“Okay, here I go.”

“Okay, stop talking now.”

It was a pretty sweaty kiss. But it was our first kiss. Which would make Greenville and Greenville High, as the site of that kiss, a very important place, maybe my favorite place, after that.

Berry’s lips were soft and they tasted like green lipstick. Which weirdly tasted like cherries.

Berry pulled her face away and smirked. “There’s green all over your chin.”

I kissed her again. I didn’t care.

When your heart’s exploding, a little lipstick on the chin is pretty much no big deal.

TWENTY-FIVE

Where does this story end?

Not that it has an actual end, of course, because I’m still here and my story’s still going.

But this story, this one of many stories of me and Greenville, should probably have some sort of end.

I mean, one ending could be of me flying.

Because what’s more magical than flying?

Up in the air, in my sparkly green Peter Pan outfit (yes, I stoned the whole thing), a set of very large citizens operating a crane connected to a metal wire connected to a metal harness you could kind of see under the outfit in a way I was worried looked like a diaper, but Berry said it didn’t.

I flew over the heads of all of Greenville, or at least the heads of Tanner and his fellow pirates.

Tanner didn’t even freak out when I almost put his eye out (foam) sword fighting. Of course, I apologized backstage afterward—it was a mistake—I think I was just super in character and also I’m not a great sword fighter. Tanner was, happily, more excited that he was killing it as Hook, which he was.

Speaking of, Sarah, who I thought was a great Wendy, even stood next to me and held my hand up when we took our bow at the end of the play, all while Greenville High’s gathered parents, or those who cared about something other than soccer, put their hands together for our stellar performance.

Small victories, is what Lucy calls it.

After the play, our big opening and closing night (high school), Mr. Davidson threw a huge party for the whole cast and crew and their parents at Beverly Lynde’s house. Which was amazing, mostly because Bev’s house is maybe the most amazing house I’ve ever seen in all of time, let alone Greenville, and I got to show it to Berry, and she loved it.

Plus, Beverly wore all green velvet for the occasion, including, I kid you not, a hoop skirt that made it almost impossible for her to walk through her own doorways.

You cannot beat Bev Lynde for fashion.