💋 THE LIST 💋
- Lip ring
- Harvey
- Nathan
"You told him you'd think about it?" Maia laughs. "I'm loving this side of you," she says as she sips her matcha.
The three of us are gathered at a corner table at a cafe in our neighbourhood, with my phone in the middle of the table so we can all see the texts from Ethan.
"Well, what are you thinking? Is he cute?" Nicole asks me.
I scrunch my nose, and Maia laughs again.
"He's... cute, I guess." I shrug. "He kind of seems like an ass. When I met him last week he made it disgustingly obvious that he was checking me out."
"I hear he's fun!" Maia swats my arm. "If you don't like him, then say no, but some part of you must want to say yes or you wouldn't have answered at all."
I nod slowly, considering this. "Okay, I really will think about it. Maybe I'll text him this weekend?"
The girls nod at me as I slip my phone back into my bag.
"Speaking of texts..." Nicole starts. "Do you think it would be too forward to give Matthew my number tomorrow? He's so cute."
I smile and Maia squeals, grabbing Nicole's arm. "I knew you thought he was cute!! You guys are the perfect height for each other, too," she adds. "I say do it! Add him to your list!"
I nod in agreement. "He did seem to be into you, I don't think he would have any problem with getting your number," I giggle and turn to Maia. "What about you? Anyone catch your eye?"
"Hmm," she ponders, tapping her finger on her chin. "I thought they were all pretty cute, but I'm not sure yet. I definitely want to get to know the study buddies who were huddled over that textbook all lunch."
I grin at her. "Hoping they'll do your math homework for you?"
"It would definitely be a perk," she sighs wistfully.
--
Music blares in my ears as I power through my homework, already a little sleepy. My phone chimes suddenly, breaking my focus. My stomach flips when I see it's a text from Nathan.
*Busy?*
*Not very*
It's a lie, I am busy, and I'm tired, but talking to Nate just sounds way more fun than history homework. My phone rings in my hand—he's calling me. Suddenly, I'm not so tired anymore.
"Hey," I answer.
"Hey," he replies, his voice heavy with sleep.
"Did you just wake up or something? You sound exhausted."
He chuckles softly and groans. "I wish. I am pretty exhausted actually, I was thinking of turning in early."
My brow furrows, not that he can see it. "Why'd you call me then?" I ask with a laugh.
"I was hoping you would change my mind," he murmurs, and the sound sends my blood rushing to my cheeks.
"And how would I do that?" I try to sound casual.
"What are you up to right now?" He doesn't answer my question.
"History homework," I reply cautiously.
"Great, let's video chat." Ah, there's the answer to my question. I can hear the smile in his voice.
I laugh. "I'm already ready for bed, Nate."
"Even better," he says mischievously.
I can't help the smile that spreads across my face. I give him my username and hang up, quickly giving myself an up-and-down in the mirror. I'm wearing soft biker shorts and an oversized hoodie. I consider taking it off and exposing the cropped camisole underneath but decide it would look too much like I'm dressing up for him. I'm not wearing any makeup, but I do take my hair out of its messy bun and instead gather it in a claw clip so my front pieces frame my face.
His video call chimes on my laptop just as I sit down. I plug in my headphones and answer the call.
"There she is!" he says with a smile. He's wearing a black hoodie, with the hood pulled over his tousled blonde hair. He's also wearing thick-framed glasses, which makes me realize that I've only ever seen him wear sunglasses.
I match his smile as I lean back in my chair. "Here I am."
"Is this really what you sleep in?" He asks, cocking his head to the side, considering me.
I scoff. "You wish."
"I do, yeah. Although, if it were up to me, it would be skimpier."
"For all you know, it is skimpier," I tease.
He groans, and the sound fills my headphones in a way that sends a slight chill up my spine. "And you would keep that from me?" he grins at me. "You really are heartless."
I laugh. "What did you do today that made you so tired?" I ask, changing the subject.
"Well, I'm definitely not tired anymore," he says, running his tongue over his teeth, "but I had a huge paper due and then an in-class lab. I sort of left the paper til the last minute, so I was up pretty much all of last night working on it."
"Sounds like you probably should go to bed early," I muse.
"This is way more fun," he responds. I bite my lip, glad to hear that he shares my sentiment. "What did you do today?" he asks.
"Hmm," I try to remember. "Well, I had lunch with Jason today."
"So I heard," he smiles genuinely, "Jason is one of my best friends."
"Really?" I suppose it shouldn't surprise me, but it's hard to imagine bright, sunny Jason hanging out with cynical Nathan, all cigarettes and under-eye bags. "He's pretty great, I think he wants to fold us into his already huge lunch group."
He smirks. "Who's us?"
"Oh, me and my friends Nicole and Maia."
He raises an eyebrow. "Nicole, huh?"
I feel protective all of a sudden. "Yeah, you know her?"
"I've heard things."
"Well, they're not true," I snap.
He doesn't seem to react. "I didn't really think they were. Kenny is a liar, everyone knows that. It's cute that you're so protective over Nicole."
I roll my eyes. "Yeah, you tend to do that when some asshole assaults your friend and then tries to ruin her reputation. Why do you hang out with him?"
"I don't," he shrugs. "I hang out with my friends and Kenny tags along like an annoying relative at a family function."
That reminds me of something.
"Yeah, you seem to have quite a few annoying friends. Why'd you give Ethan my number?" I ask, but my annoyance is already fading away.
He laughs. "Okay fair, I'll admit I have my ulterior motives."
I raise my eyebrows. "Which are?"
He leans in. "I'm giving you another heart to break, on a silver platter, even."
I scoff. "What makes you think I want that? I'm really not this heartbreaker you're convinced I am."
"I doubt that," he says thoughtfully, "since he asked you out and you said you'll 'think about it.'" He adds finger quotes with a devilish grin. "Consider this my way of aiding your transformation. Plus, Ethan could use an ego check."
I purse my lips, thinking it over. "What is your obsession with making me a heartbreaker?"
"I can never resist a heartbreaker," he replies, without missing a beat.
He leans back in his chair and stretches his arms over his head, exposing the corded muscle of his hips beneath the hem of his hoodie. He pushes the hoodie off his head, running a hand through his hair. It's a lot to take in, but I don't want to let him know how attracted I am to him. Not yet, at least.
"Oh yeah? What if I break yours?" I ask with a smile that matches the devilish look in his eyes.
He laughs lightly. "Don't threaten me with a good time."