Shiloh licked her lips, looking down at her leggings and oversized sweatshirt with a faded YMCA logo on it.
“Are you sure this is okay?” she asked, not quite believing me.
“Of course I’m sure! You look stinkin’ cute. Now get your butt in the car.”
She huffed, making me bite my cheek to avoid smiling at how adorable she was. I waited for her to buckle in before pulling away from the apartment building. My blood was pumping hard at the thought that she would be spending the night with me tonight. I loved sleeping next to her. Waking up to hold Shiloh made me feel like the happiest fucking guy alive.
It sounded dramatic and cliche, but it was like all those romcoms described. I knew I was going to be leaving aftergraduation, but I wasn’t going to think about that. Right now, I had an incredible girl in my life, and I wasn’t going to waste any time before then.
Because Shiloh was unexpected. Our friendship and now whatever the start of this was. I mean, how could I not fucking fall for her? Freaking smart, a sharp tongue and a dark sense of humor, and incredibly strong, not to mention the most beautiful human being I’d ever laid eyes on. I was a goner from the beginning. If I had a type, it would be called Shiloh Tellez.
Shiloh liked to pretend to be mean and scary, but she was easily misjudged. Her semi-permanent scowl and short temper meant that most people probably wouldn’t take the time to get close enough to her to realize that she was funny, an excellent hugger, and vulnerable enough to accept help when she needed it.
“Bro, it’s a green light,” Jae said, slapping my arm lightly.
“Oh, crap. Sorry,” I said, checking the intersection before following the flow of traffic towards the interstate.
I had completely zoned out, running on autopilot as I drove the three of us towards my sister’s place in College Station. Shiloh was sitting silently in the passenger seat watching out the window. I smiled to myself as I checked my side mirror and caught a glimpse of Shiloh’s profile before turning my attention back to the road.
“Samantha just heard back from TCU and made it in for Early Decision,” Jae said.
I shook my thoughts away from Shiloh and focused on the conversation.
“Wow, so she’s, like,set. Damn,” I smiled. “Good for her.”
“I don’t think you’ve told me what you’re doing Jae,” Shiloh perked up, turning around in her seat to punch him in the leg.
“Yeah, I could say the same,” he grumbled, shifting out of reach from her arm. “You probably did Early Decision too, didn’t you?”
I glanced at Shy. She seemed… annoyed?
“No, fucknugget, I didn’t. I’m not going to college. I mean, at least not right now. Just gonna get a job,” she shrugged, suddenly interested in one of her cuticles.
“What?” Jae practically shrieked. “But you’re, like,smartsmart! Like scholarly smart.”
“Whatever, quit avoiding the question. What about you?” she shot back.
“Oh, yeah, same. I’m not going to college right away. Going to work for a year and then decide what route I want to go. Maybe a trade school. I’m not sure,” Jae said, shrugging nonchalantly. “College is overrated anyways, right? I mean if I wanted to attend a bunch of frat parties, I could do that without paying 70 grand a year.”
I chuckled at Jae’s argument for why college wasn’t worth the money. “Hey, it’s not a complete waste of time if you actually know what you want to do with your degree,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Eden got her degree in clinical nutrition and she’s loving her job as a registered dietician.”
“Eden is an outlier, okay? She’s freaking smart, knows how to get what she wants, and isn’t afraid to tell you what she thinks…well come to think of it, she’s basically Shiloh if you dipped her in pink and covered her in glitter. With significantly less snark, no offense, Shy.” He patted Shiloh’s arm with a smile, and I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
“Honestly though, that’s pretty damn accurate,” I said as I gasped for air between laughs. “Although, I don’t appreciate the girl I like being compared to mysister.”
Shiloh turned in her seat to slap the both of us.
After a beat of silence, I rubbed her thigh to gain her attention.
“You’re feeling better, yeah?” I asked, flicking my eyes over to her face long enough to scan her features for signs of being unwell.
“Yeah,” she nodded with a smile. “I’m sorry you always have to deal with me being sick.”
“What? No! I feel awful that you’ve been sick so much lately. The stomach flu sucks. I’m just happy that you’re able to come tonight.”
“Me too. I didn’t want to miss his birthday party.” Shiloh blew out a breath before continuing. “I can’t believe he’s twenty-two, married and has a baby. It’s just…wow.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, they kind of get that a lot. Ruthie wasn’t exactly a planned pregnancy. But the second they found out, they got married.”
