In Your Corner | ✓

Twenty-Four

Tugging on the ends of my hair, I shrug as casually as I can. "There's not much to tell, I just had to sort a situation out, that's all."

"What situation?" MJ chimes in suspiciously. "You're being awfully cagey about this, Nat."

"Josh just had too much to drink," I sigh, feeling my face flame up, but I know that I have to give them something. "He was throwing up and, yeah. I just stayed to sort that out. A lot of the boys were pretty drunk and I couldn't just leave him like that."

It feels wrong, to not be truthful with them, but I can't betray Josh's trust like this. I can't tell them more than I already have, or I'm giving far too much away.

Anandi eyes me, clearly agitated. "Are you ever going to be honest about you and Josh?"

"What?" I ask, heat creeping up my neck even more. "What are you talking about?"

MJ sighs, rubbing her face with her hands. "You do spend a lot of time with him these days."

My heart thunders against my ribs as I suddenly start to worry that they've heard me on the phone to him late at night. Or did actually notice the last time he stayed over. "Yeah, we've just become a bit closer," I fib, but I worry that my voice wobbles. "Nothing to it, though."

"You're impossible," Anandi shakes her head dramatically. "You're both always looking at each other like there's no one else in the room, yet you deny there's anything there."

I just shrug, looking away. At least they just think I'm hooking up with him, rather than the real truth. "Sure, he's attractive," I decide to let on, just to get her off my back. "But it's not like that. We're just friends."

The words don't feel right coming from my mouth, because I'm not convinced this is how friends talk to each other, but there's nothing I can do right now.

"He's not been with anyone since Tom, right?" MJ checks, her expression pensive.

I lift my shoulders again. "Not sure, but I don't think so. Not that it's important."

We all know that I'm lying. These two can read me well enough to know that my feelings towards Josh aren't exactly platonic anymore, but I can't tell them more than that at the minute, so I just keep pushing my lie.

"Well, when you've finally admitted to yourself that you like him, come back to me then," Anandi sighs, running her hands through her long hair, flipping it over her shoulder.

"Will do," I reply dully, raising my coffee cup to her.

***

Unfortunately, this isn't the only interrogation I'm subjected to.

When I text Chase back later on to say that Josh just had too much to drink, he phones me.

"Hello?" I ask, lying down on my bed, quite tired.

"Nat, are you at home? I'm coming over," he announces in my ear. "We need to talk."

I groan, closing my eyes, knowing there's no way out of this. "Fine, but let's at least get out of the apartment. Go for a drive, or something."

I don't really want to be in the apartment when we're having this conversation, especially given that I've just been subjected to the third degree by my housemates.

Chase picks me up and we drive to a local park. It's pretty cold, but we find a bench and sit down opposite each other.

"So, are you going to tell me what the hell happened last night?" he asks, his dark brows furrowed.