Fat Girls Return

34. Meeting the Boys

A curly haired brunette takes his place in front of me, rolling his eyes at Luke. "Don't let him intimidate you, he flirts with everyone." He smiles at me, reaching out a hand to shake mine. "I'm Milo."

I nod nervously in return, shaking his hand.

A tall, lean Asian boy is the next to introduce himself. "I'm Noah." He smiles shyly, stepping forward just a little, raising his hand in a small wave.

Everyone looks to the last teenager. The dark-skinned eboy with a jawline sharp enough to cut tomatoes sighs. "Dax," is all he says, his dark brown eyes cutting into mine with a glare.

I bite my lip, nodding awkwardly. "Hi," I mumble again.

Collin chuckles, "Well, now that introductions are out of the way," he meets my gaze hopefully before continuing, "Wanna play MarioKart with us?"

I purse my lips. MarioKart does sound fun but I'm already uncomfortable around guys my age thanks to past experience and low self-esteem plus, I don't want to upset Rosie by hanging out with Collin when she's still hurt.

"Um," I stall, weighing my options.

Dax rolls his eyes. "Just say no if you're not interested and stop wasting our time."

My eyes shoot up to meet his, surprised by his harsh comment.

"I – sorry," I stutter, tears burning behind my eyes in an instant.

I hate that my brain responds this way but I'm vulnerable and in a sensitive spot emotionally especially after the past week. Finding out the only boy I've ever loved wasn't who I thought he was, seeing Ryker for the first time in two years, getting kicked out by dad, and keeping a secret from my best friend to top it all off wasn't exactly easy. And while being in California is exciting, it's a drastic environment change which doesn't help. Getting caught in the middle of the tension between Collin and Rosie hasn't been a plus either.

Collin glares at Dax, reaching over to thwack him on the arm. "Dude!"

Dax scowls, rolling his eyes before mumbling an insincere apology.

"It's okay," I say quietly. "I'm just going to catch up with Rosie."

Collin frowns, glaring at Dax once again before turning to smile at me. "Oh, come on. It'll be fun."

Luke shoots a crooked grin my way. "Yeah, Dax is just scared he'll lose to a girl," he winks.

I laugh hesitantly; Luke's boyish charm is hard to resist.

Dax huffs, heading towards the living room.

"Um, okay." I smile, "Just let me go get Rosie first."

Luke beams, "Oh yeah, two girls to get owned by! I'm down."

Collin jabs him playfully with his elbow. "Hey, one of those girls is my cousin, doofus."

Luke wiggles his eyebrows. "But is she cute, though?"

I laugh, my defenses lowering slightly as Collin lands a playful punch on Luke's arm. I shake my head at them before rushing upstairs to get Rosie.

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"Why would I want to play MarioKart with Collin?" Rosie spits, angrily arranging the pillows on her freshly made bed.

I sigh, "You don't have to play with him; you can just play with the other boys. There can only be four players at a time anyways."

Rosie crooks an eyebrow, mulling it over. "Alright, fine," She sighs. "Sounds fun other than him being there."