Page 37 of The Overtime Persuasive

Neither of them has noticed me yet. Probably because they’re too busy becoming besties.

I know for a fact I am standing here a second too long, taking in the whole scene: folder, the pen, the easy way Tripp leans into her counter as though this store, and Eva, are already familiar territory.

Something in my chest drops again, meeting the wrenching in my gut. It’s like missing a step and only realizing it half a second after there’s nothing beneath your foot.

“There.” Eva slides the folder toward herself, satisfied as she pats it, looking up at Tripp. “Welcome to the building.”

“Best decision I’ve made all week.” Tripp caps the pen with a grin. “Five-minute drive to the arena and a landlord who already likes me. I might cry.”

“Don’t,” she says with a laugh. “I might too. I finally have someone who likes watching documentaries as much as I do, and they live right next door.”

Pfft. I like documentaries.

Tripp laughs. It’s the exact same laugh I’ve heard before, and the same one he’d give Lucy or Vivian or anyone else standing within ten feet of him. He leans across the counter and they share a quick hug—and that’s when Eva finally spots me frozen inside the door.

“Liam. You’re here.” Her entire face brightens, which helps fight the gut-wrench and the chest-drop of it all. That look is the one I’ve started building entire daydreaming moments around. “Perfect timing. I think you know my new neighbor.”

“Tenant,” Tripp corrects, tapping the folder. “Getting to be her neighbor is a bonus feature.”

Even though my legs feel like they have lead in them, I make myself walk the rest of the way inside. I could be smiling, or producing something within the general vicinity of one.

“If you’re lucky enough to be in her orbit,” I say, keeping my eyes trained on Eva, “then yeah, getting to be her neighbor is for sure a benefit for you, Mercer.”

“Tripp has been telling me all about the two of you and how far back you go,” Eva says as she walks from behind the counter and loops the store, closing things up for the day. “So college, huh?”

“And high school,” Tripp says with a laugh. “Senior year, maybe? We played against each other for a showcase.”

“Might have been Junior year,” I correct. “We were in Pittsburgh.”

“Ohhh, right. That game.” His expression clears. “Yeah…I do remember winning.”

Eva ducks her head, but not before I catch the smile pulling at her mouth.

“After that, we kept ending up in the same places,” I say to her, keeping my eyes trained on Mercer. “Camps. More tournaments. Now he’s here.”

“He forgot to tell you that we went to rival colleges.” Tripp gives Eva a wink, which somehow irritates me more than if he’d claimed he won every competition. “I think that’s when Snyder started keeping a very detailed record of my accomplishments.”

She laughs, while I cringe. “Oh he did, did he?”

Tripp looks at Eva. “It’s because he cares.”

The wave of irritation that rolls across me almost sends me into outer space. Oh I care, Mercer. More than I’ve ever wanted to, apparently.

“Tripp, if you wanted to be a part of my world so badly, you should have just asked. You didn’t need to move in here so you could keep dibs on me.”

“Your world?” Eva arches an eyebrow. “I think it’s my building.”

“Figure of speech,” I interrupt, keeping my focus on Tripp, while she turns her attention to the folder, pressing her lips together to avoid unleashing her commentary.

“I’m sorry, but was I mistaken, or don’t you own a house?” Tripp asks, watching me with more interest than I’d like. “Are you here to rent the studio too?”

“No. I’m here doing some work.” I stand up a little taller. “With Eva. And her boxes.”

“It’s all very riveting,” Eva says without looking up. “Tonight will be so off-the-hook, you just don’t even know.”

In the background, Phil Collins’ song “Tonight, Tonight, Tonight” hits its stride, and even I can’t unhear the irony. It’s such a perfect echo of something absolutely ridiculous she’d say to me on any other day that it should feel normal. My eyes slide back over to Tripp. This is not normal. It feels like proof that the world keeps moving while something inside me is stuck in cement.

“Well, I need to go and start thinking about furnishing my new place.” Tripp claps a hand onto my shoulder as he heads for the door. “See you at practice tomorrow morning, Snyder. Try not to miss me too much before then.”