“Thinking of asking her out?”
I gave him a droll look, not bothering to ask who he was referring to. “You gonna ask Maria?”
“God, I want to. But Holly scares me a little.”
“Meh, she’s harmless.”
He blinked at me. “Harmless? Are we talking about the same girl?” I laughed and he smirked before getting serious again. “Ok, but seriously. What’s on your mind?”
I settled on a channel playingHacksaw Ridgebefore putting the remote down and saying, “I was just thinking. After prom, that’s it. We’re pretty much done. So, what’s next?”
He scratched at the stubble on his cheek. “Shit, man. I ain’t got a clue. I mean, Dalton is going to UGA. He’s got that scholarship. Pretty sure Mac is staying here, helping his old man. Me? To be honest…”
“Maria.”
“Yeah. It may be corny as fuck but that’s all I want. She’s all I want. What about you?”
I frowned at the TV and watched Desmond go back for yet another soldier, the wheels spinning in my head. “That’s the thing, man. I haven’t a damn clue.” On the screen, Desmond lowered himself on that fraying rope. I nodded towards the screen. “Maybe that?”
Diego looked between me and the TV in confusion. “Acting?”
I rolled my eyes. “No, dumbass. Enlisting.”
He raised his eyebrows, “Enlisting? In what? The military?”
“Dude, you are not that slow.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s just…I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Could be good for me.”
“I guess?”
“Making a difference and shit.”
“If you say so.”
“Plus, I would get all the girls.”
“Right, that’s a great reason to risk your life.”
I threw a throw pillow at him. “It’s just a thought.”
“What branch?”
I shrugged. “No idea.”
He studied me. “Trying to imagine you with a buzz cut. Hate to tell you, but you would look weird as fuck.” I flipped him off and he smirked but then he tilted his head to the side before squinting at me. “What about Holly?”
“What ‘bout her?”
“I mean, I’m no Cupid. And we all know Dalton’s the resident player. But even I can see there’s something there.”
I frowned at him, “There’s nothing between me and Malibu.”
“Uh-huh.”
“She hates me.”
