Making Out by Megan Stine Read Free Book Online Page A

Court took control of the voting process and determined the outcome of the election,” she said. “If it hadn’t been for—”
    â€œNo, I’m not asking a political question,” Mr. Rayburn interrupted her. “I’m talking about how each branch of the government has separate powers and responsibilities.”
    Great. Now Rayburn was dismissing her like a child, in front of Luke.
    Luke’s hand shot up while Mr. Rayburn was still talking.
    â€œYes?” Rayburn called on him.
    â€œMarianna’s right,” Luke said. “The system is supposed to have checks and balances, but they didn’t work in the 2000 election because the court decided the whole thing. The court shouldn’t be deciding our elections . . .”
    His voice trailed off, and someone else chimed in on the debate, but Marianna wasn’t really listening. Her heart was pumping a little irregular rhythm, and she was holding her own internal debate on a much more important issue: Should she look over at Luke right now and smile?
    He had defended her! That had to mean something good, didn’t it?
    Maybe he hadn’t been mocking her last night with that matinee comment after all. Maybe he really meant it. Could he possibly want to go to an afternoon movie?
    She doodled pictures of King Kong, the movie they were supposed to go see, through the rest of the class. Finally the bell rang.
    Luke was first out the door, but he was waiting for her in the hallway.
    â€œHi,” he said. “I missed you this morning.”
    â€œYeah, well, I thought I’d take a break,” she said cautiously. She wanted to say, I missed you, too, but she wasn’t in the mood to go out on any limbs. “That was nice in class—you backing me up.”
    â€œYou were right,” Luke said. “These teachers who don’t want to get into political discussions drive me crazy. What’s the point of learning civics?”
    He jerked his head toward the main hallway. “I have Spanish. You going that way?”
    Marianna shook her head. Her next class was in the opposite direction.
    Luke shrugged. “Okay, well . . .”
    Was he just going to walk off without saying a thing about their date? Was it on or off?
    â€œSo do you want to maybe study for the civics exam after school today?” he said. “We could do it before nine thirty p.m. Daylight saving time doesn’t even start until next weekend.”
    Unbelievable. He was mocking her again!
    Marianna spun around and started to stomp away, but Luke grabbed her arm.
    â€œHey, wait, wait. I was just kidding. What’s wrong?”
    â€œYou’re trying to make me feel like a jerk about my curfew,” Marianna snapped. “That crack about going to a matinee? If you want to get out of our date, just say so.”
    His blue eyes opened wide. “No. No, I don’t want to get out of our date,” he said quickly. “I was serious about the matinee. If that works better for you, then let’s just go tomorrow afternoon.”
    â€œSeriously?”
    He nodded, and since he was still holding on to the arm of her sweater, he gave it a little tug. “Meet me after school by the statue, and we’ll figure it out.”
    Then he flashed his irresistible smile at her one more time and hurried down the hall.
    Marianna felt happier inside than she could remember feeling in a long time. Suddenly, everything about St. Claire’s Academy seemed . . . what was the word? Nice . The hallways, with their wooden wainscot paneling and old stone floors were nice. The heavy doorways leading from the west corridor and down a flight of steps were nice. Having a calculus quiz right before lunch was nice because . . . she had to think hard to come up with a reason . . . because it meant she didn’t have to worry about taking it in the afternoon. The smell of macaroni and cheese bubbling in the cafeteria kitchen? Nice. It