Layla slips her arm through mine as I watch Alex make his way through the crowd.
“I’m so sorry, Iris. He had no right to say those things to you. And just so you know, he’s on the couch tonight. And every night. For the foreseeable future.” I laugh, surprised by her declaration, even though I love her for it.
“That bad, huh?”
“That bad,” she says with a sigh. “I’m gonna have a long, angry talk with him when I get home. But forget him. You’re stuck with me for the rest of the night. Let’s go ride some rides and forget all about men!”
For the rest of the evening, it’s just Layla and me.
We wander the booths, try a few more snacks, ride rides until we’re dizzy, watch the band for a bit. And somehow, even with the sting of Grant’s words still lingering, the night doesn’t feel ruined.
I actually have fun.
When we’re walking back to my car, deep in conversation about a dating show Layla’s been watching, I see Alex climbing out of Jason Barnett’s massive truck.
He looks around before, like he’s making sure no one is watching, but he doesn’t see us.
I frown, holding a hand up to stop Layla mid-sentence.
“Is that Alex?” She asks, finding the picture in front of us equally weird.
Alex and Jason aren’t friends. They’re in completely different circles, with Nate being the only thing they have in common. The only time I’ve ever seen them together was the championship game, in a heated argument that Alex wouldn’ttalk about.
“Yeah,” I agree quietly, unable to get rid of the nagging feeling that there’s somethingoffabout what I’m seeing.
Nate
It’s too quiet in this damn house.
Alex has already gone to bed, and the only thing making any noise is the dishwasher, while I’ve been staring at my phone for god knows how long, trying to work up the courage to press call.
Liz answers on the second ring, “Nate?”
“Hey, Lizzie,” I say, and she must be able to tell by the sound of my voice that there’s something wrong because she sighs.
“What’s wrong, now?”
“It’s Iris. I can’t stop thinking about her.”
First, there’s only silence, like she doesn’t know what to say. When she does respond, there’s pity laced through her words, “I know this is hard, Nate. But she lied to you about something major. You did the right thing.”
I wince, hearing the story I didn’t deny spoken back to me. It’s what everybody’s assuming happened. That Iris lied to me, and when I found out, I left her. I came outta this with people giving me sad looks and asking if I’m okay.
Like Iris is some kinda villain.
I fucking hate it, and I’m done going along with it.
“I knew.”
There’s a pause on the other end. “You knew what?”
“That she’s trans. She told me months ago, way before this whole mess, and I didn’t feel any different about her. I love her. But I messed up.Bad.” I look up at the ceiling fan, making myself continue ‘cause I’m going crazy not talking about it. “She broke up with me. Blames me for everything that happened.”
“Wait.Shebroke up withyou,and you didn’t say anything?”
“I didn’t know how. Wasn’t sure y’all would be okay with me loving her. Nobody else is.”
“You’re such an idiot.” She says with an offended scoff. “I’m sorry you’ve been going through this alone, Nate, but you know we’re better than that. I’m not saying Calvin and Ben aren’t gonna be dumbasses about it, but above all else, we just want you to be happy.”
