Page 29 of See You in Your Dreams

“Fine,” I sigh. “Come on.”

Last time he’d been over, we’d stuck to the living room and kitchen. Trepidation slows my steps as I lead him up the narrow staircase to the upper level. Having Dylan in my bedroom seems unwise for a number of reasons.

I make sure to keep a couple feet of distance between us as I sweep open the door and step inside. “This is it.”

Dylan steps in after me, his eyes roving over the room like he’s trying to solve a complex mystery. I move over to my desk, fiddling with some textbooks as I try to envision the space through his eyes. What does he see when he looks around? I get my answer a few seconds later.

“It’s emptier than I expected,” he says, his brows scrunching together.

I cross my arms. “Excuse me? I’ve got plenty of stuff!” Maybe eventoomuch after downsizing from my old bedroom. My boxes of belongings had finally arrived a few days ago, and I’m still in the process of unpacking them.

“You’ve got lots of stuff, yeah. But there’s not muchpersonality, you know?” Dylan looks embarrassed. “Sorry. That probably sounds way harsher than I meant it.”

Glancing again around the space, I think I understand what he means. Other than a couple of drawings I’d pinned up, I hadn’t bothered decorating or adding any personal touches. Had my old room been any better? I honestly can’t remember.

The thought leaves me angry, and I scowl. “What’s the point of getting comfortable here? Another few months, and I’ll be gone.”

Dylan tries to hide his flinch, but I catch it all the same.

I gesture to my drawings on the wall, trying to salvage our earlier easy humor. “So, do the final products live up to your lofty expectations?”

He steps deeper into my room, studying the sketches on display. Each depicts a location around Banton. Thankfully, I hadn’t been brazen enough to put up anything more incriminating, like drawings of a certain cute guy.

“Honestly?” He smirks. “I don’t see any difference.”

A deep laugh rips from my belly, the sound catching me by surprise. I can’t remember the last time I’ve done more than chuckle. Dylan’s grin widens as he resumes studying my room. When his gaze settles on the TV jammed against the far wall, he sucks in a breath.

“Is that a PS5?” he demands, stooping to examine the shiny white game console.

“Yeah.” I sit on the edge of my bed and gesture at one of the boxes I haven’t bothered unpacking yet. “I think most of my games are in there.”

Dylan picks through the indicated box, exclaiming over the titles he recognizes. “Did your aunt buy this for you?”

I shake my head. “The Ellingtons. Hence the games still being packed.”

He looks up with a sheepish smile. “Right. Duh. You’ll have to excuse my lack of brain cells right now. I’ve wanted one of these since they came out, but my family’s still stuck in the PlayStation 2 era.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “Whoa. Vintage.”

“It was my dad’s, I think.” His hands still as he tightens his jaw. “Guess he didn’t care much about it though since he left it behind, along with a bunch of his other crap.”

Left it behind?Were his parents divorced? For all he’s told me about his family, his dad has never once come up. It’s clear from his expression he doesn’t want to talk about it now either, so Igesture again at the box, hoping to distract him. “See anything you like?”

Dylan shakes his head as if to clear it, a faint smile returning as he examines the box’s contents. “Plenty. But I can’t find any of your multiplayer games. I figured we could play something together.”

A flush rises in my cheeks. I look away, fixing my gaze on one of my drawings. This one depicts the forest outside of town. I’d captured it after school while out wandering. Something about the trees’ quiet serenity had appealed to me—like it had been taken straight out of a simpler time where people and their myriad problems didn’t exist.

“I, um, don’t really have any. I’ve never had many friends. Loner, remember?” I try to turn it into a joke, but I can tell it falls flat.

Dylan’s radiant smile steals my breath. “Well, my games at home might be a good twenty years out of date, but at least I’ve got some decent multiplayer titles. You’ll have to come over and play them sometime.”

It’s the first time he’s invited me over to his place, and somehow, it feels like a huge deal. I fight down a flutter in my chest. “That sounds great.”

He grins. “Cool.” His eyes return longingly to my selection of games. “I’ve been dying to get my hands on some of these forever, though. I wish I had a way to play them.”

“Well, no time like the present, right?” He gives me a confused look, and I point at the PS5. “Go ahead—pick whatever you want and put it in.”

“But what about you?”