天锡小说网

第30部分（第1页）

could　let　him　give　her　a　little　tiny　kiss　to　remember　her　by　and　then　just　forget　about　it　forever。

She　shrugged　her　bony　shoulders　and　turned　to　offer　up　her　smooth；　delicately　sun…freckled

cheek；　making　it　quite　clear　that　Mr。　Beckham　wasn？t　about　to　get　any　lip　action。

He　took　a　step　forward　and　placed　a　careful　kiss　in　the　middle　of　her　cheek；　like　a　stamp。　？Tant

pis；？　he　breathed　wistfully　and　then　flung　open　the　darkroom　curtains；　as　if　to　let　her　know　that　he

had　no　intention　of　molesting　her　any　further。

Guess　he　didn？t　care　much　about　exposing　his　film。

？Adieu；　Serena。？

In　the　hall　just　outside　the　darkroom；　Mrs。　M　stood　dressed　in　her　favorite　red；　white；　and　blue

Talbots　linen　pantsuit　with　Ms。　D？Agostino；　the　mousy　freshman　Spanish　teacher；　who　was

holding　a　gold　metal　tin　full　of　chocolate　truffles。　？Ooh；　you　little　she…devil！？　Mrs。　M　cooed

delightedly　as　she　popped　a　truffle　into　her　mouth。　Then　she　noticed　Serena　and　her　brown　eyes

grew　wide；　like　a　child　caught　with　her　hand　in　the　cookie　jar。

Serena　fought　back　a　fit　of　giggles；　suddenly　feeling　like　a　balloon　with　too　much　air　in　it。　How

bizarre　life　was。　She　grinned　at　Mrs。　M　and　snatched　a　truffle　from　the　tin　as　she　hurried　toward

the　school　exit。

Oh；　the　things　we　seniors　get　away　with。　Now；　run；　baby；run！！

N？s　new　drug　of　choice

The　final　lacrosse　team　party　of　the　year　was　in　the　St。　Jude？s　gym；　which　was　kind　of　lame；

since　it　was　like　eighty　degrees　outside；　and　a　party　in　the　park　would　have　been　much　better。　But

the　boys　were　all　underage；　and　so　a　few　six…packs　in　the　gym　and　some　pizza　was　all　Coach

Michaels　would　allow。　Besides；　the　boys　had　all　gotten　high　at　Jeremy　Scott　Tompkinson？s　house

beforehand　and　would　all　go　on　to　get　trashed　someplace　else　afterwards；　so　what　did　it　matter？

Nate　picked　at　his　pizza　and　squeezed　his　eyelids　shut。　The　last　lax　party　of　the　year。　The　last　lax

partyever　。　Damn。　The　tears　were　already　beginning　to　fall。

The　gym　was　up　on　the　roof　of　the　six…story　East　End　Avenue　redbrick　school　building；　with

giant　plate　glass　windows　overlooking　the　shimmering　East　River　and　Queens。　One　afternoon　near

the　end　of　tenth　grade；　Nate；　Jeremy；　Anthony　Avuldsen；　and　Charlie　Dern　had　volunteered　to　put

away　the　gear　after　lax　practice。　They？d　hung　out　for　a　while　shooting　hoops　and　then　hidden　from

Rick；　the　janitor；　behind　the　giant　metal　rack　where　the　balls　were　stored。　When　Rick　was　done

and　the　lights　went　out；　they？d　lined　up　in　front　of　the　windows？right　where　Nate　was　standing

now？watched　the　sun　set；　smoked　some　weed；　and　eaten　Starbursts　until　nine。　An　alarm　had　gone

off　when　they　finally　left　the　building；　but　they？d　sprinted　to　Carl　Schurz　Park　a　few　blocks　away

and　had　never　gotten　caught。　That　had　been　a　good　time。　Now　the　good　times　were　about　to　be

over。　Maybe　they　already　were。

Nate？s　eyes　scanned　the　horizon　above　the　silvery　water　and　low　industrial　buildings。

Somewhere　southwest　of　Queens　was　Williamsburg；　Brooklyn；　where　Blair　lived　now。　He