Later that night, Damen calls Ever and asks if he can come over, then asks if he can drive her to school after she says it’s too late.  She says no to that as well, that she’ll see him in class, and that’s it.  What a riveting scene.  Aren’t you just so glad we got to read that?  Wasn’t it just so full of tension and dramatics?  Oh, what masterful story telling we’ve got here. 

Next morning, I can’t begin to express how little I care about everything.  Riley mysteriously claims to have an “appointment,” Damen is waiting for her at school with the best parking spot saved, and when they get to class Ever is in a foul mood because reasons.  I can’t even properly summarize all this for you guys, because there is no story in here.  It’s just stuff.  Stuff happening with no rhyme, reason, context, tension, or point.  It’s all little stuff, little throwaway lines that we’re not even encouraged to consider or wonder about, because they’re just glanced over.  And that’s most of this book.  Just stuff happening too fast to care about. 

So I don’t care.

I storm toward Honor and Stacia, purposely kicking Stacia’s bag

You know, maybe the mean girls only hate Ever because she’s a terrible person.

“What’s the rush?” He leans toward me. “Mr. Robins stayed home.”

I turn. “How’d you?” but then I stop before I can finish. I mean, how can Damen possibly know what I know that Mr. Robins is still at home, still hung over, still grieving the wife and daughter who recently left him?

“I saw the substitute while I was waiting for you.” He smiles.

Presumably, we’re supposed to wonder about this sort of stuff, but it’s really hard to when:  One, it’s pointless little stuff, and two, he always has a reasonable explanation.  Sure, after long enough it would all pile up, but this book is more concerned with his hotness than his weirdness, and also, nothing he’s done has been remotely ominous.  

The conversation switches over to Drina, how much Haven is starting to act like her, and also how Ever doesn’t like the girl because…um… because reasons.  So Damen randomly asks her out and this whole conversation is so strange.  Nothing really happens in it, they just say things until it stops.  We don’t learn anything, and there’s no back and forth at all.  Well, I guess it is pretty fitting for this book in that regard. 

But it turns out that he meant “let me take you out right now,” so they play hookie from school after lunch. 

They go to Disneyland.  Bring it on. 

Weirdly, they don’t mention buying tickets.  

He slips his arm through mine and leads me through the gates, and as we wander down Main Street I try to imagine him coming here before

Guys, I don’t have to tell you this, but Disneyland is expensive.  A one-day, one-park ticket is almost $100 per person.  I don’t care how rich they both are, that should at least warrant a mention. 

They go on two named rides – Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Caribbean – and the rest of the day is glanced over with a “we went on all the fast rides.”  So, what?  There’s only like four fast rides at Disneyland, and they’re not that impressive.  The place is known for being awesome in its details, not for having roller coasters.  Way to completely ignore all the best parts of the location by summarizing the mediocre bits.

What about the character actors?  What about the street performers?  What about the parades?  What about the fact that literally every time you turn around, the park throws another cute statue or clever building at you?  What about the wonder of going on storybook rides and getting giddy like a little kid again?  WHAT ABOUT THE TEACUPS?  What about the fact that there’s no trash (really, how do they keep it so clean?) and the employees are unflaggingly nice?  What about the fact that even the lines in that park are fun because of how much effort and craftsmanship went into every part of building this place?  What about the petting zoo, the Hidden Mickeys , the funny hats, the goat with dynamite on Big Thunder Mountain, the dinner shows, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, the theater with old cartoons, THE DAPPER DANS ON THEIR FOUR-PERSON BIKE?

If you go to Disneyland for the fucking roller coasters, save your money and hit up Six Flags.  Also, I judge you.

So after completely wasting a perfectly good trip to Disneyland while I seethe from Illinois, they head out in separate cars with Damen following her.  Ever gets a call from Haven, who is distraught because her friend Evangeline is missing.  Ever is more distracted with the fact that she can’t see Damen in her rear-view mirror than with the fact that a person is legit missing and her “friend” is upset about it.  The only thing Ever cares about is the story of how Drina was also there the night Evangeline went missing, and this is somehow ominous.  Also, Drina was at Disneyland that day, and I’m not sure why Haven knows this.  Drina told her … out of the blue, I guess? 

Since Damen is no longer behind Ever’s car, Ever assumes this means something and gets mad about it, because progress is for other books.  Any time it looks like she’s finally gotten the message that Damen likes her, she makes some wild, random assumption and the whole thing gets reset again.  Fuck me, we’ve already been through this four or five times now.  He likes you, we get it, move on!