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“One of the drawbacks of living in the city, I guess?”
“It’s worth it,” Jason said. “There are so many restaurants to choose from, I haven’t had my stove on yet, and I’ve lived here for almost six years.”
“Did you go to Wayne for undergrad, too?” she asked. “I can’t believe we never ran into each other.”
“I had blinders on,” he said, pulling into a space. Shutting the engine off, he turned to Lily. “I must have, because I wouldn’t have missed you. If I’d known you were there, I might not have graduated.”
She burst out laughing. “Yeah, right. Nice try, Karas.”
He grabbed her hand before she could get out. “No, I’m serious. You’re very distracting.”
He moved his eyebrows up and down comedically, and she play-swatted him on the arm.
“Whatever,” she said, laughing. “Let’s go.”
A sensation she often got when she might have stepped out of bounds came over her, a nervous, tooth-grinding giddiness, and she thought maybe it was her subconscious warning her that she was moving too fast. The familiarity was taking her breath away.
“I feel like I’ve known you all my life,” she said, her expression serious.
He reached into the back of the car for her dress and bag. “It’s because you have,” he replied. “We didn’t talk, but maybe that wasn’t necessary. I blame myself for waiting until today to make a move.”
“The time wasn’t right,” she said, slipping her arm through his. “I would have been too intimidated.”
“Well, I’m truly sorry for that,” he replied, opening the stairwell door for her because the elevator was busted, and he stood aside so she could pass by. “That sort of impression is exactly what I wanted to avoid. I hated all that crap.”
“Do you remember at the Sadie Hawkins dance one October when you and Bruce Canfield walked in, the DJ started playing ‘I’m In With the In Crowd’?”
“I remember,” he said, shuddering. “I turned around and walked right out.”
“I used to wonder if that humble guy stuff was an act you put on,” she admitted. “But then I decided it was really you.”
“What made you change your mind?”
“Do you remember Laurie Johnson?” she asked, watching him.
“Is this some kind of quiz?”
“Ha! No, I’m just clarifying my point. Do you remember her?”
“No, not really. The name maybe, but not the person.”
“She was in a wheelchair?” Lily reminded him.
“Yeah, so?”
Blushing, Jason got flustered because he knew she was going to bring up another charitable act of his. Lily saw how pointing out his good deeds made him squirm, and although she found it amusing, she also was moved by it.
“You carried her up the stairs for her third-period class every day for a month.”
“A high school without accessibility shouldn’t be allowed to exist,” he said, flustered. “So what’s your point?”
“Just that when I saw you do that, I knew you were genuine. You were more than a humble guy, you were nice, too. You were special.”
“Great,” he said, smiling. “I’m glad I’d finally made a good impression on you, or you might not be here right now.”
“I’m glad there are only three floors in this building!”
“Do you want me to carry you?” he asked, grinning down at her.
