Props and Mayhem

There was a knock on the front door, and Emme rushed to open it.
Jayne stood on the stoop in sweater tights and chunky boots. Her dress swayed in the winter wind, and she shivered. “I am so excited. You don’t even know.” She allowed Emme to lead her inside, and added, “actually, you probably do.”
Emme started giggling. “I can’t believe our lives right now.”
Setting her duffel bag on the floor, Jayne stowed her car keys in the zippered side pocket. “I know. You’ll have to tell me how you convinced your mom to let you leave the country for Christmas vacation.”
“I could say the same to you!” Emme pushed her own suitcase over to Jayne’s.
Emme’s mother entered the room, looking extremely nervous. “Are you girls ready?”
Emme nodded.
The three of them brought the bags out to the car, and Emme and Jayne both slid into the backseat instead of fighting over shotgun. They never fought, anyway, and they needed to talk. About Jaime. And the fact that they were going to see him in less than twenty-four hours.

Emme’s mother saw them off at the airport, and as soon as the girls boarded the plane, Emme turned to Jayne. “He paid for First Class seats for us,” she said, even though Jayne was well aware of it. She just liked to tell people.
“That shows commitment,” Jayne teased. “Man, I need to get a famous boyfriend now.” She laughed and forked her fingers through her long hair.
“Well, he’s not a boyfriend—”
“Yet.” Jayne shrugged, ever the optimist. “We know it’s going to happen.”
Emme tried not to smile too hard. “I just want to see them already. Anyway, how’d you convince your parents in the first place?”
“Well,” began the redhead, “it took a lot. But my papa paid for my cousin—oh, you know Camilla—to go to Paris and Rome in tenth grade. He felt guilty, I think, so he convinced my parents for me. Camilla’s parents are fairly protective, after all, and they let her go. And she’s fine. Nothing happened. Who knows, though. He may have just blackmailed them.” She shrugged again. “It worked, anyway. What about you?”
Emme didn’t want to admit that she’d been moping about the house since the talk with her mother, and that this probably had to do with it. “I acted all depressed, and my aunt, the one who wants to take me to Ireland after graduation, talked to her. She wanted me to be more independent, or something. So ours were similar situations, I guess.” She laughed at the ridiculousness of it all. Who knew that adults succumbed to peer pressure, too?
“It still took days of talking it over, though,” Jayne amended. “But we’re here now. Cheers.” She clinked imaginary glasses with Emme.
Emme pulled out her iPod and passed an earbud to Jayne, who grinned at the tiny disco ball between her fingers. “Ready to pump ourselves up?”
“Mhmm. Let’s do this.”
Emme flipped through her songs until she found Tangled In the Great Escape, and then she blasted it, obviously. She sank back in the seat and closed her eyes in bliss.

The airport was stressful and claustrophobic. People were jostling Emme and Jayne from each other’s sides, and chattering in loud—yet charming—accents.
Where was their escort? Emme felt small and lost, and hoped that she hadn’t made a mistake in trusting the guys. Now they were in a strange country where they knew absolutely on one. This was exactly what Emme’s mother had feared.
Jayne, though, took charge. She was the more levelheaded of the two, and Emme knew it. “Let’s go get our bags, and then we’ll figure it out from there, all right?” Her eyes, lined in green, scanned the area. “It’s that way,” she added, pointing.
Following her, Emme could feel some of her anxiety melting. “If I was here alone, I would have fallen apart.”
Jayne looked back and grinned.
While they were waiting for the boys, the two called their parents to tell them they’d arrived safely, though it was nearly impossible to hear. Emme didn’t want anyone to freak out, but she hated how babied she felt since she had to check in all the time. She was snapped out of her thoughts when a firm, calloused hand closed forcefully around her upper arm.
She shrieked. “Jayne!”
The other girl turned swiftly, bag in hand, and her mouth dropped.
Wondering why her friend wasn’t rushing to her aid, Emme’s gaze travelled upward, and—oh. “Mike.”
He bit his lip to keep from laughing. “How’ve you been, Emme?”
She was torn between relief and disappointment. “I’m good now! Where’s everyone else?”
Furtively, he glanced around. “I’m not supposed to tell you, but they’re outside. We didn’t want to be recognized, for obvious reasons.”
Jayne stepped closer, her eyes traveling over Mike’s tattoos. She had Emme’s suitcase in her other hand as well, and it looked like she was going to drop it.
Emme went to rescue her suitcase, but Mike was too quick. He took both bags from Jayne. “Jaime’s orders,” he explained, before gesturing to the exit with his head. “They’re right out there.”
Emme blushed. “He definitely did that because he likes you,” she whispered as they followed Mike. Mostly, she said it to distract from her red face.
“Uh-uh.” Jayne laughed. “I think he’s telling the truth. Jaime’s trying really hard to prove himself, even though you and I know both know he doesn’t need to bother.”
Emme blushed again. She was a hopeless case.
When they stepped out of the airport, Jayne nudged her. “We’re on foreign soil,” she noted, her eyes bright.
Jaime grabbed her before she could respond. “Hey!” He pulled her into a hug and, releasing her, handed her a box of food. “Take one. They’re glorious.”
Suspiciously, Emme extracted one of the whoopee pie-like cakes from the box. “Jaffa cakes?”
“They’re supposedly really great,” Jayne interjected, and Vic nodded. “Elizabeth is obsessed.”
Emme shrugged and popped in her mouth. It tasted like oranges, which was a bizarre flavor for a packaged dessert, but it was somehow addicting. She raised her eyebrows at Jaime, who just nodded and said, “I know.” Once she’d finished chewing, she motioned to Jayne. “This is my friend Jayne—the only one who likes the same music as me. And this is Tony, Vic, Mike, and Jaime.”
Everybody waved and grinned at Jayne, who stood there rubbing her hands together in the chill air and smiling back at them.
“So, should we go?” Tony spoke up.
The other guys nodded agreement, and Emme and Jayne exchanged looks, stifling their grins. As the six of them headed to the parking lot, Emme caught up to Jaime, while Jayne fell back respectfully, like a proper wingman.
“Hey, pretty lady,” he said laughingly, catching her fingers between his and then pressing their palms together.
“Well, hey, yourself,” replied Emme, cursing the blush that she felt blooming in her cheeks. He was holding her hand and calling her pretty. The world could end and she’d be fine—though she hoped it wouldn’t, because she really wanted to spend more time with him.
Vic peeked—not too subtly—over his shoulder and his face split into a grin. “Is this official now?” he said, shamelessly elated.
Emme opened her mouth to answer, but Jaime beat her to it. “I believe it is… Sorry, Vic. You’ll need to find a new boyfriend.”
Emme smirked and squeezed his hand. She and Jayne winked exaggeratedly at each other. She couldn’t imagine either of their lives getting any better.