“No, it was hilarious.” Oscar dropped his hand to reveal his red and swollen cheek.
Megs grabbed his hand. “Come inside. Let me get you some ice.”
“Megs, you don’t need to do that. I’m—”
She ignored his protestations and pulled him through the sliding glass doors, then pushed him toward one of the bar stools next to the shining granite countertop and strode to the stainless steel refrigerator. On the freezer side, she found an ice pack sitting in the door.
“At least you’re well prepared,” she murmured as she closed the door and rounded the countertop.
“Never know when you’re going to get a fist to the face.”
Megs snorted and held the ice pack against his cheek. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve seen you dropping, and—”
Oscar put his hand over hers. “Can you stop apologizing please?”
Megs closed her mouth and nodded. He didn’t pull his hand from hers, and the ice pack under her palm made the warmth from his skin even more palpable.
“Are you having a good time?” he asked.
“Of course.”
Oscar exhaled. “I only ask since you tried to drop out of the competition no less than four times the other night.”
Megs’ eyes widened, and she felt like smacking him a second time. “You caught that, huh?”
Oscar chuckled and let his arm fall. “Of course I did, but I wasn’t going to let you out of it that easy. Your audition was too good.”
Megs shook her head. “I doubt that carries much weight.”
Oscar reached up and this time took the ice pack from her. “What do you mean by that?”
No longer needed, Megs took a step back and folded her arms. “You know what I mean. These are your friends and you don’t know me from Eve.”
Oscar set the ice pack on the counter, appraising her. “This competition isn’t only about the narration.”
Megs gave a look of mock surprise. “No, really?”
Oscar held up his hands in defense. “But it alsoisabout the narration. I simply saw an opportunity to do both.”
“Both?” Megs’ eyes narrowed.
“Remind my friends who they are. What they’ve lost over the last thirteen years.”
Megs leaned against the counter. “Each other?”
Oscar replaced the ice pack on his cheek. “No, though that would be an added bonus. All of them gave up on their dreams to do something more practical, and I wanted to show them they could think bigger.”
“You don’t think they’re happy.”
He scoffed. “I know they’re not happy.”
“How?” Every time Gideon had mentioned Matt or Alli he made it sound like they hadn’t seen each other in years. How would Oscar Calloway know enough about their lives to make a judgement call like that?
“Because I understand them, deep down. What Gideon said out there? About knowing people before you could find romance? Those are the friends I understand better than anyone else in the world, especially Gideon. I grew up with him. We’ve known each other almost our entire lives.”
Megs pondered this. “And you don’t think people can change?”
“Of course they can change, but they can’t become someone fundamentally different. Gideon is an artist. I’m sure he’s a sight to behold in a classroom, but his heart is that of a creative. He won’t ever truly be satisfied there.”
