Love+and+Lasagna+-+full+text

Love and Lasagna
** Love and Lasagna  ** By Jeffrey Cooper Jasmine had been looking forward to Khadijah’s party all week. It was to be a Kwanzaa party. After six months at Oakdale High, she still thought of herself as the new kid in town. The only friend that she had made so far was a girl named Shanene who sat at her lab table in biology class. Khadijah sat at their table, too. He was very nice, but he wasn’t her type. However, Jasmine was delighted that she and Shanene had been invited to his house for a traditional Kwanzaa celebration. It would be a great way to make new friends. She decided to bring a sweet potato pie to help celebrate the harvest festival. At the party, she recognized many people from school, including the star quarterback of the football team and the girl who had led the debating team to victory. Jasmine smiled at the handsome quarterback when the boy smiled back. Now //there’s// someone I wouldn’t mind getting to know a whole lot better, she thought with an impish grin. It was the inviting aroma of freshly baked garlic bread that drew Jasmine toward the kitchen. Standing in the doorway, she could see Khadijah and his best friend, Tedrick, sitting at a small table. The boys sat with their backs to the doorway, and neither of them realized that Jasmine was standing there and listening in on their conversation. “I still think it’s a crazy idea,” Tedrick said to Khadijah. “If you like the girl so much, why don’t you just tell her to her face?” “You know how it is,” said Khadijah. “It’s hard asking someone out for the first time, especially when you hardly even know the girl.” “You’re right about that,” said Tedrick, “but putting a note in the lasagna is just too weird! What are you going to do if she swallows it?” “I’m not putting it in the //lasagna//,” said Khadijah. He picked up a large dinner napkin and carefully folded it around a pale blue note card. “See, it’ll be tucked inside her napkin. When she opens the napkin, she’ll see the note.” Jasmine ducked back into the living room just as Tedrick began to turn around. She wondered which of the girls at the party was going to find a secret message from Khadijah hidden in her napkin. Would it be the beautiful captain of the debating team? Or the tall girl in the red dress? Jasmine had seen Khadijah talking to her at lunch the other day. Maybe it would be Shanene. That would be nice, she thought. She knew that Shanene was still feeling low about breaking up with her longtime boyfriend. Khadijah seemed like a terrific person, and Jasmine knew that Shanene liked him. Going out with Khadijah might be just the thing to lift her sagging spirits, Jasmine decided. “Dinner’s ready,” announced Khadijah, interrupting Jasmine’s thoughts. She followed the others into the kitchen. Khadijah and Tedrick were standing next to the table now. As the guests filed by, Tedrick handed each one a plate brimming with lasagna and garlic bread. Khadijah then gave each person a knife and fork neatly wrapped inside a dinner napkin. Jasmine fell into line behind Shanene. She watched closely as Khadijah handed Shanene her folded napkin. Was hers the napkin with the note hidden inside? Jasmine couldn’t tell. Jasmine took her own napkin and silverware, and followed Shanene back into the living room. Most of the others had already seated themselves on the floor around the large coffee table in the center of the room. Jasmine joined Shanene on the small sofa in the far corner of the room. Jasmine watched closely as her friend shook open her napkin and arranged it on her lap. There was nothing inside the napkin except a knife and a fork. Jasmine looked around the room. Everyone was busy eating. No one was studying a pale blue note card with a secret message from Khadijah written inside. He must have changed his mind at the last minute, Jasmine thought, as she reached for her silverware. It was then that she noticed the pale blue note card concealed within her neatly folded napkin. //Me?// she thought. //There must be some kind of mistake!// She looked up and saw Khadijah sitting next to Tedrick at the other end of the room. He was looking right at her; and there was a big smile on his face. Jasmine quickly looked away. She liked Khadijah a lot, but she had never imagined him as a possible boyfriend. True, he was good-looking, intelligent, and had a wonderful sense of humor; and it had been a long time since she had gone out on a date with someone she really liked. She was more interested in the football player; however. If only it were he who had sent the note! Still, who knew what might happen before the evening was over? Jasmine imagined herself chatting with the handsome quarterback, smiling sweetly as he asked her if she had any plans for Saturday night. If only Khadijah had sent his not to Shanene, she thought, everything would have been so much simpler. Then Jasmine decided to take matters into her own hands. When Shanene wasn’t looking, Jasmine slipped the pale blue note card out of her napkin and casually dropped it on the sofa. “What’s that?” Jasmine asked innocently. “What’s what?” asked Shanene. “That card,” said Jasmine. “I saw it fall out of your napkin.” “Really?” Shanene picked up the note card and looked inside. Jasmine tried not to grin as her friend’s jaw dropped in amazement. “What is it?” asked Jasmine. Shanene handed her the note. //Would you go out with me Saturday night?// // Khadijah // Both girls looked across the room at Khadijah. He looked very uncomfortable and was whispering something to Tedrick. Tedrick just looked at the two girls and grinned. “What should I do?” whispered Shanene. “Go over there and talk to him,” said Jasmine. “Tell him that you’d be happy to go out with him on Saturday night.” “But Khadijah and I are just friends!” Shanene insisted. “That’s perfect,” said Jasmine. “What could be more natural than a couple of friends going out together on a Saturday night?” “Are you sure this fell out of my napkin?” asked Shanene, re-reading the note. “I saw it with my own two eyes,” Jasmine lied. “What’s the problem, anyway? I thought you said Khadijah was a wonderful guy.” “He is,” said Shanene. “As a matter of fact, I always thought that he would be just perfect for you. You two would make a great couple.” “For //me?//” asked Jasmine. She was amazed by her friend’s words. “Sure the two of you have so much in common. But, as long as he sent this sweet note to //me//, I suppose I’d be foolish not to accept. Thanks, Jasmine!” Shanene put down her plate and crossed the room. Jasmine watched as Tedrick got up and Shanene sat down next to Khadijah. At first, Khadijah looked very unhappy as Shanene began talking to him with the note card clutched in her hand. Then he began to relax, and a warm smile spread across his face. Jasmine wondered why she had never before noticed how handsome Khadijah was. She watched as Shanene gently touched the boy’s hand. Then they both laughed, and Shanene leaned forward to peck Khadijah on the cheek. By the time she came back to Jasmine, Shanene seemed to be glowing with happiness. “Guess who has a date with a really special guy Saturday night?” she asked, her eyes sparkling. Not me, thought Jasmine, trying hard to look pleased for her friend. She glanced at the football player and saw him sitting hand in hand with the captain of the debating team. Like everyone else in the room, they seemed to be extremely happy together. In fact, everybody seemed to be having a good time except Jasmine. But she didn’t want anyone to know the mistake she just made. With a stiff smile, she lifted a forkful of Khadijah’s lasagna to her lips and tasted it. Across the room, Khadijah had started to look even more handsome. And he was a pretty good cook, as well.