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Chapter Fifteen

It was nearly 2 AM when I reachedon the carpeted floor, talking Behind theht in the room was on They were drunk

They smiled bleary smiles at me--the first time Bernadette had smiled at me in months "Did you try the punch, Ari?" she said "It was fan-tab-u-lous"

"Fantabalous" Rhonda stretched her arms over her head and waved her hands

"Fantabulous"

Both of theled

Someone pounded on the door I looked at them, and they didn’t move I went to the door and put ainst the beige walls and beige carpet But he wasn’t my Walker He looked a little crazy--his eyes were heavy lidded, al open

I didn’t want to let him in But I opened the door

"Ari," he said, "hey, Ari What the hell?" He didn’t say it in an angry way His voice drawled

Yes, he was drunk, too

"I was looking for you" Walker sounded almost maudlin now "I looked and I looked, and then I saw you, talking to that guy Ca, I can see why you’d be talking to a guy like that But I, I…" He lost his train of thought

"Were you drinking punch?"

He srin

I wondered, What did they put in the punch?

"Walker, go back to your roo, after you’ve had soht froht Even drunk, he was cute

"I’ll walk you there" I went back inside to grab h I’ain, more loudly now, their heads tipped back

When I led Walker back to the third floor, he said, "Aw"

When we reached the door, he said, "Aw You are so nice" He leaned forward and ht have fallen if I hadn’t braced his shoulders, propped hiainst the wall I knocked on the door, and Richard opened it He, at least, was sober

"Another drunk?" he asked "Great Noe have a pair"

He pulled Walker into the rooht and went back to the elevator But instead of going up, I went down

The reception room was empty now What had I expected? I went to the corner where I’d stood next to Neil Ca polite conversation with hi every second of his presence I didn’t re that I liked his suit, and he said it was made of bamboo fiber; he asked whatI can’t remember), but I recalled vividly what I felt each time his eyes swept across my face

Was this what love felt like? I wished I could call my mother or Dashay to ask But Mãe was out of reach, and it was too late to wake up Dashay

I sloent back to the elevator, back to room 408

When I slid into , Richard looked surprised to seeit off"

I’d just left Bernadette and Rhonda fast asleep in our rooht?"

"First there was punch at the reception," he said "Don’t ask ether in one of the student roouess they drank o"

"Neither did I" I looked the room over, but Cameron wasn’t there Neither was the woain, but I’d taken ti to put on mascara and tinted sunblock Richard would never have said it, but he thought I looked pretty

The se reviewed the history of the Fair Share party, which had been born two years previously after efforts to tighten state environmental protection laws failed in several states Richard listened skeptically Those laws failed for good reasons, he thought Tuning in to his htly lit restaurant There was nothing to tempt one’s appetite

The first priority of the Fair Sharers was to give the party greater national visibility, the speaker said "By the time the presidential primaries are held next year, we need to be a household word," she said "Luckily, we have a candidate ill make sure that happens"

"Who’s the candidate?" I whispered to Richard