Chapter Twenty-Seven: "Daily Water Intake."
THERE'S A MAN in my bed.
That was the first thought to come to smy head on Sunday morning, one day before classes started again tomorrow. One day before my reading week was officially over and I resented it, wishing I could go back to last Sunday in a heartbeat.
Keeping my eyes closed, my hand shot out horizontally. I was met with only the fabric of my comforter. Cracking open an eye, my thoughts were confirmed.
Jesus Christ, there was a man in my bed.
Where Aven had laid just last night was replaced by my comforter neatly placed with a pillow up against the headboard. On the comforter laid my phone which somehow had been plugged in, my long charger wire running off the bed. In my hazy state, I reached for the device which almost fell out of my hands and onto my face when I saw the latest text message.
Aven: had to head out to early morning gym with Iman but check your desk and i'll see you later tonight.
Aven: also, you drool, did you know that?
Tonight.
I shot up from my bed, ignoring the slight embarrassment coursing through me at the fact that he knew that I drooled. Of course, I knew that. I wanted to say even if the question was rhetoric but I was seeing Aven again. Again.
Wait.
"Check your desk?" I mumbled, my eyes darted up to see a package on the table. It must have been in his bag when he had arrived.
"He didn't..." My voice trailed off as I got out of bed, scrambling to the orange package. A delivery package. His address was on the stamp, but he said 'check your desk'. He left the package for me. What was inside was for me.
"He didn't, he didn't, he didn't," The disbelief coated my voice, repeating the words as I opened the package with my hands, ripping through the paper, the bubble wrap, tossing all over my shoulders before taking out the fabric inside. My eyes widened at the present before me and a small laugh left my lips.
"He did," I all but squealed, tossing the packaging behind me as I held the shirt up by the shoulders. Black and orange with a picture of my favourite artist right at the center with his name above his face and various items surrounding him. Limited edition. "No fucking way."
I can't believe he...I jumped over one of my sweaters lying on the ground, hopping onto my bed to get a full-sized view of myself in my full body mirror in the corner of the room. Holding the shirt up in front of me, I didn't realize I was nodding to myself, my smile splitting my face, "Holy shit, he did."
Instantly, I felt the need to tell someone. I bolted out of my bedroom, finding Larine in the bathroom brushing her teeth. Her midnight blue eyes went wide at the sight of me so early in the morning. I knew she didn't expect to see me until at least noon.
"What?" She asked, trying not the let foam fall from her mouth.
"Aven slept over."
"What?" Foam dripped out of her mouth as she rushed forward and we both grimaced leading to me making a face and her giving me a sheepish smile in the midst of her excitement. She was quick to spit the foam out of her mouth before running back over to me, her blonde hair escaping from her ponytail. Her voice dropped to a whisper, "Is he still here?"
"No, no. He left at 6 to go to the gym with Iman."
"And you both stayed in your room?" She used her hands a lot, moving them with each word. "Slept in the same bed?"
"Yes."
"Oh damn," Her eyes flickered with more interest as she glanced down at the shirt in my hand. "Sex?"
"No sex," I told her, ready to tell her that he left me a present when something else entered my mind. It was now or never. "Wait, um, speaking of sex, can I tell you something?"
"What?"
"It involves the B-word."
"Bitch?" A laugh spilled from my lips, but I was glad that he wasn't the first thing to come to her mind instantly. She was healing. Little by little and I was fully seeing the process since she was standing here in the bathroom for the first time on Wednesday, not on the verge of tears.
Tears would come eventually again but she'd be okay. I knew it. Larine was strong, I noticed, much stronger than I realized. She had given Benny her all, traded him in for friends and a love she thought was mutual. She deserved better. And she would get better for sure.
"The other B-word," I clarified.
Her face dawned with realization. But no tears welled in her eyes this morning. Instead, she nodded for me to continue, "What about him?"
"Did you know that the headboard of your bed faces the wall of my room?" I asked her. Slowly.
"Yeah, but what does that..." Larine's hands went to her mouth, a gasp leaving her throat that mangled in disbelief and slight horror, "No."
I winced. "Yes."
"No."
"Unfortunately, yes," At this point, I was cringing with her, for her, for both of us. I struggled to not bury my face in my hands at the fact that I was saying this but fought against it. And I fought hard. "It got to the point where I knew when he was about to be done."
"Oh my God," Larine mumbled in shock, running her hands through her blonde hair. She genuinely looked so embarrassed, her cheeks flushed beat red. Instantly, I regretted speaking, feeling horrible that I had to put it up in the air like this. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Now I had one hand covering my face. If this was months ago, I was certain I would have taken the shirt and thrown it over my face to stop this conversation. "I've been trying to say something for months, I just couldn't."
"Jaime."
"I'm just..." I let out a whole-body shiver at countless memories of that sound since early September. I moved my hand to look at her wide-eyed expression. "Let's pretend that didn't happen at all, okay?"
There was a pause, her hands lifting to her mouth as she thought deeply before she asked, "Did everyone know you could hear that?"
I didn't think it was possible to feel even worse. Was it so hard to simply just talk to her about it like many people had told me to do so? "Yes."
"Jaime."
"I'm sorry!"
"You're sorry? I'm sorry!" She exclaimed. The two of us looked at each other and then burst out laughing, holding onto each other's arms as we burst into shrieks of giggles.
Once we calmed down, she rinsed her mouth and put her toothbrush away. "I wanna move things in my room today. Specifically where my bed is, so are we up to do some interior designing?"
"I'm down." I said, "But first, breakfast? We can make pancakes." As far as I knew it she was the only person in this household that ate breakfast like me. Yasmeen and Mari always skipped it.
"Pancakes," She mumbled as if she's dreaming up something good. "And french toast. I like french toast. I make a good grilled cheese too that my parents and sister love."
"How many years between you and your sister?" I asked, as we made our way down the stairs and bounced into the kitchen.
"Four or five—no five," She said with a shrug. I understood. I forgot my sister's age all the time. "You have a sister too, right?"
Larine and I figured ourselves out that morning, making breakfast (eggs, pancakes, french and her famous and good grilled cheese) and uniting a friendship in November that I definitely wouldn't have seen coming back in September.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On that Sunday night, Larine settled for spending the night talking to her friends back home when Dev picked me up on his way back from getting groceries. I showed Dev a new playlist I had made earlier that day in the car as we rode to the apartment.
When I entered apartment 704 that night, Kyle was the first person I saw. He was crossing the living room to the hallway as I kicked off my shoes, giving me a nod of acknowledgment before disappearing.
Didn't seem like Mariam had talked to him about the video chat.
All the boys of 704 were back. Laurence exited the kitchen next, shooting me a bright smile when he saw me before grasping me into a hug with his solid arms. He had a comforting touch and smell that made me smile back. It was good to see him in better spirits than two days ago.
"Nice to see you too, Laurie," I said once we released each other and Dev made his way past me, saying he would be back after he quickly changed.
Laurence steered me in the direction of the living room, the pre-talk for the hockey game already occurring. He sat down on the solo couch and I took the one in front of the TV. When Dev returned, he plopped down next to me, eyes already stuck to the screen. Laurence eyed Dev carefully just as he increased the volume. Dev was wearing an Edmonton Oilers jersey but the hat fit backwards on his head was for the Toronto Maple Leafs.
No way. "Are you rooting for both teams?" I asked.
"Yes." He didn't seem to think that was a problem at all.
"You don't watch hockey properly," Laurence muttered, kicking his feet up. But his eyes were glued to the screen as well as Dev tapped vigorously on his phone in some chat.
"Who's that?" I asked.
"Friends from home. We're all watching the game."
"Oh, to have someone as obsessed with me as Dev is with hockey." Laurence sighed dramatically making me laugh when I felt the couch dip on my other side.
Aven reached forward for a water bottle on the table. "Get here okay?"
"Mmhmm," I said to him, looking at the damp curls on his head and his bright eyes. Jesus fucking Christ. "Got here fine. Dev liked the playlist."
"I still think you should add some of the songs I told you to add." Aven said, handing me a bottle of water.
"Again: under consideration," Then I nudged Aven quickly as I gasped, my voice quiet. "And thank you. You didn't have to get me one."
"Seriously?" Aven took a swig of his water.
"What do you mean seriously?"
"You love Frank more than anyone I know. So, yeah, I was getting you one. I was going to get you one regardless."
Regardless of what? It didn't matter. The gesture was so kind even if he made it seem like it was nothing. It meant so much to me, I could have melted into a puddle right there in his living room. "Aven..."
His eyes searched my face, one corner of his lip rising. The unspoken 'you're welcome' transmitted to me and made me smile right back. "Just say thank you again one more time. I like hearing it."
I shot him a look to which he fully grinned. "Thank you."
"Of course." He said, before tearing his eyes from me and looking ahead at the screen. The rest of the night went smoothly, Dev jumping up chaotically, shouting at the TV each time a play occurred. Laurence made popcorn between the first and second quarters of the game and was tossing it in his mouth over and over again. I made sure to ask questions whenever I was confused. And I was confused a lot. Dev didn't seem to mind, eagerly answering them. But most of my own attention was set between the Twizzlers between me and Aven's knee that he had brought out just before the game started and some part of our bodies constantly brushing each other whenever we reached for one.
During the second period, Kyle had joined us on the ground, a confused and annoyed expression on his face flaring up each time Dev got way too excited. That irritated the hell out of me. Mostly because Dev's excitement was kind of endearing.
He was majorly invested in hockey more than anyone I've seen who didn't actually play the sport. Laurence and Aven were obviously used to Dev's sudden reactions. Every time Dev jumped to his feet, Aven and Laurence started drinking their water and didn't stop until Dev sat back down in his seat. And he jumped to his feet a lot. They both had two empty plastic water bottles on the ground and were halfway through their third ones.
Dev narrowed his eyes at Laurie and Aven who were in the middle of drinking water as a play occurred. "Stop that."
"Stop getting up," Laurence muttered, getting up from his seat. "I need to take a piss. Look what you've done."
"What I've done is get you to your daily water intake," Dev muttered, eyes flashing as a player moved along the screen. The score was 2-0, to Toronto right now and I think Edmonton had the ball. Or the puck, in this case. "Now your piss won't be yellow. You're welcome."
Laurence put his hands on his hips. "My piss isn't yellow."
"Why are we even talking about your piss?" Aven asked with a slight smile as Laurence, attempting to shove Dev back to his seat as he passed by him. Dev didn't budge, pushing Laurence away from him as he kept his eyes on the screen.
"I'll have you know," Laurence said, pointing at all of us. "My piss is clear. Can you say the same?"
"No one asked," Kyle muttered, as Aven laid a hand to his temple, his elbow close to my ear.
Laurence ignored him, turning to us on the couches, "I'll take a picture for proof."
"No!" Dev and Aven exclaimed.
"Is this a usual thing between you guys?" I asked.
Dev and Laurence exchanged a look. So it was.
"Last year, Dev wanted to know--"
"No, no, no." The hand Dev was pointing in Laurence's face to save himself from embarrassment was pushed down by Laurence's strong hand.
"He ate a beetroot last year," Laurence said to me just as Dev groaned at whatever the hell was happening on the TV. "His pee turned red, and he freaked the fuck out because he forgot he ate it and grabbed me to look at his pee."
"You forgot?" I asked Dev.
"I was very very high that day," Dev said in defence.
Laurence was already out of the room, bolting to the bathroom as I glanced at Aven. "Why a beetroot?"
Aven moved his hand from his temple as he slouched down on the couch to meet me eye to eye. "Sometimes things are better left unknowing in this place."
"Aven," Dev said, narrowing his eyes right now. He was still on his feet but this time he was walking ahead to the TV. "Respectfully, shut up."
Aven's eyes darted to the screen. "He is not going to score."
Dev's gaze broke away from the TV as he glared at Aven. I blinked at the unexpected expression on his face. Hockey night really brought out the best and seemingly the worst out of him. Aven wasn't fazed, attempting to suppress the smirk coming onto his face by rubbing his bottom lip.
Dev whipped back to the screen just as someone made the shot.
And missed.
"Fucking hell!" Dev turned back to Aven. "Fuck you."
"That's what you get for telling me to shut up."
Dev pointed a finger at Aven as he made his way back to the couch. "Shut up."
"Oh, look," Aven's voice was lighthearted, a wide smile overtaking his face. "They're going to miss again."
Dev took a deep breath "Jay, you're lucky you're here."
"Or you would do what?" I asked cautiously.
"Yeah," Aven was enjoying this way too much. And I sat there entertained. I decided I liked hockey nights at 704. "You would do what, Dev?"
Dev shot him the middle finger, visibly calming down as he focused on the game once more. Suddenly Aven's voice was right next to my ear and I locked up, trying not to lean against him. He smelled great. Fuck. "You need to come here every Sunday to see him like this."
"Every Sunday?"
"Every Sunday," Aven whispered. I still didn't turn to look at him. I didn't have the chance to when Laurence came back, grabbing another water bottle from the table before taking his seat again.
The break between the second and third periods let Dev run to get snacks from the kitchen. Kyle was still on the ground, typing on his phone and the rest of us were looking at the commercials playing. When Dev returned, setting the snacks on the table, Kyle, tilted his head up. "Might check out Outlaw tonight," Kyle said as Aven got up to help Dev get more drinks. "You guys down?"
"Maybe," Laurence said, busying himself on the task in front of him on his tablet. Dev nodded, still focused on the game. Aven glanced down at me, awaiting my response. Inviting me.
Then the nice silent invitation fell out of my hands with a mental crash sound effect when Kyle asked, "Do you know if Trin's going?"
Trinity?
Her name made me tense. I turned my head in Aven's direction but he had started heading towards the kitchen, his back obscuring any chance I had of seeing his expression. "No."
"But she's in town. Logan posted her on her story. Something about a club conference?"
"I know." Aven sounded guarded.
"Her in town means you going to town." What would it take to shut Kyle up?
"Leave him alone." Irritation crossed Laurence's face as he reached across the table to grab a Sprite can. My eyebrows went up when he offered it to me. The offer loosened me up even if Laurence didn't give way to what he was thinking. I accepted it, lifting my legs, knees up to my chest and keeping my eyes on the TV as the next advertisement played.
"So, what? You're just done with her?" Kyle asked and a bad taste suddenly appeared in my mouth. The more time I spent with him, the more I was wondering how good the sex must be for Mariam if she was still hooking up with him. Or maybe he just didn't talk like this in her presence.
Aven didn't answer the question, ignoring him as I heard the fridge open. When Aven returned, I didn't look at him. I kept my attention on the game. The rest of the boys were either super focused on the game like Dev or texting frantically on their phone like Laurence or somehow disappeared like Kyle.
But was he done with her?
Our conversation back on Halloween didn't entirely clarify it but she was back so soon. Right in his proximity. Yet he was here, with us, watching hockey when he could invite her over and completely ignore the rest of us.
What was he actually done with her and was this just an act of my paranoia?
It wasn't my business. What he wanted to do was what he wanted to do. I didn't have a say in the matter, but the thoughts and unsettling feelings within me rendered me silent as the game went on.
Aven leaned into me for the second time that night and I tensed up so easily at his closeness. "So."
"So?" I whispered back, glancing at Laurence and Dev who were both equally distracted. At this point, Dev's eyebrows were almost pulled together. I thought he was going to tip over if someone simply touched him.
"You're quiet," Aven murmured. "I don't like it when you're quiet."
"I'm not quiet," I said, keeping my eyes on the TV. I didn't understand hockey. I never wanted to understand hockey, but I was going to keep watching just because Dev was so enthusiastic about the sport. I was going to keep watching so that my expression didn't give way to how bothered I felt since Kyle had spoken up. It probably did. It didn't matter. Aven figured me out.
"You would've said something by now. You were talking throughout the first half of the game. You always talk when something's on. Movies, shows, hockey games, doesn't matter."
Well, what was I supposed to say?
I don't want you to hook up with your ex. I don't want to hear about it. I don't want to see you text her to come over. There is not a single part of me that could handle her showing up here, flirting with you with her perfect hair and her perfect face and leading you to your room that I'd become acquainted with over the past week. The room where I know you keep your silver water bottle on your nightstand and a black one on your desk that you use for volleyball. The room you keep insanely organized, where a picture of your parents and yourself is on your nightstand and a picture of you and your sister hung up near your desk. But it's not like I have a claim on you. It's not like we're together.
It's not like you're mine.
When I didn't respond, he audibly sighed. He slouched further on the couch. his hand brushing against my own (I had no clue if that was intentional) as he whispered, "Ask."
"Ask what?"
"Ask what you want to ask me."
I took a deep breath, "It's nothing."
"So, it's something."
"Aven."
"Jay." He insisted.
"Nothing," I assured him. I had no right to say anything. We were friends.
We were friends but the unsettling feeling was gnawing me in the stomach, bubbling over in a way I didn't expect.
Oh, god, I was jealous.
I never get jealous. There was never anyone to be completely jealous of until now.
That wasn't leaving Aven in good spirits.
Before I knew it, I was being lifted to my feet and tugged out of the living room by the hand. Dev barely spared the two of us a glance, fixated on the game in front of him. Laurence stared with wide dramatic eyes at Aven's impulsive gesture before both of them were out of my sight.
I walked into Aven's room, my body tense and fingers curled around my thumbs. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it, crossing his solid arms. I kept my face passive as he assessed me but it was no use. He could see right through me. "I'm not going to hook up with Trinity."
Oh. The coiled-up feeling in my body dissipated with each passing second. "What?"
"I'm not going to hook up with her," He kept his eyes levelled with my own. "Just thought you should know that since we're...friends."
"Friends." I agreed, the elephant slowly climbing off of my chest.
"Friends tell each other these things, right?" He asked the question slowly, hesitant.
"Right," I said, painfully aware that I wasn't looking at his eyes anymore.
"You just want to keep me in check," He theorized. He did that often. He had done that when we had first met. The issue was that he always said it as if he knew the correct answer and was trying to convince himself otherwise. "It's like if you hooked up with Malcolm."
I fought the need to roll my eyes.
Everyone needed to get Malcolm's name out of their mouths. I was sick of hearing his name when I had only seen him once in the past couple of months. But he was the only guy Aven had met and knew I hooked up with in the past. Yet I couldn't help but scoff, "I wasn't in love with Malcolm."
Aven took a deep breath, leaning back against the door, his hands shoved in his pockets, "But it's similar. Like going back to familiar."
"Sometimes you need something new, you know?"
His eyes flashed with something new, or something I'd yet to discover. "I know exactly what you mean."
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I was expecting a text message from Yasmeen since she was going to be arriving back in Jasper Bay tonight but it was her. Each text message from this person made my stomach twist whenever I realize I had to go all motto again.
Aven was staring at me, seeing right through my expression I tried hard not to break. "What's wrong?"
"It's just Clayton confirming if we're meeting up tomorrow."
Aven didn't look surprised and yet he asked, "You're talking?"
I nodded. "I texted him to talk everything out, so hopefully we'll be back to normal again."
I sent Clayton a message back, about to put my phone back in my pocket when Aven asked, "So you're not into Clayton, whatsoever."
I never shook my head so fast. "No, never have been. I just know that it wouldn't work. It's like that girl Trinity is friends with, Logan. Her liking Laurence, you know? But focused on what he had said about her." I was fully aware I was ranting. All Aven did was let his lips rise. "I wouldn't blame her. Laurence is Laurence. He's cute but that would never work out because Laurence just doesn't view her that way and even if Clayton did, in our scenario, I wouldn't ever be able to feel that way for him and I know it."
Aven pushed off of the door, opting to lean back against his desk instead. "You think Laurence is cute?"
All of that and that was what his mind extracted? I couldn't be fully agitated because my heart started beating awfully fast.
"Laurence is an attractive person, but I am not attracted to him. Do get what I'm saying?" Before he could say more, I waved a hand, dismissing the Laurence conversation but Aven wasn't going to let it go.
"So you're not attracted to Laurence? Yes or no?"
"Aven," I huffed. "One more time and I'll articulate just in case: I. Am. Not. Attracted. To. Laurence." Aven cocked his head at me, but I pulled on a tight grin. "Got it?"
"So, Laurence is attractive to you, but you're not attracted to him? What about Dev?"
I didn't like where this was going and I knew what he was about to do. "Same feeling. Just great people."
Then he paused. His eyes flickered over to my phone in my hands, expression lost as if he was remembering something before and he met my eyes again. They were filled with heat that sent a jolt down my body. "What about me?"
I almost closed my eyes. "Stop asking questions like that."
"Just answer the question."
I shook my head, totally seeing this question coming. Attractive and attracted. Heavily attracted. "You're about to cross a line, Aven Montaque."
"I wouldn't say I'm crossing a line, Jaiyesimi Okusanya."
The way my full name rolled off his lips made me stiffen. "You're stepping on the line with that question." I clarified, not looking at him. Stepping? No, he dove past it. "You did it during Halloween when you said you weren't going to sleep with Trinity, implying that it was because of me." Remember?
I could not be the only person in this room that remembered that. That moment.
Aven didn't speak. My heart was pounding out of my chest, making its own beat and my stomach was having its own party. "It was because of you." He admitted.
"You can't say that," I told him, my voice hoarse and I took a deep breath. He couldn't just say that and do many different things--
His voice was low, "Why not?"
"Because—no," He had taken a step forward. Too close. Way too close. No. "Stand back."
Aven looked amused, even as he did as I asked and didn't take another step in my direction. The look in his eyes let me know he wished he could come closer. If he could manage, I was certain he would be in front of me already. "Why?"
"Because if you come any closer, I don't know what I'm going to do," My confession made me frown. The attraction to him was there straight from the beginning even when we didn't know a single thing about each other. If someone had told me a stupid slip of my fingers tapping on a phone would lead to the two of us here, in his bedroom, a distance apart from the other only because I had to will him to stay put, I wouldn't believe them. "I can't tell."
Aven's grin widened.
My panic wasn't making this any easier and a part of me wanted to make it easier by just going to him. By jumping into his arms and tumbling onto his bed. His bed was comfortable. His arms looked comfortable. He looked completely comfortable with the idea.
Was I ever really good friends with someone to the point where my mind was consumed by them? No. Never. I never considered any past hookup a really good friend of mine and Aven couldn't be the same. He couldn't be on that level as they were. He wasn't. God. No. He couldn't.
I couldn't think. Not when he was looking at me like that. I didn't want to think. Yeah, no thinking when he has the obvious desire in his eyes.
I took a deep breath. The air in his room was warm all of a sudden. I felt warm. Was he warm? I didn't think so in that shirt—no, don't look at his forearms. Shit.
A knock sounded at the door, Aven turning smoothly and me jumping in the process. Laurence popped his head in, analyzing both of us and was quick to take in the tension with the following furrowed eyebrows. "Are you two good?"
"We're good," I said quickly, taking a shaky breath as I fumbled for my phone and when I saw the time and a new text message. Oh, thank God. My panic slowly started to fade. "I—I need to go. Yas is coming in tonight."
"Yas is in?" Aven raised an eyebrow. "Days of our Lives time?"
"Yes—but no," I put my hand out in his direction. "Not with you."
"Jay--"
"Not with you. Not now." I demanded.
"Not now? But someday?" He was so not talking about Days of Our Lives.
Aven didn't care that Laurence was in the room, eyes widening when he realized what was happening. When he probably realized what someday had meant. He was probably thinking that either we were going to argue loudly about this—whatever the hell this was—or...
Fuck.
No, seriously.
As a good friend, Laurence popped his head back into the hallway, closing the door abruptly. I was quick, swerving past Aven to grab onto the doorknob.
If I was in a room alone with him for any longer, I didn't know what would happen. Ms. Green was right, whatever friendship between the two of us has already been ruined but still, I needed to think. I need to think about him, about me, about us and I couldn't do it by being around him every single day. It was making my head spin when we so much as looked at each other, when we did a simple thing such as walking next to each other, texting each other, the list went on.
I sighed, my exhale loud and filled with frustration. "Aven."
"Jay." He tilted his head, crossing his arms and the movement made my eyes flicker down to the action. No.
I ignored any need that was rising within me. I ignored the scenarios in my mind that ran of me kissing him, of him striding forward and kissing me. Of his hands on me, on my face, on my waist. This shouldn't happen, I thought, opening the door to an empty hallway but the sound of Dev shouting at whatever was happening on the TV.
"I'll see you on Wednesday night," I said to him. At the symphony concert at the gold and royal hall. Dev would be attending with me and Laurence. I knew he would be attending as well.
We needed space. Every day of the break was spent with each other at some point. Every day from now on seemed like it would be too. This would do us some good. This would do me some good to think over whatever the hell this was between us.
"I'll see you on Wednesday," I repeated, more to myself than to him.
He frowned. He didn't like that. I didn't care. He was making this so much harder than it needed to be. "Jay."
I put my hand out again, hoping he would stay. Hoping and not hoping that he wouldn't come after me. "I'll see you Wednesday!"
Aven looked exasperated but he wasn't going to get me to budge. He knew me that well now. We knew each other that well. "At least text me when you get home."
"I'll text Laurie!"
He took a step forward, that long stride cutting the distance between us in half, "Jay."
I hated when he said my name like that. In a manner where he wasn't willing to argue about it. In a way that was filled with such concern at the same time, it left me overwhelmed for a split moment. I budged. I caved. "I'll text you."
The displeasure didn't leave his face, but his shoulders loosened by my response.
I stared at him for a heartbeat. Just a heartbeat.
And it took fibre of my being to leave his room.