I glanced down at the metal balls I was rolling in my hand. I hadn’t even realized I’d picked them up. I sighed, dropping my head back on the chair.
“Nah.” I tossed them down on the table a little harder than I intended.
“Did you really put a bullet in Rocky Elam?”
“Hmm?” I lazily opened my eyes and stared at him. The silence grew until he shook his head and drifted a little further into the room, letting the door close behind him.
“Ant, what are you doing?” he quietly pressed.
I shrugged my shoulders, half wishing he’d waited until Christmas to take his military leave. I couldn’t be putting on fake smiles all the time.
Holidays I managed for Aunt Daisy, but fuck… This wasn’t a special occasion, and he was in my sanctuary, I wasn’t going to pretend today.
“Living my best life, E. What the fuck does it look like?”
“Your best li– There is ass for days downstairs, man. Are you serious right now?” He glanced around the empty four walls and then back at me. “You don’t even have a television.”
“Don’t need a TV.” I shrugged.
“You know, you’ll never…” Our gaze locked and he must have read the warning in my eyes, because he abruptly switched lanes, “I’m saying, you can’t date from a box. You gotta step out of the box and move on.”
“I’m not trying to date anyone.”
His lips pressed together, and I thought he was going to leave it alone, but eventually he pressed, “So, don’t date. Just enjoy them…”
I snorted and stared at him.
“Isolation isn’t healthy, alright.”
“Isolated? So far today, I’ve listened to you, Mak, Rocky, and Ol’ George wasting air. How the fuck does that happen, if I’m isolated?”
“You function as much as you have to, and then you isolate. You know, most normal guys would have at least put a dating app on their phone or something.”
I groaned, recalling how he and Oak had put that one red icon app on my phone. Swipe left, swipe right.
Fuck my life.
“I already did that shit. You and Oak aren’t dragging me down that road a second time.”
“You never even met anyone!” Easy shot back. “You wasted some poor girl’s time for a few messages and likely never said boo again.”
“That’s not true,” I smirked, “She sent nudes, I matched. The next thing I know, the bitch was telling me if I didn’t give her two thousand dollars she was gonna publish the damn thing.”
He looked dumbfounded for a minute, which I couldn’t blame him for. I’d never told anyone what became of that red icon adventure. When he realized I was serious, the corner of his mouth started to twitch, and I could tell he was struggling not to laugh.
“Some chick tried to extort you, over a dick pic?”
“Fuck, yeah, she did.” I side-eyed him, and he lost it.
“What the fuck. Did you pay her?”
“Fuck, no. Two thousand dollars…,” I looked at him like he was insane, “I told her to make that dick famous.”
His deep laughter broke my resolve and I snorted, shaking my head as I laughed a little, too.
“I hate seeing you like this, though.”
I shrugged, “Got a lamp? Something to give me three wishes? I only need one.”
