“Okay, Ace. What the hell is going on?” Finn claps a hand on my shoulder. “I’m starting to get the feeling we need to stage some kind of intervention, but I don’t know what the fuck the intervention is for. Are you on drugs? Drinking? Porn addiction?”
I sigh. “Finnley, I wish I had a porn addiction.”
“Ace Kelly, you do not mean that.” Scottie cracks up, but I’m not laughing. “Okay, yeah, what is going on with you?”
I look at Finn and Scottie, at their happy fucking faces, at the way their hands are clutched together, and they probably don’t even realize it because everything is perfect in their happy little love bubble.
“I want what you two have.”
Finn furrows his brow. “Common sense?”
“Love,” I say, completely ignoring the teasing jab.
“You want to be in love?” Scottie questions.
“I want Julia’s love.” The words come out as a whisper, but somehow, they both manage to hear it over the party. “Because I’ve had the earth-shattering realization that I’m in love with her.”
I wait for their shocked reactions. I wait for Finn’s eyes to bulge out of his head and Scottie’s jaw to hit the tops of her knees. I wait and I wait and I wait, but it never comes.
And then I remember what Blake said to me that night outside of Groove.
“You guys knew too, huh?”
They both nod.
“Well, fuck,” I mutter and run a hand through my hair. “Would’ve been nice if someone would’ve let me in on this very important information.”
“Pretty sure you had to have that realization yourself, man,” Finn says and squeezes my shoulder.
“Oh, don’t worry. I have.” I sigh, and for once in my life, the sounds of the booming music and people laughing and chatting aren’t music to my ears. “This party sucks and I’m itchy.” I pull at the collar of my shirt. “We texted Blake, and he bailed. Half these people are freshmen trying to impress seniors, and I just don’t have the energy for it. Are you guys having fun? Or can we beat feet and shit?”
Finn and Scottie share another look—always with the fucking telepathic conversation bullshit—before Finn speaks as a representative of their couple council.
“Sure, man, we can leave. You wanna go to Zip’s and get some food?”
“Yeah,” I agree, my wheels spinning. “Whatever. Let’s just get out of here.” An idea hatches. “Actually, you know what? I know exactly where we can go.”
“All right, dude. Lead the way.”
“Ace, why the fuck are we in Central Park?”
“Don’t worry about it, Finn,” I say, scooting a little deeper into the bushes to get a good look at Julia and the fuckface on the other side of the grassy lawn. He’s got a stupid picnic set up, while other people chat and lounge and throw Frisbees around them in the moonlight.
“Ace, isn’t this where Julia said Drew was taking her?” Scottie asks.
After we left the party, I was able to keep my idea to come spy on Julia’s date under wraps because of the proximity to my parents’ penthouse. Finn and Scottie assumed we were either going there or to an establishment close by that I frequent because of living in the neighborhood. Neither of them said anything or asked any questions to confirm, though, so really, it’s on them for trusting me so much when they should know how impulsive I can be.
“What?” I feign confusion. “No. Is it?”
“Oh my God, Ace. You didn’t.” Scottie’s voice is soft and defeated and more than a little disappointed.
The funny thing is, it doesn’t bother me, even though I know deep down in the land of rational thought that it should. Right now, all that matters is Julia and my obsession over the fact that some other fucker could be putting his tongue down herveryperfect throat at thisverymoment.
“I didn’t what?” I ask, playing the part of the innocent fool just like my father taught me.
“Ace, I’m telling you right now, it is not a good idea for us tointerrupt Julia and Drew’s date,” Finn insists. “It will not go over how you’d like, I promise.”
“That’s not… Oh my goodness, Finnley. You don’t think I planned this, do you?”
