“Yes—” I started to say, but Oberi whined.
“Make thattwoMagical Mochas,” Ava said.
Naya read us our total, then went off to mix our drinks. I turned toward Ava. “You’re spoiling him. He’s going to be up all night.”
“No way,” Ava chuckled, like the suggestion was ludicrous. She let go of my hand to kneel to Oberi’s level. “You’re not spoiled, are you, boy?”
Oberi barked, like he agreed with her.
She stood and spoke proudly. “Two against one.”
“It’s not a matter of opinion,” I teased. “It’s a fact. He’s so spoiled, he’s got mold growing behind his ears.”
“I shampooed his ears yesterday!” she protested.
Oberi’s tongue lolled out of his mouth, and he slobbered saliva down my pant leg. Apparently, he’d really enjoyed the bath.
I groaned. “No wonder he likes you so much.”
“He likes me because I’m ajoyto be around.”
Naya snorted from behind the counter.
“You’ve got a problem?” Ava snapped.
Naya practically slammed our drinks onto the counter. “Yeah. I can’t believe I’m locked up in this place with losers like you.”
“Bitch, you’re asking for it—”
I fumbled for Ava’s wrist, then squeezed it tightly. “Pidge,” I warned. We didn’t need a repeat of the food fight in the cafeteria.
Ava huffed, then snapped at Naya. “I’m watching you.”
Ava snatched up our drinks. She shoved a warm cup into my hands, then grabbed the other two. She nudged me slightly with her elbow to let me know her hands were full. I took her arm so she could help me navigate to an empty table.
“I don’t know why you didn’t let me light her hair on fire,” Ava huffed as we sat. She popped off the top of Oberi’s cup for him and set it under the table. He made loud slurping noises as he lapped at it.
“Because she’s not worth it,” I answered. I took a sip of my mocha and relaxed. It was really good— way better than what they served in the cafeteria.
“I’d just really like to kick her pretty little—”
“Hey,” a voice sang as footsteps approached.
“Hey, Chancey,” Ava greeted.
Chancey stopped at our table. “Didn’t expect to see you two here. How’s the Blind Bandit and his girlfriend?”
“I’m not his girlfriend,” Ava said quickly.
To be honest, my heart sank a little when she said it, even though I knew we’d never officially agreed on labels.
“Yeah,” I quickly agreed. “We’re not dating.”
Though we were doing all the things boyfriends and girlfriends did together…
“Sure you aren’t,” Chancey said skeptically. “That’s why you have matching tattoos.”
I always forgot about the tattoos until someone pointed them out, but when I remembered, a rush never failed to go through me. Ava-Marie’s name was on my wrist, and my name was on hers. It was one more thing that connected us, and even better— it was permanent.
