Me
My sisters are liars
Mamma
Hmm
That 'hmm' is terrifying.
"Well, at least Luca's trying," Max says, throwing another pillow, this time at Haru. "Our international heartthrob over here actually gets dates and then friend-zones them!"
"I didn't friend-zone Jamal!" Haru protests, setting down his bow. "We just... didn't click romantically."
"You went out with the football captain?" JP's eyes go wide. "The quarterback? How did I miss this data point?"
"It wasn't a big deal." Haru fidgets with an arrow. "He wanted to learn about Japanese culture for a class, we got coffee, talked for three hours, and..." He shrugs. "Nothing. Nice guy, very handsome, but zero spark."
"At least you've had a college date," Max sighs dramatically. "That's better than the rest of us. Except Seb, who's gonna get the dicking down he deserves?—"
I throw a pillow at his head. "Shut up!"
"Make me!" Max catches it and adds it to his nest. "I'm just saying, about time someone appreciates that ass. Your boy's got taste."
"Speaking of taste," Leo interjects, holding up his costume piece. "Can someone tell me if this color looks right? I'm trying to match the reference image, but?—"
"Leo," JP interrupts. "You're deflecting. We need to talk about Statistics Guy."
Leo's shoulders hunch. He focuses very hard on his stitching. "There's nothing to talk about."
"Bullshit," I say. "Max told me you ran away mid-conversation."
"I forgot his name!" Leo's voice cracks. "He was standing right there, being all cute with his glasses and his smile, and my brain just... deleted his name. Mark? Mark or something with an M. And I panicked and said I had to go iron my cat."
"You don't have a cat," Elliot points out quietly.
"I know I don’t have a cat!” Leo drops his cosplay, burying his face in his hands. "I'm a disaster. A tall, gangly disaster who can't even remember hot boys' names."
Max immediately scoots over, wrapping an arm around Leo's shoulders. "Hey, it's okay. Everyone forgets names sometimes."
"You don't," Leo mumbles into his hands.
"That's because I assign everyone fruit names in my head until I memorize their real ones," Max admits. "Statistics Guy is Strawberry in my phone."
Leo peeks out between his fingers. "Really?"
"Really. And you're not a disaster. You're just... selectively focused." Max grins. "Also, could you please stop putting beer on the dryer? It belongs in the fridge. The vibrations make it foam everywhere."
Leo pauses, then starts laughing. "Did you seriously just combo comfort me and scold me about beer placement?"
"I multitask," Max says primly. "It's called efficiency."
My phone rings. I decline it immediately, so a text pops up.
Mamma
Don't you decline my calls, Sebastiano
Oh, shit.
