Dan is the kind of guy who doesn't talk with you but talks at you. I'm still not sure if he's heard any of the things I've said to him, so I've basically stopped talking. But when we arrive at the party, I'm able to get away from my chauffeur and hopefully not see him anymore tonight.

I could say the same about Georgia, to be honest. I'm not really warming up to her either.

Kelsey, however-well, she's a whole other matter.

The party is at the house of some senior. Lots of kids jammed into a small space with dim lights and loud music and lots of alcohol. Kelsey looks more lost than I probably do. After a half hour of wading through people and trying to talk to no avail, she suggests going outside.

It's cold but not frigid. Winter's gone, and the promise of spring is near. We walk past newcomers and get to the street.

"Do you mind?"

"What?" I ask.

"Just-staying out here? Getting away?"

"No."

Kelsey walks in the center of the street, confident that nobody's coming and if they do we can move to the side. For a while I just walk alongside her.

"Thanks for doing this," she says.

"What?"

"Tonight."

"Yeah, sure."

"Dan's a real winner."

"We're bonded for life. I think I've heard more 50 Cent tonight than I've heard my entire life."

"Sorry."

"Please. It's no big deal. It's kinda humorous."

"Do you like parties?"

"Do you?" I ask.

"No."

"So why go?"

"That was Georgia's idea. All of this-it was really her idea."

"Yeah, I can tell she's really crazy about him."

"They've been that way forever. I could see her marrying him. Like after she has all these relationships with all these other guys, I can see her finally settling down for someone who's crazy for her."

"Seriously?"

Kelsey nods. "I've told her that, but she thinks I'm delirious. I don't know. I just think it's nice to know that someone out there likes you."

There's a long pause as we walk.

"Do you-do you miss her?"

The question slaps me on the back of the head. For a second I really question if it's Kelsey who asked it. I don't need to ask her who she's talking about.

"Yeah."

We keep walking. I know I probably should say something else, or just say something about anything, but I can't.

She has no idea about the truth. She can't. There's no way she can know.

We get to a turn in the road, and Kelsey stops. I can't see her eyes in the darkness.

"Do you think we're all the same around here?"

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"That we're all just a bunch of rednecks who don't know anything."

"Who said that?"

"I heard you say something like that to Gus."

"When? Recently?"

"It was after a fight in the hallway. Just after you came."

"You noticed me?"

Kelsey laughs. "All the girls noticed you. Who wouldn't? The fact that you weren't from around here just made you more interesting. Chicago, too. That was all everybody could talk about. The girls, that is. And then-then suddenly you were with her. Jocelyn. Of course nobody was surprised."

I knew that people noticed us together, but I'd always assumed it was because Jocelyn was special, because she was chosen for something awful.

I never thought it had anything to do with me.

"The stuff I said to Gus-that was because he's a moron. I don't think that about the rest of the school."

"You sure?"

"Are you even trying to put yourself in his class?" I laugh. "Please."

"I know. But-but Jocelyn wasn't like the rest of us."

"Hey, Kelsey, look-just-she's not here, okay? So you don't have to bring her up."

"She's kind of here. The same way she's kind of in our art class. Or anywhere you go."

I feel the goose bumps on my skin and know that this girl is right. Kelsey might look younger than she is, but she knows. She knows, and she's right.

"I don't know what to say."

"It's okay, really," she says. "I understand."

We keep walking and see the lit-up house and hear the loud music. I know that this is one of those moments, and this time I act.

"Hey, hold on," I tell her.

She pauses, and this time when I look down I can see her face and her glasses lit up by the moonlight. But mostly I just see those bold eyes looking back at me.

"Look, Kelsey-I just-there's things that I can't change. Like my being from Chicago. Good or bad. Or like-well, like anything. It's just-I don't know how to say this-but there's a lot-"

Then a car comes toward us like a possessed horse galloping through the night. We move off the street, and the car screeches to a halt just beyond us.

The driver's window opens, and I hear a familiar voice.

"Chris? Is that you?"

The voice belongs to Poe.

58. The Truth, Finally The timing of this is really spectacularly not good.

"Poe?"

I can't believe it's really her. I wouldn't know if that's her car, because I don't know anything about Poe, except for the fact that she's been hating and ignoring me (Thousand Island incident excluded).

"Chris-I need to see you."

It's dark out, but not that dark. She can see that Kelsey is standing right next to me.

"Look-whatever I'm interrupting, I'm sorry-I don't mean to. I just-we have to talk, and we have to talk now."

"Kelsey-have you guys ..."

"Hi, Poe," she says, answering my question.

"Yeah, hi. Look, I'm really sorry, but-Chris, you have to come with me."

"What's this about?"

"It's about Jocelyn."

I glance at Kelsey. Like I said, the timing of this is really amazingly awful.

"We were just going back to the party-"

"No, no party. I swear, Chris, you gotta get in my car and right now. You might never see me again."

"It's okay," Kelsey says.

I'm about to say something else, but I see her blond hair nodding over toward Poe.

"I'm sorry," I say to her.

"It's fine. Really."

She walks away, and I see her silhouette lit up by the stark headlights of Poe's car. This would be the moment I say "Enough" and follow Kelsey back into the party.

But of course I don't.

Of course I go toward the car and climb in.

I have no idea where we're headed.

But I know I have to go there.

We're taking a curve a bit too quickly, and I grab onto the handle above the door.

"Why don't you slow down?"

"I just want to find a place to talk."

We're in the middle of dark, desolate woods.

"Where, exactly, do you want to talk?"

"Nobody can be around."

"Poe ..."

She slams on the brakes and we skid, then she gets control and pulls off on the side of the road next to a hill and a mountain of forest. I can hear the deathly quiet outside through the crack in the window.

"What's going on?"

She turns to me, and I can barely make out her face. But I think there are tears in her eyes.

"I know. I know about it. I finally get it."

"What?"

"What happened to Jocelyn. Do you know?"

"Yeah."

"What? Tell me. Tell me everything."