𝑮𝑶𝑫 𝑪𝑶𝑴𝑷𝑳𝑬𝑿 • 𝐸𝑇𝐻𝐴𝑁 𝑁𝐴𝐾𝐴𝑀𝑈𝑅𝐴

TWELVE

  The extra bedroom was nothing special, but Veronica still felt like her space was being invaded. She slept in this room whenever she got tired of her own, it held its own significance to her. The furniture was situated just right so that she never bumped anything on accident and so that she could see all four corners of the room from her bed. And here she was, offering it up to someone else so that they could use it. It was strange.

  She left Nakamura at the door frame as she ripped off the champagne-colored sheets and comforter. There was absolutely no way she was letting him sleep on the nice, silk sheets she had slept on the last time she was in there. That was too familiar for them; it would be too familiar with anyone. He would get the clean and basic white ones.

  As soon as she pulled out the new set from the rack in the closet, he walked over and took two corners to help her put the fitted portion on without prompting. They worked in silent tandem to get the rest on. It was such a menial task that she could have done herself within a minute or two, but he'd still offered up his assistance to make it easier ━━ or less awkward, she supposed. It churned her stomach in weird ways to participate in something so domestic with him. They should really be at each other's necks with swords ... or back to back against a common enemy. Not whatever ... this was.

  Once she smoothed down the last infuriating wrinkle on the bedspread, she stepped back. "The bathroom is just the next door down. I'm pretty sure there are new disposable toothbrushes in the drawers somewhere."

  "Thanks," he muttered, his gaze downcast. There had to be a lot on his mind and Veronica was not going to stick around to find out what those things were.

  But before Veronica could escape to her own plagued thoughts and leave the room, her father peeked around the corner with a bundle of clothes in hand. "Hey, Ethan, I have some stuff that might fit you."

  Veronica's eyes zeroed in on one of his ratty old camp t-shirts and she yanked it off his pile with a scowl. Nakamura wouldn't be caught dead wearing that and neither would she ━━ it was a neon eye-sore. Her father's smile tightened but he offered up the remaining articles to the boy.

  Nakamura stepped forward and took them slowly. His visible eyebrow furrowed in what she assumed was a conflict of emotions. She couldn't be sure which emotions but she was sure all of them bordered on uncertainty. "Thank you."

  "No problem," her father returned with a people-pleaser smile. "I understand what it's like only having a couple changes of clothes. Underwear was the worst —" He cut himself off from talking more about his unmentionables at Veronica's scathing glare. "Just throw the ones you're wearing straight in the washer — Ronnie will show you where that is. I'll start a load later tonight so you can have them back tomorrow."

  Veronica begged the deities that Nakamura forgot the nickname 'Ronnie' within seconds. But some needy part of her wondered what he thought of the juvenile nickname, anyway ( and maybe a smaller part wondered what it would sound like in his voice ). She nodded stiffly to her father to let him know she'd show the boy where their dirty laundry should go. He gave a solid and pleasant grin in return, oblivious to the fact that she'd given up 'Ronnie' long ago. "If there's anything else, just let me know. I'll be grading midterm papers late tonight. G'night."

  "Night," Veronica relented with a sigh as Nakamura only nodded.

  Once he was gone, Nakamura turned to her with his mouth open. Ignoring the anticipation of the small part of her brain that wanted him to say it, she smacked his jaw shut with a flick of her knuckles to his chin. He jerked back, face scrunching up in surprise.