The next day Alex skips meeting us for lunch again, so I don’t see him until class. Once Ms. Greer starts the lecture, I put the bow tie I bought for Alex on the table and quietly slide it across the table to him.
It’s sitting on the table beside his forearm, and he looks down at it in confusion. He glances at me and I give him a small smile. He picks it up and a blush creeps up the back of his neck. He holds back a smile as he slips open the packaging. He rubs his fingers over the silky fabric for a moment before he drops the tie in his bag. He won’t look at me, but he has a huge smile on his face for the rest of class.
After class, Taylor turns to me and says, “okay, you’re baking in home ec again today, right? And I’m meeting you afterwards to get some cookies?”
“It’s bread today, bu
