But when she woke up this morning before meeting Dana, Shane found a
note in her kitchen from Carmen. She thought that perhaps the deejay
stopped by before going to work and thought nothing of it. Shane opened
the envelope and dropped its contents onto her palm. At seeing the
object in her hand, she nearly dropped it, shocked by its simplicity.
Shane smiled. She held it by its wooden handle and turned it over in
her hand, the silver at the end reflecting the glare of the sun on her
face. Then she began to laugh quietly to herself, not wanting to wake
the fear in her just yet. *She got me a bottle opener.* The smile on
her face was bigger now, admitting the sweetness that came with such a
simple, small, two-dollar gesture.

I cant believe she got me a bottle opener. Shane laughed, shaking her head in amused disbelief.

…

The real deal? Shane, since when did you start believing in having the
real deal? And since when did you start saying phrases like the real
deal? Dana questioned, unable to stop her babbly-ness at hearing the
love-comments from Shane I-dont-do-relationships McCutcheon. The
hairdresser simply looked up at her with her eyes, head still bowed,
and Dana knew right away that the line theyd been teetering with the
love-comments had been stepped over by her blabby-ness. Dana shrugged
and, hoping to lighten the tension, said the first thing that came to
mind again.

Hey, so where’s Carmen? Dana asked, hoping she sounded somewhat
casual. Shane’s response, on the other hand, was anything but casual.

What? How should I know? Why would you ask me that? Now she was the
one looking disconcerted. The girl from the coffee bar came over and
handed Shane her espresso and she busied herself with drinking it,
hoping that Dana would let the question pass. No such luck. Maybe it
was the effect of Alice’s GUSH shirt, but for once, Dana wasn’t so
clueless.

Well, Shane, I’m not saying you should know, but since we left you
guys here last night, I just thought you would’ve discussed what your
plans were for today. Dana shrugged, she knew there was something
there, but she didn’t wanna push Shane too far and cause her to give up
before something even remotely had a chance to begin.

That’s not to say, though, that Dana didn’t feel a little bit giddy
when she saw Carmen walk into the Planet. “That’s okay, Shane. I’ll
just ask her myself.” Dana said, teasingly, careful not to look at
Shane as she waved at the deejay to join them. “Carmen, over here…”