The Lift

7

David woke up on Tuesday to a lot of messages and not just because he once again slept in way too late. He'd already gotten a handful of texts from his friends the previous night, but he'd ignored them.

As he scrolled through them, he really wasn't looking forward to responding. He knew he would because he didn't want to be a total flake, but he wasn't going to enjoy any of it. David really just wanted to shield Preston from the shitstorm that was his friend group at times. And that would mean taking the brunt of everything.

So that's what he did for about a week. He didn't avoid his friends, but he did steer any conversations about Preston toward him and his life. In that same week, David and Preston had only seen each other once for a quick lunch. Work had really gotten busy for Preston and she was shooting most days from 9 am to 7 pm.

David's friends definitely thought he was hiding Preston at that point, though she really was too busy and tired to hang out.

When David showed up to the house that week to film, literally everyone was there. It was basically an intervention. Alex and Jason sort of hid in the back, trying to avoid looking guilty. (They weren't doing a good job.) David really wanted to vlog this spectacle... Except he couldn't post the footage, possibly ever. He was okay with that, he decided.

I just got to the house and I guess my friends decided to throw me a surprise party!

Everyone played along for a minute or two before Scott finally got serious. "David, please tell us who Preston is," he pleaded.

David slumped on the couch and looked at Alex and Jason for support. Both of them avoided eye contact.

"You guys suck," David said and pointed at the two.

"Jason and Alex knew?" Todd asked in exasperation. "Why do they get to know?"

"Great question, Todd," Jason interrupted. "Because we're David's REAL best friends."

Todd gave him the finger. Then everyone started arguing at once, with each other and with David. David put his head in his hands and started groaning louder and louder. Eventually everyone noticed and quieted down.

"Todd, I didn't tell anyone else because I didn't want to. You all gossip too much. Scotty, I'll give everyone a rundown of who she is, I promise. Jason and Alex, don't pretend like you tried to stop this."

He then launched into the basics of how he and Preston met. He kept it brief and cut off anyone asking questions, telling them they would get to learn more when they earned it.

When he finished, Heath blurted out, "Was it really that hard to share all your thoughts and feelings with your friends and loved ones?"

Everyone laughed, including David who was rolling his eyes at the whole thing.

"Now that that's out of the way, who wants to actually film?" David asked.

"Not so fast," Zane interrupted. "When do we get to meet the girl? You can't keep hiding her."

"Uhhh, I don't know," David stalled. "Whenever she feels up to coming into this circus?"

"So party this Friday," Todd half-joked.

Everyone else latched onto the idea.

"Fine, I will ask her," David gave in. "But no promises. If it's on, we keep it low-key. Preston isn't much for parties."

"Oh, come on," Jason whined.

David put his hands up. "Hey, those are my conditions. She might not even want to come at all."