You Can't Pass As A Boy

The date part 1

"Where are we going?" Amber whined, playfully tugging on Henry's hat.

"Get off, I'm driving," Henry said, gripping the steering wheel a little harder than normal people did. "Amber, I still can't believe you can't drive."

"Seriously?" Amber scoffed. "It's no big deal. My parents just refused to pay for more than a few tests."

"How many tests?" Henry raised his eyebrows.

"Eight and a half. Although they should have reimbursed us for that one."

"Half?" Henry wrinkled up his nose.

"Someone put a firework in the exhaust."

"Oh."

They spent the next ten minutes in silence, before Henry rested a hand on Amber's knee. "It's gonna be fun, don't worry," he said.

"I'm not nervous." Amber turned to look at her boyfriend. Ooh, boyfriend. It sounded so good.

Henry mumbled something.

"Are you nervous?" Amber asked.

Henry hesitated. "No..."

She hit him on the arm. "Just relax! We're gonna love it. Whatever 'it' is."

"We're here."

Amber raised her eyebrows. "An ice rink? Could you be more old school? You might as well have invited me to the country ball."

"I'm sorry I'm such an unsatisfactory lover." Henry grabbed onto Amber's hand and dragged her inside. "I went foolproof. Everyone likes ice skating, so it's a simple formula."

"I'm not everyone."

"Fine. Where do you want to go?"

Amber pointed.

Henry's heart skipped a beat. Someone was running a cheap haunted house fairground ride next to the ice rink building. And Amber seemed to want to go right in there.

"Tell you what," Amber turned to Henry, their hands still locked together, "we do that first," she jerked her head at the haunted house, "then we go ice skating. Deal?"

"Okay." Henry felt that his voice had risen an octave. Haunted. Great.

"Not if you--"

"Yes, let's go."

They were soon at the front of a short queue and almost immediately got into a little carriage. There were fake cobwebs stuck to the side, black hangings over the entrance to the 'house' and a thumping sound in Henry's ears.

He was terrified.

"This is fun." Amber grinned at him. Her grin suddenly faded as she saw his scared face cover with darkness when they entered the tunnel. "Are you scared?"

"No." Henry sucked his lower lip to keep in his screams. He squeezed Amber's hand.

A ghost flew into their faces. Henry yelled aloud.

Amber found her arm losing feeling after a bit. Her boyfriend - that was the second time today - was gripping her left side. He was...

Under normal circumstances, she would have called him a wimp, but it was Henry. He was different. She couldn't just offend him without worrying their relationship would disappear. And she so wanted to be with him.

She patted his head sympathetically.