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“That Clark guy, right?”
“I’m sorry?”
“His roommate, it’s that Clark guy?”
“Oh, yeah.” I scrunch my forehead a little in confusion, squirming in my seat.
“I saw him at the Halloween party,” he says, his eyes never leaving my face as he takes a drink.
“Yeah, I asked my brother to come. He brought Clark along.”
“Aren’t they a little old for a college party?”
Why does it feel like he’s giving me the third degree right now?
“Yeah, but he’s my brother.”
“But Clark isn’t.”
“Is there something you’re trying to ask me? Because it seems like you’re beating around the bush right now, and I’m not a fan of that.” I sit up straighter in my seat, irritated with his behavior.
He shrugs nonchalantly, before putting his drink back on the table.
“Chris said he saw you leave a room with him. I was just curious.”
My palms are sweaty. I feel like I need to throw up.
“Why are you just bringing this up now? We’ve been talking nonstop and hanging out since that night and you never said anything. Did you really invite me out on this date so you could give me the third degree about my family friend?” I ask, the word ‘friend’ tasting terrible in my mouth.
“No, that’s not why I asked you out. You brought up Clark and now I’m asking you what you were doing in a room with him, alone, on Halloween?”
“I didn’t bring Clark up, but nice try. You did. And you didn’t ask about Halloween, I had to drag it out of you because you’re sitting over there playing fucking games with me.”
He flinches at my words, but I’m too pissed off to care.
“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to piss you off, but it’s been eating away at me for a while.”
I sigh, loosening up a bit, racking my brain for the right way to approach the whole situation. It’s not like anything happened. I mean, it did, but it didn’t. My head is so confused.
“He needed to talk to me about something personal. It was too loud in the middle of the party, so we went into one of the nearest rooms. Clark has been a part of my family for as long as I can remember. He’ll always be a part of my family.”
Nothing I told him was a lie, but it sure feels like it.
He nods his head in response but doesn’t say anything. I don’t think he believes a word I’m saying, and that’s fine. I can’t force him to listen to me.
“Gotcha,” he finally says as the waitress brings us our food.
We eat in silence, mostly, just small talk here and there. After Justin pays the bill, I follow him out to his car.
“Do you want to come over and hang out?” he asks.
“Sure.”
I have to fix whatever’s going on. I like Justin, and he likes me. He’s a good guy, and he seems like a good fit for me. The sooner I get over this silly thing with Clark, the better.
Once we’re inside, I sit my clutch down on the table next to his apartment door.
“Where’s your roommate?” I ask.
