♫Erica♫
What was he doing here? my logical mind thought. Did he follow me or something…?
But to my honest, my heart was singing Daniel’s name.
I walked up to him, as calmly as I could, even though my cheeks flushed as I got closer, and noticed how good he looked in his jeans and plain t-shirt. Flecks of seawater had splattered his shirt, making little patches see-through, and very, very sexy.
I stopped, at about arm-reach from him, and suddenly I remembered. The last time he’s seen “Erica” was when I was peeking at him through a hospital door.
His face was hard to read. Damn actors.
I coughed, to clear the lump that had suddenly swollen up in my throat.
“Hello.”
Wow. That was such an anti-climax.
“Hi,” he replied, mildly.
“Hey.”
I looked behind Daniel, and finally realized Tyler was here as well, as well as about five other hot guys. How did I miss that?
“Oh, hey, Tyler,” I said, my voice all high. I was kind of trying to avoid him as well. It’d been really awkward after what’d happened. “What are you guys doing here?”
“It’s my birthday,” Tyler said, smiling at me. My heart sank, which was probably the opposite reaction it would’ve had with any other girl in America. “So we took the weekend off to come to my summer beach house.”
“Oh. Well, happy birthday. I’ve got to go, um…away.”
“Where’s Eric?” Daniel asked, suddenly. I frowned, wondering why Daniel had brought him up.
Shit. That stupid note. I’d told him me and Eric were on a family holiday.
“Eric?” I said, my voice going incredibly shrill. “Um, he’s just…scuba-diving.”
“Really? I just wanted to say something to him.”
I tried to keep my poker-face on.
“What? I could pass the message on.”
“No, it really has to be a face-to-face thing,” Daniel said. Oh god, what the hell was I meant to do?
Tyler gave me a look, and I knew he understood. I tried to signal “help me” with my eyes.
“I’ll just go…get him, then.”
***
╣Daniel╠
“This is your room,” Tyler said, pointing me room that was the same to all the other rooms his friends had chosen.
“Thanks, man.”
We were both quiet for a minute.
“Tyler, that day I saw you with Eric –”
Tyler looked up with me, and smiled.
“Yeah, I kind of need to talk to you about that,” Tyler said. “Eric is mine. I don’t want you to room with him, okay? I just think it’s kind of awkward.”
Tyler was…gay?!
I don’t have a problem with gays, but it was just…so hard to tell. How did I never notice?
I just nodded.
The doorbell rang, and Tyler’s brother opened the door quickly, probably expecting Erica.
