right? And why shouldn’t I have a little fun every once in a while?”
“You’re preaching to the choir, man,” Phin said and threw his furry kissing buddy at me.
“So, I’m in this thing one hundred percent. Yep, I’m going to be a kissing machine before the end of the year,” I said, making up my mind then and there.
“Well, you’re definitely getting kissed this year,” McCartney cut in and looked up from the computer screen.
“Somebody bid?” I squealed, kicking my feet up in the air.
“Not somebody,” McCartney said slowly, and turned the laptop to face us. “Some
bodies
.”
“Seriously? More than one guy bid on these lips?” I asked, pointing to my mouth.
“Uh, twenty seven guys to be exact,” McCartney answered. “Your kiss is already up to $75!”
“Nuh, uh. No way,” I said, scrambling off the bed to examine the screen. After I confirmed that it was true, I leaned back against the bed, slightly dazed—and confused. “Do they
know
what they’re bidding on? Maybe they thought they were bidding on something else. Like a cool painting, or maybe a bike or something.”
“Sorry sweet-thang,” Phin said with a big grin. “They want those hot lips of yours.”
“Ewwww. When you say it that way, it makes it sound so dirty,” I said, making a face.
“Do you know what this means, Arielle?” McCartney interrupted.
“People feel sorry for the lame freshman?” I asked.
“No, loser,” McCartney said, rolling her eyes. “It means, no more lip virgin for you. In exactly one month, you
will
be kissing one very lucky boy.”
I stopped to think about what that meant. If I went through with this, I, Arielle Sawyer, would be locking lips with someone very soon. My stomach did a little flipflop at the idea of finally kissing a boy. Then, another thought struck me, causing me to bolt upright.
“Who are the guys that have bid so far?” I asked.
“They don’t give out their names, just a username,” McCartney said. “You won’t find out who the winner is until he’s been picked. Then, you get a name and address.”
“So, there’s no way to see who I might be kissing in a month?” I asked, suddenly feeling a little sick to my stomach.
“Well, we could always take a look at the usernames and try to guess,” McCartney offered. “I mean, they’re boys, so they can’t be all
that
bright, right?”
“Hey!” Phin exclaimed, acting offended.
McCartney and I ignored him as we sat down side by side in front of the computer. “Okay, the top bid right now is SoccerStud21,” McCartney said out loud.
We sat there for a few moments before I finally broke the silence with a groan.
“That’s got to be Calvin Brooks,” I said. “He’s on the soccer team and his number’s 21.”
Calvin was an okay guy. Just not the kind you want to smooch. He wasn’t even the kind of guy you’d want to shake hands with. He was always running around and sweating. And I was
so
not digging the boy sweat. Unless we were getting sweaty because of the kissing, in which case…
“See, I told you guys weren’t exactly the sharpest tools in the shed,” McCartney said. This time Phin didn’t bother trying to defend his gender.
“Okay, let’s try another one,” he said, pulling the computer onto his lap. “BigManOnCampus.”
“Hmmm, that’s more vague,” McCartney said, scratching her head. “It could be someone who’s a part of the populars, or it could be a really big guy. Like Chris Blaine.”
“Please don’t let it be Chris Blaine,” I pleaded out loud, looking up and praying to the ceiling Gods.
“How about this one. RedMustang1,” Phin read.
“That one’s easy,” McCartney said right away.
“Who is it?” I asked.
“It’s totally Kirk Masters,” McCartney said, as if she were explaining something to a child. “Kirk is the only one in school who drives a red mustang.”
“But Kirk is one of the populars,” I stated, shaking my head.
“I’m just surprised