Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist

1. NICK
I find Dev at the bar, talking to a guy our age who looks familiar in that Type kind of way. When I get to where they re standing, I m introduced as the bass god, Nick, and he s introduced as Hunter from Hunter. Dev thanks me for being equipment bitch, and from the way the conversation doesn t continue from there I know I m interrupting. If it was Thom, my agitation would probably be noticed. But Dev needs you to spell emotions out for him, and right now I m not in the mood. So I just tell him where I left the stuff and pretend I m going off to search for a clear spot on the bar to summon the bartender from. And once I m pretending that s the truth, I figure it might as well be the truth. I still can t see Tris, and there s a small part of me that s wondering if it was even her in the crowd. Maybe it was someone who looked like Tris, which would explain the guy who didn t look like anybody.

Are You Randy? stop playing their instruments one by one, until the lead singer croons a final, a cappella note. I wish for their sake I could say the club falls into silence at this, but in truth the air is one-half conversation. Still, that s better than average, and the band gets a lunge of applause and cheers. I clap, too, and notice that the girl next to me puts two fingers in her mouth to whistle old-fashioned style. The sound is clear and spirited, and makes me think of Little League. The girl is dressed in a flannel shirt, and I can t tell whether that s because she s trying to bring back the only fashion style of the past fifty years that hasn t been brought back or whether it s because the shirt is as damn comfortable as it looks. She has very pale skin and a haircut that reads private school even though she s messed it up to try to hide it. The next band opened for Le Tigre on their last tour, and I figure this girl s here to see them. If I was a different kind of guy, I might try to strike up a friendly conversation, just to be friends. But I feel

Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

"Electric, sexy . . . and genuinely poignant, this is a compelling story of the risks and thrills of burgeoning intimacy." - The Bulletin, Starred