“Stop looking at me like I’m an alien, Ri. I swear, I am Gracie Cook and not a pod person,” she giggled as I sat down on the couch.
“Well I’m glad there are no pod people present. That would make for some awkward conversation,” I remarked dryly. Gracie held out a bowl of walnuts, offering them to me. I shook my head and she started digging in with zeal.
“So how’ve you been?” she asked me after a few minutes of me listening to her crunching.
I couldn’t help but laugh. Gracie looked at me questioningly.
“It’s just funny that here we are, all super normal like and you’re asking me how I’m doing. Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” I asked her.
Gracie made a face. “I spend all day telling people how I’m doing. It would be nice to talk about someone else. Just to shake things up a bit,” she joked and I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to address the reasons for my neglectful friendship. I wanted to figure out how to fix all the ways our relationship had soured. I wanted to take the bull by the horns after months of skirting issues instead of facing them head on.
And it seemed in some ways, Gracie was taking a leaf out of the Riley Walker book of confrontation. Get it out of the way as succinctly as possible.
“So I see you and Garrett are working things out,” she stated matter of factly.
It’s a good thing I wasn’t eating any of those freaking nuts, or I would have required the Heimlich maneuver.
“Um…yeah. I guess we should talk about that,” I said slowly.
Gracie blew out an exasperated breath. “Should we talk about the fact that you’ve been crazy in love with him for months now?” she asked me pointedly and this time I did choke.
“Excuse me?” I practically shouted.
Gracie giggled again. “I am so right! I knew it! You love Garrett Bellows! Riley and Garrett sitting in a tree…” she couldn’t continue over her hysterical laughter.
My face flamed red. “Well, I’m glad you find this so amusing,” I said, trying not to be irritated by the girl who had nearly died just days ago and was now laughing her ass off at the state of my love life.
Gracie made an effort to calm down. “I just never thought I’d see the day you would fall for a guy like Garrett.” She dropped her voice into a conspiratorial whisper. “I mean, he’s a townie and in a band. I couldn’t imagine someone so not your type.” And then she was giggling again.
Well, I didn’t know what to do. This was not how I envisioned this conversation going. I had pictured me cataloging the thousands of ways I had failed her as a friend. Gracie giving me the understandable cold shoulder. We’d hash out our issues. Gracie would cry. I’d give her some tissues. End of scene.
I was definitely not prepared for Gracie laughing her ass off over my reality defying relationship with Garrett. Not after the months of barely polite interactions I had endured with her.
“Yeah, funny stuff,” I bit out. I will not strangle the girl who almost died of alcohol poisoning. I will not strangle the girl who almost died of alcohol poisoning. I will not…
Gracie pinched her lips together, most likely to control her bout of hysterics. “I’m sorry. That was rude. I’m happy for your, Ri. Honest and truly. You deserve a guy like Garrett. He’s pretty amazing,” she said a little wistfully.
Now I could get to the root of our issues.
“You’re happy for me? Because from the way things have been between us, I was expecting a dart in the neck at the very least,” I said wryly and Gracie looked sheepish.