At this, Jack lets out an impatient sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Cut the shit Griffin, I didn’t disturb my Sunday ritual for you to beat around the bush.”
“You and your Goddamn ritual need to be studied in a lab, there’s no way you’re an actual sixteen year old boy, you’ve gotta be some kind of social experiment.”
All this gets me is a stern glare. Suddenly I feel like I’m in trouble at school. I still don’t say anything, picking at the callouses on my hands to avoid looking him in the eye.
“Alright then, I’m leaving.”
My stomach lurches with panic as he pulls out his keys and stands to go.
“Wait, no, dude don’t–”
Ignoring my protests, he starts heading upstairs.
This fucker is actually going to leave.
“Alright, ALRIGHT–I need to talk to you about Eleanor,” I say dejectedly. I’ve stalled til the last possible moment, and now there’s no avoiding it.
Jack whips around with a concerned look on his face and quickly retakes his seat.
“Ellie? Is she okay?”
“She’s fine, it’s nothing like that,” I say slowly.
He already looks annoyed again, so I quickly blurt out, “IthinkIlikeherandweneedtocalloffthebet.”
Jack looks confused. Then surprised. Then smug as hell.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that, could you repeat it?”
“Don’t be a jackass.” I hurl a pillow at him but he knocks it away as easily as you’d swat a fly. Completely unbothered.
He tries his best to look genuinely confused, but he fails miserably at masking the amusement in his eyes.
“I think I like her, and we–”
“Youthink?”
Oh, so he’s going to be annoying about it.
“Fine, Iknowthat I like her. And we–”“Need to call off the bet, yeah I got that part. I just wanted to hear you sayit loud and clear.”
Saying it out loud makes it feel way more real. One part of me is relieved to finally get it out there–but the other part of me is scared to death because now I have to do something about it.
“Okay, say more words.”
“Say more words?” I ask, “What the hell is that?”
“Oh, I guess it’s something I picked up from Abby–she says it to Ellie all the time.”
I didn’t know he was spending enough time with Ellie and Abby to pick up the phrases they use.
Filing that information away for later, I steel myself to bare my feelings.
This is so awkward.
“I mean, you know some part of me liked her from the first day we met.”
