I roll my eyes at him. “It was raining, and her car got locked in the garage she parked in.”
“So?” he prompts.
I sigh. “She left before I woke up this morning.”
“Oof, that is harsh,” he says, taking another swig of beer. “Well, if it makes you feel better, I wouldn’t jump immediately to regret.”
“Thanks,” I respond sarcastically.
“What’s really bothering you about the situation?” he asks. “She can’t be the first girl to sneak out on you. It happens to the best of us. Even me,” he states smugly.
I shrug. “I don’t know. I guess the idea of seeing her in class after the break and having to pretend as if nothing happened?” I start picking at the label on my beer bottle. “I think I just assumed I’d get a chance to talk to her about what happened between us, and her not being interested in something as simple as a conversation with me is sort of a blow to my ego.”
“Look, there could be a handful of reasons why she disappeared on you,” he says, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, beer bottle hanging causally between them. “She could regret hooking up, or she could be scared of being kicked out of the program,” he lists off, causing my stomach to churn. “She could have had something time-sensitive to do today. She could be an early riser and was lying there aimlessly for hours while you snored next to her before she couldn’t stand it any longer and decided to get up and leave instead of waking you.”
“Seriously?” I deadpan.
He takes a sip of beer to hide his smug grin. “Just trying to list all of the possibilities.”
“I don’t know what to do going forward or how to handle this situation.”
He tilts his head from side to side, weighing the options. “Though it pains me to say it, have you considered telling her the truth?” he asks.
“What truth?”
“That you’re falling in love with her?”
I sputter. “What? That’s ridiculous, we hardly know each other. We’ve hooked up once, that’s it,” I insist as I wipe beer from my chin.
He raises his eyebrows, sticking his tongue in his cheek to stop himself from saying what he really wants to. He shakes his head before continuing. “Fine, you don’t love her, but maybe you’re realizing you could.” I’m about to protest again, but he holds up a hand to stop me. “You can at the very least be mature enough to admit you like her, can’t you? Or do I have to call you a pussy before you’ll be even remotely honest with anyone but yourself?”
I cross my arms. “Calling me a pussy won’t get the same reaction now as it did in college.”
“I think if you want any chance of starting something with her, you’re going to need to be honest with her first.” I can tell by the sincere look in his bright blue eyes that he genuinely means what he’s saying, even if he doesn’t agree with the risk. “I know I’m not the most ideal person to be getting advice from on these types of things, but I think sitting down and telling her how you’re really feeling will make her see that you don’t just think she’s a piece of ass but something more.”
I bite my lip to hold back a laugh. “That was… almost incredibly insightful.”
He leans back, taking a large gulp of beer. “I try my best.”
“Can we stop discussing this now?” I practically beg as I turn the TV on, hoping that the drone of whatever sport happens to be on will distract him long enough to forget this entire conversation.
“Sure, no problem,” he responds. There’s a beat of silence before he speaks again. “Want me to run a background check on her?” he offers.
I snort. “No, but thanks for the offer, man.”
And then, because I can’t help myself, I text her.
19
SUMMER
I push open the doorand drop my bag near the stairs.
“Mom?” I call out as I toe off my shoes.
“In the kitchen, darling!” she hollers back to me.
“Sorry, I’m late,” I continue with a raised voice so that she’ll hear me across the large space. I strip off my jacket and hang it in the hallway closet when I say, “I ran into way more traffic than I expected.”
