“What is what?”
“What am I guessing?”
“Oh! Now it feels anticlimactic. It’s just, I realized something the other night that made me think of you.”
“What?”
“Have you ever noticed that dragon rhymes with flagon?”
“Um. Yes,” he says, smiling.
“I guess it seemed funnier on Friday,” I say. “Told you it was anticlimactic.”
“I think it’s climactic!”
Climactic. Okay, that word. Jesus Christ. It can’t be possible to blush this hard. I can’t keep acting like this around him.
“Hey, I have a question,” he says suddenly. He clears his throat. “Do you feel like working today?”
“Oh. Sure. Do you need me to cover your shift?” I tuck my hair behind my ear.
“No, I just want company.”
“Really?”
“Really. And,” he adds, “I’ll pay you in Mini Eggs.”
“You must think I’ll do anything for Mini Eggs.”
“Yes.”
I grin at him. I don’t know how to explain the way I’m feeling. It’s equal parts terror and contentment. Which makes no sense. I know that.
“Let me text my moms so they know.”
“That’s very responsible of you.”
We walk down Carroll Avenue, and Reid tells me about a new shipment at Bissel. Except I’m having trouble paying attention. To be honest, I’m a little bit obsessed with my hand. And his hand. And the space between our hands. I don’t know if I should swing my arm or clasp my hands or let it hang. Every movement feels weirdly deliberate. It’s a little ridiculous. If you turned me into a pie graph, the obsessed-with-hands part would look like Pac-Man.
“So, we’re left with the greatest quantity of bubble wrap ever to exist in one room,” he concludes.
“What about the bubble wrap factory?”
“We have surpassed even the bubble wrap factory.”
I pantomime pinching a bubble between my fingers. Pop.
“Pop,” Reid says. I look at him, and he’s smiling.
We walk right past Cassie—I don’t even notice her until she calls out to me. She’s on a bench with Mina and Olivia, and they’re all holding cups of gelato with tiny plastic spoons. Cassie’s legs are tucked up cross-legged. “Hey! Where are you guys going?”
“I tricked Molly into helping me work,” Reid says.
“No, I tricked him into thinking he tricked me.”
Mina giggles, and Cassie rolls her eyes, but not in a mean way.
“Have you guys met each other?” I say. “Olivia, Reid.”
“Hey.” Reid smiles at Olivia, and she smiles back. I feel almost apprehensive. Maybe it’s the particular way he’s smiling, or the way her cheeks have gone pink.
“Wow. I love your shirt,” Olivia says.
Reid looks delighted. “Wait, are you into Game of Thrones?”
“Am I into Game of Thrones?” she asks incredulously. “Am I a human being with a beating heart?”
“Yes!” Reid pumps his fist.
And my twist of dread turns into a tidal wave of panic. Because I’ve already seen this exact kind of moment unfold. At the 9:30 Club. With Cassie and Mina, and Mina’s Georgie James shirt.
And for the first time in four years, Olivia is single.
No. No. No.
I’ve never been someone who gets the urge to hit people. I’m not actually imagining smacking Olivia across the face right now.
My sweet, faerie-loving, ocean-calm friend Olivia! Who just had her heart broken. By Evan Schulmeister. I think I must be going crazy.
Because this is Olivia.
I mean, I can’t be this shitty of a person.
“We should get down there,” I say quickly, and Reid nods.
“Okay, well, hey,” Cassie says. “We were thinking about having a sleepover tomorrow night. With us and Will and Max. Do you guys want in?”
I don’t even have to look at Cassie to know that she’s mortifyingly twinkle-eyed right now. I can hear it in her voice.
I look up at Reid, and he shrugs. “Okay. Yeah.” He smiles.
And Olivia smiles, too.
I can’t tell if the lurch in my stomach is excitement or dread.
PATTY AND NADINE ARE ALL about the sleepover. I think they’d be twitchy if it was just Mina. I guess they recognize the rest of us for the vag-blockers we are.
I don’t even think they worry about me around boys. So, that’s a little sad.
Anyway, Nadine digs out some old sleeping bags from the linen closet, which is essentially an official endorsement. Mina’s eyebrows shoot up. “Your parents are so cool.”
“So are yours!” says Cassie.
“Mine are like low-key cool,” Mina says. “Not this cool. Do your parents let you drink?”
Cassie and I glance at each other. “Not technically,” she says.
Mina bites her lip. “Should I tell the boys not to bring vodka?”
“We’ll be discreet.” Cassie grins, and my heart beats faster. I’ve never felt quite so seventeen.
We carpet Cassie’s floor in sleeping bags. Our entire upstairs used to be an attic, so the rooms aren’t exactly huge. Cassie’s isn’t the biggest, but it feels like it is, because it’s the only room where the ceiling peaks high enough to fit the bunk beds.
Mina stays for dinner, and Nadine has picked up those giant double-fried Korean chicken wings from Bonchon to impress her. And honestly, I can’t decide if it’s a sweet effort, or if we’re wading into Grandma Betty territory. But Mina laughs it off. “That’s awesome,” she says.
“Well, we think you’re awesome,” Nadine replies.
But everyone’s acting awkward. Except Xavier, who’s doing drum solos on his high-chair tray with a plastic spoon. But the rest of us. I can’t explain it.
“So, who’s coming tonight?” Patty asks. “Olivia . . . ?”
“And Will and Max and Reid,” Cassie says.
“That’s a lot of dudes,” Nadine says.
We’re all silent for a moment.
“Yes,” Cassie says finally.
“So, are you guys feeling ready for the wedding?” Mina asks.
“I think so.” Nadine shrugs. “It’s very casual. We’ve got about thirty-five people coming, so it’s just about making sure we feed everyone.”
“And we’ll have kosher, gluten-free, vegan, everything,” Patty adds.
There’s another random silence. I don’t even know why. Maybe we haven’t found our rhythm with Mina.
“And our nephew is arranging the table and chair rentals,” Patty says.
“Isaac?” I ask. That’s Abby’s brother, and I’m having trouble picturing him on the phone with a wedding rental facility. He’s ridiculously smart—smart enough to get a full scholarship to Howard. But he loves to party, and not in the way that involves rented Chiavari chairs.
“He has hidden depths,” Nadine says.
“Maybe we should have a backup plan.”
“Right, what’s the plan if it rains?” Mina asks. “My mom was wondering that.” She takes a bite of her chicken wing and puts it down, reaching for her napkin.