

She was about to say she didn’t need a milk shake, but she decided she deserved one after the night she’d had. “Yeah. Chocolate malt, please.”

“Good call. I’ll have the same thing.”

Felicity opened her bag and reached for her wallet, but Jonathan stopped her hand. “Don’t, um—I’ve got it.”

Did that make this a date? Felicity instinctively looked around to make sure nobody was watching, but everyone who would gossip about her and Jonathan was back in Scarletville. “You don’t have to do that,” she said.

“I know. I want to.”

April handed Jonathan his change. “Your order will be out in a few minutes,” she said. Then she reached into her apron pocket, pulled out a hamburger-shaped windup toy, and presented it to Felicity with great solemnity. “This is for you, since it’s your first time. Welcome to the Fry Me to the Moon family.”

“Thanks,” Felicity said. She wound up the hamburger, and it hopped crookedly across the counter. She found it more amusing than she should have, considering her age. She knew she should give it to her brothers when she got home, but she planned to keep it.

Jonathan led Felicity to a free table next to a mosaic of a pelican with its beak full of fries. Felicity chose a gold chair painted with pineapples, and Jonathan sat down across from her in a purple striped one. He looked more relaxed than she’d ever seen him. “So, you like this place?” he asked.

“I
love
it. How’d you find it? I never would have known this was here.”

“I’ve been coming here pretty often since Jake and April started dating a couple years ago. It’s pretty much the only place that stays open late, except for the truck stop on I-35, and that’s not exactly my scene.”

“Is that
anybody’s
scene?”

“I think the football team goes there sometimes. They serve huge pieces of pie, and nobody cares if you act really rude and stupid.” Jonathan’s eyes suddenly widened. “Oh God, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean Brent. I’m sure he’s— I mean—”

Felicity considered defending her boyfriend’s honor, but it was true—the football team’s main pastimes were insulting each other and having eating and burping contests. “Don’t worry, it’s fine,” she said. “You’re totally right. That truck stop is awful.”

Jonathan looked relieved. “Anyway, it’s just nice that I never run into anyone from Scarletville here, you know?”

“Do you really hate it there that much?” Of course, it made sense, now that she thought about it. The lack of redheads in Caldner made her feel uneasy, so the lack of brunettes in Scarletville must make Jonathan feel the same way.

“I don’t
hate
it. It’s just … I don’t know. I guess it’s not really my scene, either.” Jonathan’s hand reflexively flew up to fix his glasses, and when he remembered they weren’t there, he smoothed down his hair instead. Just talking about Scarletville seemed to make his fidgety mannerisms rise to the surface, and Felicity was sorry she’d brought it up.