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Hey, I'm having someone over at five.
I stare at the text from Danica. It's been radio silence from her for the most part these last couple days. When she came back from spending the weekend with her dad, she didn't talk to me at all. She kind of just dropped her bags off in the room and left again. I didn't see her until nighttime when she came to take a shower and go to bed. I wouldn't say that I mind her absence because I enjoy having the room to myself but I feel as though things are going to be tense for the rest of the year, which I'm not looking forward to.
At least she texted me her plans though. Now I just need somewhere to go after work. I could hang out in the room for a little while and then go to the library, but I don't have much homework to do. I've done all of it during the time I spent avoiding both Asa and Maya these last few days. I'm too scared to deal with what happened on Saturday night. Given, it's only Wednesday so there hasn't been much communicating to be done; I can't help but be anxious about my next run in with them. I'm just waiting for Maya to ask me to get lunch.
When 3:00pm rolls around and I'm released from my shift, I make my way to the coffee shop to get a drink. For some reason, I'm so distracted and disoriented that I completely forget that Maya is working, like she is practically every day at this time. As soon as I step foot in the partially empty shop, I'm greeted with a familiar bell, which draws the attention of the workers. As a result, Maya coos loudly.
"Ivy!" she cheers as I slowly approach the counter.
"Hi," I respond with a small smile. She looks at the clock and gives me a cheeky grin.
"Are you going to spend the rest of my shift with me?" she wonders before leaning forward. "Please?"
I let my shoulders drop as I give in. "Sure," I confirm. She doesn't seem to have any pressing questions to ask, so I should be in the clear. Realistically, Asa didn't tell her anything, anyway. Maybe I've been avoiding her for no reason.
I sit in the chair closest to the register for the next hour, listening to her tell me about some funny encounters she had during her shift. The time seems to fly by fast as we talk about the dumbest customer service stories to have happened to us while working at the university. Soon enough, it's time for her to clock out and she does so eagerly. I offer to give her a ride home, seeing as I have nothing else to do and I have a bar on my room for the next few hours.
Our cheery conversation continues on the car ride and she's somehow managed to convince me to come hang out upstairs. I agree, seeing as her roommate doesn't even get back until about 5:10 anyway. So I join her on the creaky elevator, which I've been apprehensive to ride ever since getting stuck with Asa. After we safely make it to the fifth floor and then into her apartment, she locks the door and corners me. I'm taken aback as she turns a pointed finger on me.
"You've been avoiding us, huh?" she accuses as she advances upon me. I slowly back up and find myself standing in the living room, which is still dark. In a quick swat, she turns the light on and poses herself before me in a threatening manner.
"What?" I ask in slight confusion. I find my legs hitting the recliner, which I allow myself to fall into. She hovers above me, pacing a little.
"What the hell happened in the car?" Maya questions me and I stare at her with wide eyes. So I was right in assuming Asa didn't tell her. What I hadn't considered was that she'd turn the topic around on me. "Don't play dumb with me!"
"Nothing happened," I tell her awkwardly. It's not exactly a lie; we didn't do anything. We vaguely discussed doing something-what it was, I'm not sure.
"I'll keep asking you until I have to leave at 6:30," she threatens, "even when Asa gets back, I'll keep asking."
"Literally nothing happened, Maya," I retort defensively. She shakes her head in disbelief.
"You're lying to me," she accuses again, which gets a loud sigh in response. "Do you want to know how I know something happened, Ivy?"
"How?" I question as my head turns with her moving figure.
"Because I asked Asa and instead of calmly responding that nothing happened, he laughed and said 'ask Poison what she thinks happened' so I know something happened," she explains as she walks back and forth, "and I know you're avoiding him so I just want to know...do I have to beat his ass? Asa has never struck me as the pushy type but I know he's very blunt. Did he do something bad? Or did you do something bad? I swear, I'll beat both of your asses if I have to."
"What? No, Maya," I quickly reject her statement. "We just...had an awkward conversation."
"How so?" she encourages as she comes to a halt. Her arms tuck themselves within each other as she waits for me to explain.
"We went out to get pizza and while we were there, I complimented his smile. He then said that I just like looking at his mouth. That conversation came up again when I was dropping him off and I played into it a bit because it felt like we were flirting. Then things got awkward," I mutter as I recall the events in a huge cringe fest, "he told me to admire it up close, but I wasn't sure what he meant by that so I prompted him to explain. He just told me that we were on the same page but I didn't know what he meant! Did he genuinely want me to look at his smile or did he want me to kiss him?"
Maya stares at me for a few more seconds before slowly nodding and approaching the couch. "Wow, it's official," Maya concludes as she drops onto the couch. I perk up a bit in hopes that she'll say something enlightening. Instead, her eyes close and her fingers press against the bridge of her nose. "Both of you guys are idiots."
"Did he mean to kiss him?" I ask with raised brows. She opens her eyes and gives me one long blink. "Maya! It's Asa we're talking about! If I'd have tried to kiss him and that's not what he meant, he probably would've started screaming for help or something."
"I hate both of you," she concurs as she reaches for the remote. Instead of pressing her for more information, I sit back in a huff and turn my gaze to the news.
The sound of two footsteps enter the apartment at about 5:25 and Maya doesn't even break her gaze from the screen. I stare at the entrance to the living room and wait to see who it is. Just as I suspected Asa walks in with Aria in tow. He comes to a short halt when he sees me, which causes Aria to slam into his back. He quickly regains his stride and goes straight into his bedroom. Aria stutters a bit before dropping onto the couch beside Maya. Clearly nervous, she offers me an awkward smile.
"Hey," she greets and I nod in response. As if a lightbulb goes off over her head, she shifts forward a bit. "Asa and I are going to the mall for a few things. Do you want to come?"
I look to Maya, whose gaze is still locked on the television. "Go ahead," she encourages and I turn to Aria and offer a slow nod. If I go with Aria and Asa, I at least won't have to worry about any awkwardness that would occur if he and I were alone. And knowing Maya, she'll announce the elephant in the room and make everyone uncomfortable. This is my best bet to ease back into our usual form of friendship.
"Uh, is it cool with Asa?" I ask as I glance back at his door, which is still closed.
"Do we care?" she replies and her grin grows larger. A small one forms on my lips as I wait for him to return to the living room. When he does, Aria rises to her feet and glances at me, so I follow suit. "Ivy's going to be joining us."
He gives me an awkward, tight-lipped smile. "Perfect," he concludes and I fall in line behind Aria and before Asa, who tells Maya he'll see her later. As we approach the familiar black truck, I fall back and wait to see where Aria decides to sit. To my surprise, she grabs the backdoor and pulls it open. Asa doesn't even bat an eye as he goes around to the driver's side. Awkwardly, I climb into the passenger seat and buckle my seatbelt.
I risk a glance at Asa and acknowledge the relaxed expression on his face. His neatly cut jawline is tense and I can tell he's lightly grinding his teeth. His lips are resting in their usual pout and his long eyelashes are slightly tangled because of the way he squints. He quickly turns to me once the car roars to life and I abruptly look the other way in an attempt to save face. I don't think I do a good job because he chuckles and starts backing us out of the spot.
Anytime Aria makes an attempt to start conversation, Asa turns up the music a little louder. By the time we're pulling into a space at the mall, the music is practically blasting through the parking garage. I fall into step between them in the spacious, well-lit mall. Its silent for the most part and I think it's because all of our ears are ringing from the loud car ride. However, eventually Aria opens her mouth and Asa can't do anything about it.
"So Asa, help me start a conversation; what are some things that Ivy and I have in common?" she prompts him and he scoffs while tucking his hands deep in his pockets. He stares ahead and I genuinely wonder if he's thinking about a potential answer but his small, half smile tells me otherwise.
"You guys are both annoying as hell," he suggests and I bite back a grin.
"Asa Carmichael," she begins to threaten, which gets a grunt from him.
"Fine...you guys both like..." he peers up at the ceiling thoughtfully before shrugging, "pop music."
We fall into a discussion about our favorite artists and Asa occasionally pops in with statements on whether or not he thinks someone sucks. Usually, he does. As our conversation travels, the goal of this trip becomes clear: Tyson's birthday is coming up and Aria wants to get him something good. She turns to me for advice, which is the biggest mistake she could ever make.
"Okay...what should I get him?" she wonders as she stares into the sports store. That's the only hint I have; he's a big sports fan. Other than that, I know nothing about him. Usually when shopping for my brothers, I'd get giftcards or something they said they wanted. It was easier because I'd usually just go with one of them to pick something out for the other.
"She doesn't know him," Asa reminds her as he leans casually against a pillar. He's contributing nothing to the idea pool despite apparently knowing Tyson pretty well.
"Well, what would you get Asa?" she shifts the topic and I feel my face starting to warm up. I know she likes Tyson. Does she know that I know that? Is she comparing her crush on Tyson to my crush on Asa? Am I that see through? I suddenly realize that she posed a question for me and I awkwardly stumble over my words in search of a plausible answer.
"Uh, Asa's different," I inform her and his eyebrows rise on his forehead. Great, now I have to explain myself. I should've just said socks or something like that.
"How so?" he wonders as he stares at me expectantly. I admire the crisp white hoodie covering his torso and his black jeans, which fall into a pair of nice white sneakers.
"I feel like you'd appreciate anything I - or anyone - got for you," I ramble with a weak shrug. "Like, I could get you a pillowcase and you would still be grateful."
"Really? That's the vibe you get from Asa?" Aria questions with a severely shocked face.
"See? Someone thinks I'm nice," Asa comments with a satisfied grin.
"One year, I got him a book that he said sounded really good. After unwrapping it, he literally held it up and asked 'what do you expect me to do with this? Read it?'" Aria informs me with her hands resting on her hips. I slowly turn to Asa, who offers me a shrug.
"That was two years ago," he explains in an enlightened tone, "I've grown a lot. I'd appreciate anything you got me."
"Yeah, anything she gets you," Aria corrects with a dubious scoff as she turns her attention back to the racks of athletic clothing. She takes a weak hand and thrums it across the multitude of jerseys.
"Yeah, because I hate you, Aria. Have you ever considered that?" Asa harasses with a tilted head.
"You don't hate me; you just like her," Aria comments as she continues her search through a rack of clothes. My eyes widen a bit and I keep my gaze locked on the shirts she's rummaging through.
"She's never made me drink an entire bottle of hot sauce," he mutters, which gets a loud groan from Aria.
"Okay, first of all, no one made you do it. You did it yourself because you're a dumbass who can't say no to a dare," she retorts with a roll of her eyes.
"What can I say? I do every dare," he responds confidently and it's my turn to laugh.
"Actually, you don't," I remind him and he turns to me with a slightly sour look on his face before he peeks at Aria, who's already giggling. I realize that I don't have to explain myself because she already knows. I glance at him with raised brows and he just shakes his head as if advising me not to ask.
"She got you there," she announces with a quiet chuckle.
"Hahaha, very funny," he retorts with a roll of his eyes, "now shut up and shop for your boyfriend."
Aria eventually finds something worthy to give Tyson and, after getting Asa's approval that it'll be appreciated, she makes the purchase. As we're heading back to the parking garage, Asa shifts awkwardly and points to the bathroom. "What?" Aria asks when he stops dead in front of us.
"I have to pee," he announces before turning his finger on her. "Don't."
"Don't what?" she questions with a wide grin. He gives her a knowing look and I can tell that they've already had this talk before. He slowly walks to the bathroom, starting threateningly at her as he does. The second he disappears into the closed off area, she turns to me. "So..." I give her a curious nod, urging her to hurry up and expose her friend. Instead, she goes with a more vague intro: "Asa seems to like you."
"I mean...we're friends," I trail awkwardly, unsure of what she means. I feel stuck. What if she tells Asa that I think we're just friends? Judging by the expression on her face, I can tell she isn't interpreting my words as that.
"I'm sure you've noticed that he's not much of a talker...but he seems to talk to you a lot," she acknowledges with a suggestive grin. "Also, about you a lot."
"About me?" I prompt with raised brows. I rock back and forth on my feet slowly, waiting for her to continue the conversation.
"Yes," she says with a quick nod. "Like I said, he seems to be fond of you. I don't know what exactly is going on between you two; it's hard to tell. But I should warn you that he's one of my best friends and even though he has a hard exterior, he's a very nice boy. And I don't want to see him get hurt." She doesn't seem threatening but more cautious and hopeful, as if she's revealing a deep truth about herself and entrusting me to look after it.
"I-I don't plan on hurting him," I blurt before backtracking, "I mean, I also don't think I have the power to hurt him. We're friends and all and I'm-."
"Look," she prompts as she glances at the bathroom entrance, "I can't tell if you guys are just friends or what. You two have some weird flirtatious but tense dynamic and I can't exactly make out what it is. But I just want to ensure that whatever happens, he doesn't get hurt."
"Yeah, I will make it a goal of mine not to hurt him," I assure her.
"And if he hurts you, just know that I'll handle that in a similar fashion," she informs me just as he exits the bathroom. She offers me a wide grin before turning her attention to our mutual friend, who shakes his hands viciously to rid them of excess water droplets.
"What the hell did you say?" he asks Aria, who gives him an innocent smile.
"Nothing," she lies before nodding forward. "Now let's get going."
Asa drives in an unfamiliar direction and I come to the conclusion that we're en-route to her dorm building. He comes to a slow stop outside of a brick building and she offers me a smile. "It was nice seeing you again, Ivy," she comments.
"You, too," I reply quietly.
"Bye Asa," she says with a small shove to his shoulder from the backseat. I watch her exit the car and enter her building. It takes two seconds for Asa to pull off back onto the road and one more to turn his attention to me..
"Did she threaten you?" he blurts eagerly. I stare at him and contemplate my answer.
"Not outright, no," I confess with a shrug. "She just said that she doesn't want to see you hurt."
"Nice," he exhales irritatedly before dragging a hand down his face. With a wave of his palm, he dismisses her statements. "Just disregard everything she said."
"So you didn't mean it when you told her I'm the coolest person you've ever met?" I tease with raised brows. He glances at me, sees that I'm joking, and offers me a loud and amused scoff.
"I'm the coolest person I've ever met," he corrects with another familiar grin. I feel my stomach clench as I'm flashed back to our last encounter in a car.
"You don't count," I retort thoughtlessly with a roll of my eyes.
"Ouch," he concurs and I immediately turn to face him.
"That's not what I meant," I attempt to clarify but he purposefully looks forlornly out the window.
"No, it's fine. I get it," he replies while still bobbing his head from side to side disappointedly.
"Asa," I complain and he gives me a fleeting glance.
"Oh, you're talking to me? Someone who doesn't count?" he wonders dramatically. I swat his arm and he lets out a cackle. With a large smirk, he shifts away from my hand, "don't touch me."
"Or what?" I ask with raised brows. The smile on his face is contagious and I seem to have caught it. I watch as he gives me a playfully disgusted look.
"Are you trying to find out?" he retorts with raised brows. I analyze the flirtatious smirk on his face from his forward facing position. Am I trying to find out? I slowly raise my hand and he breaks his gaze from the road for a second and catches my palm in his. In a rather abrupt fashion, he entangles our fingers and drops them onto the center console. I stare at my hand, which is being loosely held by his, and feel my stomach do a full on gymnast routine.
"Are you trying to hold my hand?" I ask as the corners of my mouth maintain their upward positioning.
"Nope," he responds but makes no move to let go. It's loose enough that I can take my hand away if I want to, but I don't. Instead, I shift my arm so that it's more comfortable and discreetly tighten my grip on his palm. I turn my attention out the window as I feel my face start to heat up. Neither of us say anything else.
+++
For the rest of the week, Asa and I do small acts of affection towards each other, but only when Maya isn't around or isn't exactly paying attention. We're never bold enough to hold each other's hands but we do little things. In some instances, he'll touch the small of my back in passing or, when sitting next to each other, he'll put his arm behind my head. Maya never seems to notice so we don't have to stress about explaining ourselves. Besides, I wouldn't know what to say in that situation.
I sit at the table as Maya brews up a pot of coffee. I'm never here this early on Saturdays unless I sleepover but I woke up at 7AM to the sound of my roommate clamoring around in search of a specific crop top for a tailgate. I was up, noted that Maya was also awake through her social media presence, and was then invited over for some early morning coffee. I watch as she retrieves three mugs from the cabinet, which hints at me that Asa should be getting up soon.
"So I'm planning a party for Friday to kick off Thanksgiving break," Maya informs me as she watches the carafe fill up slowly. "I was thinking we could invite Aria, Tyson, Aaliyah, Zack, Rebecca, you and Asa obviously, and probably a few other people."
"Sounds good to me," I mumble with a shrug. I was actually going to ask Asa if he wanted to go do something that Friday before break because I'm going back home on Saturday morning. I know it'll only be a little over a week but I'll still miss him. I'd never admit it to him though, unless of course he admits it to me first. Maybe I can get him to sneak away for a little bit and we can go get ice cream or something, or maybe just go for a drive.
"Cool," she nods happily. "I just want to see everyone before I go to Taiwan and practically get cut off because of the time difference."
"I'll stay up extra late for a night or two just to talk to you," I assure her and she gives me a cheesy smile. The sound of a door opening breaks my gaze from her and I turn to find Asa entering the kitchen while rubbing his eyes. He appears disoriented and slightly confused and my presence doesn't seem to help. He glances at me before doing a double take. His eyes flit over to the microwave, which brands the early morning time: 8:32.
"Why the hell are you here?" he grumbles as he reaches into the cabinets for breakfast. Instead of being offended like I probably should, I get a kick out of watching him struggle to navigate with blurry vision.
"To see you in your natural habitat," I retort as I watch him fumble around for a box of cereal out of the top shelf. It rotates slowly and I wait for him to grow frustrated and snatch it. Shortly after my mental prediction, his hand forcefully grips the box and he places it on the counter.
"You're never even awake this early on the weekends," he acknowledges as he takes the seat across from me. He puts down the cereal and a bowl before venturing back into the kitchen to retrieve some milk. I watch as he comes back to the table and takes the seat he was in before.
"I was woken up by Danica," I inform him vaguely. She's gone all day so I'll probably return to my room and nap eventually.
"Did you threaten to beat her ass again?" he questions me, which gets a chuckle in response.
"No," I answer and he nods as he takes a mouthful of the sugary cereal. His hair is messy and is definitely evidence of his night long slumber.
"Good morning to you, too, Asa," Maya comments as she pours three mugs of coffee. She places them on the table and snatches the milk from him. He doesn't seem too bothered by her action.
"I don't recall saying 'good morning' to you," he mutters as he glances up at her, "did you hear me say anything, Poison?"
I grin between the two of them and shrug. "I didn't, Asa," I agree, which gets a scoff from Maya.
"Of course, he's been awake for all of five minutes and you're already flirting with him. He still has morning breath," Maya scowls with a roll of her eyes as she goes to gather ingredients for her coffee.
"Who said I was flirting with him?" I ask with raised brows.
"You are always flirting with me," Asa retorts matter-of-factly. I furrow my eyebrows at him before whipping around to look at Maya, who seems entertained with the current topic of conversation.
"Actually, I'm not," I deny once again. Boy, did this backfire?
"Asa, let me sit in your room with you. Asa, let's watch The Office. Asa, can I sleep in your bed tonight?" he mocks in a high pitched voice. I gape at him before glancing at Maya, who has to pause the pouring of her sugar to avoid spilling it. She grips the counter as chortles fall from her lips.
"I'm going to piss myself!" Maya announces as she hurriedly throws down the sugar and waddles to the bathroom. Asa seems satisfied with himself as he smirks at her disappearing figure.
Two can play at this game. I narrow my eyes at him. "Poison, let me hold your hand. Poison, lay your head on my chest. Poison, I know you like staring at my mouth; want to see it up close?" I mock him in a voice much lower than my own. His mouth drops a little as his eyes flit between both of mine.
"Screw you," he decides to say as he takes another large bite of his cereal.
I let out a satisfied chuckle as he continues to eat his breakfast in silence, now humbled. Maya returns moments later, still chuckling to herself. "He got you good, Ivy," she concludes with a large grin. I look at Asa, who is already glaring at me, and I offer her a nod.
"Yeah, he did," I agree with a secretive smirk on my lips.