Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Nancy. Oh, sweetheart." Aunt Eloise pulled a tissue from the box on her desk and offered it to her niece, as Nancy smeared a fresh wave of tears from her cheeks with her already-wet palms. "It's going to be all right. You just need to have a little faith."

Nancy shook her head, sniffling as she blotted tears from her cheeks. "I know it's silly," she murmured, her voice breaking a little. "It's just that I didn't have much of him..."

"I know, honey." Eloise gave her a small smile. "I miss him too, and as terrible as this is, it's not the end of the world. And I'm also sure that if anyone can find the mementos, you can."

Mrs. Forsyte, who had called Eloise Drew's home and left the message on the answering machine, had been distraught herself, but Nancy had been horrified by the news, her backpack still resting just inside the door where she had dropped it, the living room still dim with late afternoon light. After Carson Drew's death six years earlier, Eloise had moved to River Heights to take over guardianship of her young niece, and she had accepted a position at a junior college on the other side of Mapleton. Since Nancy had grown up in River Heights, Eloise had decided to find a suitable place to live there, but she hadn't been able to afford to keep the large house Carson had raised Nancy in. Their two-bedroom apartment was modest, but it was neat—though it didn't have nearly the space Carson's house had. When they had been selecting what to keep, Nancy had treasured the photo albums, especially those containing photographs of her long-deceased mother—and a box of keepsakes that her father had kept, containing mementos from the wars and battles the Drew family had served in.

The River Heights Historical Society had contacted Nancy and Eloise about their Heroes' Memories exhibit, and Eloise and Nancy had been proud to let them borrow some of those keepsakes for the display, including a lovingly preserved letter that her grandfather had sent her grandmother from the front, and a photograph of Carson once he had completed his reserves training.

Now that the exhibition had ended, the ladies in the group had begun to take down the display, and somehow Nancy's family items had been misplaced. Mrs. Forsyte, her voice normally strident, had sounded almost bewildered as she had reported the loss in the recorded message.

Nancy sniffled and gave her aunt a small smile, too. She wiped her face with the sodden tissue. "I think I'll go over there," she said. "See if I can find some clues."

"That's the spirit." Eloise gave her a squeeze. "Get home before dark, all right? We'll have leftovers... unless you want some pizza. And I'm sure you'll be able to tell me about all the progress you've made over dinner, if you haven't already solved it."

Once she was behind the wheel of her car, Nancy sniffled once more, then flipped down the visor to check her face. Her eyes were still a little red, but her aunt was right; she would find the keepsakes, and she wouldn't need to worry about losing those memories of her father or his family. She would.

When Eloise had moved to River Heights, she had kept her late brother's car, a Buick. Living in New York City, she hadn't had her own car. When Nancy had turned fifteen and she had seen the juniors and seniors at River Heights High with their own cars, she had begun working on her aunt—and, soon after her sixteenth birthday, her diligence and research had been rewarded. The ten-year-old blue Mustang she had found in the used car listings was sun-faded and its mileage was high, but it was Nancy's and she loved it. In the four months she had been making payments on it, Nancy had become good at diagnosing its various quirks; now she carried battery jumper cables and a bottle of pre-mixed coolant in the trunk, and a spare cell phone charger, which she had found through trial and error only worked in one of the Mustang's cigarette lighter ports. The cell phone hadn't even been a special gift; Eloise wanted to make sure her niece was safe, especially when she was out sleuthing or studying, and while Bess and George were tremendously jealous and begging their own parents for phones, Nancy treated it much like the jumper cables in her trunk. It was convenient to have when she needed it, but otherwise fit to be ignored.

Nancy took the back way to River Heights, her mind already focused on the case. She hoped that her aunt was right, and that she could make some good progress on the case tonight. She worked part-time at the River Heights Animal Shelter on Friday afternoons and Saturdays so she could make the insurance and car payments on the Mustang, and so she could afford gas and oil changes, and today was Wednesday.

Bess and George had been shocked when Nancy had taken a job that would interfere with having fun on the weekends, but Nancy hadn't had much choice; if she wanted a car, a job was the price she had to pay for it. Besides, she loved working at the shelter, and Bess and George often showed up for the fundraising efforts, the Shelterthon 5k Walk and Run, the adoption drives. Nancy's next goal was to convince her aunt that Togo, a white bull-terrier with a brown spot around one eye and a perpetual grin, should be their watchdog and companion. Togo had been surrendered to the shelter when his previous owners hadn't been able to pay to mend the broken leg he had sustained after a car had hit him, but now that he was recovered, he had definitely become attached to Nancy, and she to him.

At the shelter she was able to do a little sleuthing, too. When strays were turned in with collars or other identifying marks, she did what she could to reunite them with their owners. She had met a lot of really kind-hearted volunteers and helpers, too; the Historical Society had even been a sponsor for the last fundraising effort, and had put together a "Notable Animals in History" exhibit.

The Historical Society had set up their recent Heroes' Memories display inside an old home at the edge of town; half the Schultz house, according to Mrs. Forsyte, dated back to the Civil War, so they had found it appropriate. The rooms were furnished and decorated they would have been back then, with the addition of bunting and streamers announcing the town's anniversary and the exhibits at the house.

Nancy said a hasty hello to Mr. Sullivan, who waved her through the guardhouse, and parked in the gravel lot beside the house before flying out of her Mustang and up to the porch. She could hear the murmur of voices in the house before she opened the front door.

Mrs. Forsyte and three other Historical Society members were inside, and Mrs. Forsyte let out a quiet distressed cry when she saw Nancy. "Oh, Miss Drew, I'm so terribly sorry. We've just been searching everywhere; a few of the items on display were actually part of the house collection, and we thought that maybe they had been placed in the attic with those by mistake—but we haven't found the ones you loaned to us."

Nancy glanced around, taking in the scene. The lit display cases were lined in blue velvet, and they were all empty. She spotted several cardboard boxes lined up on the rear wall, and on top of a folding banquet table.

"And everything else is accounted for? Everything else that was on display?"

Mrs. MacGregor smoothed the waist of her floral dress. "Well, most of it is in those boxes," she told Nancy, pointing behind her. "But I think a few of the donors have already come by to pick up the items they loaned to us."

"And all those boxes have been checked?" Nancy fought to keep her voice level and patient.

Mrs. MacGregor exchanged a glance with another woman. "I noticed that a few of the display items had been mixed up, and put into boxes along with loaned items," the shorter brunette woman admitted. "It was Elsie—she means well, but sometimes she just causes trouble. I'm afraid we'll have to use an inventory list, but a few of the donors just wrote 'miscellaneous items' on the form, and..." She sighed, shaking her head.

Nancy's stomach churned. "So until a full inventory is done, it will be almost impossible to tell what's here and what's been misplaced," she said. "Would anyone have a motive to interfere with the exhibit?"

Mrs. MacGregor and Mrs. Forsyte exchanged a glance then. "Skip Anderson," Mrs. Forsyte finally said, almost reluctantly. "He's been talking to a few of the trustees of the house, apparently, asking them to reconsider keeping the site open. He asked the city's council a few years ago to allow the land to be zoned so his company could start operating the old quarry again, but we were able to raise enough outcry to have his request denied. If the sponsors pull out their funding and support, though..." She shook her head.

"But the quarry's been abandoned for years now," Nancy said.

"Yes," the brunette woman put in, "but he claims that if he's able to reopen it, he'll be able to operate it more efficiently. By cutting corners, no doubt, and disturbing the ecosystem." She folded her arms.

Nancy chewed her lower lip for a few seconds, then shook her head. Whatever Skip Anderson's motives might be, she didn't see how stealing a box of mementos would help him further his agenda to reopen the quarry. The longer Nancy's family keepsakes were missing, the less likely she was to find them; once she did, she could concentrate on Skip Anderson's shady plans. "Do you have an inventory list now?" she asked, switching gears. "I can help go through the boxes; maybe we can sort the items tonight and clear up that mis—that problem."

Mrs. Forsyte shook her head. "Dottie has the master list, and she's in Iowa. She won't be back until next week."

Nancy held back a frustrated sigh. "Well, at least I could go through the boxes and see if I recognize anything," she volunteered. She could tell the task would be laborious, and no doubt that was what had kept them from doing it themselves, but they would be unlikely to recognize anything out of place the way Nancy might.

Behind her, Nancy heard the floorboards creak on the porch; a small bell clattered against the door, the same one that had heralded Nancy's own arrival, and she turned to see a tall young man with dark hair and dark eyes stride into the room, a cardboard box in his hands. "I'm sorry to interrupt," he said, as the whole group had lapsed into silence. "My mother came by yesterday to collect the items we had loaned for the display, but she said a young woman in a blue shirt—"

"Elsie," Nancy heard Mrs. MacGregor mutter under her breath.

"—must have given her the wrong box," the young man finished, more slowly.

"May I see that?" 

He nodded, and Nancy's heart was beating faster as he propped the box on the guest register table beside the front door. As soon as she folded back the flap, Nancy couldn't help letting out an exultant cry; she recognized the photograph of her father immediately. Since his death, she had memorized every photograph of him; she could trace them all perfectly in her memory.

"Oh, how wonderful!"

"What a happy coincidence!"

Nancy barely heard their cries. She looked up at the young man who had brought the box in, tears pricking in her eyes. "Thank you," she said. "Thank you so much."

He nodded, his dark-eyed gaze fixed on her, clearly surprised. "I'm just sorry she didn't realize it sooner," he said, and his voice was deep. Now that she had relaxed a little, she saw that his smile was very charming.

"You're James Nickerson's boy, aren't you?" Mrs. Forsyte asked.

"Right. Ned," he confirmed with a nod.

"I remember that we had a box marked 'Nickerson,' but we'll have to have you check through it. We've clearly had a few... problems." Mrs. Forsyte gave him a small apologetic smile.

Mrs. MacGregory crossed the room to the boxes and brought one over; the young man—Ned, Nancy thought, looking into his face—glanced between Nancy and the box, then back to Nancy again. He looked through it, and he said that he didn't remember a faded infantry patch being part of what his parents had loaned to the group.

"I'll have to check with my mom," he said. "I could take the box home with me, or I could have her come by tomorrow?"

Nancy cast a worried glance through the front window. The sky was beginning to darken, and her aunt would be calling her soon, asking where she was and if she was on the way home. "And I'll need to come back tomorrow too," Nancy said. She had found a photograph in her box that she knew hadn't been part of their temporary donation, but the reverse side bore only a year and a series of first names.

"Oh, really? What time?" Ned's gaze was locked on her when she glanced over at him.

"Uh... it'll have to be after school, maybe right after school," she said, then glanced at Mrs. Forsyte. "Would that be okay? Around three-thirty? I can help make an inventory; that will make allocating easier."

"I could help then too," Ned said, almost immediately. "I mean... if you need some help with that. You know, to count toward my volunteer hours for my Eagle Scout project."

Something about his tone made Nancy smile a little. It sounded just a bit too much like a hasty excuse.

After some debate, the ladies announced that they would meet Nancy, Ned, and Mrs. Nickerson at the house the following day. Nancy reached for the box containing her father's mementos, but before she could pick it up, Ned reached for it.

"I'll carry it out to your car," he offered, when Nancy turned to him with a quizzical expression. "Least I can do."

"Part of your Eagle Scout project?"

"Maybe."

They bid farewell to the Historical Society ladies, and Nancy couldn't help noticing that Ned's steps were slow and measured on the gravel, as she kept pace with him. The sun was dipping low; the sky was brilliant orange and deep pink beyond the house.

"So I guess you're from River Heights."

Nancy nodded. "I go to River Heights High, but I don't remember seeing you around..."

"And you're so sure you'd remember me." She heard a smile in his voice.

"Pretty sure." Nancy smiled, too. "So you're from..."

"Mapleton," he said, nodding. "Mapleton High. I'm a senior."

"Junior."

Nancy pulled her car keys out of her pocket and opened the trunk with them; her car was too old to have any remote capability, and some of the electronics inside the Mustang didn't even work. "Thanks," she told him, after he had put the box inside and she had slammed the lid. "It means a lot to me. Those things belonged to my dad—I was really upset when I thought they'd been lost."

"Belonged," Ned repeated softly.

"Yeah. He—he passed away, six years ago."

"I'm really sorry."

Nancy shrugged and sniffled. "It was a long time ago," she murmured. "So I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

He nodded, his hands in his pockets. "Uh... I know this is probably a little out of line, and feel free to tell me to shut up, but... you seeing anyone?"

Nancy shook her head, and the smile that lit up his face was enough to make her catch her breath.

"That's good. Uh—good to know, I mean... God..."

She couldn't help chuckling. "I get it," she said, and smiled at him. "See you tomorrow, Ned."

He reached out, slowly, giving her time to step away if she wanted, then patted her upper arm. "See you tomorrow, Nancy."

Chapter Text

The River Heights Animal Shelter closed at six o'clock on Saturday evening, and several of the volunteers had taken many of the adoption-ready dogs and cats to an adoption fair at the park on the Muskoka River. Nancy hadn't been able to go with her other responsibilities for the day, and at five o'clock, when the volunteers returned, her heart was in her throat.

She and Ned had chatted a lot while they had been helping the Historical Society ladies and his mother, a petite woman with bright intelligent eyes, sort through keepsakes and mementos. Once they had finished, Ned had walked Nancy out to her car again. He had mentioned that Mapleton would be playing River Heights the following Friday night, and had said he hoped to see her there; Nancy had nodded in agreement. She wasn't sure how she would casually persuade Bess and George to go with her—Bess was always up for attending a football game, since she loved scoping out the team members, and George was more into strategy, but Nancy had never been all that excited about going—but she was still looking forward to it, even if it wasn't a date.

Ned apparently wasn't only on the football team. He was also active on the baseball and basketball teams, and Nancy wasn't sure how he ever had time to study with that kind of career. She had watched him carefully, and she was pretty sure that he didn't know about what had happened in the spring, which was pretty likely; maybe he had found out from someone at RHHS, but if so, he made no sign or he didn't care.

She thought about Ned a lot—far more than she should, she was sure—but she hadn't mentioned him to Bess and George, and she didn't really want to. George mocked her cousin for all her crushes and flirtations, and Bess would want to know simply everything about Ned. And Bess was so comfortable around guys. Nancy just felt self-conscious and awkward, especially this year. When she and Ned had been working together and helping sort the keepsakes, she had almost felt comfortable, if only her heart hadn't started beating twice as fast every time their eyes met.

He had the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen.

But she couldn't help feeling skittish, even now.

Nancy was watching the volunteers bring the crated and leashed animals back into the shelter when she became aware that someone was standing at the front desk; she glanced up at the same time she heard his voice, and that sensation, the leap of her heart when she recognized his voice and the sheer weightlessness she felt when she looked up into his eyes, was enough to make her feel lightheaded.

"Volunteering on a Saturday night. You must be going for your Eagle Scout badge too."

Nancy grinned. "Ned! This is a nice surprise. And no, I'm not volunteering; this is my part-time job." She tilted her head. "How did you know I was here?"

He shrugged. "I remembered you mentioning the shelter, and when I drove by, I saw your car parked outside. Thought it couldn't hurt to drop in."

"Are you here looking for a nice sedate cat, or a playful dog, by chance?"

Ned shook his head. "Actually, no. Not unless it means I'll be able to talk to you a while longer." He leaned against the front desk, and the smile on his face made a wave of warmth wash over her.

"Nan! Your best friend is back," Michaela called. Togo, grinning and mischievous as usual, walked toward the back with her.

"Oh?"

Nancy shook her head, a sad smile on her face. "It's Togo. The bull terrier they just brought in. He's precious. I'm trying to convince my aunt to let us adopt him, but I don't think she will."

"Why not? Allergic to dogs?"

Nancy shrugged. "I don't think that's really the problem. We live in an apartment, and they don't allow pets in the building. That, and with both of us gone all day, I don't know who would take care of him. He would need to be walked and fed and everything..."

"And I guess you don't have any grass, where you could keep him outside while you're at school."

Nancy shook her head. "He's a sweetheart who needs to be inside most of the time, and he's already penned up all the time now. I know one day I'll come in and he'll be adopted, and that really would be the best thing for him, to be placed with a good family who can give him a good life. His first owners gave him up when he broke his leg. I just want him to have a second chance."

"You really do love the little guy, huh," Ned said. "So you solve mysteries and have a soft spot for animals, and you drive a Mustang. Anything else I should know about you?"

She shook her head. "That's about it," she said. "And you're a quarterback, a basketball star and a baseball standout. And a future Eagle Scout. Anything else I should know about you?"

"I drive a beat-up car and I want to major in business management," he told her. "And I've met this really fascinating girl recently, and she's a little intimidating. I'm trying to work up the nerve to ask her out, but it's hard."

"Why?"

"I guess because it seems like the normal stuff wouldn't impress her. I bet guys are beating down her door all the time, and splitting a milkshake at the soda fountain after a movie isn't going to be enough."

"You might be surprised," she said, giving him a smile, although she had a feeling she was blushing a little. She certainly felt incredibly nervous, and she searched his face to see if he meant anything else with his words. "Maybe the reason she's unavailable half the time isn't other guys, it's mysteries. And maybe she'd be flattered if a handsome guy asked her out."

The small smile on his face widened into a grin. "Handsome?"

Nancy knew she had to be blushing now. "Hypothetically, of course," she said, making her expression innocent. "Isn't this all hypothetical?"

"Mmm-hmm," he said, but he was still grinning. "It is."

Just then, Julie came in with a dog tugging on a leash. "Nancy? If you're not busy I—oh."

Nancy glanced up at Ned, then over at Julie again. "What's up?"

"We could use your help unloading the van."

Ned took a step back. "Uh, I could help, if you wanted."

Nancy gave him a smile. "I'd have to get you to sign a bunch of waivers," she said, pushing her chair back. "But thanks."

"I don't mind," he began, but she shrugged again. "Okay. I guess I've gotta get out of here, anyway. So I'll see you Friday night?"

Nancy nodded. "Maybe at halftime or something. Although I'm sure I'll be ostracized for fraternizing with the enemy."

"Someone's been studying for her SATs," Ned said with a chuckle. "Well, I'd hate that. Maybe we could meet after. Split a milkshake at the soda fountain or something."

"Maybe," she said, her heart skipping a beat, and with one last charming grin, he was gone.

--

The following Friday, when Nancy walked into the shelter, Julie gave her a small smile. "I have good news and bad news," she said.

"The computer is down but the tech is supposedly on the way?" Nancy guessed, shouldering her backpack down to the crook of her arm. When traffic was slow, she used her time in reception to work on her weekend schoolwork.

Julie shook her head. "Togo went to his forever home on Tuesday."

"Oh," Nancy said. "Someone adopted him? Did they seem nice?"

"Michaela was the one on shift, but she said it was an older couple. They came right in, knew exactly which dog they wanted to see. They sounded sweet," Julie volunteered, giving Nancy a hopeful smile.

"Well, that's good," Nancy said with a sigh. She was happy for Togo, but she wished that she had been able to adopt him. At least he had probably gone to a good home and people who would care for him, better than she could.

"Cheer up, Nan. Just a few hours before the weekend. And Mrs. Logan said we could have the pool party next weekend, if the weather's good."

That did cheer her up a little. Several of the dogs loved to splash around in kiddie pools, and so did a group of preschoolers at the local school. Mrs. Logan had a sister who was a teacher, and so the shelter organized a lot of events with the schools; one program allowed families who had pet allergies to sponsor a pet, and another allowed children with learning disabilities to come read to the more even-tempered animals. The preschoolers loved the cat-treehouse and the dog obstacle course set up behind the shelter, and Bess had come during one of their visits—and pronounced it one of the cutest things she had ever seen.

Making sure all the toddlers were safe and monitored took all of them, and she was often totally exhausted after one of those events, but it really was worth it, to see the look of joy on a toddler's face when he or she hugged a puppy, the delighted giggles when a dog covered his or her face with sloppy kisses.

As soon as Nancy settled behind the front desk, though, her thoughts turned to the football game. Bess and George had been curious when Nancy had casually asked if they wanted to go; her excuse had been that she hadn't been to a game all year, and she wanted to show her support. Aunt Eloise had volunteered to go with her, but Nancy knew her aunt was usually exhausted on Friday nights after a long week at work. She was already feeling nervous about seeing Ned again, so she mentioned that she and the girls might grab a drink or some ice cream after the game, but she would be home before too late, and her aunt had agreed.

For all she knew, Ned had been joking about that casual date, and she didn't want to get her hopes up about it—or anyone else's, for that matter. Still, she had brought a pair of clean blue jeans and a blue-and-white-striped shirt to change into before she left for the game. Because she sometimes stayed late at the shelter, she had arranged to meet Bess and George just outside the gate at the football field; Bess loved driving her yellow Camaro, and just in case she did meet Ned after the game, she didn't want to leave her friends stranded—or, worse yet, tagging along and making her even more nervous. Still, she knew that if she asked them to, they would happily tag along, and their teasing was a price she might very well find worth paying.

Bess and George had stuck by her and stood up for her through a lot, and she was glad to have them sitting with her during the game. They helped distract her, even momentarily, from all the anticipation she was feeling.

Nancy was too nervous during the game to eat any of the apple chips George offered, or the nachos that Bess offered to share. One of the River Heights players was injured early in the game and taken off the field, and Nancy spent the rest of the game nervous that Ned would be taken down by an especially hard tackle, when she wasn't worrying that his flirtation hadn't been serious or, worse, had just been a terrible prank. Whenever the announcer shouted his name at the conclusion of another scoring drive or completed pass, Nancy's heart skipped a beat and her stomach flipped. She was seated on the River Heights side of the field, and she couldn't cheer for him without attracting odd looks.

"You seem quiet, Nan," George commented during a time-out. "What's up?"

"Oh..." Reluctantly, Nancy took her gaze from the opposing team's huddled group. "I found out today that Togo was adopted. I guess I'm just a little bummed about it."

"Aww," Bess said with a sympathetic frown. "He was a little sweetie."

"And here I was, thinking you were upset about how badly we were playing," George sighed, popping another apple chip into her mouth. "They're really trouncing us tonight. Glad we're not playing them for homecoming."

"I thought our team was doing well this year," Nancy commented, and shrugged when Bess cast a raised eyebrow at her. "What? Principal Eisley announces the scores every Monday morning."

"And you pay attention?" Bess chuckled. "Always the overachiever."

"It's Nickerson," George said, and Nancy began to toy with the silver charm bracelet her aunt had given her for her sixteenth birthday, trying not to obviously listen so intently. "He learned a lot last year. My dad says with him as first-string quarterback, he bets they'll be unbeatable this season."

"Oh," Nancy said, trying to sound casual. "I didn't know that."

At halftime, Mapleton had a fourteen-point lead over River Heights, and some of the visiting crowd seemed discouraged. As the Mapleton High marching band took the field, Bess waved her hand dismissively and said she was going to the concession stand for a small popcorn, and maybe a box of candy. George needed to visit the restroom, and when Bess said she would go with her, George waved her off, too. Nancy was left alone in the stands, and she waited a few moments before she stood. The Mapleton team had headed to the locker room, and Nancy kept her eye on it as she went to a concession stand closer to that side. She tried not to make her surveillance obvious, but she felt painfully self-conscious. Whenever she saw any recent graduates, she felt a flash of anger and shame before she ducked, keeping her gaze from meeting theirs.

Her patience was rewarded only a few minutes before halftime was set to end. Ned came out of the field house with his helmet tucked under his arm, still in full uniform, and Nancy's eyes met his; the grin that lit up his face was infectious. She crossed to him in long strides, her worry about Bess and George's questions and his possible motives temporarily forgotten.

"You made it!"

Nancy nodded, smiling. "Yeah. Thought I'd check out your moves," she teased him.

"Like what you see?"

"I'd like it better if it weren't my school's team out there," she admitted, but patted his arm. "You're doing really well out there."

"Thanks. Look, I meant what I said about grabbing a drink or something with you after—"

"Nickerson!" one of his teammates called. The Mapleton team was heading out to the field again.

Ned shook his head, exasperated. "Anyway. Want to meet at my house? I have to get cleaned up after the game, and then I'll meet you there. We can figure out where we're going, take my car...?" He raised his eyebrows.

"Nickerson!" his teammate called again.

"Um—okay," she said. He was clearly being called away, and while she felt nervous about his suggestion, she was afraid to say no and lose the opportunity to see him again. "The address?"

He told her, and she jotted it down in the small notebook she always carried. "It's on this side of town," he told her. glancing back again. "Follow First up to Pine and take a right. I'll see you there, okay? And I'm sure my mom would love it if you went in and said hi to her. She liked you a lot."

Nancy wasn't able to make it back to her seat until the game had started again, and when she found Bess and George, she discovered the cousins had shifted down their previous seat, since their spots had been taken in their absence. "I thought you'd gone to the concession stand, but you must've been hungry," Bess said, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh," Nancy said, glancing down at her empty hands. "Yeah, I finished off my Reese's cups on the way back. So what's going on?"

"Not much, yet." George was peering intently at the field.

Bess paused for a moment before she said, "So, that Nickerson guy sure is a dreamboat."

Nancy hoped her blush was hidden by the dim light. "Is he?"

"You mean you weren't close enough to see him? Or was someone else wearing his number seventeen jersey?"

George turned to Nancy with her eyebrows up. "Nancy. You wouldn't."

"It was nothing. He just said hi to me, that's all." Nancy practically mumbled the end.

"Mmm-hmm," Bess said knowingly. "Sure he did. Maybe we should head to the ice cream parlor and talk about what else he said to you during that really long 'hi'."

"Uh—I can't. Aunt Eloise asked me to get home after the game..."

Bess sighed. "You know that I can tell when you're lying, right?" she said, as George sprang to her feet, cheering on a drive. "I mean, you're good, but we've been friends forever. But I also know how stubborn you are, so when you're ready, you'll tell us all about it, right?"

"There's nothing to tell," Nancy protested, but it sounded feeble even to her own ears.

Bess took a moment to consider. "So will you tell me when there is something to tell?"

"Of course I will."

Bess smiled then. "Just make it sooner rather than later, okay?"

During the last quarter of the game, the sky, already overcast, began to darken. Many of the spectators cast worried glances up at the clouds, rendered indistinct by the darkness. Bess shivered beside Nancy after a gust of cooler wind.

"Oooh. Hope we're not going to get rained out," she said, glancing over at her cousin.

George took only a split-second glance up at the sky. "There's only a few minutes left on the clock," she said.

"And we're probably not going to win," Bess pointed out, gesturing at the scoreboard. "Can we score twenty-whatever points in three minutes?"

George made a scoffing sound. "Maybe. If Nancy's boyfriend," she cast another split-second glance over at her cousin, "is taken out of the game."

Nancy knew she blushed then. "He's not my boyfriend."

"You say that like it's a terrible thing," Bess said, shaking her head. "Look, I know what happened was—"

Nancy shook her head, and Bess cut herself off. "I don't want to talk about it," she said quietly.

Bess subsided, but she patted Nancy's back. "Just because it wasn't—well, it wasn't great, but that doesn't mean it will always be like that," she said comfortingly.

Nancy smiled at her friend, but she really didn't want to think about it; she had spent half the summer, wasted it really, dwelling on her most recent relationship, trying to figure out where she had gone wrong, what she had done. George had been exasperated, because whenever Nancy seemed okay again, Bess's boyfriend had broken up with her, and the whole cycle of tearful ice-cream-fueled sleepovers had begun again. Afterward, Nancy had just decided that it would be better not to think about dating for a while, but she hadn't figured on meeting anyone like Ned.

When she was around him, the self-doubt and fear she had felt after that breakup seemed to melt away, just leaving her anxious. Ned wasn't—him. From the way he treated her, she didn't think he ever would be like—him. She hoped he wouldn't, anyway.

Besides, Nancy reminded herself with a sigh, she didn't know if Ned was even interested in her that way, if he knew what had happened. If she was honest with herself, having him as a friend was very appealing. No risk of hurt feelings on either side; nothing uncomfortable.

Bess was tugging on George's sleeve. "I just saw lightning!"

George glanced up again; she was bent forward, focusing intently on the football field, and was impatient with Bess's startled yelp. "Don't be such a fraidy-cat. We'll be fine."

Bess released her own exasperated sigh. "You and Nancy both would walk straight into a tornado," she groaned. "We're sitting on metal bleachers, and I'm the one with no sense?"

Nancy patted Bess's back. "We appreciate it," she told her friend. "If it does get bad, you could wait in the car?"

Bess huffed, but crossed her arms and sat back, casting continual worried glances up at the sky.

A few cold, fat raindrops fell before the clock ran out, but predictably, Mapleton won the game. As soon as the announcer called the final score, Bess bolted out of her seat. "Come on, George!"

George sighed, then glanced down at Nancy as she stood too. "Call us later? Are you working at the shelter tomorrow?"

Nancy nodded. "I'll be off at six. Study session?"

"Maybe," Bess interjected, linking her arm through George's. "With any luck we'll have to make it Sunday because Nan will have a date with a hunky Mapleton quarterback."

Nancy shook her head, chuckling, then winced as one of the cold raindrops struck her cheek. "Go on, get out of here! I'll call you guys later."

Nancy made it to her Mustang before most of the spectators, but when she was five feet away, the sky seemed to open up. She squealed and dove for the driver's side door lock, but her hair was damp and her shirt covered in large damp patches when she finally settled in the driver's seat with a sigh.

She wasn't as familiar with Mapleton as she was with River Heights, and she hadn't been driving that long, so while she was happy to get out of the parking lot pretty quickly, she took a wrong turn, then another, before discovering her mistake. She liked riding with Bess and George; between the two of them and their bickering, they generally managed to navigate atlases pretty well. Soon after she found the streets Ned had mentioned, but the rain was coming down in sheets. At a stop sign Nancy checked her cell phone and was relieved to see no missed calls. Her aunt liked to check in on her, and she didn't want to worry her. She found her cell phone charger and plugged it in, checking to make sure it was actually charging before she negotiated the next turn.

Many of the homes on Ned's street were lit up, and Nancy drove slowly, checking the numbers on the mailboxes against the jotted-down address before she pulled to a slow stop at the curb in front of what she hoped was the right house. With impeccable timing, as soon as she put the Mustang in park and before she was paralyzed with indecision over whether she should actually knock on that front door, the  cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Nancy. Just calling to make sure you're all right."

"I'm okay," she said, and when she saw a pair of headlights behind her, she watched the car pull into the driveway and felt a wave of relief. She had felt a little nervous about being at Ned's house before he was, and the car matched his description. She was also glad that lights inside the house were on, not just the porch light, and that he had mentioned his mother. Given everything else, the thought of being home alone with a guy was almost terrifying. "I think we'll hang out here for a while, and if the rain hasn't passed in an hour or so, I'll just start home."

"All right. Drive carefully, okay?"

"I will. Love you, Aunt Eloise."

"Love you too, honey."

Nancy was sure to unplug her phone charger before tucking it back into her purse and finding her compact umbrella; George disdained carrying a purse, but Nancy's was more like a utilitarian backpack to carry almost anything she might need, than anything else. A few drops hit her before she was able to open the umbrella, and she made a dash for the driveway.

Ned was waiting for her on the porch, and he gave her a grin. "Hey, I'm glad you made it—sorry the weather's so bad."

Nancy shrugged, shaking out her umbrella. "It's all right. I took a few wrong turns, but I'm glad I found it."

He ran a hand through his damp hair. "And I'm glad I didn't bother drying my hair."

"Congratulations. On the win," she told him, with a smile.

"And thanks for not punching me in the shoulder," he replied with his own smile. "Sorry. Here, let me take your umbrella."

He opened the front door with no preamble, and Nancy barely had time to register the surroundings—the Nickerson home had a front hall the way Nancy's old house had, and the sitting room just beyond boasted a large fireplace with a mantel and family photographs in elegant frames—when she heard a series of sharp barks, and a blur of white came toward her at knee-height.

"Oh! Oh, Togo!" Nancy knelt down on the floor, heedless of her damp hair and the puddles she was undoubtedly leaving on the carpet, and Togo stood up on his hind legs, covering her face with exuberant kisses. He panted happily, then barked at her again before dashing back into the sitting room.

"I can't believe it!" Nancy straightened and looked over at Ned, a happy grin on her face.

Togo bounded back toward her with a squeaky bone in his mouth, his jaws working it ferociously.

"Sit, Togo," Ned said, making his voice firm. Togo just glanced between Nancy and Ned, his short, stubby tail wagging.

"We're working on it," Ned said, an apology in his voice. "Sit, Togo!"

Togo put his bone down on Nancy's shoe, then sat down for an instant—before springing up and snatching the bone up again.

Nancy couldn't help chuckling. "Yep, that's Togo," she sighed. "Too much energy, all the time. He can't help it; he's still a puppy."

Ned's mother came into the hall then. "Nancy! So nice to see you again, and I'm sorry the weather is so terrible. I was afraid you wouldn't be able to come."

Nancy smiled. "It's nice to see you again, too. And thank you so much for adopting Togo. I know he's probably been a handful. He was so full of energy while he was at the shelter, after his leg healed."

"It feels rather like chasing a toddler around," Ned's mother admitted with a smile. "We had to have a talk about my petunias yesterday. He was trying to help me out in the garden. Come in, come in! Would you like something to drink?"

"Um... okay. Water?"

Ned's hand brushed against hers and together they walked into the sitting room with Togo dancing at their feet, to where Ned's father was standing. "You must be Nancy," he said with a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Thanks," Nancy said, shaking the hand he had extended. "It's nice to meet you, too."

"I met your father—had to have been ten years ago. He was a great man. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you," Nancy said, more quietly. While the shock of the loss wasn't as raw and new anymore, she still found herself surprised by grief in situations like this.

Togo rose on his hind legs and pawed at Nancy for attention, and she knelt down again. She couldn't help laughing when he licked her face. "I missed you too," she told him.

Ned's mother returned with a glass of water, and Nancy heard Ned say, "Mind if Nancy and I go to the den?"

"Of course not, honey."

Nancy smiled at Togo, but her stomach flipped. She rubbed the dog behind his ears and he panted happily, and when she rose again, he barked a few times, begging for more attention.

"Here. All his toys are in here," Ned explained, and Togo snatched up the squeaky bone and scampered through a doorway, down a pair of stairs and into the den. Nancy caught her breath before she followed him down the stairs, the glass in her hand; Ned was walking ahead of her, and she was relieved when he sat down on the couch, and didn't make any movement to shut the door behind them.

Togo picked up a rope toy and whipped his head back and forth a few times, growling, before he scampered over to Nancy, offering it to her. Nancy sat down on the couch, and when she reached for the toy, Togo tugged fiercely, his eyes shining.

Nancy glanced over at Ned, as Togo kept tugging. "I can't believe you adopted him. Well, I suppose your parents did."

Ned shrugged, his left arm resting along the back of the couch, partially behind her. "You wanted him to go to a good home, and I thought that at least this way, he would be," Ned said. "He's a purebred, so at least my mom can show pictures of him to the Ladies' Garden Club. Plus, I thought that maybe I'd be able to get you to come over so you could play with him."

"Oh, is that all." Nancy smiled, and when she finally took possession of the rope toy, Togo dashed over to a wicker basket and nosed through, emerging with a tennis ball clamped between his teeth. She saw a shearling pet bed beside the basket, along with a wire kennel suited for him. "Well, he's certainly being spoiled, and he seems happy. And that makes me happy."

Ned smiled. "Good. And I suppose I'll just have to give you a raincheck on that soda fountain date, literally. I thought you could see Togo before we went back out, but the weather's pretty awful."

"It's just as well," Nancy admitted. "I'm not hungry, to be honest."

"Do you work tomorrow?"

Nancy nodded. "And after that I'll be studying," she told him with an apologetic smile.

"Oh."

Nancy's heart rose in her throat as she glanced over at him again. "But, I was thinking... about going out and exploring the old quarry, to see if that Anderson guy is up to anything shady out there. I'd hate to see the Schultz house be closed just out of pure spite."

"And so just for pure spite you'll go after the guy," Ned commented with a small smile.

Nancy shrugged. "Guess I just hate seeing dishonest people win," she said.

"So when were you thinking about going out there?"

"Maybe Sunday. If he's up to no good, he might be keeping quiet during working hours."

"Maybe," Ned replied. "Mind if I tag along?"

"Do you really want to?"

"Unless you don't want me to." Togo had settled down and was sprawled on the floor beside Nancy's feet, gnawing on his rope toy. Ned reached down and patted him. "I have the feeling that if I hang out with you, I'll have my Eagle Scout in no time. Traipsing through the woods... maybe I could even use some survival skills."

Nancy couldn't help giggling. "We'll see. And if my best friends tag along, will that ruin it?"

"Well, I did think that a little hiking trip might be kinda romantic, but you're the boss."

Romantic. Nancy looked down at her hands. "We'll see," she said. "Meet at the Schultz house at two o'clock? And if anything comes up and you can't make it, just call and let me know."

"Oooh. Perfect excuse to get your home phone number." Ned grinned.

"How do you know this wasn't just so I could get yours?" Nancy smiled too.

Chapter Text

Sunday afternoon was bright and warm, but windy. Nancy packed her backpack with water and snacks, her lockpick kit, an anorak, and a few other supplies.

"Nancy, you will be careful, won't you?" her aunt asked as Nancy walked into the living room. Eloise was meeting a friend at the movie theater, and Nancy could tell from her aunt's outfit that the friend was a man. "Don't stay out too late; I'll pick up something for dinner..."

Nancy smiled at her. "You don't have to; we have leftovers from last night. Besides, if you and your 'friend' want to go out to dinner after the show, that's okay."

Eloise scrunched her nose at her niece, reaching up to toy with her earring. "I hate leaving you to fend for yourself."

"It's all right, trust me. You'll have your phone and if I need anything, I'll let you know. But go have fun."

"All right." Eloise wrapped her arm around Nancy's shoulders and gave her a little squeeze. "As long as you're sure. And you trust this guy who's going with you?"

Nancy nodded. "I'll be fine, Aunt Eloise. Besides, George will be there, and if he tries anything, two against one is pretty good odds."

"True. Be careful, anyway. And I'll pick up some ice cream on the way home for a treat. How does that sound?"

"Sounds great to me."

Once her aunt had left, Nancy sat down on the couch and flipped through the channels without really seeing anything, trying to fill those last few minutes before she needed to leave. Bess and George had grilled her about meeting Ned—Bess, far more—but Nancy had brushed off their questions, protesting that there was nothing to tell, not yet. Bess had practically challenged Nancy to make sure that she did have something to tell by the following weekend. She had been insanely jealous when George had agreed to accompany Nancy on the trek out to the quarry, knowing that her cousin would be able to meet Ned before she did. Nancy had just been glad that Ned wouldn't be subjected to Bess's barrage of questions and comments so soon.

With a sigh, her heart beating faster, Nancy turned off the television and stood, going through one last mental check. She had her house keys and car keys, a cap, and her backpack...

The phone rang, and Nancy dashed for it. "Drew residence."

"Nan! I'm so glad I caught you before you left. Look, I'm really sorry. My grandparents just called and they're on the way over, and there's no way my parents are going to let me leave. I had no idea they were coming over..."

"It's okay," Nancy assured George. "I understand. It's no big deal."

"But I know you wanted to go out there this afternoon. Do you want to postpone? Maybe we could go after school sometime this week?"

Nancy considered. "Maybe," she said. "I think... since I have the time now, I'm going to head out there."

"Alone? With him? Are you sure?"

Nancy's stomach flipped. "I'll be okay," she said. "I'll take my pepper spray, and if anything happens, I'll try out that flip you showed me."

"All right," George said reluctantly. "Seriously, though. I'm sorry I teased you about him. I just don't want you to... well, to get into a situation..."

"I understand. And thanks, George. Really. Have fun with your grandparents this afternoon."

Nancy pulled up in front of Ned's house just before two o'clock, and as soon as she started to walk up the driveway, the front door opened. Togo, who was on a leash, bounded out to meet her, pulling hard when he reached the end of the cord. Ned was straining to hold the dog back, but Nancy knelt down and laughed as Togo jumped up to greet her.

"Hey Togo! Hey! Have you been a good boy for Ned's family? Hmm?"

Once Nancy had accepted a few kisses and stroked his head and ears, Togo trotted a few feet away and barked a couple of times, then sauntered over to inspect a patch of grass.

"And a good afternoon to you."

Nancy smiled at Ned. "Hi. Had a good weekend?"

Ned nodded. When she looked up into his eyes, she saw that something had shifted in his expression, something that made her a little nervous, but she didn't know what it was. His behavior was still warm, though, and after Togo had begged for more affection from Nancy, Ned took him inside and emerged a moment later.

"Are we meeting your friend there?"

Nancy shook her head, sweeping a stray hair out of her eyes. "She couldn't come. She asked if we wanted to postpone, but I'm caught up on my homework, so it would be easier for me now... but if you don't want to go..."

"Of course I do, especially now that I'm your only backup. And we're taking your car?"

"I thought we might." She tilted her head. "Want to help me put the top down?"

"Oooh. I definitely feel like I'm special now. You know... have you tried Ice Shine on your car? It might help with the—the fading. Sorry."

Nancy shrugged as she helped tuck the rag top down. "It's okay. I know she's not the prettiest in the world, but she's mine. I'll have to try that, next time I wash her."

Ned smiled. "'Her'?"

Nancy grinned. "Well, yeah. 'Her.'"

Ned opened the passenger door, and Nancy checked him over. He was dressed much the same way she was: in a short-sleeved shirt and jeans, hiking boots, and a backpack. "Everything okay? I just... well, I packed what I would've brought for a hike."

"So water, snacks..."

"Compass, first-aid kit, rope—never know when you're gonna need rope. Flares. Things like that."

Nancy smiled. "Not bad, Nickerson. I would say we should bring Togo, but I think we would spend more time chasing him than we would any actual exploring."

"Might do him some good, though. Tire him out."

"I really hope he hasn't been too much trouble."

"No, it's fun. He's like the little brother I never had." Ned chuckled.

"It's lonely, isn't it," Nancy commented, as she started the Mustang. "Being an only child. I'm one, too."

"Yeah. I mean, I have a lot of cousins, but I only see them once a month or so."

Nancy sighed with jealousy. "I have a few, and I hardly see them at all. I don't have a lot of family, honestly. My great-grandmother, my aunt Eloise, a few more relatives on my Dad's side of the family, and that's it."

"So your dad was pretty awesome, huh? I mean, we don't have to talk about it if it'll upset you..."

Nancy forced a small smile. "No, it's okay," she said, and it wasn't really a lie. "He was great. He was away a lot, at work, and after my mom died when I was little, Dad hired a housekeeper who took care of me while he was gone. Her name's Hannah, and she was like my adopted mom. I go see her every now and then. She makes the best chocolate cake I've ever tasted." Nancy's smile at that was genuine. "He was working a really high-profile case when his client apparently decided to make a deal with the state's attorney's office and provide evidence on some other people, and some bad people found out about it, and Dad was caught in the crossfire. I didn't know that then. It was just... it was awful. I miss him all the time."

"I'm really sorry."

"I am too," Nancy said, and sniffled. "That's part of why I was so upset when those mementos were misplaced. I don't have much of him anymore, and losing that box felt like losing a piece of him. I know it sounds ridiculous."

"No. I can't imagine how awful it would be to lose one of my parents. Much less both of them."

Nancy checked both ways before proceeding through a stoplight. "I mean, my mom—I was really little when she died; I don't have a clear memory of her. But I look a lot like the photos of her. She was a research biologist. Dad would tell me about her and say that I could be anything I wanted, and I wanted to be like her. I guess that's why I like mysteries so much. That was what she did. Just with a microscope instead of a magnifying glass, most of the time."

"Well, if you're like her, she must have been amazing. Gorgeous and smart."

Nancy blushed a little. "I'm sorry, I'm talking too much. Your parents seem really nice."

For the rest of the drive, Ned told her about his family. His father had his own real estate agency, and his mother had done the accounting for him when he had first started; as soon as the agency had become successful, Ned's father had told his mother that she was free to do what she wanted. Edith had a flair for interior design, and much preferred staying home, cooking for her family, and helping stage the occasional open house when she wasn't helping with the Garden Club or Mapleton's homemakers group.

"And your house is really nice," Nancy said, when Ned trailed off.

"Thanks," Ned replied. "It used to look really different. My uncle and my dad restored it soon after my parents were married; we have pictures of them with crazy old-fashioned clothes, like twenty years ago."

"I wouldn't have thought; it doesn't look old-fashioned."

"No, Mom goes for something she calls 'updated classic,' and every few years she drafts me to help redecorate. I can wallpaper and paint and sandpaper like a pro, now. I know more than I ever thought was possible about chair rails and crown molding. I walk into a place like the Schultz house and automatically find myself looking for architectural details, trying to date it and see if the furniture matches. It's this weird, useless skill, like being able to use an abacus or something."

"Hey, I think it's great. I love watching Jeopardy! with my aunt—Dad loved it too—and finding out all this arcane trivia."

Ned laughed. "We watch that too. Not as often now, since I have practice and homework all the time..."

"Yeah. High school is awful."

She meant it as commiserating, but her tone was more bitter than she had intended. She didn't look at Ned as she negotiated another turn, but she could feel her face growing hot.

"Sometimes it can be," he agreed, his voice a little quieter.

"You heard," she said, and glanced at him quickly, too quickly to do anything other than confirm her suspicion. "Someone told you."

"Someone told me something," he said slowly.

"What did you hear?" The fast, hard beats of her heart almost felt like stabs.

"Well, I'll put it this way: I'm not going to believe it unless you tell me the same thing. That is, if you even want to talk about it."

"And if I don't?" She had known she was still sensitive about it, but she kept hoping that time and ignoring it would help it pass faster. It hadn't, though. It didn't. And with every reminder, every whisper behind cupped hands, she felt that same helpless frustration again. She didn't want to talk about it, or think about it, but that didn't mean she was able to stop. Sometimes it felt like everyone else knew and it would never go away.

"Then I'll assume what I heard is a lie unless you tell me differently."

Nancy was quiet for the next mile, part of her considering where to park her car so they wouldn't be seen, so they could approach the old quarry without being intercepted or spotted. She remembered a trail near the Schultz house, and headed for that. The rest of her was considering what she should say, or even if she wanted to say anything at all.

"Is that true?"

"Is what true?"

"That you would just... be able to disregard it, like that." She growled quietly in frustration. "I don't even know what you heard. For all I know, it's a thousand times worse."

"Exactly. I mean, I don't know you all that well, not yet... but I've heard rumors before, so I know how it is. Just rumors in general, not about you," he hastened to add. "Not until I mentioned your name yesterday."

"You mentioned my name?"

"A few of my teammates saw me talking to you at halftime and asked about you."

It had been mortifying enough, to know that students at her own school were talking about her. To think that students at other schools were, too—and that they were even more likely to believe it, since virtually none of them would know her.

And despite what Ned had said, it was true; he didn't know her, not really, and if what he had heard was anything like what the students at River Heights High had been telling each other, she wasn't sure he would just be able to make himself forget it.

At the Schultz house, Nancy carefully maneuvered the Mustang onto a dirt path that led into the woods. Once they were hidden from sight and she was worried about hitting the mounded earth between the ruts with the undercarriage of her car, she pulled partially off the path and onto a relatively clear patch of ground, making sure two of her wheels were still on the path. She had learned that the hard way, after an expensive tow. Before she opened her door, she reached into her pack, found her water bottle, and took three long gulps. Her cheeks were still flushed, but the longer the silence lasted, the more nervous she felt.

She and Ned climbed out of the car, putting on their backpacks, and Ned helped her fasten the convertible top in place again. She wasn't expecting rain, but she didn't want to leave the car unprotected. She locked the doors, and after a quick consultation with a map and a compass, they began their trek through the woods.

Nancy took a deep breath. "I... I think I'd rather you hear my side of it," she said. "If that's okay with you."

"Yeah. I'd like to."

Nancy took another swallow of water before she began. "I was in the girls' bathroom on Friday and someone had written that I was a—a slut, on the wall of the stall," she said, and just saying the words was enough to make her angry again. "Before, I'd seen that stuff a hundred times; I'd just ignored it. When it was other girls' names. But whatever you heard about me—maybe it was that I'm a slut, I don't know—I think it's one of those 'where there's smoke, there's fire' things. Like you'll think there has to be a grain of truth there. And I keep hoping that if I just ignore it... but it hasn't helped. I don't know what will."

Ned glanced over at her, and when he reached out, she let him take her hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Around Christmas, it was right before the break, I noticed this guy was checking me out. Paying attention to me. Actually, I didn't even notice, that's not true. Bess—she's one of my best friends, and she's cute and she likes to dress up and flirt with guys, and she's the one who noticed. I like observing people, but... I don't know. Sometimes it feels like I'm just outside myself, watching what's happening to me, but I'm not really there. Like it's happening to someone else. If that makes sense."

"Yeah."

"So she noticed, because it was Tyler Crawford who was checking me out, and you were on the football team last year, so you probably know who I'm talking about."

"Yeah," Ned said. "I know the guy. Well, I don't know him, but I know what you mean."

"I just laughed it off and told Bess she had to be mistaken, that he was checking her out. But when we came back from break, after a week or so, I found a note in my locker asking if I wanted to maybe go out with him."

Nancy paused, then. Ned was lightly swinging her hand with his. "He's graduated now, right?"

"Yeah. He was a senior, and I was a sophomore. And he wasn't just a senior. He was popular. Star on the football team, but by then the season was over, so I never did see him play. But he's cute and I was flattered, and he was the second guy to ever ask me out. Bess was so jealous—a lot of the girls were jealous, and..." She shrugged. "It kinda felt special, to know he was interested in me, when so many other girls were interested in him."

"And I'm sure it didn't hurt that he was cute."

"It didn't hurt. I don't know. I dated this other guy for a while, Don, but we were freshmen and it was nothing, like holding hands in the hallway and doing homework together. His parents took us to the movies once. We went to a carnival at the edge of River Heights. He really liked me a lot. I... I always thought he was a sweet guy."

"But you didn't like him that way."

"Yeah. And it didn't last long, only a couple of months, but... I never even let him kiss me, and I knew he wanted to. And I felt so bad once I realized that I was never going to feel the same way about him as he did about me." She tucked a loose strand of reddish-gold hair behind an ear. "I broke up with him pretty soon after that."

"Was it like that with Tyler, too?"

"Kinda... not really." She shrugged, looking down at her boots, only glancing up at the trees and in Ned's direction every now and then. "Don was awkward, but he was sweet. Tyler... he was... he was really charming. He'd look at me and I felt like I was the only girl in the world, and the prettiest one, and it was different than I felt with Don. Don was like a puppy. Tyler was just so... so cool. He took me for a ride in his car and I was so excited, the whole time. I didn't have a car, then.

"So we did things together... went to the movies, the mall. A party, once. People were drinking." She shook her head. "Tyler was my first kiss."

"So you liked him."

"I felt like I did." Her voice dropped until it was almost a whisper. "He was easy to like, and so cute... but then he would say something, and it was like... like I was asleep and someone was calling my name, trying to get me to wake up. We would be hanging out with his friends and he would tell a really mean joke or make some mean comment about someone, and his friends would laugh, and I would just feel sick. The second time he took me to the movies, pretty much as soon as it started he just wanted to make out, and when I didn't, he pestered me like every five minutes, and when I still said no, he sulked. He sulked when we left, took me back to my aunt's place early. After that, I just didn't want to go to the movies anymore; I didn't want to deal with it. We went a few times anyway. He didn't like it when I said no to him. He'd just keep asking. A few times, I'd just say okay to get him off my back... and we'd make out, until his hand went too far and I had to tell him to stop, for real. I told him I—that I wasn't experienced, and I didn't really want to do anything, and he seemed to be okay with that. Most of the time."

She took a deep breath. "When he asked me to go to the prom with him, I was really happy. Sometimes I was uncomfortable around him, but I just let that go. He was older than me and it was like, if he liked me, if he wanted to kiss me and everything, that was just the way he would show it. He'd tell me I looked pretty, that he wanted to show me off, and then the whole prom thing, being one of the only sophomores who was even asked... God, Bess was so excited, and she wanted me to see if Tyler could find her a date too, so we could go together.

"It was about two weeks before, we were at his house, and..." Nancy's throat felt tight. "And he asked me to come see something in his bedroom, and his parents weren't home, and I said okay, but I didn't have a good feeling about it. I'd never been in his bedroom before. He shut the door and he basically said that since we were going to prom, we should—I should—" She shook her head. "I didn't really understand what he said after that, not when he said it, but then he—he reached for his zipper, and I figured it out. I told him no. I didn't want to. I tried to get past him, to get out of the room, but he tried to block me. He said it'd be okay, and I told him no, and he said I must not care about him at all, and then he said I was frigid and—I don't know. It was all—he was upset and everything he was saying just sounded ugly and I was afraid. I finally got him to move, and I ran out into the living room and I asked him to take me home. And he wouldn't. He just said that we should sit down and we'd take things slow and... and I figured out that he had no intention of taking me home, so I just walked out because I wasn't going to stay there with him.

"He came after me, a little. He got in his car and drove beside me, told me to get in, told me I was being silly. I just ignored him and that seemed to just make him madder. And then finally he hit the gas and his car screeched off down the street and I didn't know what to do, so I went home. I locked the door and I couldn't stop shaking. I never—I never told him I wanted to be with him like that. I felt dirty. I felt like I'd done something wrong.

"He didn't tell me that he was breaking up with me. I found that out through other people. He told people that I—that I did things, things I had never done, but I was stuck-up and I wouldn't go all the way with him so he broke up with me. The gossip that got back to me was so mean. One morning a girl in my homeroom asked me if my knees were bruised from being with Tyler. I didn't understand what she meant and she and her friends laughed at me and I felt so humiliated. He took another girl to the prom, and he never looked at me again. And I'd said no to him, and he was angry at me. For saying no. I just didn't want to be like that with him.

"I was so depressed, after that." Nancy sniffled, and Ned's steps slowed. He was still holding her hand. "I thought that I must have somehow given him some signal. I didn't know what to do, because any time I protested, they didn't believe me. I wore a red t-shirt to school one day and one of the girls said I must be out for a new guy. I spent all my time with my best friends, ate lunch with them, walked to classes with them—and then someone said I had turned Tyler down because I was into girls and that's why I was hanging out with my friends so much.

"The only good thing about all this is that most of the people who were spreading those rumors, they were seniors and they've graduated. But there are other girls still there, the ones writing that I'm a slut on the bathroom wall. Those girls. Hearing them snicker at me, hearing their comments when I even look in a guy's direction—it is the worst. I can't wait to graduate. I can't wait to get out of there and go somewhere that no one knows me. A guy asked me out this summer and I could tell that he'd heard what I'd supposedly 'done' with Tyler, and he thought I'd be like that with him, too. That really hurt, too."

"Guess I should feel lucky that you even agreed to go out with me," Ned commented quietly, gently swinging her hand again.

"Yeah," she replied. "Actually. But..."

"Oh?"

"I don't feel the same way about them that I do about you," she admitted. "And I don't know, maybe you're just better at hiding it than he was, but I just don't think you're that kind of guy."

Ned shrugged. "To be honest, I never thought about it," he said. "Yeah, I've heard rumors about other girls at my school, like..."

"Like what you heard about me."

"Yeah."

Nancy took a moment to work up the courage. "So what... what did you hear?"

He shrugged again. "Nothing you hadn't heard already, apparently," he said. "And it doesn't bear repeating. But if anyone says anything like that around me, I know to shut it down."

"You wouldn't have before?"

Ned paused for a minute too. "You know, you're right," he said. "I guess it doesn't matter if it's true or not... and especially because I'm sure that ninety-eight percent of the time, it's an exaggeration. But like you said, it's a smoke and fire thing..."

"And that's what I always thought too, until it happened to me." She looked down. "They all say to ignore it. The teachers who have seen it happen to me. Ignore it and it'll go away. But that doesn't make it not hurt when it happens. Even my aunt... I know she wants to help, but she's busy a lot. Kind of like Dad was." She looked down, sweeping a loose hair out of her face again.

"Well, let me say it for the record," Ned said, after a moment. "I think what that guy did to you was disgusting. And I get now why you act kind of skittish. If a girl tells me 'no,' that's it. No... well, nothing after that. I wouldn't just go tell people lies about her because I had my feelings hurt. My parents have always been big about telling me to be a gentleman, to hold doors and be polite—and not to take advantage of people who can't fight back."

"So dating's a fight." She smirked a little.

He squeezed her hand gently. "No. But speaking of dating... so is this our first real date?"

"I didn't mean for it to be," she admitted. "Not like a real date. I always think 'real dates' are going to the movies and maybe a snack and... I don't know. They've always been pretty boring, honestly," she realized. "When I asked Don if he wanted to go investigate something with me, he always told me that I should just let the grown-ups handle it. If Tyler didn't think we'd be making out, he wasn't interested."

"So this is a good change," Ned suggested. "Besides, if your other dates have been boring... clearly the guys weren't doing it right. ...Uh. You know what I mean."

"Yeah," she replied with a little smile, and squeezed his hand too.

She didn't know what she had been expecting Ned to do when she told him the truth, but she was pleased with his reaction. She would have hated if he had been like that other guy who had asked her out, and then just assumed that things would go further after that—and it had made her feel even less sure about taking that step with a guy. If she actually did anything with one—and right now, just their mistaken belief that she had was enough—it seemed to mean that she would do that with any of them who asked, and she didn't feel that way at all.

The trees began to thin out as they approached the edge of the quarry property. A high chain-link fence marked the border, and Nancy released Ned's hand so she could adjust her backpack. Ned was staring at the bright, all-caps "No Trespassing" sign posted on the fence. Some of the weeds were so tall that they brushed the bottom of the sign.

She glanced over at him. "Well, this is it," she said quietly. "You want to stay back here as lookout?"

"You've done this kind of thing before?"

Nancy nodded. "Yeah. At least they don't have guard dogs." She shivered a little, then took another few steps forward.

Ned hesitated, then followed. "Guard dogs. I didn't even think of that."

Nancy patted her backpack. "A few strips of beef jerky can make them pretty happy."

Ned smiled. "Well, then. Maybe we would've been okay."

Once they had climbed the fence, Nancy was glad for her jeans and boots; the grass was tall and whipped about their legs. Ned reached for her hand again, and when their fingers interlaced, she smiled a little.

"So if we run into a guard or anything," Ned said, keeping his voice low. "What's the plan?"

"We just say we were out here exploring."

"Which is the truth." Ned paused. "Or we could say we heard the place was pretty romantic."

Nancy chuckled, but when they came upon the edge of the excavated part of the quarry and looked over, she had to admit that it was. The water was mostly clear and its surface was smooth. It looked cool and inviting, if the surface hadn't been so far below the edge—and if she knew how deep the water was.

They found some old equipment, but Nancy had to admit that she didn't know enough about rock quarries to know what any new equipment would look like. She took out her camera, though, and snapped photos of the newer, non-rusted stuff—especially the new chain and padlock at the front entrance.

"So that's it? That wasn't so bad."

Nancy smiled and gently bumped her shoulder against Ned's arm. "What were you expecting, masked bad guys with machetes or something?"

"Yeah, kinda." Ned bumped her shoulder too. "So what were your plans for the rest of the day?"

Nancy was just considering how to answer when she heard gravel crunching. "Oooh. C'mon!" she said, tugging Ned's hand, and they dashed for the fence, scrambling over it as fast as they could. Nancy landed on something that crunched under her feet and grimaced, then ducked down to hide, with Ned beside her. As quietly as she could, Nancy took out her camera and pressed the zoom button. The more she zoomed in, the grainier the image was, but she took a few shots anyway. The white truck had a blue logo on the side, and when two men emerged, Nancy took photographs of them as well.

"Should we try to get closer?" Ned whispered. "I can't understand what they're saying."

Nancy paused, glancing around. "Maybe if we're really quiet," she whispered, "we can circle around..."

They did, keeping low and as quiet as they could, but all they could make out was "Wednesday afternoon" before the two guys took a last look around and climbed back into the truck. Ned sighed in disappointment. Nancy took advantage of the new angle to take another shot when the driver locked the padlock again, and once the truck was out of sight, Nancy and Ned stood and brushed themselves off.

"Wednesday afternoon," Ned repeated.

"Yeah. But we don't know if that means they'll be out here, or somewhere else, or just calling someone." Nancy paused for a second, her gaze unfocused. "But I can go by the Town Hall and ask if Anderson has filed any new requests or petitions or anything. Or maybe ask about the previous owner of the quarry, so I can find out if it's been sold."

"But you can't go today. And I'd offer to go with you, but I don't know when I'll be free again, not during the week anyway."

"It's okay. That, I can handle by myself."

"So. Like I was saying, before we were interrupted... any plans for the rest of today?"

"Not really," she admitted. "Although I'm not really dressed for anything... else."

"So maybe we could go back to my house and you can eat dinner with us? And you can play with Togo?" Ned's eyebrows wiggled at the last, and Nancy couldn't help laughing.

"Oh... well. I don't want to inconvenience your mom..."

"You won't," Ned swore. "Really. She's making meatloaf and mashed potatoes and we always have plenty, and please?"

Then he released her hand and held both of his up. "Sorry. Really. I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable, and it's okay if you say no, but... I just really like hanging out with you and I want to hang out with you some more. And that's all. I promise."

Nancy smiled. "Well... if your parents say it's okay. My aunt's going to be out for dinner anyway."

Ned grinned as he took her hand again. "Thanks. And you won't regret it. My mom makes great meatloaf."

"Well. We'll just see about that."

Chapter Text

After football practice, Ned was sweaty and exhausted, and he came home with his ears ringing from the speech the coach had given them before they hit the locker room. Their game against Midway was Friday night, and the team had run drills until they were too tired to even think anymore. That, the coach had said, was exactly what he wanted—for them to be able to do it without thinking, without conscious effort. To know the play and be able to run it flawlessly, as a single unit.

The sky was still light as he pulled his duffel bag and backpack out of the passenger seat and headed into the house. Some of the guys had asked if he wanted to go grab a burger after, but Ned knew his mother was making dinner—and besides, he had way too much homework to do.

He had made a date with Nancy earlier in the week, and he was paying for it now, but he didn't regret it. He didn't regret a single minute he spent with her. He never wanted to stop talking to her.

After his shower, he went downstairs to help his mother set the table for dinner. Ned's father was in the living room, looking at the evening paper, and Ned was already thinking about what assignment he would start on first, and wondering when would be too late to call Nancy.

"So I heard from Mrs. Forsyte today," his mother commented as she folded a napkin and placed it beside a plate. "Apparently your new friend has just been a tremendous help, and that Skip character announced plans to work on opening another facility. The Schultz house is safe again."

Ned grinned. "Well, I'll just have to call and congratulate her myself."

"I suppose you will." Edith smiled too. "Maybe you could invite her over for dinner again this weekend? And her aunt is welcome to come, too. She can keep us occupied while you and Nancy play with Togo."

Togo had greeted Ned at the front door, but at the sound of his other mistress's name, the terrier bounded into the room, wagging his tail. Ned laughed as he looked down at Togo. "Sorry, she's not here," he told the puppy. "Maybe she'll come over soon, though. If I call and let you bark into the phone, especially."

Togo gazed expectantly up at Ned for another moment, then went to his water bowl when Nancy didn't appear.

Ned didn't want to think that now that the mystery was over, they might not see each other as often. Now that he understood why she still seemed a little wary, he went out of his way to make sure she was comfortable. Since his mother was almost always home, when he had invited her over earlier in the week to have a study date and see Togo, they had sat at the table in the breakfast nook with their books spread out around them. When she mentioned that her aunt wasn't home, he didn't take it as a hint that she would rather have been there with him. They held hands every now and then, she bumped her shoulder against his, but he hadn't quite found the nerve to kiss her.

Even though he found her incredibly kissable. He loved the color of her eyes—but then, he loved everything about her; the way she bit her lip when she was thinking, the way she scooped her reddish-gold hair so it lay over one shoulder, leaving the line of her neck and her earlobe bare where he could see it. He loved that her eyes were a pale blue in sunlight and dark and deep-blue as sapphires in dim light. He loved the freckles that dusted her nose, her forehead, and down her arms, even though she was meticulous about sunscreen. He loved when she smiled and when she laughed, and the pure joy he saw on her face when she played with Togo.

He loved that she was so fearless when it came to fighting for other people, that she was so focused and driven, and he hated that she had been so hurt by the last guy she had dated. If she attended Mapleton, or if he attended River Heights, he would walk hand-in-hand with her in the hallways between classes, staring down anyone who had the nerve to glare at her or call her anything. And he would have had a long, serious talk with Crawford, one that Ned could fully imagine would have involved punching the older boy in the mouth.

Ned couldn't wait; when dinner was over, he went in the den to use that extension and called Nancy's aunt's apartment. Nancy had given him the number of her cell phone, but she had told him only to use it for emergencies. Togo jumped up onto the couch beside Ned, and Ned idly patted his head and stroked his ears as he panted.

"Drew residence."

"Hi—is Nancy home?"

"Yes, she is. Hi, Ned."

"Hi, Ms. Drew."

Nancy's aunt chuckled, and Nancy was a little out of breath when she came to the phone. "Ned?"

"Hey."

"Hey! I found out today that the quarry isn't going to be reopened! Isn't that great?"

"It is," Ned agreed, smiling at the excitement in her voice. "You did a great job."

"It was nothing," she demurred. "And you were a lot of help."

"I enjoyed it," he said. "And, speaking of things we might enjoy—my mom just asked if you and your aunt might want to come over for dinner on Saturday night."

"Oh! Oh, no!"

"No?" Ned echoed her, his heart sinking.

"It's not that—it's just that Helen's home visiting from college, and she asked if Bess and George and I could go bowling, and I said yes. I didn't know." She sounded obviously distressed.

"Oh. Well, it's okay. Maybe we could plan it for next weekend."

"Maybe," she agreed. "Oh! But you could come bowling with us."

Ned shook his head. "I—I wouldn't want to intrude. If you'll be out with your girl friends."

"It's okay, really. Bess has been dying to meet you, and this way she can mention to this guy she has a crush on that she'll be at the bowling alley—and flirt with him if he turns up."

"And George and Helen?"

"They're used to Bess's shenanigans. We like bowling, but we're really not that good at it."

"I'm okay at it."

"'Okay'?" Nancy chuckled. "Like you're 'not half-bad' at football?"

"I'm decent at football," he told her with a chuckle, and Togo stood with his front two paws on Ned's upper thigh and barked a few times.

"Oooh, Togo! I miss him."

"Well, maybe after bowling you could come over here for dessert. Then Mom might grant you a reprieve."

"That sounds like a good compromise." Nancy paused. "So you'll go bowling?"

"Sure. It sounds like fun. And it'll be really nice to see you again."

"I can't wait to see you, too." She breathed out. "Good night."

"Good night, Nan."

--

Ned couldn't believe how long it took him to decide on an outfit for going bowling. It wasn't a date, not really—they hadn't yet been on what Ned would have called a real, formal date—but he still wanted to look nice. He settled on a new pair of jeans and low-top Chucks, and a short-sleeved button-down shirt, unbuttoned over a t-shirt. Then he brushed his hair and decided not to stress over it; he knew too many guys who gelled their hair until they looked ridiculous.

Ned had rushed through helping his mother clear the table after Saturday's dinner, and she smiled at him from the couch when he came downstairs, patting his pocket to make sure he had his wallet and keys. "Have fun tonight, sweetheart. We'll see you in a little while."

Togo was curled up at Ned's father's feet, and his father smiled at him, too. "Bowl lots of strikes! In your own lane, if you can help it."

Ned gave his parents a wave. "Thanks. Togo, be good."

Togo sat up, his dark, intelligent eyes on Ned. Ever since Ned had come in for dinner on Saturday, Togo had been going to the door and whining, as though he knew that Nancy would be coming over soon.

The bowling alley was actually on the outskirts of Mapleton, on the River Heights side; Ned had been to it a few times, but he had spent more time at the mini-golf course next door. He saw cars bearing Mapleton High School bumper stickers, and recognized a few that belonged to his fellow teammates. One car belonged to his best friend, Jim Archer; a brand-new Wildcats sticker was displayed on the rear bumper.

After Nancy had invited him, knowing that it would be four against one, Ned had decided to even up the odds just a little bit, partially so that Nancy's friends would have more than just him to focus on. Jim was tall and solidly built, and while he was fast, he was better on the basketball court and the baseball diamond than the football field. His brown hair was lighter than Ned's, and his green eyes were constantly dancing. He was finally home for a break from his first semester of college, and Ned had been happy to find a chance to hang out with him.

Sensing that Nancy didn't necessarily want Ned talking about what had happened to her, Ned had only told Jim that Nancy had been through a bad relationship recently. Jim had heard the same things Ned had last semester—most of them calling Nancy a cocktease, or worse—and Ned had made it clear that the person who had spread that rumor had been lying about her.

Jim found it hard to stay too serious, but he had agreed that the whole topic was off-limits. Ned and Jim had been friends for a long time, and he had commented more than once that Ned must really have it bad for this girl. He had never seen him react this way to anyone else.

Jim swung out of his car when Ned approached, greeting him with a wide, toothy grin. "Good to see you, man. So I'm ready to meet this babe," he said, clapping his hands together and rubbing them in anticipation. "After all this build-up, she better be something else, Nickerson."

"She is," Ned said.

"Guess you didn't believe me about the girls at Emerson. Man, they're something else. No more of that high-school crap with them; they're all long legs and sweet smiles." Jim shook his head. "You gonna come visit soon?"

"I'd love to," Ned admitted. "You're better than a brochure, that's for sure."

"I've already been talking to the football coach about you, and he might just make it out to the game next week."

Ned groaned, shaking his head as he opened the bowling alley's front door. "Way to ramp up my stress level, Archer."

Jim shrugged. "Anything it takes to get you there, Nickerson. I have to have someone to be my wingman."

Ned chuckled. Then he saw her, and his heart skipped a beat.

Nancy was standing near the shoe-rental counter, bent over as she adjusted the heel of a hideous lime-green and fluorescent-yellow shoe. "Hey!" she said when she saw Ned, her eyes lighting up. She flipped a wing of reddish-gold hair over her shoulder. "We just rented a lane."

"Hey," Ned said with a smile. "So, this is Jim. Jim Archer, this is Nancy Drew."

Nancy smiled at Jim, accepting the hand he extended to her. "And Jim, Ned, these are my friends: Bess Marvin," a pretty, curvy girl with long straw-blonde hair and big blue eyes smiled at him, "George Fayne," a tall girl, her dark hair trimmed short and her dark eyes watchful, gave them a smaller smile, "and Helen Corning." Helen had shoulder-length brown hair and bright eyes, and she looked both more sophisticated and more relaxed than her friends, despite her garish rented shoes. She wore light jeans and a pale blue cardigan with the sleeves pushed up. Bess, whose blue eyes were dancing when she looked at Ned, wore a spaghetti-strap slip dress over a short-sleeved white shirt, and ten thin silver bangles circled her right wrist. George, who by far seemed the shyest of the girls, wore a loose White Sox shirt and jeans, and a chunky digital watch.

Nancy wore jeans and a striped t-shirt, and after Ned had smiled politely at her friends, he only had eyes for her.

"I've heard a lot about you," Bess said with a grin. "And, Jim Archer... hmm. Do you go to Mapleton, too?"

The guys went to the shoe-rental counter and told the clerk their sizes. "No, actually," Jim told them. "I'm a freshman at Emerson College, but I'm home on break."

"Me too," Helen said with a grin. "Well, not at Emerson; I'm up at ISU. Sophomore."

"Really," Jim said appreciatively.

Ned chuckled, reaching for Nancy's hand to give it a little squeeze, and she looked up into his eyes; her lips were turned up in a smile. "He doesn't get out much, so try to excuse him," Ned joked.

Nancy squeezed his hand too. "Thanks for understanding," she told him. "I'm sorry it's not just us, but Helen isn't able to come home very often."

"Hey, it's fine. I think it'll be fun."

They played two games together, and Ned discovered that Bess's favorite part of bowling was when she wasn't up to play, when she could talk to her friends. She was worried about marring her glittery turquoise nail polish, and she hated her rented "clown shoes." He discovered that George was competitive, even though she was shy, and after they had played through an entire game, she mentioned that Ned had played really well at the match against River Heights. She also said that she would have been cheering for him, if only his team hadn't been playing her own school.

Helen wanted to be an art teacher, and it was only when Ned was able to take a closer look at her that he saw four earrings in each ear, rings on six of her fingers, and the traces of paint, not nail polish, near her cuticles. Even though Jim had been encouraging Ned to wait until he came to Emerson to start dating seriously, Jim definitely seemed to be interested in Helen. They talked and giggled through most of the games.

Nancy finished one of her turns in the second game, then came to sit down beside Ned with a sigh. "I tried moving to the left a little, like you said, but it didn't really help," she told him mournfully, and he slipped an arm over her shoulders. "And you're more than 'kinda okay' at this, Ned."

He chuckled at her sorrowful look. "I'm doing better than usual," he told her. "Guess you're my good luck charm."

"Five strikes and spares so far? And the most I've managed to knock down in a turn is eight." Nancy sighed again.

"One more strike and I'll have you," George told Ned.

Nancy shook her head. "You've done it now. George can get really bad."

"I'm game," Ned told George.

"Game for what?" Bess asked, her eyes alight.

Ned didn't know if the guy Bess liked had shown up or not, but Nancy was clearly ready to strangle her friend. Bess was interested in all they were saying, and she kept asking Ned questions about himself, what he wanted to do, where he wanted to go to school, if he had enjoyed prom the previous year. Even though prom was more than six months away, she was already excited about it.

He supposed it was different for her, for Nancy and George too. All he needed to do was rent a tuxedo and make sure his accessories didn't clash with his date's dress. In the spring, Jim's parents had rented a limo because it was his senior prom, and Ned had been invited to come along with a few of their friends and all their dates. It had been nice, and after prom they had gone to a house Jim's parents had rented on Fox Lake just for the occasion. Thanks to the beer and rum an older cousin had provided, the girls had been wasted an hour after their arrival—and so Ned had gone to sleep alone, happily buzzed from the beer, feeling content. Maybe a little disappointed that things hadn't gone further with his date, but happy anyway.

When Ned's turn came again, he went up to the return to pick up his dark-green bowling ball and stepped up to the lane. Bess made an appreciative comment from behind him, and Ned shook his head, chuckling. When he glanced back, Nancy was blushing a little, but she gave him a thumbs-up. "You can do it!"

"Don't encourage him!" George retorted.

Once he released the ball, Ned stared at it, holding his breath—until it hit perfectly on the front pin and sent them all crashing down. He couldn't help pumping his fist in victory, and when he sat down beside Nancy again, she gave him a grin. "I'm going to have to get you to teach me," she told him.

Mmm. An opportunity to be close to her? He wasn't about to turn that down.

After they had finished their second set of games—Ned won, and George immediately challenged him to a rematch, which Ned accepted as long as Nancy was also in attendance—Bess suggested that they go to the local ice cream parlor for dessert. Jim had been deep in conversation with Helen for most of the night, and was happy to agree once Helen said she would go. George agreed, since she and her cousin—Ned had never seen two cousins who looked more dissimilar—had come with Helen.

Nancy hesitated, looking between her friends and Ned. He took her hand and gave it a little squeeze. "I'll go with whatever you want," he told her softly.

She pressed her lips together, then gave Bess and George an apologetic glance. "Ned's mom already asked if I could go over there tonight," she explained.

"Ohhhh," Bess said, and Nancy immediately blushed. Her friend gave her a little hug, though. "That's all right. So we'll see you tomorrow? And I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot more of you, too, Ned."

Nancy hugged George too, then Helen, saying it had been great to see her. Ned and Jim exchanged a glance, and Jim shrugged in Helen's direction. "What can I say," he murmured.

Ned shrugged in Nancy's direction. "I get it," he replied, and Jim smiled.

Nancy was in her own car, and they drove to Ned's house separately; he arrived first, parking in the driveway. His father was in the yard with Togo, and the dog was straining at the leash.

"He wouldn't stay still," Ned's father explained with a smile. "Guess he heard that Nancy's coming over. He kept whining at the door."

At the sound of her name, Togo sat and barked a few times. Ned reached down and patted him. "She's almost here, buddy."

Togo was fairly dancing when Nancy parked her Mustang in front of Ned's house, and he strained at the leash until she reached him. "Hey Togo," she said happily, and Togo lavished her with kisses, almost knocking her down. She scratched behind his ears and down his back, and he squirmed, then jumped up to kiss her again.

"All right," Ned's father said, and Togo barked once, sitting as Nancy stood. "That was a very thorough greeting, Togo. Inside. Hi, Nancy."

"Hi, Mr. Nickerson. It's nice to see you again."

"I hope you two had a nice time tonight."

Ned took Nancy's hand as they went up the stairs into the house; she had never seemed to mind it, and he liked having even that little contact with her. Ned's mother was in the kitchen, and she poked her head out to grin at Nancy.

"Hello, dear. I'm sorry you couldn't come for dinner, but at least I can give you some dessert."

"It's very nice of you," Nancy replied with a smile. "I appreciate it. And I'll definitely make it next time."

"A week from today?" Edith suggested. "Although, if Ned would prefer to take you to a restaurant, my feelings will be hurt, but I'll understand."

"Mom," Ned murmured, as Nancy blushed, squeezing his hand a little.

"Okay. You have a choice, Nancy; I've made an apple strudel cheesecake and peanut butter swirled brownies, and we have some vanilla ice cream too—and you're welcome to have a little of everything, if you want."

Ned shook his head; he was already salivating a little. "How is it that you're her favorite?" he asked Nancy. "Two desserts? Trust me, those brownies didn't exist before I left the house tonight, or half of them would have been gone already. They're incredible."

"And please, take some home to your aunt," Ned's mother said.

Ned marveled at it, once he and Nancy had made their plates and taken them to the table in the breakfast nook, along with tall glasses of milk. His mother had always been polite to the girls he had brought home—the handful he had, anyway—but his relationships with them had never lasted too long, and she hadn't asked about them once he had stopped dating them. She asked about Nancy, though, and went out of her way to make special things for her. Maybe because Ned found himself talking about Nancy a lot.

He was pretty sure the switch had flipped when he had asked his parents to adopt Togo, and they had found out why.

Nancy had already come over for dinner twice, and Ned knew she liked his mother's cooking, but he still felt apprehensive when she took the first bite of the peanut-butter brownie. Nancy closed her eyes and sighed. "Oh, wow," she murmured. "That is sooooo good."

Ned nodded. "It is. Seriously, whenever any club around here has a potluck, they all pray my mom can make something."

"I believe it," Nancy replied.

She finished off both her desserts—she had only taken about half as much of each as Ned had—and the small scoop of vanilla ice cream between, then sat back with a happy sigh. "Thanks again for inviting me over," she told him. "And for putting up with Bess and George tonight—I would say Helen too, but I'm not sure she ever came up for air after she started talking to your friend."

"So you noticed that too?" Ned smiled. "Jim's usually cracking people up all over the place, but tonight?"

Nancy shrugged. "I get it," she admitted, looking into his eyes. "It was hard to talk to anyone else when I wanted to be talking to you."

Ned smiled. "Your friends seemed cool, but yeah," he said. "I really like when I'm just hanging out with you."

She gave him a little smile, and after she had held his gaze for a moment, she glanced away, her cheeks warming again. Ned took her plate, asking if she wanted anything else, but Nancy promised that she couldn't eat another bite. She even rose and went into the living room to tell Ned's mother that her dessert had been amazing, and his mother immediately went to the kitchen to wrap some brownies and cheesecake for Nancy's aunt.

"So, there's a swing on the back porch," Ned told Nancy. "Do you have to get home, or do you want to maybe sit out there with me for a little while? We can take Togo, since the back yard's fenced in."

Togo heard his name, and a moment later he appeared in the doorway, his ears up and tail wagging.

Nancy looked between Ned and Togo, then chuckled. "How can I say no when both of you are giving me puppy-dog eyes," she commented.

"Togo! Tennis ball," Ned said.

Togo obediently went to his wicker toy-box and found the tennis ball, picking it up and carrying it outside as he trotted beside them. The night was still a little warm, though a cooler breeze was blowing, and the bright moon overhead was nearly full.

"Oh, it's lovely out here," Nancy said, combing her fingers through her hair to draw it away from her cheeks. "All blue and silver. I'll have to see it when it's daylight."

"Mom spends a lot of time out here," Ned told her, directing her over to the swing. "She's really proud of it. We finally convinced Togo that he shouldn't bury things out here, but it took a lot of patience."

Nancy smiled. "He's done really good with the training," she said. "Sometimes he's almost a perfect little gentleman."

As though responding to her praise, Togo brought her the tennis ball, jumping up on his hind legs so he could deposit it beside her hand. She smiled and picked it up. "Are you good at fetch?" she asked him, and he sat down at her feet, alert, and barked once.

"He's pretty good at it, unless something distracts him."

Nancy tossed the ball. "Fetch, Togo!" she said, and he immediately bounded out into the yard to find it.

Ned slipped his arm around Nancy's shoulders, and she glanced up at him. "So, a week from today," he said. "Do you want to have dinner?"

"Here?"

She was still gazing at him, and Ned swallowed. "Here, or... we could go out," he said, and his voice was surprisingly steady.

She gave him a small smile. "You know, tonight, being out with you and Jim and my friends... it's the first time in a long time I can remember that I didn't spend the whole time nervous I would see someone and basically have to go hide," she told him.

"That's good. I'm glad." He reached up and gently stroked a lock of hair from her cheek.

She searched his eyes, silently for a moment. "I don't mind," she said softly. "As long as I'm with you, I don't mind."

He could feel it between them, that connection, and a tingling awareness. He wanted very much to kiss her, and when he tilted his head a little, still gazing at her, he thought that she wanted it too.

Then, with a gasp, she jerked and looked down. "Togo," she said.

Ned couldn't help groaning as the dog jumped up on his hind legs and returned the ball. "Good boy," he said, taking the ball and tossing it again.

Nancy chuckled, looking up at Ned again. "He's really sweet," she said. "I think you're pretty sweet too, Ned."

He touched her cheek, then leaned down. "And I think you're amazing, Nancy," he whispered, just before their lips met.

Their first kiss was too brief, practically just a brush of his lips against hers, but he felt it all the way to his heart. Then she touched his arm and he felt her breath against his lips, and then he was kissing her again, slow and sweet. Her lips parted a little beneath his, and he wanted to gather her in his arms and pull her to him. Instead he settled for gently tracing the seam of her lips with his tongue, without urging her to part them further, in case that would upset her. She didn't pull away, though, and her hand came to rest on his shoulder.

"Oh," she whispered, her lashes low, when he pulled back.

"Hmm?"

Then she opened her eyes again, the color dark and deep as sapphires. "So that's what it's supposed to feel like," she whispered, his lips curving up in a slow, genuine smile, and he was smiling too when he kissed her again.

He found he didn't care, either—with his parents or at a restaurant, alone or surrounded by a hundred other couples. As long as he was with her, as long as they could find an opportunity to be like this again, he would be happy to be with her.

Neither of them realized Togo had returned until he emitted a few sharp barks, and Nancy pulled back with stars in her eyes, breathing out in a soft sigh. "My two favorite guys competing for my attention," she joked, then glanced away, as though self-conscious about what she had said. Togo jumped up and she occupied herself by petting him, then taking the ball.

"Sit, Togo," Ned said.

Nancy nodded, and Togo obediently sat. Then Nancy tossed the ball, and Ned touched her hand.

"So are you gonna want to do that all the time now?" she asked, her voice quiet, as she looked down at his hand.

"Not if you didn't like it," Ned murmured, surprised by how even his voice was.

"I liked it a lot," she told him. "And I like watching movies and riding bikes and baking and playing video games, too. I just..."

"You like video games?" he said, lighting up. "Maybe one weekend when we're not slammed with homework, we can play. What kind do you like?"

"The racing ones," she told him with a grin. "I'm good at the racing ones. Well, the ones that aren't crazy hard, anyway."

"Then we should play," he said. "I liked kissing you a lot, but no. That's not everything I want to do, now." He gently squeezed her hand. "I like all of you. I like hanging out with you and talking to you and doing things with you. And kissing you."

Her grin had faded to a smile. "Good," she told him, and leaned forward to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "I should get home, before my aunt gets worried about me."

"Okay."

They went inside and Nancy thanked Ned's mother for sending some dessert home with her, and then Ned walked her out to her car, holding her hand as soon as they were on his front porch. "So, Saturday, we can eat here, and then maybe play some video games in the den?" he suggested.

She nodded, squeezing his hand, then took a breath, stood on her tiptoes and planted a light kiss against his lips. "I like you a lot," she said, searching his eyes.

"I must've screwed up. A few minutes ago, I was one of your favorite guys."

She smiled and punched his shoulder playfully. "Togo's my favorite. At least he didn't kick my butt bowling."

"I thought it was more gallant to play fair than to pull my punches. That'll show me."

She shook her head as she sat down in the driver's seat. "I'd rather you be honest, always," she said, brushing her hair out of her face as she gazed up at him.

"Then I guess I'll settle for being your second-favorite," he said, and leaned down to kiss her too. "I like you a lot, too, Nan."

She smiled. "I'll call you," she said. "Thanks again for coming along tonight, and for dessert."

He knew he had to let her go, but stepping back and letting her close the door, and just giving her a little wave as she smiled at him again, made his chest ache. He never wanted the night to end, when they were together.

"Maybe we can hang out tomorrow?" he asked, trying to keep his voice casual.

She paused for a second, then nodded. "As long as you promise we'll get some homework done," she warned him.

"Of course."

"Then I think that should be okay. I'll ask my aunt if you can come over, since your parents have been so nice and let me come over."

He nodded and smiled, and still they just kept gazing at each other, incredibly reluctant to say goodnight. Then she took a deep breath and gave him a little wave, and he returned it as she finally drove away.

Ned's mother chuckled when he finally came back inside. "I don't think your feet have touched the ground since she came in," she commented.

"Hmm?" Ned said. "Oh, can I go over to Nancy's aunt's place to do homework tomorrow, maybe?"

"Of course, honey." Ned was too preoccupied to see the glance his parents exchanged.

"So your mother and I were just talking about that homecoming dance," Ned's father said. "When is it?"

"Oh, it's—it's next month."

"I'll have to make sure your good black suit is cleaned." Ned's mother glanced up at him from the pile of knitting in her lap, and when Ned's face entirely changed—as he clearly began to consider how he should ask Nancy to go with him, and when—his parents glanced at each other again, smiling this time.

"Mmm-hmm," Ned murmured, and walked, entirely preoccupied, into the kitchen. "Can I have another brownie, Mom?"

"Sure you can," she called back, and looked at her husband.

"You can't just adopt her like Togo," James Nickerson said softly, shaking his head a little, but he was smiling.

Edith smiled, too. "I won't have to, if she's my daughter-in-law," she commented, concentrating on her knitting and entirely ignoring her husband when he chuckled.