“You dating anyone?” Matty asked.
I paused. “Nah.” Actually, girls hadn’t even crossed my mind for what felt like forever, since I’d been using the dildo on a daily basis, and that fulfilled all my needs. When I first came to Halverton, I told myself I’d get a girlfriend, but I’d completely forgotten about that plan. “I don’t want to be tied down,” I continued, which was not exactly a lie.
“Nice.”
“What about you?” I asked, to shift the conversation.
Matty talked about his hookups, which I tried to listen to, but mostly I kept thinking about the dildo thing. Oh god. What if I was developing an addiction? What if, in three years, when I graduated, I’d achieved nothing but fuck a sex toy?
“Your room’s kinda weirdly arranged,” Matty said, tearing me from my thoughts.
“Huh?”
He gestured at my furniture. “Your desk blocks the wardrobe, and I don’t think your bed should be right up against the window. It messes with the feng shui.”
“I don’t know anything about feng shui.”
“Okay, I don’t know much about it either, but it keeps coming up on my TikTok feed. Apparently, you should move your bed to that wall.” He pointed with his hands. “And move your desk there.”
I visualised it. “Oh yeah. That does actually make more sense.”
“I can help you.” He stood, wiping his greasy fingers with a napkin.
“Aren’t you tired?” My legs still hurt from training.
“Nup. It won’t take long.”
Well, I couldn’t let myself be outdone by him. I groaned, but got up, and let him boss me around the room, dragging furniture. Sometimes you had to put on a pleasant smile to make friends. That was something Taylor could stand to learn.
The furniture was heavier than both of us expected though — it seemed to be made out of quality wood rather than the cheap Ikea stuff — and we were both red-faced by the time we were done. The room did look better, though. Everything was spaced out nicely, and with my bed out of the way, I could stand in front of the window and look outside.
Matty checked his phone. “Lachie better be done by now. If not, I’ll barge in, and that should get them to finish.”
“Thanks for helping me out, dude,” I said, walking him to the dorm’s front door.
“Anytime. We should do this again, after soccer.”
“Sure.”
We said our goodbyes. As soon as he left and I closed the front door behind him, Taylor came out of his bedroom.
I jumped. I hadn’t realised he’d come home — the sound of his return must’ve been muffled by what Matty and I were doing.
“What were you doing with him?” he asked.
My brows came together. “What?”
“What were you doing with Matty?”
“Nothing. Why do you care?”
Taylor stood very still, but I could see the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed deeply. He walked over until he was right in front of me, close enough I could see each of his bottom lashes. His eyes searched mine. “Your cheeks are red.” His voice was cutting.
I raised my hands to my face, feeling warm skin. If the gym ever closed for whatever reason, moving around furniture was a great substitute for weight training.
“What were you doing with him?” Taylor repeated.
“Nothing. Hanging out. We’re friends,” I added, a little smugly, as if to say,he’s more my friend than yours now.
