Cole eyes me warily from the edge of the floor. “Declan’s right. You’re off tonight.”
“I’m fine.”
“No. You’re distracted.”
“I said I’m fine.”
He raises an eyebrow. “You missed a hold on a route you set. I’ve seen you scale that wall dozens of times, Holden.”
“I slipped. That’s all.”
“You slipped,” he repeats, deadpan. “Sure. You trying to end up in my office?”
I ignore him and grab my chalk bag, dusting my hands like that’ll fix whatever the hell is going on in my head. Cole is right, of course. I’m playing a dangerous game climbing when my headisn’t in it. The last thing I need is to end up in the medic room with a busted ankle or fractured wrist.
“You gonna climb or just critique me all night?”
“Oh, I’m definitely climbing,” he says, already stepping toward the wall. “I just like making sure my friends aren’t cracking their heads open first.”
I roll my eyes, stepping back to give Cole space.
When Cole heard I was staying after my shift to climb, he clocked out to join me, saying he needed it too. I think he just needed the company, but whatever. I’m still glad he’s here.
Cole adjusts his harness, then steps up to the wall, moving with less grace than some of my younger climbers. But he’s improving fast. That’s the thing about Cole. He constantly strives to be better. It won’t be long before he’s tackling the harder routes.
I watch him for a second, then drag a hand through my hair, exhaling hard.
Fifteen minutes…
Grabbing a water bottle, I take a long drink. Korie will be coming through those doors in less than fifteen minutes. Every second closer makes the damn twisty feeling in my belly intensify.
It makes no sense.
We’ve been friends forever. Literally forever. I know their coffee order, their worst habits, the exact face they make when they’re about to say something sarcastic. I know which pizza place they go to when they’re tired, and know the way they shut down when people push too hard.
I know them.
And somehow, everything I know about them is… shifting a little. Like one fake date was enough to reclassify all of our memories.
Before, it was just… us. Hanging out. Talking. Existing in the same space without thinking about it.
Now?
Now I’m thinking about all the nights we sat close or lost track of time, wondering why I never questioned it.
I’m aware of Korie in a way that feels dangerous. Fragile, almost. Like something I could screw up if I’m not careful. I rarely make it to the second date with anyone, and here I am hoping to make it to a second fake date with Korie.
But why am I suddenly aware? That’s the thing. What’s so different that could make me reexamine all of our time together? I thought I was imagining it, but after running into them at the pizza parlor, I know I’m not. Ten minutes together and I wanted more. I was drawn to them that day in a way I’ve never been before.
It’s ridiculous.
Or maybe it’s not. Maybe something is finally making sense.
Either way, it’s keeping me up at night.
Seth comes closer, his attention darting between his husband climbing the wall and me. I hadn’t expected my friends to show up tonight, but the moment they walked through the door, it was like… fresh air or something. It gave me an excuse to pull out my climbing gloves a little early.
“What’s going on with you?” Seth asks.
