“That’s what you keep telling me.”
“C’mon, Pidge. What happened to us being friends?”
“We can’t be friends, Travis. Obviously.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t want to watch you maul a different girl every night, and you won’t let anyone dance with me.”
He smiled. “I love you. I can’t let other guys dance with you.”
“Oh yeah? How much did you love me when you were buying that box of condoms?”
Travis winced and I stood up, making my way to the table. Shepley and America were in a tight embrace, and making a scene while they kissed passionately.
“I think we’re going to the Sig Tau date Valentine’s party again,” Finch said with a frown.
I sighed. “Shit.”
CHAPTER NINETEEN
hellerton
America hadn’t been back to Morgan since her reunion with Shepley. She was consistently absent at lunch, and her phone calls were few and far between. I didn’t begrudge them the time to make-up for the time they’d spent apart. Truthfully, I was happy that America was too busy to call me from Shepley and Travis’ apartment. It was awkward hearing Travis in the background, and I felt a little jealous that she was spending time with him and I wasn’t.
Finch and I were seeing more of each other, and I was selfishly thankful that he was just as alone as I was. We went to class, ate together, studied together, and even Kara grew accustomed to having him around.
My fingers were beginning to numb from the frigid air as I stood outside Morgan while he smoked.
“Would you consider quitting before I get hypothermia from standing here for moral support?” I asked.
Finch laughed. “I love you, Abby. I really do, but no. Not quitting.”
“Abby?”
I turned to see Parker walking down the sidewalk with his hands shoved in his pockets. His full lips were dry under his red nose, and I laughed when he put an imaginary cigarette to his mouth and blew out a puff of misty air.
“You could save a lot of money this way, Finch,” he smiled.
“Why is everyone trashing on my smoking habit today?” he asked, annoyed.
“What’s up, Parker?” I asked.
He fished two tickets from his pocket. “That new Vietnam movie is out. You said you wanted to see it the other day, so I thought I would grab us some tickets for tonight.”
“No pressure,” Finch said.
“I can go with Brad if you have plans,” he said with a shrug.
“So it’s not a date?” I asked.
“Nope, just friends.”
“And we’ve seen how that works out for you,” Finch teased.
“Shut up!” I giggled. “That sounds fun, Parker, thanks.”
His eyes brightened. “Would you like to get some pizza or something before? I’m not a big fan of theater food, myself.”
“Pizza’s great,” I nodded.
“That’s uh…that’s good, then. The movie’s at nine, so I’ll pick you up at six thirty or so?”
I nodded again and Parker waved goodbye.
“Oh, Jesus,” Finch said. “You’re a glutton, Abby. You know that’s not going to fly with Travis when he gets wind of it.”
“You heard him. It’s not a date. And I can’t make plans based on what Travis is okay with. He didn’t clear it with me before he brought Megan home.”
“You’re never going to let that go, are you?”
“Probably not, no.”
We sat in a corner booth, and I rubbed my mittens together, trying to get warm. I couldn’t help but notice we were in the same booth Travis and I sat in when we first met, and I smiled at the memory of that day.
“What’s funny?” Parker asked.
“I just like this place. Good times.”
“I noticed the bracelet,” he said.