A Beautiful Dark

Pleasure_______________
Declines with Regret_______________

    I laughed, writing my name into the “Accepts with Pleasure” slot and slipping the invite into the front pocket of my backpack. Going down the hall to swing by her locker on the way to my next class, I saw Asher leaning against the locker door. My heart jolted. He was the last person I wanted to see at that moment. I whirled around and took the long way to class, the RSVP still in my pocket.
    I got to lunch before Dan but after Cassie, who was already sitting at our table with her guitar out, scribbling something in her music notebook. As I sat down across from her, I waved my RSVP note in front of her face.
    “Not to interrupt,” I sang, “but I have a present for you. . . .”
    “Ooh!” she squealed. “Yay! So many people are coming, I hope we have room for everyone at the Bean! What are you going to wear? Promise me you’ll dress up? I’m so excited!”
    I dropped the folded-up paper on the table in front of her and unwrapped my sandwich. I tried to push the memory of Asher guessing my favorite lunch out of my head. “I don’t know what I’m wearing,” I said. “I hate dressing up.”
    “Oh my god, if you lame out on me tonight I’ll kill you. You’re definitely coming, right? Right?”
    “Of course! Yes, I’m definitely coming.”
    “Good. Because there’s something I need to ask you.”
    “What?”
    She paused, letting the drama of the moment build between us. “How do you feel about taking risks?”
    “What?” I asked again. “What kind of risk?”
    “There’s something I’m thinking about doing tonight. And it’s kind of scary.”
    “Cass! Seriously? What is it?”
    She played with a long twisted curl that had come loose from her side braid. “I’ve never done anything like this before. It’s a big risk.”
    “Riskier than singing on stage in front of a hundred people?”
    “Are you kidding? I’m a performer. That doesn’t scare me one bit. If I did this, it would be, like, epic .”
    “Well, I think you should do it,” I said before I even knew the words were coming out of my mouth. “Will you at least tell me what it is?”
    “I guess you’ll find out tonight,” she said with a wink. When Dan and Ian walked up to our table seconds later debating the health benefits of spray cheese versus Kraft Singles, I noticed that she blushed, and the conversation was over.
    I was getting books out of my locker for the last few classes of the day when Devin came up behind me. “Put those back,” he said with a small smile, taking the books from me and shoving them back in the locker. “We’re leaving.”
    “Oh, really ?” I said. “Where are we going?”
    “We’re cutting school for the rest of the day.”
    The hall was emptying out; the bell was about to ring. I looked around for anyone who might care.
    “Oh, great,” I said. “Don’t worry about my education. I’m sure I can get a job as a short-order cook somewhere.”
    “Skye,” he said testily, the look in his eyes not one to mess with. “Don’t think we haven’t noticed how you’re avoiding us again. But it’s time to get back to work.”
    “Okay,” I said slowly, shutting the locker door behind me. The day before I’d stayed after school to take that essay test for Ms. Manning, so we hadn’t practiced. As we walked down the hall, I noticed that only my footsteps echoed behind us.
    Outside by my car, Asher was waiting. He had sunglasses on, and I could feel my knees weaken even as we walked across the parking lot. I got in behind the wheel, Devin sat next to me, and Asher hopped in the back. When I turned the key in the ignition, the car roared to life.
    We were up in the mountains.
    It was unseasonably warm considering how cold and miserable it had been since New Year’s. The previous day’s rain had left the snow melting in patches along the path, revealing spots of brown dead grass. It seemed like every step I took higher and higher up the mountain path revealed more and more of the dirt underneath. As I left a trail in my wake, I wondered how much of this was the weather and how much of it was me melting the snow with all my cosmic energy.
    Finally we reached a clearing. The snow was packed hard on the ground and dripping icicles hung precariously from the branches of the evergreen trees that surrounded us. Devin stopped walking and turned to face me and Asher.
    “Skye,” he said gravely. “I know the last week or so has