"I was there!" Angela insisted. "You just didn't notice me because I was ... um ... in a corner behind a plant and under a blanket."

Angela gave up. "I got embarassed, so I kind of hid," she said. Plus nobody came into the post anyhow.

"Sorry?"

"I think the secret was adding extra chocklit," Angela said, in a solemn little-girl voice. Then, in her normal voice: "Though I think we got as much batter on ourselves and the kitchen as made it into the pans."

"Really, really good," Angela said. "I'm seriously hoping it sticks. I don't wanna test life at 90, or whatever."

"What about you, are you done being seven?"

"Yeah, you were all into the pilot thing even then," Angela said. "It's cool that you've known that forever."

Then she reasied an eyebrow. "You didn't think Molly had cooties," she teased.

"I don't think they were?" Angela said. "But I was looking up Virginia marriage law. We didn't have licenses, plus even regular we're too young. So I doon't think anyone is really married. Which is good."

"Yeah, especially because Molly's a freshman. That's a little too Loretta Lynn, right there."

Angela's conversation with Parker the day before had mostly been idle speculation, but the flailing confirmed it for her:

"Ohmygod," she said. "You like her for real, don't you?"

Angela raised an eyebrow. "Friends. Okay."

Then, absently: "I was two years younger than my first boyfriend and I'm not scarred for life, or anything. I mean, if you're worried about that."

"So that's basically nothing," Angela said. "Not that it matters if you're just friends. But still."

"Well, I kissed you, maybe she was jealous," Angela joked, then dropped the act. "You mean this you, right? Not when you were seven?"

"Our kiss doesn't count? I'm so wounded," Angela said. "Except I don't count it either. So."

"And hypothetically? I would say she probably likes you, if she kissed you."

"But I made cupcakes," Angela protested. Then she dug in her pocket and came up with $25 slightly sticky dollars. "Here. Sorry if they feel funny, I think I tried to use them when I was little."

"It's weird how being friends makes everything harder. You don't want to mess that up? But sometimes you have to at least see what's there." And then it was Angela's turn to smirk. "You know. Hypothetically."