"Oh no," Drew says solemnly. "The list is final. Very scientific pairing system."
Someone snickers in the background. James shoots them a glare that would melt steel.
"I'll work alone," he says flatly, and walks away before anyone can argue.
Drew shrugs at me apologetically. "Worth a shot."
It's incredibly hard not to let the rejection sting, but I focus instead on the task at hand. My team, hastily reassigned to include Gavin, begins prepping the upstairs hallway for painting.
"Don't worry," Gavin whispers as we tape off the baseboards. We have a backup plan."
"Please don't."
He grins.Bastard.
The matchmaking attemptscontinue throughout the morning, each more obvious than the last. Someone ‘accidentally’ locks James and me in a supply closet, only for James to use his phone’s flashlight to find the interior door release immediately. The power mysteriously goes out in the section where we're both working, prompting Marcus to mutter about ancient wiring.
"Did you seriously cut the power?" I hiss at Tyler when we collide in the hallway.
"Not me." He holds up his hands innocently. "But whoever did wasn't thinking clearly. James is a tech genius. He practically lives in the dark."
At one point, someone is blasting love songs from a hidden speaker. When,I Want You Backstarts playing for the third time, James storms out of the room he's working in, his face thunderous.
"If I hear one more Jackson 5 song, I'm leaving!"
"What a specific complaint," Cameron says innocently, quickly hiding his phone.
By lunchtime, I'm ready to strangle my well-meaning friends. Taking a break, I step outside for some air and find a teen sitting on the porch steps. It takes me a moment to recognize them as the same kid who worked with me on the gingerbread house at Christmas.
"So you're officially the boyfriend who messed up," they say without preamble.
"Excuse me?"
Alex shrugs. "James gets this look when someone mentions you. Like he swallowed a lemon but kind of misses the taste."
Sitting beside them, I'm oddly comfortable with their bluntness. "Is that what everyone is gossiping about here?"
Alex rolls their eyes. "The whole house knows. It's like a soap opera in here today."
Fuck."That obvious?"
"Your friends are about as subtle as a pride parade in a church." They wave towards where Tyler and Gavin are having an extremely loud conversation about my "excellent qualities" within James's earshot. "Is that your best strategy?"
"Not my strategy. They're… trying to help. I think."
"Have you tried, I don't know, actually talking to him instead of this whole Hallmark movie routine?"
They make me laugh.I like this kid."I'm working up to it."
"This is stupid. He clearly likes you, and you like him. Why drag it out? Life's too short."
The simple truth in their words hits me harder, especially coming from someone so young. "It's complicated."
"Adults always say that when they're making something harder than it needs to be." Alex pulls out a candy bar, halving it and offering me a piece. "What's so complicated? You messed up, right?"
"Yeah."
"And you're sorry?"
