Me:Ben's here. Moved into the building. Is this what you meant by my Saturn return? Because Saturn can take him the hell back. Can't breathe
Her reply is instant.
Lucy:Breathe into a paper bag and get your ass over here
?
An hour later, I'm on Lu's doorstep—hair unwashed, covered in a hoodie, and still mildly panicked.
The door swings open and there is my Lu—five feet of her Korean beauty in a paint-streaked robe, smirk already in place.
"You look like you've seen a ghost." She pulls me in, smelling of gesso and the caramel she's chewing. "Or worse. An ex."
That's Lu. Queen of the deadpan. Sultry in a robe or evenin sweatpants.
I practically stumble inside my old apartment, pre-Richard, straight to the kitchen that's unrecognizable.
Massive paintings are stacked against every wall, plastic covering the floors, even the kitchen counter and fridge. Which makes sense since Lu lives on candy and peanut butter anyway.
One of the walls has turned into a mural of thousands of red butterflies erupting from a cave mouth, some animals, some feminist symbols. Pretty epic.
She hands me a steaming mug. "Your favorite. Cherry."
I narrow my eyes on the print. "Seriously?" It's a freaking Empire State Building.
"It was the only one washed." She shrugs, trying to look beliveable.
I raise a brow. "You have a collection of five hundred mugs and this is the only one washed?"
"Okay." She throws her hands up, simpering. "This one was the only one waiting for you."
I groan and slump onto the secondhand sofa under the window—the one I love so much even though we nearly died hauling it up three sets of stairs—and dump it all on her.
"Ben is back. He's in San Francisco. He's supposed to be in New York. Not here. Not in San Francisco. Not anywhere near me—"
"Your chaos is delicious," she interrupts, pulling a chair to sit across me, "but sip your tea before you combust. Why is he back?"
"That's what I'm trying to tell you." I gesture wildly. "Idon't know. Can't get past two sentences with him. That, and breaking a shelf which he helped me to fix."
Lu bites her cheek, scratching the dry paint on her hand. "He knows you. Knows you're a hurricane."
I roll my eyes. "Remind me why I come to you for advice?"
"Because I'm honest," she says flatly. "I'm still piecing the mirror you broke like a midnight puzzle when I can't sleep."
She backs off slightly on the chair the second she notices me stabbing her with my eyes. "Anyway. Why is he in the same building though?"
"Exactly." I lean forward. "Why?"
"You think he did that on purpose? Because of you?"
"He mocked me the first day we met, said he didn't."
"Doesn't mean that couldn't be true."
"Yeah, but here is the thing—he lives one floor above me. I can hear his music at night. What kind of sick joke is that?"
Her brows shoot up. "Damn. It's weird how you two keep spiraling around each other. You guys must be twin flames."
