Snake doesn’t mute the TV this time; he turns it off completely. He rotates his body around and folds his arms across the back of the couch, eyes curious. “Tyler,” he says, “can I ask you why it’s becoming a daily occurrence for you to bring home a girl with a suitcase?” He throws me a pointed glance.
“Hey, Snake,” the girl murmurs with a sad smile, her voice apologetic. And her accent? Her accent is British. I’m in no doubt at all that I am now standing within a twelve-foot radius of Emily.
The only thing I can think is, Why the hell is she here?
“Hey,” Snake shoots back. “So what’s going on?”
Tyler knees the door shut behind him as he moves into the center of the room, but Emily remains by the doorway. He clears his throat and meets Snake’s gaze. He’s yet to look at me. “Emily’s gonna be staying here for a little while,” he says.
Staying here? Staying here? I almost want to scream the apartment down, but I’m frozen in place, my throat too dry to even attempt to make a sound. I dig my nails into the worktop.
“No questions asked,” Tyler adds, giving Snake a firm warning glance before he can open his mouth.
“Honestly,” Emily says, rushing to Tyler’s side, “if it’s too much of a hassle . . .”
“No, it’s fine.” His voice is firm.
“Are you sure?”
I want her to stop talking. I want that accent to disappear. I want her to walk out. But I know that none of these things are going to happen, so I try to control my breathing instead. It’s ragged.
“Positive,” he says. “We’re just, uh, a little short when it comes to beds. Snake?”
“Sure, she can sleep with me,” Snake agrees, a smirk on his lips. It soon fades when Tyler narrows his eyes at him. “Fine, fine,” Snake huffs. “I’ll take the couch like you. She can have my room.”
“There you go,” Tyler says. He smiles reassuringly down at Emily, right before he tilts his face in my direction. It’s like he hasn’t even realized I’ve been standing here the entire time, because he widens his eyes and then gestures for me to come over. I don’t even flinch. “Emily,” he says, giving me a clipped nod, “this is my stepsister, Eden.”
Slowly, her lips form a warm smile. She’s about to reply, about to ask me what’s up or tell me how great it is to meet me or simply say hey, but I can’t take it. I can’t handle standing in the same room as her and I can’t handle the idea of her dating Tyler.
And so before she can even speak, I storm through the living room, marching past both Tyler and Emily as fast as I can without meeting their eyes. I feel like I might just burst into tears any second, so the moment I get into Tyler’s room and shut the door behind me, I let out a sigh of relief to be away from them.
My heart is pounding so hard that I can hear it vibrating in my ears and only then do I realize just how fast I’m breathing. I don’t know why I’m getting so worked up. At first I think it’s just anger. Anger at Tyler for never mentioning the fact that he’s seeing another girl, anger at him for telling me everything he did last night and leaving me with false hope. But for some reason, I realise I don’t feel that furious. Just disappointed and unable to cope. And then, slowly, it sinks in that I’m not angry at all. I’m jealous. So unbelievably jealous.
The door swings open, ending my fifteen seconds of privacy, and Tyler steps into the room, muttering, “What the hell?”
Even looking at him hurts, so while he clicks the door shut behind him, I fold my arms across my chest and turn my back to him. “Don’t try to introduce me to your girlfriend after telling me last night that you’re not over me,” I spit, bubbling with contempt. Why does this girl have to stay here? Why does my summer have to be ruined already?
“Girlfriend?” Tyler echoes. “You think she’s my girlfriend?”
I glance over my shoulder. I think my heart might have even paused for a second. “She’s not?”
“God, Eden, no.” He shakes his head and breathes a laugh, which puts me at ease. He even rolls his eyes. “Emily’s just a friend. We toured together.”
Relief is flooding through my body, but I try not to look too thrilled. I remain calm, staring back at Tyler. “How come you never mentioned her to me?”
“Honestly, I don’t know,” he murmurs. Brushing past me, he sits down on his bed and interlocks his hands between his knees. “I never mentioned any of the people I toured with. Well, I did. I just never really told you their names.”
I can tell by his eyes that he’s being truthful, so I sigh and sit down next to him. I make sure to leave a few inches between us. “Why is she staying here?”
“Because,” he says, “she needs a place to crash. She’s got some stuff going on right now. She’s from the UK.”