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“I didn’t know he came in.”
“He’s been here a few minutes. He’s giving us time to talk.” She looks back at me. “That guy’s a catch. You better not mess this up.”
“How would I mess it up?” I ask, my gaze still on Easton.
“By thinking you don’t deserve him.” She grips my arm, bringing my gaze back to her. “Girls like us think we don’t deserve guys who treat us well. It took me years to figure that out and I’m not going to let you make the same mistakes I did.”
“Mara, he’s going to college. He’s moving away. It’ll never work with us.”
“It’ll work if you want it to. I guarantee that guy will do whatever it takes to keep you, which means if it ends, it’ll be because of you.”
“It’s not me. It’s my situation. I need to get a job, a place to live. I won’t have time to drive to his college every weekend to go see him. My car wouldn’t even make it. It barely runs.”
She sits back and lets out an annoyed sigh. “You’re making excuses to break up with him.”
“It’s not an excuse. It’s the truth. He’s moving.”
“So move with him.”
“Even if I did, he won’t have time for me. He has hockey and his classes and parties to go to.”
She leans toward me. “If you were still with Mateo and he asked you to run off with him after graduation, would you do it?”
I pause to think about that. My initial thought is I would, but why? Why would I go with Mateo and not Easton?
“You would, wouldn’t you?” Mara says. She doesn’t wait for me to answer. “You would because you think Mateo is all you deserve. He treated you like shit, just like Ted did, so being with him makes sense. It feels normal. Being with a guy who treats you well feels like a fantasy. Like it’s not real, and not going to last. Believe me, I’ve been there. You think he’s too good for you. You think he’s going to figure out he could do better and leave you, so you end it before it can happen.”
“That’s not what I’m doing. I’m not ending it. I just agreed to be his girlfriend.”
“And you’re already coming up with excuses for why it can’t last.”
I glance at Easton. I love him so much, and I want us to last, but I just can’t see it. Is it because I’m afraid he’ll leave me like he did when we were kids? Or is Mara right and I think I’m not good enough for him?
“I need to get back to work,” Mara says, getting up. “And you need to get back to your guy.” She leans down to my ear. “You deserve this, Nova. Don’t let him go.” She walks back around the counter. “You guys aren’t eating here, are you?”
“Maybe. Why?”
She lowers her voice. “Lenny hired a new cook and he’s really bad. I think he’ll get better, but right now he sucks.”
“Then we’ll go somewhere else. I really just wanted to stop by and see you. Is Kym here?”
“No, she quit. She got a job at the mall.” She smiles. “We’re short a waitress if you want to apply.”
“Lenny wouldn’t let me waitress. He’d make me do dishes again.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right.”
“I’ll see you later,” I say, walking off.
“Yeah. Bye!” She goes in the kitchen.
I walk up to the booth where Easton is sitting. “Ready to go?”
He looks up from his phone. “We’re not staying?”
“No. Mara said the new cook is really bad. Let’s go eat somewhere else.”
He gets out of the booth and takes my hand as we walk out of the diner. “Did you have a good talk?”
