“You know what I mean,” Ari cut me off while Uncle Tom laughed.
“I just don’t want anything to happen to you, crazy as you are. I have the same request: no going off with strangers.” He lowered the newspaper to look at me. I readily agreed this time—I didn’t want a repeat of last night.“And no getting too drunk in unsafe environments.” He looked at Ari now, who nodded.“Promise me you’ll stick together?”
“Forever—”
“And always!” Ari and I exchanged grins at our childhood slogan.
“Good. Don’t forget about the taser I got you.” He kissed her forehead and stood.“There’s no need to remind you about your blade, Emy. I’m sure it’s always on you.” He chuckled and disappeared into the kitchen. When he returned he was holding a large suitcase in one hand and a briefcase in the other.
“Why were those in the kitchen?” I asked.
“No reason, niecy.” He ruffled my hair and kissed my forehead, too.“Call if you need me. I’ll be back on Tuesday. I love you both. Be safe.”
“Love you too, and will do.” I smiled as he gave me a tight hug, then did the same with Ari. We walked him to the door and said our goodbyes.
“What do you wanna do today?” Ari turned to me once the door was locked.
I shrugged.“I’m gonna go shower.”
“I’ll figure something out. Something safe,” she said, getting the newspaper Uncle Tom had abandoned.
“Ugh, are we really doing that?” I was willing to not have one night stands for a while, but being safe all the time sounded so boring.
“Do you really wanna get almost kidnapped again?”
I thought about it for a few seconds before deciding,“Not really.”
“Exactly. Hurry up and get ready.”
I headed upstairs to do just that, letting my mind wander. Staying safe and abstaining from going out with strangers for a while was doable. At least he hadn’t requested we skip going to the bar or parties, becausethatwould not be doable.
At the same time, Dennis, Sean, and Mateo could still be considered strangers. Sort of… but maybe not? Ari and I were already getting pretty damn familiar with them. Especially Dennis and Sean. They didn’t feel safe, though. Just familiar.
“Seriously?”
I glanced at the doorway while shimmying into a skirt.“What?”
“How much easier access could you give?” Ari came and tugged the zippers down on each side.
“Trust me, a lot more.” I undid each zipper a fourth of the way, back to how they’d been before. “Think of it as an emergency exit.”
“More like an emergency entrance.”
“Exactly.” I laughed at her expression and slipped into a black tank top.
“At least your boobs are in this time.”
“You’re right.” I pulled the shirt off and grabbed a low-cut one instead. She sighed and left the room.“When in doubt, boobies out!” I called after her. I laced up my boots and added jewelry before joining her downstairs.
“I want brownies.” Her eyes scanned my outfit in disapproval, but she didn’t comment.
“And I want ice cream. Let’s get junk food and have a movie marathon. Yeah?”
“Yeah, but nothing scary. I’m still freaked out from last night. Can we walk to Miller’s? I don’t feel like driving and I’m never riding with you again.”
“Sure, why not.” I grabbed my keys and led the way out. “You’re gonna have to ride with me again sometime, y’know.” I locked the door before we set off for the small market.
We talked about different movies on the walk. The traumatic night before, me falling asleep with Dennis in the room. She told me all about being bound to Sean—nothing felt different so far—and eventually we were all snacked up and heading back home. Daylight had faded and it was nearing dusk.
