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Ellis laughed as he swiped across his phone screen, only half watching the movie we’d already both memorized from seeing it so many times.
“Are you on Tinder right now?” I asked him.
When Ellis looked over at me with a raised eyebrow, I quickly focused on the tiny television and plopped a handful of popcorn into my mouth.
“No, but I am on a similar app,” he said. “It’s called Hookup Central. Why?”
Shrugging as casually as I could muster, I said over the mouthful of popcorn, “Because you told me you already have a date in like an hour.”
“Forty-five minutes, actually,” Ellis corrected.
“So what are you doing on Hookup Central if you already have a date?” I asked, nodding toward his phone.
Ellis smiled, though it looked a bit forced. “The more, the merrier, wouldn’t you agree? I mean, thatiswhy you’re going to do the sex study, right?”
Right. I turned back to the movie.
“I’ll loan you the money, you know. The eight thousand dollars you’d get if you do the sex study, I mean.” Ellis’s voice was sincere, holding both concern and worry.
I looked at him. “I know. And I appreciate the offer. But I'm covered with what my parents loaned me for a while longer. Besides, New Tessa is done leaning on her best friend. New Tessa wants to earn her own way in life.” I thought about telling him about my plan to move home if I didn’t get an acting job or accepted for the sex study, but again I held back. I still had almost a month to get the money and I didn't want to even attempt to verbalize how much I'd miss him if I had to move. I'd cry my eyes out.
So Cade was no longer an option. Surely there were other guys out there I could recruit? But I didn’t like the idea of sleeping with strangers. I mean, Cade had been kind of a stranger, but…not.
So what was I going to do? Was it too much to think I could meet three guys that were strangers now but wouldn’t be strangers by the time the sex study started? Three good guys I was attracted to who, like me, just happened to need an adventure and $8,000 to get a jump start on the life they dreamed of? Given my dating record, it seemed farfetched.
Dejected, I looked at Ellis who was still glancing at his phone, and I suddenly straightened.
“I should try your app.”
Ellis’s gaze jerked to mine. “What?”
“Hookup Central, right?” I said. “It can help me hook up with three guys can’t it?”
Ellis scowled at me. “You knew Cade and look what happened. Now you want to just troll for three random guys?”
I sucked in a breath at his judgy tone. “Why not. You’re trolling for your next lover or two right now, aren’t you? Double standard much?”
Ellis had the good grace to look ashamed. “I’m sorry. You’re right. That was a dick thing to say.”
“You’re right. It was.”
I stared at the television screen again, refusing to say anything else.
Ellis sighed. “I guarantee you’ll have more eggplant emojis in your inbox than you’ll know what to do with by the time the night is over,” Ellis said, sitting up from his lounged position on the couch. “Come on, where’s your phone?”
I turned back to him. “You’re gong to help me?”
“Of course, you’re my best friend, Tessa. If you want to Hookup, I’ll help you Hookup.”
I shook my head. “No, never mind. You’re right. Look what happened with Cade. Me and technology are not a good mix.” My face turned red just thinking about offering to put Cade’s pepper inside me.
“You’ll be fine. Now where’s your phone?”
“Ellis, no,” I said, shoving him back down as he started searching between the Chinese takeout boxes littering my coffee table.
“Tessa, where is—ah ha!” Ellis turned around with my phone held victoriously in his hands.
“I said no. Besides, I can’t even set up a profile.” I lunged for my cell phone, but he pulled it back.
