They open their eyes, only to roll them playfully. “So maybe the universe wants us to hang out.”
I sigh. “Or maybe I’m just terrible at watching where I’m going.”
Parker laughs. “That’s possible too, but either way, you’re here now. We may as well hang out and watch some true crime.”
“Unless you’re scared,” Ben says, grinning at me. My face flushes hot again. Holy shit, they’re likefriends.Fuck. I hope Parker didn’t tell him I was staring at the sketch of him.
“Not scared.”
When we all sit down on the couch, I somehow end up between the two of them. It doesn’t take long before I’m hyperaware of each inch of space between us, or in Ben’s case, the lack of space. His legs are spread wide, thigh pressed against mine.
The warmth is searing and making it hard to focus, so it’s a bit of a shock when Parker sits forward on the couch and gasps. “There’s no fucking way. That dude is so shady.”
“Right?” Ben agrees. “They just didn’t even look into him at all?”
Parker leans past me, looking around me at Ben, and when they press a delicate hand on my knee to steady themself, my heart pounds against my chest. “It’s like they didn’t eventry.Okay, sure, the dude they arrested seems guilty as hell, but we can apply that ‘circumstantial evidence’ to the other guy too.”
I don’t watch a lot of true crime, but I have to admit this one has me intrigued. A whole family went missing and wasn’t found until years later—all of them were dead. None of the suspects are a great fit, and each one makes sense in certain ways, but the guy they have on trial doesn’t seem any more guilty than the rest.
“I’m unsure about the brother. Something seems fishy about him.”
Parker looks up at me, staring into my eyes with their deep blue ones. “Really? The brother? I don’t think I would have considered that angle, but huh—” They scrunch their face up. “You know what? I could see it.”
They sit back, removing their hand from my knee in the process. I’m not sure if I’m relieved or upset by that. Parker is incredibly attractive, but so is Ben. And I’m not sure what to make of that, or what—if anything—it means that I feel that way.
“Do you always watch true crime?” Ihear myself asking.
“No,” Parker answers. “Well, not until Ben. You have one failed hookup with a guy, and he decides to make you his new bestie and then invites all his football player friends to hang out at your house.”
How did the hookup fail? And why am I picturing the two of them in bed together? Parker’s head tipped back, a sheen of sweat on their skin, chest heaving. Would Ben be serious and intense or fun and carefree?
“As you’ll recall,” Ben says, dragging me from my inappropriate thoughts. “You invited Lan, not me. I didn’t even know you knew each other.”
To be fair, we don’t. Not in any real way, anyway. Like I said before, I’m just some asshole who keeps running into them.
Parker shrugs. “Semantics.” I swallow down the urge to tell them I can leave. “Besides, you’re both here now. And we’re mid-show. What’s there to do? I guess I’ll just have to keep you around for a little while.”
“Are you sure?” The question comes out against my will, and I feel slightly stupid for even asking it. What is it they say about looking a gift horse in the mouth?
“Of course,” Parker says, turning to face me. “I know I look terrifying and unapproachable, but I’m pretty chill, and I like hanging out with new people.” They shrug. “Besides, we’ve only gotten halfway through the first episode. Don’t you need to know how it ends?”
“I mean, this was years ago. I could just search the case online.”
Ben makes a displeased noise. “Or not.”
I’m not sure why the two of them are trying to include me in their little friendship, but I’m not going to complain. Not even a little. “Okay,” I say.
“Great.” Parker grabs the remote and hits play again. “Now that we’ve settled that, let’s get back to it.”
We’re halfway through the second episode when something hits my arm. I open my mouth to apologize when I realize that it’s just Parker. They’re slumped against my shoulder, blond and pink hair falling in a curtain over their paint-streaked face—dead asleep.
Something tightens in my chest. “They fell asleep.”
“Huh?” Ben says, adjusting so he can look around me. “Oh. Huh.” I can hear the smile in his voice, but I can’t stop staring at the blond halo of Parker’s head. “That’s cute.”
It definitely is. “We should probably leave, right? It’s rude to hang around when the host is asleep.”
“That’s what I did last time.”
