Maura and Colin stepped outside into a silence that was shocking in comparison to the dance floor. There was a cool breeze on the hill, blowing in off the distant lake, and the sweat on Maura's hairline dried instantly, her bare arms erupting in goosebumps. It felt good, though. Refreshing. She turned her face to the sky and gasped. "There must be a million stars out tonight!"

Colin looked up, too. "At least! Hey, you should make a wish. One of them is bound to be a wishing star."

Maura smiled at Colin. She hadn't wished on a star since she was a little girl. Closing her eyes, she sent a silent wish to the heavens.

"What did you wish for?" Colin wondered.

"If I tell you, it won't come true," Maura replied. Fat chance her wish would come true anyway, but she was careful to keep that thought from showing on her face.

"Don't go too far," one of the chaperones cautioned as they walked past, though she barely gave them a second glance before returning to the conversation she was having with two other parents.

Maura and Colin set off slowly down the path, sipping punch as they went. Disregarding what the chaperone said, they found a spot on a grassy hill with a view overlooking the city, far enough away that they had privacy, but not so far away that they couldn't hear the thumping bass of the music in the background.

"It's nice out tonight," Maura said.

"You're not cold?" Colin asked. "I can give you my jacket."

"No, no. I'm fine," Maura said, only belatedly realizing that maybe Colin had wanted her to wear his jacket anyway. "I'm having a great time," she said quickly to compensate.

"So am I," Colin replied, a smile in his voice.

They sat shoulder to shoulder for a while, making a game of pointing out all the buildings and landmarks they recognized in the distance, which was admittedly difficult in the dark.

"If that's the lake over there, then our school must be that way, to that south," Colin said, pointing.

Maura laughed. "Either you're joking, or you have the worst sense of direction." She grabbed his hand and swiveled it in the opposite direction. "That way is south."

"Oh. I knew that," Colin said. "I was just testing you."

"Uh-huh. Right."

Colin was quiet for a moment, and then: "It's sorta cool to watch all the cars on the highway. Like . . . I wonder what kind of people they are . . . what's going on in their lives."

"Do you think they know two strangers are sitting on this hill wondering about them?"

"Of course. I wonder all the time who might be thinking of me."

Maura laughed again. "You're a riot."

Colin turned to her then, his face serious. He reached up and brushed a lock of hair off her cheek, tucking it behind her ear. "Do you ever think of me?"

Maura felt her cheeks blushing and forced herself not to look away. "Do you ever think of me?"

His answering smile made her insides twist. "All the time."

He was just leaning in for a kiss when they heard a shout in the distance, growing louder and more frantic. "Colin! Colin!"

They looked up to find one of the chaperones running in their direction. When she met up with them, she was slightly out of breath. "Your mother just called."

"My mother?"

"It seems there has been an emergency of some sort."

"An emergency?"

"Yes, you need to leave immediately."

Colin pulled out his cell and powered it on. He shook his head. "I don't have any missed calls or texts."

"Are you sure it's Colin McCallum you're looking for and not Colin Stewart?" Maura asked, trying to make sense of the situation.

"Colin McCallum," the chaperone said. "She said she tried to call you, but for some reason she couldn't get through, so she called the building. It took me fifteen minutes to track you down. You shouldn't be all the way out here."

Colin stood up then. "Did she say what the emergency was?"

"No," the chaperone said. "Only that you need to get home as soon as possible."

Colin looked at Maura, panic on his face. "Go," she said, standing. "Leanne and I can get a ride with someone."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm positive. Go. Your mom needs you. Text me when you can."

Colin kissed her quickly on the cheek. "I'm sorry, Maura. I promise I'll make it up to you."

"Don't worry about it," she said, feeling anxious on his behalf and wishing he would just leave already. "Seriously, go!"

He left without another word, the chaperone rushing after him.

"Well, damn," Maura said, watching Colin disappear. She sat down and took off her heels, lining them up next to her so that the toes pointed toward the city. She brought her knees up to her chest and pulled the fabric of her dress over her legs, wrapping her arms around herself. Now that Colin was gone, she noticed just how chilly the night was and wished she had something to cover her shoulders. She should find Leanne, figure out how they were going to get home. Suddenly she was tired and in no mood to party anymore. Still, she couldn't bring herself to move.

She'd been sitting by herself for some minutes when she heard approaching footsteps. She half-turned, expecting Leanne, but it was Justin Peterson, one of the popular guys. His friends called him JP. She'd never had any classes with him, but everyone knew who he was.

Maura resumed gazing at the city lights, thinking he was going to pass on his way to somewhere else, but he sat down heavily next to her. "Hey," he said. Maura recoiled, unable to help but notice that his breath reeked of alcohol. She started to get up, but he grabbed her hand and yanked her down next to him. "I know you," he said.

"No, you don't." She tried to pull her hand free, but his grip tightened.

"You're . . ." he squinted one glassy eye as he tried to focus his attention. Despite being drunk, his gaze was intrusive.

"Not interested," she said, her voice cold.

He laughed, seeming to find that funny. Without warning, he lunged at her, taking her off guard with a sloppy kiss that landed mostly on her cheek. She reared back. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Instead of answering, Justin lunged at her again, this time pushing her on her back. Maura opened her mouth to scream, but it was cut short when he thrust his tongue inside. The taste of alcohol in her mouth was oppressive. She nearly gagged.

Maura finally managed to turn her head to the side. "Get off me!" she demanded, though her voice was weak with the weight of Justin flattening her chest and constricting her lungs. Her arms were useless, pinned as they were at her sides. All she could do was dodge his mouth as he repeatedly tried to kiss her.

Suddenly the weight disappeared, and there was a sickening crunch followed by a groan. Maura sat up in time to see Justin stumbling away, his face buried in his hands. Luke stood nearby shaking out his fingers, his profile caught in a grimace.

"Luke?"

He turned to look down at her then. "Are you okay?" he asked, offering her his good hand as he cradled his injured one to his chest.

"Yeah. I'm . . . I think I'm okay." Maura let Luke pull her to her feet. Her legs were shaking. So were her hands. She knew she should report Justin to one of the chaperones, but then the administrators would get involved, as well as her mom, and she didn't know if she had the energy to go down that road.

"Why are you here?" she said, taking out her anger on Luke.

"Where's Colin?" he said, not answering her question.

She gave him a hard look. "Obviously not here, or he'd be the one punching Justin in the face. Seriously, how did you happen to show up at just the right time? Are you following me?"

Luke looked unapologetic. "I told you you're in danger. Evelyn and the—"

Maura held up her hands, silencing him. "Your sister apologized. We're okay." She bent down to grab her heels, too tired now to put them on her feet, and muttered under her breath, "This is not how I imagined tonight would go."

Luke stared at Maura for a moment. Then he ran his hand through his hair. "The night's not over yet."

Maura's eyes welled with tears, and her voice was thick when she answered. "It might as well be."

Luke closed his eyes and shook his head, as though he were warring with an inner voice. "You look beautiful," he finally said.

Maura laughed. She waved her hand in his direction, indicating his jeans, t-shirt, and sneakers. "I see you dressed up for the occasion."

"Where is Colin?" Luke asked again.

"He didn't stand me up if that's what you're wondering. There was an emergency. He had to go home."

"An emergency. Are you sure?"

"Of course, I'm sure!" Maura said, temper flaring. "You think Colin fabricated an elaborate ruse just so he could ditch me?"

"That's not what I meant."

"Well, what did you mean?"

"Are you in love with him?"

Maura's mouth fell open. "With Colin?"

"Yes."

"No! We're just friends. I'm not even close to being in love with Colin, or anyone else for that matter. That doesn't mean we can't flirt with each other. That doesn't mean that being with someone who thinks you're pretty damn wonderful doesn't feel good. And right now, at this point in my life, I think I deserve to feel good for a change!"

Luke was quiet for several heartbeats before responding. "Well, as long as we know where we stand with each other . . ." He extended his hand. "Would you like to dance?"

Maura rolled her eyes but reluctantly reached out her hand to him, assuming he was going to lead her back inside where the rest of their classmates were. Instead, he pulled her to him and placed his hand against her lower back.

"Is this okay?" he asked, his voice low.

She felt the heat of his hand through the fabric of her dress and her heart accelerated, nothing more than an involuntary reaction to being that close to a guy. She cleared her throat. "It's fine," she whispered.

They swayed like willows in the wind, Maura's cheek pressed against Luke's shoulder, the thumping bass of the music and raised voices of those inside providing a quiet soundtrack to the night. 

*****

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this chapter, please vote, comment, and recommend Love You To Death to others.