Read Online First Date by Melody Carlson - Free Book Online Page A

attended church fairly regularly, and compared to some of Abby’s friends’ lives, her life was considered “stable” and “normal.”
    Even so, it wasn’t always easy being an only child. Or being one of the few ethnic minority kids at Northwood. But Abby knew better than to complain to her parents about such things. They would only launch into a sad story about how it was when they were growing up. Worse yet, they’d go into a P s speech—reminding her of how her grandparentsput up with prejudice and persecution and participated in peace marches and protests. She’d heard it a hundred times. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate black history. She absolutely did. But sometimes she just wanted to be like everyone else. Was that too much to ask?
    To be fair, it was what her parents wanted too. At least they wanted her to be just like them. In their minds there was no higher aspiration. For the most part, Abby didn’t disagree, but sometimes it seemed the only thing they talked about was her future: what college she would attend, what kind of scholarships to apply for, how she would contribute to society as an adult. Sometimes they were so focused on how her life was going to be someday that it seemed like they lost complete sight of the here and now.
    For instance, as they were driving home from Aunt Rebecca’s wedding tonight and she was reading texts from Bryn about their new club and how things were moving along, she felt left out of the fun—like life once again was passing her by. She wanted to be there with them to see Emma’s makeover, and she wanted to start making some progress on the Dating Games plan. But at the same time, she was worried. What if her parents disapproved of the DG?
    She’d never even broached the subject of dating with them before. Not because she’d been avoiding the topic, but more because it had never come up. She’d never been asked out before, and in all honesty, it seemed unlikely she’d be asked out now. Yet considering the progress Bryn seemed to be making, she felt slightly hopeful. But what if she got asked out and her parents said no?
    As the car zipped down the interstate, she wondered if this might be the perfect time to introduce a new topic ofconversation with her parents: dating and why they should let her do it. However, she knew timing was everything. Was this really the right time? She ran the pros and cons around in her mind, finally deciding that she had a captive audience. Not only were they stuck in the front seat for two more hours, but they were worn out from the past two days of wedding festivities.
    “I want to talk to you about something,” she began carefully.
    “What?” Mom asked with not much interest.
    “I’ve been thinking about something.” She paused, trying to think of the right words. She’d been in debate club for a year now. She considered herself to be good at persuasive talking. “I’d like to get your opinion on it.”
    “What kind of something?” Dad sounded slightly suspicious, but he kept his gaze straight ahead, obviously focusing on the freeway traffic—a trail of red taillights for as far as she could see.
    Mom turned around in the seat to peer curiously at her. “What are you thinking about, honey?”
    “Well, it’s occurred to me that I’ll be seventeen in November, and I’ve never been on a real date.”
    Dad laughed, then answered in a sing-song way, “And that’s the way, uh-huh-uh-huh, I like it. Uh-huh-uh-huh.”
    “Very funny.” Abby rolled her eyes. “Anyway, some of my friends have been talking about going to the homecoming dance, and I thought maybe I’d like to go too.”
    “That’s a nice idea.” Mom nodded with an approving expression. “Is there a particular boy you think is going to ask you?”
    “Wait a minute.” Dad glanced at Mom, then back at theroad. “Are you saying she can go? Just like that? We don’t even know this boy. And from what I’ve heard, high school dances are