Thursday brought buckets of rain all morning. The girls were polka-dotted with raindrops, having forgone taking their umbrellas around campus and opting instead to hurry beneath the trees across the paths to their classes.

They met up in the cafeteria for lunch and squeakily slid two small tables together across the terrazzo floor to accommodate their group more comfortably.

"So my Mom said everyone can sleep over after the Farrell dance tomorrow," Alex announced. Then she revealed, "Ed from improv group texted to ask me if you're going Evie."

Evie who had been unwrapping her sandwich, stopped. "Will you just give me his number Alex? I mean we're not in middle school."

Emily interjected, "I think it's sweet that he's shy. He's so self-assured on stage. If he only had half as much confidence off stage then he would have been dating you all year."

Anna mocked, "You should take your own advice Emily. Are you going to actually speak to Geoff at the dance tomorrow?"

"Actually I think I'm going to be able to do more than just speak with him tomorrow night." Emily threw a potato chip at Anna.

Anna picked the chip off her shirt, and ate it. "I guess having two boys drooling over you last weekend gave you some cajones finally."

Jenny arrived at the table with her tray of hot lunch. "Who has cajones finally?"

Evie explained, "Emily is going to make a move on Geoff tomorrow at the dance."

"Oh Geoff isn't going to be at the dance tomorrow," Jenny blurted.

When all of the girls turned their attention to Jenny she babbled, "You know... I um... overheard my sister and her friends talking about it in the car yesterday."

Jenny stopped talking by filling her mouth with a huge bite of her sloppy joe.

"No big deal. I'll just practice on Patrick. He's cute and funny and far less intimidating that Geoff anyway. I can build up to Geoff," Emily decided.

Alex turned to Jenny. "Well anyway, everyone is going to sleepover at my place after the dance."

Jenny swallowed another enormous bite. "I can't go tomorrow night. My parents said I need to stay in to finish my homework on Friday because they were mad that I needed an extension for my Morality paper after last weekend."

The girls looked at Jenny as she filled her mouth with yet another giant bite.

Jenny normally eats like a bird...

The cafeteria was loud but it didn't cover the growing silence of their group.

"Well that stinks," Alex offered awkwardly.

Jenny's sandwich was nearly finished. She rummaged in her backpack and said, "I forgot my copy of 'The Scarlet Letter' in my locker. I have to get it before for class."

Then she fled back out into the rain.

Anna turned to Emily with concern. "That was weird. What's up with her?"

Emily shook her head and confided, "Honestly, I have no clue."

Anna pointed out the obvious. "Well, that's even weirder."