I hear Dane’s voice, and I’m confused. But then I open my eyes, and suddenly it all comes back to me. The roof. The door. The night spent talking.
There’s a crick in my neck that feels like the worst kind of punishment. I must’ve fallen asleep resting my head on Eli’s shoulder, and he in turn tilted his onto mine. I don’t know how we slept like that, or when we even fell asleep, but at least I’m comforted by the fact that there probably wouldn’t have been any better option.
I lift my head and stretch, pulling my arms up and trying to get my body to stop screaming. I feel Eli shift next to me, and I wish he weren’t so close that I can catch the dreamy scent of sleep wafting off him. I can still feel the warmth of his shoulder pressed on my cheek.
I know we said we’d be friends now, but ugh, I can’t keep lusting after this man. I’m glad he opened up, and I’m glad I saw a different side to him. But I need to shake the inconvenient attraction, because this isn’t a place where my mind needs to go or evercouldgo.
“This must be the famous Dane,” I hear him croak beside me.
Dane looks exceptionally pleased that her reputation precedes her. She’s standing over both of us, her Pacers hat backward and her Doc Martens unlaced, as though she ran over here in a rush.
“Yeah, sorry it took me this long to put two and two together,” she says, with her typical casual air that implies she’s not really that sorry. “I figured you were just avoiding coming out, since, you know, that’s something you often try to do, especially on a weekday.”
“Fair,” I mumble, mildly hating being called out so effectively.
“But then I texted you this morning, and you didn’t answer, and that felt like a red flag. And then Icalled, and you didn’t answer, which is not something you ever do.” I like the grateful look she sends me. It’s true what I said to Eli—I feel seen by Dane, even if we don’t often delve into words. If Dane calls, I always pick up, and vice versa. So I can imagine she was probably alarmed a bit by my silence. “You weren’t in your apartment, but your phone was. And the last thing you said to me was that you were going up to the roof, so ...” She waves her arms out, likeHere we are,and I imagine the scene in front of her looks fairly absurd. Two pathetic grown-ups who got themselves locked out. “I’m glad to see that my fear of a potential murder didn’t come to fruition.”
Eli chuckles next to me, and I’m grateful he finds Dane amusing rather than too much. A lot of people think Dane is a lot, and it’s usually a good barometer for me disliking someone.
“I considered it,” he says slyly. “But too obvious once I was caught.”
“Yeah, you wouldn’t beat that rap,” Dane concurs. “And probably not great for your amusement at riling this one up if she wasn’t around to torture.”
I scoff, because what aridiculoustheory. But looking over at Eli, he’s gone a bit red.Hashe been riling me up more than he would have otherwise because he finds it amusing? Surely that’s a stretch.
“Well, I think after a night of starvation and forced proximity, there’s a détente anyway,” he says, turning to look at me. “Wouldn’t you say?”
“Yes,” I admit. “I certainly agree we got off on the wrong foot, to say the least.”
He laughs as he stands up and stretches again. A small sliver of his stomach shows as his shirt lifts, and I immediately move to look back at Dane, as though staring at Eli’s body is going to burn me. She lifts an eyebrow, because she catches every damn thing.Great.
He holds out a hand to help me up, and when I put mine in his, I can’t help but be reminded of every second of the thumb war last night. I thought I’d effectively tamped down whatever touching him had done to me, but apparently I needed to keepnottouching him in order to shake it off.
He pulls me up, and it takes a second to feel normal after sitting so long. One leg is asleep, and the other is cramped. I’m definitely ready to get down from this roof, even if the morning light off the buildings and the glow behind the water towers dotted across the skyline make for a beautiful view.
“You okay?” he asks, and I nod, even as I hop around and twist to try and get my body back to some semblance of normalcy.
We all walk downstairs, and I immediately fling open my door to an ecstatic George. For a moody little gremlin, he’s all love right now, his tiny stub of a tail wagging so hard the entire back half of his body is in motion. I flop to the ground, and he jumps into my lap, licking my face like it’s his job, leaving no inch dry.
“I’m so sorry, George,” I choke out, trying to pet him and squeeze him as much as I can even as he jumps and wiggles with excitement. “I’m so, so sorry. I didn’t mean to leave you. You know I’d never leave you alone on purpose. It was so stupid of me. I’m so sorry.”
Dane pushes past me, shaking her head like she’s disappointed in my maudlin display. She starts getting eggs out of the fridge and puts a pan on the stove, prioritizing getting me some food after a long night of unintentional fasting.
When George has practically licked me clean, I lift him so I can stand up as well. I look behind me and see Eli is still there, watching the scene unfold.
“Do you think Paws and Whiskers will launch themselves at you when they see you?” I ask as I try to wipe all the dog drool from my face.
“Not a cat’s style.” He shrugs, a small grin blooming.
There’s something strange sitting between us. Not necessarily bad, but different. We’ve been through a weird thing together, and now we’re on the other side, but perhaps not quite used to the idea yet that it’s over. He looks like he has something to say, but doesn’t. We watch each other, a pause in the air, something left unsaid even afterso muchwas said. So many small things were shared; in the light of day it seems like they added up to something large.
“See you around then,” I say, unsure of what to do now. “I hope you don’t have any other neighborly escapades that lock you out.”
“I don’t know.” He furrows his brow like he’s lost in thought. “Gladys might have some shenanigans up her sleeve.”
“Oh yeah, she’s a real party animal,” I snort.
“I know you’re taking the piss, but back in the day she and my nan were probably the coolest cats around.”
