Mrs. Emory felt so bad for upsetting Elissa that she brought her a free chocolate malt with the cherry Cokes they had ordered. “Young love,” she sighed, patting Elissa’s hand, before moving on to the other kids that were gathering in booths and at the counter.

“See now, things aren’t so bad,” Muriel said. “Any day you get a free malt has to be a good day, right?”

Elissa sniffed, and picked up her spoon. She dipped it into her malt and lifted it out again, watching the ice cream stream from it. “I’m not hungry,” she said.

“Not hungry!” came a voice behind her. “Why, whatever could be the matter?”

Elissa looked over her shoulder. It was copper-haired Judy Wasserman, her bright pink lips looking to Elissa like a cruel slash in her face. Her cronies huddled around her, giggling.

“Unlucky in love, could it be?” Judy said.

Elissa turned back to her malt. Judy and her gang scuttled past, hiding their laughter behind their hands, heading for a booth in the back.

“They’re just jealous,” Muriel assured Elissa loudly, but that only made the other girls laugh harder.

“Oh, I’d just love to find out I’d set my cap for another girl’s fiancé,” Judy said.

“Hey, Judy,” came a boy’s voice from behind Elissa. The whole of Emory’s seemed to shush.

Judy stopped, turned. “What is it, Ty?”

“What’s this I hear about your boyfriend Hank winning a date with that Rockette on that radio program out in New York?”

Judy flamed pink. “It’s a lie!”

“Oh, yeah, I know, he spends all his free time dreaming of you,” said the boy. There was a loud chorus of laughter throughout Emory’s.

Judy shot a death look across the restaurant, then turned and went toward the rearmost booth, her friends scurrying along behind her.

Elissa looked back over her shoulder. Her benefactor was Ty Lofgren, also a member of the class of ’43. He caught her eye, and winked.

She blushed, and gave him a little smile back.

All the underclass girls were wild about Ty. He dated several of them nonchalantly, and was always kind to them, which kept their hopes up. He was cute: dark brown hair flopping into his long-lashed brown eyes; strong, square face; dimples.

Elissa watched as he put on his cap, said something to his friends Pete and Carl. The three boys headed out the door, the bell jingling.

When Elissa looked back at Muriel, Muriel raised her eyebrows, as if to say, What was that all about?