“It’s enough.”
“Not even close.”
I shove a piece of chicken around my takeout container. “Aubrey…I can’t. I have too much on my plate. Textbooks, new winter shoes, my cousin’s birthday. My scholarship GPA. If I screw up, I won’t be able to graduate.”
“Tutoring him wouldn’t make you fail.”
“It would if it distracts me.”
She lifts an eyebrow. “Does he distract you?”
I look away. The color in my mind brightens, uninvited. “No.”
“That’s a yes. You get weird whenever O’Connor is even mentioned.”
“Because he’s loud.”
“Because you like him.”
“I don’t.”
“Yes, you do.”
“He doesn’t mean it,” I snap. “And even if he did, it wouldn’t last. I can’t afford that.”
Aubrey pauses. “Are you sure about that?”
I grit my teeth. “Guys like him don’t choose girls like me. Not for real.”
“That,” she says gently, “is bullshit.”
I shake my head. “He’s just not used to hearing a no. Or he’s bored. Or—whatever. It doesn’t matter.”
“Wren.”
“It doesn’t matter,” I repeat, voice tight. “I can’t afford chaos. Not right now.”
Aubrey studies me for a long moment. “Is this about your parents?”
My throat closes. The room’s colors dim. Gray-blue settles heavy in my mind.
“Aubrey,” I whisper. “Don’t.”
She nods and drops it. She always knows when to stop pushing.
We finish eating in silence.
My phone buzzes on the desk behind me. I twist to look.
TANTI DANA
Are you coming next weekend?
My chest tightens. I haven’t seen my aunt and uncle for a few months now, and they are the only family I have left. At the same time, every time I visit them, it’s a reminder of what I have lost, and what could have been. I prefer to stay away and not have to think about it.
WREN
Looking forward to seeing you guys
