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She brings her hand to her other arm. "Kaylee deserves better."
"I'm aware of that."
"But the heart wants what it wants. And she's clearly in love with you." Leighton pushes herself to her feet. "If you care about her—and we all know you do—then grab onto her or let her go."
"I do—"
"No. I see the way you look at her. The way you flirt with her. You keep tossing her I want you breadcrumbs. You're keeping her in waiting." She reaches for the door. "She deserves better than that."
At home, Kaylee is on the couch in a tiny tank top and smaller shorts, her arms wrapped around her knees, her hands on her Kindle.
She looks up at me as the door swings shut. Her eyes fill with frustration. Then regret.
"Hey." I toss my keys on the table. Leave my shoes by the door. Like tonight never happened. "Emma go to bed?"
"Yeah." Her voice is shaky. She looks back to her Kindle. Taps her fingers against its edge. "So, we're... we're gonna act like everything is normal?"
Not exactly, but close.
Leighton is right.
I need to let Kaylee go.
To be her friend, and nothing more.
"That's for the best," I say.
"Yeah."
"Oh." Her voice is hollow. "So, we're..."
"We're friends."
I wish there were some way to make this easier for her.
To wipe every thought of me from her head.
But if I can't stop thinking about her, I don't see how I can convince her to stop thinking about me.
"Yeah. Of course." There's no fight in her voice. Because she's tired of fighting or because she understands this is how it has to be?
It doesn't matter. She'll get used to it.
We are friends. The sooner we act like things are normal, the better.
I take a seat on the other side of the couch. "I'm gonna watch something."
She sets her Kindle down. Sits so her back is against the back cushion of the couch, her legs hanging over the edge. "Something dumb with explosions?" There's humor in her voice. It's not all the way to Kaylee teasing me, but it's getting there.
"Not that you'd ever judge?" I tease back. Almost. I'm only at eighty percent.
She forces a smile. "I'd never." Her eyes catch mine as she turns toward me. "What do you like about that stuff anyway?"
"What do you like about The Hunger Games?"
Her eyes light up. All of a sudden, the tension between us melts. I don't know she's a virgin. She doesn't know I want her. It's just Kaylee and Brendon on the couch debating movies again.
"What don't I like about The Hunger Games? First of all, there's Katniss. She smart, strong, brave. But she's not trying to start a revolution. She's not even trying to resist. She's just trying to survive."
