Alex looked at me with the eyes of a guilty dog. With shoulders slumped and his lips pressed together, he already sensed the lecture was about to come out of my mouth.
“I’m just sending a friend notes,” Alex blurted first. “I won’t be on this for long.”
Scoffing, I set the cupcake box on the bed. “What friend?”
His head hung low. “Rory. You don’t know him.”
Oh, didn’t I know fucking Rory.
“Rory.” His name felt like venom coming out of my mouth. “He can wait.”
“He’s failing,” Alex persisted.
“Boo-hoo,” I pouted dramatically, and it earned a smirk from him. “You need to take care of yourself before others.”
I said that, but I knew it was in one ear and out the other for Alex. When his sister came to pick up Millie, he wouldn’t even tell her he had his first seizure in years, all while he was watching her daughter, who ended up being a witness to the whole thing. The only way Annabelle would find out was if Millie spilled the beans, and she had yet to do so.
“So being selfless is a bad thing?” he challenged, a minor offense in his tone.
“If it’s at your own expense, then yes.”
Alex’s brows knit together as he tried to stay firm in his stance. Still, I could see the waver behind his eyes. He knew I was right.
The bed dipped as I climbed onto it and opened the cupcake box. “I bought us something.”
His eyes lit up at the picture-perfect treats. “Is that red velvet?”
I nodded as I carefully handed the frosted pastry to him. “All for you.”
Alex was as giddy as a kid in a candy store. His eyes glistened with hunger, reminding me of the way his niece’s eyes enlarged whenever someone mentioned buying her pizza or a chocolate bar.
Impatiently, he brought the cake to his mouth and bit into it. It wasn’t long before a low, satisfied hum sounded from him as he put his free hand over his mouth and swallowed. “This is amazing. And you bought red velvet. It’s my?—”
“Favorite? Yeah, I hoped you still liked it.”
Alex’s shoulder brushed against mine, his expression complexly bittersweet. “Glad you don’t actually have amnesia.”
With a sigh, I placed my half-eaten cupcake back into the box and folded my legs into a pretzel position. I faced him, but the way he sat stiffly made me think he wasn’t so sure that I had been lying the whole time. Part of me actually convinced him of the lie, and even with it out in the open, he was doubtful.
I had to kill that doubt. “Each year, when you would bring cupcakes to the class for your birthday, they were always red velvet, and I always complained because I thought red velvet was just chocolate in disguise. I still stand by that, by the way.”
His lips pulled into a smirk. “You just have bad taste buds.”
“Nope.” I popped the P. “It’s just chocolate cake dyed red. You’re brainwashed by society into believing they’re different flavors.”
“Wow, all this time apart and you’ve become a conspiracy theorist,” he spoke as if he had figured out an unsolvable mystery.
Our thighs bumped as I laughed. “It’s a side thing for when I’m tired of basketball.”
He took the last bite of his cupcake. “I didn’t think you could ever get tired of basketball.”
Alex balled the cupcake wrapper in his hands. He focused, stuck his tongue out slightly, and tossed it in the garbage.
“I didn’t think you could make that shot.”
Alex’s mouth fell agape as he pushed my shoulder. “Idiot.”
Chuckling, he brushed a stray brown strand out of his face, and his genuine smile made my heart flutter. His shoulders were loose and his mind carefree, like he wasn’t holding the weight of the world on his shoulders. Maybe my dessert offering played a role, or it could have been my company. Regardless, I was happy that he wasn’t stressed for once.
