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22
Big black tapioca balls wiggle in the milky liquid in the cup in my hand.I stare at Tamsin and Jolie like they’ve lost their damn minds, but they just smile at me and eagerly await my first sip of something called bubble tea.
Robbie drinks his matcha bubble tea with a smile that comes off as both amused and snarky.The bastard.He’s enjoying this way too much.I knew it was a terrible idea to agree to a double date, but Tamsin was with me when he texted about it, and the way her face lit up when she saw that Jolie wanted us all to double date and hang out was too irresistible to say no.
So now I’m here, about to drink some funky drink that has jelly-like balls in it.I take a sip, carefully making sure I only suck up one tapioca ball at a time.This drink is a damn choking hazard.
The first hit of the cold, milky beverage isn’t bad, but I’m thrown off by the chewiness of the tapioca ball.
“Well?”Jolie asks, her green eyes happy and excited as she sips on her own strawberry bubble tea.
“These jelly balls are fucking weird.”
“They’re tapioca pearls,” Tamsin says with a hint of amusement in her voice, but I appreciate that she’s trying to hide it.
“Whatever.They’re weird.And chewy.You shouldn’t chew your drink.”
“Told you,” Robbie says to Jolie, a smug look on his face.
I frown.“Told her what?”
“I told her you’d hate it.You might be adventurous in other…arenas,” he says with a quick glance to Tamsin.“But let’s face it, you’re a huge, picky baby when it comes to your food.”
“I am not.”
“Dude, you so are.You don’t like strawberries—”
“They have too many seeds.”
“…squash—”
“It’s too slimy.”
“…oysters—”
“Oh, come on!Nobody can seriously say they like oysters.It’s like snot in a shell.”
Both girls bust out laughing, and I throw my hands out to the side.“Come on.You know I’m right.It’s gross.”
Robbie just shakes his head, his smile still wide, and I throw a napkin at him, joining everyone in the laughter.“You guys suck.”
“You love us anyway, even if we give you shit.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
We sit at our table outside, enjoying the California sun as we chat, and I have to admit, it’s nice to be out in the open like this with Tamsin.We’ve been together over a month now and the more time I spend with her, the more time I want to spend with her.
I need to talk to her about telling her dad.This isn’t a casual thing—honestly it’s never been casual for me, but even more so now that I’m falling in love with her—and I don’t like lying to Decker, or the rest of the band, about our relationship.I want to be with her like this all the time.Plus, she and Jolie get along great, and I know Jo is excited about having another girl around.Becka’s been a great addition to our group and those two have become thick as thieves.I can already tell that Jo is plotting all the ways she can steal Tamsin so they can go do fun girly things as a trio.
When we finish our drinks, Jolie and Tamsin walk ahead of us toward the movie theater, while Robbie and I lag behind.
He stares at his shoes for a minute before turning to me, his expression serious and his voice low so the girls won’t hear us.“I’m worried about Kasen.”
My heart drops.“Has something happened?”I’ve been a shitty friend lately, but it was easier to bury my head in the sand than admit what I was seeing.It felt better to be caught up in my own personal little bubble with Tamsin and to ignore the train wreck that Kasen has turned into lately.
“I think he’s using more—that, or something else is going on.He’s dodging my calls and hasn’t been at his place every time I’ve stopped by.He refused to go to NA when I brought it up and won’t try any outpatient services.He says he’s got it under control, but I know you’ve seen what I’ve seen.”
He’s right, I have.Kasen’s use has definitely not gone down.If I had to guess, I’d say he’s probably using more considering how unreliable he’s becoming.Robbie grips the back of his neck and rotates his head, clearly trying to relieve some tension.Robbie’s always seemed to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders when shit hits the fan.
