Wishing Pearl Read Online Free PDF

huge keg over there?” Jordyn pointed to a silver barrel on the patio. “No way there are adults of any kind at home. Speaking of the keg …” She grabbed Olivia’s hand and dragged her toward the patio. “We need beverages.”
    “Um. I don’t know. I’m not big on …” But why not? Her new outlook on life dictated that fun was the only thing that mattered now, right? No holding back.
    Jordyn pumped the keg handle and held a red plastic cup under the spout, letting it fill with a frothy golden brew. She thrust it into Olivia’s hand and raised her own cup. “Cheers!”
    Olivia leaned her face forward and raised the cup to sniff it. The sprinkles of popping fizz tickled her nose. “Cheers.” She forced herself to drink several long gulps. It didn’t taste as bad as she remembered from the other night. Still not exactly
good
, but definitely not
bad
.
    “Okay then.” Jordyn beamed. “Let’s top off our drinks and go find those college boys I told you about.” She pumped the handle one more time and filled their cups.
    Olivia held her arm out to let the foam flow over her fingers and into the grass. When it settled, she took a big drink and plodded after Jordyn across the rocky yard. The heels of Olivia’s boots stumbled on the rocks every few steps, but that was nothing compared to how Jordyn’s bare feet must have felt. Yet she plowed on.
    Halfway to the roaring fire, which blazed at least four feet high in a sandy area near the lake, Jordyn turned around with a cigarette dangling from her lips. “Got a light?”
    “No. I didn’t know you smoked.” What else didn’t she know about Jordyn—and about life?
    “Oh yeah. On and off since I turned thirteen. Everyone does.”
    Another moment of truth. No holding back. “Can I bum one off you?” Olivia’s voice squeaked like a little mouse.
    “Sure!” She tapped one out of the pack and handed it to Olivia.
    She hoped Jordyn wouldn’t notice her hand shake as she took it.
    “Let me find a light. I’ll be right back.” Jordyn ran off, leaving Olivia alone on the grass with a half-empty beer, staring at an unlit cigarette.
    If only
Chuck
could see her now.
    Jordyn jogged back to her with a packet of matches.
    Olivia studied Jordyn’s moves as she struck the match, held it to the cigarette between her lips, and sucked in until it caught. She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes for a moment before exhaling a powdery white plume.
    Olivia’s turn. Fumbling to light the match without dropping the cigarette, Olivia had to try three times before it sparked and a flame appeared.
    “I hate using matches.” Jordyn looked at her fingertips. “I’ve burned my fingers so many times. I usually make sure I have a lighter. I even know one girl who lit an acrylic nail on fire. It looked so funny all twisted and melted.”
    Olivia smirked in pretend agreement and lifted her hand to her mouth with the cigarette poised between her first two fingers like she’d watched Jordyn do. Inserting it between her lips, Olivia pulled in thick, smoky air as the tip glowed red in the flame. She tried not to let any of it into her lungs, but the taste alone made her sputter and gag. Choking back the coughs, she gave it another try, this time inhaling a little bit of the smoke. The nicotine burned her lungs—Olivia imagined them turning black like in the videos at school—but she held it in anyway.
    “I guess it went down the wrong way at first.”
    Jordyn nodded. “Sure. Happens to me all the time, especially when it’s been awhile.”
    After a few more drags, Olivia felt like an old pro. It tasted gross—exactly like an ashtray smelled—and why did it make her head feel thick and woozy? Didn’t matter, looking cool was totally worth it. If she chugged her beer after each drag, it chased the smoke taste from her mouth and helped control the coughing.
    Olivia drained her drink. With half a cigarette remaining, she nudged Jordyn and tipped her cup over. “I’m going to