“Areyouupset to be sharing a bed?”
I let myself think about it, ignoring Ava’s jumps to conclusions. The honest answer is no. I don’t think there’s anything abnormal about us sharing a bed. We’ve fallen asleep on the couch together while watching a movie. And it was a platonic nap with us both sitting on opposite ends. I’m almost certain we already shared a bed as kids, though I don’t remember it.
Our friendship has always been comfortable. Physically. Emotionally. We know each other better than anyone else, and that makes hanging out feel so freeing. There’s no pretending. We can be one hundred percent ourselves.
The issue is how the outside world views us. When we were little, hanging out all the time, hugging, and sitting close together on the couch was fine. Cute, even. But as we’ve gotten older, everything feels like it shares some deeper meaning. And I hate it.
“No,” I say.
She shrugs. “Then go on the trip. Share a bed. Maybe fall in love.”
“Ava,” I reprimand.
“I know, I know. It’s not like that,” she mocks.
Chapter 3
Luke
Wes is laughing at me because he knows I screwed up.
“Dude, you are torturing yourself!” he says once his full-hearted belly laughter eases enough for him to form words.
“Shut up.” I chuck a pillow at him from across the room.
He finally takes a breather long enough to see my face, which is unamused.
I came to his apartment after getting off work, thinking he’d be excited to hear about my last-minute plans to go to Iceland with Harper, but instead I got this.
“I’m sorry, but why are you going on vacation with her?” He opens the fridge in his kitchen, looking for yet another snack.
“Because she’s my friend, and the trip sounded fun.” It’s the truth, but I also know in my gut it goes deeper than that, and so does Wes.
He closes the fridge and walks over to where I’m hovering by his front door, arms crossed. “It has nothing to do with the fact that you’ve been crushing on this girl for your entire life and now you have the opportunity to have it be just the two ofyou for a week? Oh! And maybe by the end of that week she’ll start to fall for you, even though seeing each other practically every day for”—he pretends to think—“your entire existence hasn’t done the job?”
“Her roommate bailed on her last minute. She couldn’t afford to go on the trip on her own, and I didn’t want Ava to lose all that money for nothing.”
Wes rolls his eyes. “How chivalrous of you.”
I already regret telling him about the trip. “Thanks,” I mumble.
“Be real with me.” He’s still smiling. “What do you think will happen on this trip?”
I shrug, coming to sit on the old leather chair Wes made me carry into his apartment when he moved in a couple months ago. The thing nearly broke my back hoisting it up the stairs, but man, is it the comfiest chair I’ve ever sat in.
“We go, we have fun, we come home. Resume life as normal.”
Wes shakes his head. “You go. You pine over her. Regret every moment you don’t tell her how much you want to be with her. You come home, more tortured and lovestruck than ever.”
I roll my eyes, wishing I had another pillow I could chuck at him. “I think I’m done venting to you.”
“Listen, all I’m saying is that if you’re going to go spend all this time with Harper, you gotta either ‘fess up or move on. Tell her how you feel or stop feeling that way.”
“Oh? That’s all? Okay, then tell me where there’s an off switch to my feelings.”
“No switch, but you can say something.”
“No,” I say quickly, basically on autopilot. Ever since Wes noticed how I felt about Harper—which didn’t take long—he’s been on my case about getting over it or telling her. Wes and I were randomly assigned together as roommates in college and have been friends ever since. We used to hang out more until he decided to get his pilot’s license and start flying commercial. I have no idea what inclined him to become a pilot in the first place, but now he’s gone every other week, flying to who knows where. When he isn’t working, I’m lucky enough to be graced with his presence. Or cursed with his presence. The jury is still out for debate.
