Page 97 of Here We Go Again

“We just aren’t feeling it,” Theo says.

“No chemistry,” I add, and Theo practically rolls his eyes.

“I mean, that’s…” Kim exchanges a look with my mom. “I suppose if you’re both happy, that’s all we want. That’s been our only goal, really.”

“We’re happy,” Theo says, eyes still on me. “Incredibly happy.”

His mother’s eyes narrow.

“Definitely,” I say. “So happy.” I sit up a little taller, using my own foot to kick Theo’s away. He lets out a grunt. I’m only wearing Birkenstocks, but I’m pretty sure I hit his shin. Maybe I kicked him harder than I thought.

“Are you okay?” his mother asks.

“Yep,” he says, voice a little strangled. “Just knocked my knee on the table.”

“So, what else are we doing today?” I ask. “I saw Scrabble in the game closet. Maybe we could all play?”

“I love Scrabble,” Theo says.

Twenty minutes later, we’ve cleaned up lunch, and the four of us are playing a game.

Halfway through, I’m convinced Theo is cheating. Because the words he’s playing are way too pointed.

His first word: KISS. It earns him eighteen points.

But it just gets worse from there. On subsequent turns, his words include YEARN, HOT, LIPS, FLIRT, and my personal favorite, CURVES.

How is he getting these letters? Is he swapping for them when the rest of us aren’t looking? Does he have some secret tile stash in his pocket?

I’m not sure our mothers have picked up on his theme. Mixed in with all the other words, they aren’t that obvious.

But I’ve definitely noticed, and it triggers a deep desire to one-up his attempts to throw me off balance.

My chance doesn’t come until the very last round, when I use my last seven tiles to go out first. Adding a Y to Theo’s FLIRT, I place the word NAUGHTY on the board.

“Double word score,” I say, “plus fifty points for using all my tiles in one turn. I think that means I win.”

Theo bursts out laughing, and it’s the most rewarding sound I’ve heard all day.

“Why do I feel like we’ve missed something?” Mom says.

Kim tilts her head toward the board. “Apparently, there was a theme to the game that I’ve only just noticed.” She gives Theo a pointed look. “Just friends, huh?”

“Who wants a snack?” I say, standing and moving into the kitchen. “Can I make something? Maybe I can go to the store? What do we need? Anything?”

“You’re being about as subtle as a freight train right now,” Theo says as he moves into the kitchen behind me. He lowers our empty water glasses into the sink.

“You started it,” I whisper. “You played way more obvious words than me.”

He smirks. “And you blushed every time I did.”

“How about some popcorn?” Kim says. “We bought some kernels at the store, and I think I saw an air popper in the pantry. It’s supposed to rain for the rest of the afternoon, so maybe we could watch a movie.”

“I would love a movie,” Mom says. “What if we watch The Notebook? Have you seen that one, Kim?” Mom’s voice is overly animated, and she’s looking at Kim like they’re definitely up to something.

Kim taps a finger against her chin. “Is that the one where they fall in love as teenagers, then reunite as adults?”

“That’s it!” Mom says.