She was right, of course. At any given time, there were at least a dozen girls who would give anything to go out with Victor. It was vain and shortsighted of me to think he’d mope around for any length of time. I felt ashamed, wondering what it said about my true feelings that I’d even remotely hoped there would be some grieving period before he moved on.

“Come on, girl,” Anamae said. “You can’t have it both ways.”

My fingers went to the pendants hanging around my neck. I followed the slope of the J, feeling abashed I’d given two thoughts to the end of my relationship with Victor when I hadn’t actually experienced it.

“Besides, you’ve got bigger problems,” she said. “A pop-up at Judaculla Rock? From what you said, there’s nothing but a creepy boulder there that leads to an even creepier world.”

I glanced around the coffee shop, hoping no one had heard her.

“Relax,” Anamae said. “No one’s listening.” She nodded to the person at the closest table. Earbuds in, the man sat hunched over his laptop, agony plastered on his face. “Busy writing the next bestseller.” She jerked her thumb at a woman camped out at the only table near an outlet. “Reworking her thesis.” Anamae turned toward the door. “And that one over there’s looking for work.” Smirking, she nodded at the help wanted sign beside the cash register.

I burst out laughing.

“Yeah, so no one cares.”

“Tell me something,” I said. “How is it that I’m on the prom committee anyway?”

“You lost a bet,” Anamae said, sipping her latte. “With me.”

“I don’t even want to know,” I said, shaking my head.

“What are you going to tell Victor when he figures out prom won’t be at Judaculla Rock?”

“I’ll tell him it was in the running, but it was voted out,” I said.

“Think it’ll work?”

“I doubt Victor cares where prom is. But I’m still going to tell him the next time I see him. I don’t want any rumors starting up. The last thing I need is a bunch of kids randomly showing up there.”

“You’ll tell me where prom’s going to be, right? I mean, as soon as the committee decides. I want to be beautiful for our date.”

“You’re an idiot,” I said, sipping my coffee.

“You love me just the same,” Anamae said.

The last several weeks of high school were usually a complete joy. Classes fell away like the layers of winter clothes with the conclusion of each exam. I’d already taken my AP English exam, and I was that I’d no longer have to endure sideways looks from Ms. Green. Since English was right in the middle of the day, it meant I still had morning and afternoon classes until I completed those exams as well.