Lucky in Love by Karina Gioertz Page B

soon!”
    I had gotten up from the table even as he was ranting at me.
    “Come on!” I repeated more sternly this time. I knew full well that if I didn’t think fast and come up with a version of the night’s events that remained close to the truth, while still allowing me to retain some sort of dignity and privacy, I would be divulging every little detail by the time we arrived at the school.
    Finally, Jason got up and we both grabbed our bags before we hurried out of the door.
    After the unexpected run in with Noah in the kitchen, we had gone from having plenty of time to running late again, in no time at all.

 
Chapter 10
    Crotchless Panties? Why Bother?!
    It was early evening and Tara and I had decided that after a long day of dealing with teenagers who were less than grateful for all of the information we had been willing to share with them due to finals drawing nearer, we were entitled to some much needed R&R at the mall. Nothing like a little bit of shopping and people watching to bring you back to your happy place, I say. We had already made our way through half of the shops, purchased shoes and several pairs of earrings at a sale we simply couldn’t pass up, when Tara abruptly stopped in front of a lingerie store.  Before I knew it, she had grabbed my wrist and was dragging me inside. Having no pressing need for lingerie myself at the time, I wandered aimlessly around the store sporadically checking out the merchandise as I went by. Tara on the other hand, seemed to be on some sort of a mission, as she went from one display to the next, pulling different items out to get a better look before making a disgruntled face and shoving them back into place. After what seemed like a long time to me, she made her way back around to the front, where I had planted myself beside the panties, half standing, half leaning up against the table they were so grandly displayed upon.              
    Apparently something on the table had caught her eye, as she began to shuffle through the different styles and designs they had to offer.
    “So, Jason told me about your date last night.  It sounded pretty awful,” Tara said, trying to sound both casual and sympathetic as she brought it up.
    “Yeah, it kinda was,” I nodded.
    “Thank goodness Noah was there.  Did he really knock the guy out?” she asked while holding up a pair of bright orange panties.
    “Yup,” I said, staring at them and wondering if they would glow in the dark. Before I could decide however, Tara lowered her hands back down to the table and the neon lights that had shone from them so brightly seconds before, ceased to exist.
    Sighing loudly she said, “Okay, what's going on?”
    “With what?” I asked unsure of what she was talking about. Sure, the Noah thing still weighed heavily on the back of my mind, but I hadn’t decided whether or not I wanted to talk about it yet and therefore had pushed the whole situation out of my thoughts until further notice.
    “With what?  With you, that's with what.  You're being so quiet. I don't think you've put together more than a sentence since we got here.  Is this too weird?”
    I glanced down at the orange underwear still balled up in her hands and said, “Crotchless panties?  Yeah, that's too weird.  I mean, I don't get them, I thought the purpose of panties was to cover the crotch.  A thong I get, it serves a purpose, but really, crotchless panties?  Why bother?!”
    Tara looked down at her hands and when she realized I was right, quickly folded them back up and returned them to their spot on the display table.
    “This is too weird.  I'm sorry, I didn't know it would bother you to shop for lingerie for Jason.” She suddenly seemed to be uncomfortable with the topic of conversation.
    I looked at her with wide eyes. “That's why we're here?”
    “Yes that's why we're here.  Who else would I be buying lingerie for?” Tara asked nearing exasperation.
    I shrugged my shoulders and