I whip around to look at Bear, who's looking at the ground with a red face. "Good for you."
He raises his palms in a surrender, still not making eye contact with me. "You know what happens when Iris drinks tequila."
I turn back toward Iris, who is now fully clothed, leaning against the wall. "Well, as sorry as I am to interrupt, I need you right now."
Iris nods and makes her way to the couch, and Bear passes me on his way back to their bedroom.
I reach out and grab the sleeve of his sweatshirt, stopping him. "Wait. I think I need you too."
He slowly turns. "Okay." With a nod, he follows Iris to the couch.
Too anxious to sit at this time, I opt to pace back and forth in front of their couch. For a while, the two of them just sit in silence, watching me.
"I don't want your opinions. I just want you to listen."
"Okay."
"But also, if you feel like there's something I'm missing and you need to tell me, say it."
"Okay."
"But also, don't say anything stupid that'll make me want to punch you in the face."
Bear leans over, and I overhear him whisper to Iris, "So does she want our advice or not?"
She punches him in the arm. "Just listen. Go on, B. What's going through that thick skull of yours?"
I take a deep breath, as if that'll prepare me for this.Nothingcould prepare me for the tornado of emotions I'm feeling right now, and nothing could help me navigate them painlessly.
Fuck it. Here goes nothing.
"Alright. Bear, I'm not sure if Iris filled you in since she was clearly too busy shucking off her pants the second she walked in the door, so here's the update."
"She told me."
"What?" I stop pacing and turn toward the couch.
"She texted me."
Iris looks about ready to claw Bear's eyes out and then crawl into the couch to get away from me. "I'm so sorry, B. It was such shocking news, and you didn't want to talk about it, so I had to tell someone."
I throw my hand up to stop her from rambling. "It's fine. Saves me time now. I always assume you tell him everything anyway."
I continue pacing as I decide where to start now that he knows the basics. I can't come up with a better question, so I turn to them and ask, "What the fuck do I do, guys?!"
We have a 3-way staring contest until Iris finally breaks the silence. "I think if you really didn't care, or weren't at least curious, you wouldn't be here asking us what to do. If you need someone to give you permission to text him back, then this is me giving you permission."
I want to tell her I'm not looking for anyone's fucking permission, but I pause.
Am I?
Bear raises his hand like he's in elementary school and has a question. "Can I say something?"
"Sure," I nod for him to continue.
He clears his throat. "I know I'm just a stupid boy..."
Iris and I both hum in acknowledgment.
