‘This isn’t pre-school, Isa. I’m not going to pick a flower and draw her a picture.’
‘This is huge. I’ve never heard you say that about anyone.’
‘Well… Jules is special.’ I don’t need to tell her that.
‘In that case, just be yourself. It’s worked so far.’
I think it over for a nanosecond. ‘No it hasn’t.’
‘Be you when you’re not comparing her to a fortification. Some people find you charming. Hey, you two argue all the time. This’ll blow over.’
‘Not like this.’ I chew my thumbnail and look out the window. ‘What do you know? When was your last relationship?’
‘Actually… I’m in a similar situation myself.’
I try to temper my shock. ‘Ohreally?’
‘Stop looking so shocked, it’s insulting.’
‘Lemme guess. You called Nyla the Berlin Wall.’
She tries to cover a laugh and hits me in the stomach with the back of her hand. ‘Shut up.’
‘So, what, Nyla hasn’t come out yet?’
‘Hasn’t come out yet? I don’t think she knows what “out” means. She’s so far in the closet, she’s found jackets from 2003.’
I snort.‘Ah, ya.’
‘But I think she likes me.’
‘Oh, shedefinitelylikes you. No one brings coffee to a friend every time they see them.’
Isa thinks this over. ‘She’s like that, though. She’s really sweet and helpful. It’s hard to distinguish the two, you know?’
‘Yeah,’ I sigh. ‘Look at us. Couple of lovesick dweebs.’
‘At least your girl likes men. I have to convince mine to like a whole gender as well as me.’
JC’s firmly back in work mode when we get to the jet. He’s in his usual spot, laptop open, pressed shirt, frown in place. He has the calm, clean, unbothered look of someone who lives by himself, and not with our omnipresent, intrusive, harassing family. Man, I need to move out.
He places a hand on the seat next to him. ‘Tiago, sit here for take-off.’ It’s gruff. A command. I don’t have a good feelingabout this but I obey anyway because I’m a mindless little brother.
I pass the spot where Jules sat when we flew to New York and feel a pang of sadness. God I wish she was here now. I hope she was ok on her flight home, and listened to the playlist I made for her. She probably didn’t. She’d rather take a terrifying flight back by herself than be with me. Awesome.
‘What’s up?’ I ask as cabin crew seal the doors.
‘I know what you’re doing with Jules.’
Argh. Shit. Fuck.
This conversation is the absolutelastthing I need right now. ‘Dude, not now.’
‘Yes, now. We have eleven hours until we land in Brussels and I have things to talk to you about.’
Greeeeat.
‘Two months ago,’ he starts, all obnoxious sounding like Master Shifu, ‘I took a meeting with San Pellegrino about you promoting their new sports soda, and they mentioned a marketing consultant. I thought she was talking about someone from Leone so I ignored it. I trusted you.
