“Holy shit,” Calliope breathed. “Jett. He’s gorgeous.”
“I know.”
“No, like, really gorgeous.” She zoomed in on the photo. “He looks… nice.”
“He is nice. That’s the problem.”
“How is that a problem?”
“Because nice guys want relationships. They want to actually get to know you.” I gestured vaguely. “They don’t just hook up and disappear.”
“And you’re into him, anyway.” Sierra’s voice dropped.
I stared at Ellis’ photo. The unguarded smile. The posture of a man at ease in his own body. Everything about him screamed that he gave a shit about things, which I had long classified as a red flag.
“Yeah,” I admitted. “I really am.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“The problem is I don’t know how to do this. The whole dating thing. Getting to know someone. Letting them get to know me.” The words scraped out rougher than I’d meant. “What if I screw it up?”
“You won’t.” Sierra squeezed my hand. “And if you do, you’ll figure it out. That’s what dating is, figuring each other out.”
“Plus,” Raven added, “he already knows you’re kind of a disaster and he still wants dinner with you. That’s a good sign.”
“Hey!”
“It’s a compliment. We’re all disasters.” She raised her glass. “To being disasters who are trying, anyway.”
We stayed at the table longer than usual, talking instead of dancing. About Sierra’s ghost girl. About my date tomorrow. About Raven’s crush on someone from her tarot class. About Calliope’s latest dramatic breakup that already felt like ancient history.
Around midnight, we called it early. Sierra looked exhausted, andhonestly, I was ready to go home and obsess over what to wear tomorrow.
We walked Sierra back to her building, said our goodnights, and I headed toward the subway.
My phone buzzed.
Ellis:Still awake?
Something dropped through my stomach in a not-unpleasant way.
Jett:Yeah. Just leaving the club. You?
Ellis:Couldn’t sleep. Too excited about tomorrow.
Jett:Same, and maybe a little nervous.
Ellis:Me too. Good nervous though.
Jett:The best kind.
Ellis:Get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow night.
Jett:Night, Ellis.
Ellis:Goodnight, Jett.
I stood on the subway platform, staring at my phone, smiling like an absolute idiot.
