Day Negative One - June 25

It's the night before we leave on tour, and Cate just pierced my nose.

I was trembling when my mom dropped me off at the Brewers' house, a safety pin and a pack of new earrings stuffed in the pocket of my denim shorts. The sun was setting when I rang the doorbell; mosquitos buzzed suicidally around the porch lamp.

Tom answered the door, of course. "Hey, Jess," he greeted me with a perfectly crooked smile of perfectly straight movie-star teeth. After two years, my heart still fluttered when I saw him. I mentally kicked myself for being such a schoolgirl. 

"Hey, Tom," I replied, harshly aware of the nervous sweat that was beginning to form under my arms. "Is Cate here?"

"Jessie!" Cate called from the bathroom. "Come on in, I have everything set up!"
Cate wasn't kidding. The tiny half bath off the Brewer's living room smelled strongly of disinfectant. Cate had set up two opposing chairs, and her face was warped into a mischievous smile.

"Ready?"

I nodded, sitting across from Cate and handing her the supplies. Cate eyed the safety pin as she wiped it with an alcohol pad. "Looks pretty thick," she mused. My stomach dropped. I'd been itching to pierce my nose for months, but I was just now getting nervous. Ha, nervous. More like petrified. Tom was standing next to me; I felt his hand on my shoulder. I reached up and grabbed his hand, squeezing it hard. "Go ahead, Cate, before I change my mind!"

It didn't really hurt, after all. Afterwards, I couldn't stop staring at myself in the mirror. The little diamond stud in the side of my nose glinted in the fluorescent light. Tom laughed at me.

"Better stop staring at yourself," he joked. "Wouldn't want people to think you're vain or anything."

I punched him lightly in the arm and he chuckled. "Do you like it?" I asked.

Tom smirked. "Sure, Jess. It's great."

Do you like me?

Sure, Jess. You're great.

I sighed wistfully, but Tom didn't notice. He never noticed.