BooksBarbecue
Back Counting Down with You Save as PDF
Chapters (64)
  1. Cover
  2. About the Author
  3. Praise
  4. Booklist
  5. Dedication
  6. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  7. Part 1
  8. 1
  9. 2
  10. 3
  11. 4
  12. 5
  13. 6
  14. 7
  15. 8
  16. 9
  17. 10
  18. 11
  19. 12
  20. 13
  21. 14
  22. 15
  23. 16
  24. 17
  25. 18
  26. 19
  27. Part 2
  28. 20
  29. 21
  30. 22
  31. 23
  32. 24
  33. 25
  34. 26
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. 32
  41. 33
  42. Part 3
  43. 34
  44. 35
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. 42
  52. 43
  53. 44
  54. 45
  55. 46
  56. 47
  57. 48
  58. 49
  59. 50
  60. 51
  61. 52
  62. 53
  63. 54
  64. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.

Some of the tension leaves my frame and I turn to look at him. “Sorry.”

“What have I told you about apologizing?” Ace says, squeezing my shoulder. “Anyway, I said I wanted to talk to you before. I was thinking...will you go to prom with me?”

I stop breathing.

Prom? It was only days ago that Cora, Nandini, and I were joking about it. I never expected anyone to ask me. I didn’t expect Ace to ask me.

“Ahmed?” Ace says, gently nudging my shoulder.

I inhale sharply, trying to gain a hold of my bearings. “Are you serious?”

Ace nods. “I would’ve done a promposal, but I figured you’d be against that. I didn’t want to put you on the spot or anything. You can say no, obviously, but I thought it’d be nice to go together since we’re pretending to date. What do you think?”

I blink at him several times. “You want to go to prom with me? As part of our fake dating facade? Isn’t that past our three-week mark?”

He shrugs. “Just in case.” Then a strange look passes over his face. “Unless...someone asked you already?”

“No,” I say quickly. “No, no one’s asked me. I just—I don’t know if I can go. I don’t know if my parents will let me.”

Ace frowns. “You’re not allowed to go to junior prom?”

“I’m not allowed to do a lot of things,” I say with a thin smile, but my pulse is still raging like an incessant drumbeat. “But, uh...”

A hopeful light enters his eyes. “Yeah?”

I swallow past the dryness of my mouth. “If I can go, I’d love to go with you. But right now, three weeks is all I can promise.”

“Okay. Let me know then.” A flush spreads across his cheeks and he laughs in chagrin. “That actually isn’t what I wanted to ask you.”

“There’s something else?”

He shrugs, his eyes still dancing. “Mia wants us to join her and her girlfriend for a double date after school. I thought it’d be fun. What do you think?”

I raise both eyebrows at him. “A double date? But we’re not...dating, Ace.”

“Technically, we are,” he says, nudging his hip against mine. “Come on. Remember the books I promised to buy you? I’ll do it today, if you come with us.”

I pause to consider that. Goodreads recently informed me that several books from my TBR list released this week, and I’ve been meaning to go to the bookstore anyway. “Which bookstore?”