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I stand up.
“Where are you going?” Mom asks in an angry tone. Heaven forbid I do anything when Derek is in distress.
“I’ve got to go talk to someone,” I tell them.
“Who?” they ask together.
“Doesn’t matter. At least notyet. I’ll let you know. Just, stay calm. Don’t talk to the press or anyone. We’ll get this sorted out.”
I head upstairs, hop on my parents’ ancient computer, and do some research. The social media kind. I want to find an old friend I went to high school with. I ran into her at a bar not too long ago, and she acted as if she couldn’t stand the sight of me.
Leah Olson.
I need to ask her some questions.
3
DAMASCUS
Blair Cosgrove makes me feel alive.
More alive than I have ever felt since Jennifer—my ex who ripped my heart out and stomped on it while making eye contact with me—anyway.
I would have never expected a double date half-planned by my best friend’s girlfriend, Sara, to go as well as it did, and I definitely never expected to like someone who is so completely different from me, but here I am.
Blair is like… a nerd? Not like that stereotypical movie nerd, but she’s super smart and obedient and respectful. She is always mindful of her curfew and wants things done the right way. She’s super focused on school and graduating.
But on top of all of that, she still knows how to have fun. She still knows how to bend the rules a little as long as it’s not going to really harm anything. Like the fact that she has a fake ID, even though she’s about to turn twenty-one soon. She doesn’t drink all the time like I do, but she doesn’t mind letting loose once in a while, especially after an extra-long day of studying or doing homework.
When I was with Jennifer, a dark-haired vixen with a silky-smooth voice, I would go through phases where I needed a break from her. I only liked to hang out with her maybe a few times a week. The crazy thing with Blair is that I’ve seen her pretty much every day since that day at the pool hall.
It’s been twenty-five days, and I’ve maybe not seen her for four of them.
And when I’m not with her, it’s absolutely ridiculous how much I miss her. Even Andrew and Sara give me crap for it.
“It’s your guys’ fault!” I had told them. How can they be mad at me for talking about Blair nonstop when Andy’s girlfriend is the one who introduced us?
Blair is coming over to my apartment today because, apparently, she’s a really good cook, and I have been telling her that she needs to prove it to me, so she said she’d come by and show me her masterful ways. She said we could do it at her house, but that she wasn’t thrilled about the idea of her parents being around. She’s not moving out until she graduates. While it makes me feel like I’m sort of dating a high schooler, it’s kind of cute, too.
It’s Sara who answers the door when Blair gets to our apartment.
“Surprise, surprise! Hi, Blair,” Sara greets her.
Blair looks surprised to see them. But gorgeous as always. She’s in a cute off-shoulder top and leggings. Her strawberry blonde hair is pulled up high into a ponytail, making her bold blue eyes pop out even more than they usually do.
“Oh! I didn’t know you and Andy were going to be here! But I brought plenty of food. Do you guys want me to cook dinner for you, too?”
Sara steps aside and lets her in, and when our eyes land on each other, my stomach dips. I’ve missed this feeling, but I’m terrified of it, too. And even though I have this wonderful, amazing, unique, specimen spending all of her time with me, I still find myself thinking about Jennifer.
I’m not nearly as miserable as I was before Blair, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t still hurt. Jennifer ripped my heart out and threw it to the ground. I’m not saying I’ve fallen for Blair, but maybe the reason I’m holding back from doing so is because I don’t want her to do the same.
Andy walks out of the hallway to the bedrooms, having heard what Blair said. “Oh, no, we’re out of here,” he tells her. “We will let you two have your alone time, or whatever.”
Blair looks slightly embarrassed, and it’s adorable the way the apples of her cheeks turn pink. It makes me want to go over and kiss them.
When Andy and Sara finally leave us alone, I walk over to Blair and wrap my arms tightly around her. She’s so short and petite that I have to physically hunch over to rest my chin on top of her head. I love how small she is compared to me.
She looks up at me, and our lips instantly collide. She has on that grapefruit-flavored ChapStick I love so much. I think she wears it now just for me.
