“Willow is not one of your conquests. She’s not the girl you play games with.”
“Who’s the one playing games? Me or you? What’s with that fake dating bullshit? I already know she didn’t even know who you were a few weeks ago. She wants me.”
“I’m warning you, Aaron. This is not one of those high school games we used to play. I’m serious about her. Leave this alone.”
“Why do you have to ruin everything for me?”
“Ruin what? If you wanted Willow, you should have made a move a hundred years ago. You’re late like always.”
“I declared CGU first. Why did you have to come here?”
“Because it was the best place for my career.”
“You could have gone to the University of Miami. Why the hell would you come to who-gives-a-fuck Georgia? You did it to fuck with me.”
“You give yourself way too much credit. I wasn’t thinking about you when I made my decision.”
“Exactly.”
“Whatever, Aaron. This conversation is over.”
“Does she know why you don’t drink Tri-Gamma punch anymore? Does she have any idea who you turn into?”
“That was a long time ago.”
“A few sorries and the Copper Grove superstar gets a pass even in the Me Too movement.”
“I never assaulted anyone!”
“Does she know that when you were drunk and out of your mind freshman year that you fucked or almost fucked her roommate? Do you even remember?”
“What the fuck?”
“I bet she remembers.”
I try to recall what he’s talking about. Yes, I had a major drinking problem freshman year. Yes, I slept with a lot of girls whose names I don’t remember. I’m not proud of it but it happened. But is he saying that Scorpio is one of those girls? How could I have been with Willow’s roommate and it never came up?
“I got to give it to you, cousin. You don’t discriminate. You like ‘em all shapes and sizes, colors and creeds, even when they’re best friends.”
“This doesn’t make sense. You’re lying. I’ve been around Kia a million times. She never said anything about meeting me before.”
“It was freshman year. One of the first parties I ever did a set at. You were fucked up. Totally smashed. And you played a game of beer pong with a group of starry-eyed freshmen. One of them was Kia. You two were real cozy and disappeared somewhere in the Panther Center. How could you forget? She looks exactly the same. Long braids. Big ass.”
My stomach drops to my feet. Aaron is many things, but he’s not a liar.
“I don’t remember that.”
“Poor girl. I never saw her again after that. Hell, I thought she transferred schools, but I guess she stopped going to school parties because you probably walked by her on campus and didn’t even bother to wave hello. Now you’re sporting her roommate around campus like she’s your wife? That’s fucked up, bro’.”
“Why wouldn’t she tell Willow?”
“That’s the million dollar question of the day, isn’t it? I guess the only way you’ll find out is if you talk to her.”
FUCK!
* * *
There’s a Harry Potter movie marathon at the Panther Center and I suggested that the two of us catch at least part of it, so I have some frame of reference when she talks her Potter nonsense. It’s also another way for me to avoid having the conversation that we need to have. I’ve got to tell her what’s going on before I even think about approaching Kia for confirmation and definitely before she hears it from anywhere else.
