“Fuck! This headache is going to be the death of me,” she groans loudly.
“I told you not to drink so much. I think Jeff is a horrible influence on you,” I chastise.
Carrie glares at me, grabbing her purse from the backseat. “He’s my husband, Eli. Not my high school boyfriend.”
I can’t help but laugh as we exit the car, finding our way inside and into a booth by the back windows.
My sister and I used to come to Waffle House regularly when we were kids. It was our little sanctuary, and even if it’s a little run-down, we still find solace here together.
I place my order for a chocolate chip waffle and hashbrowns, and Carrie orders her patty melt.
“What time is your flight?”she asks once the waitress takes her leave.
“11 a.m. I’ll need to get to the airport around 9:30. Thanks for taking me, by the way.”
Carrie waves a hand dismissively. “I needed to get away from Jess. She’s insufferable after she drinks. The world revolves around her on a good day, so on a bad one? Fuck.”
I smirk at her complaint, mostly because she’s not wrong in the slightest, and a little because it’s amusing to watch their bickering when I get to run away from it after a day or two.
When I lived with them? Hell. A living hell.
“Yeah, she is a lot after she drinks,” I agree.
“Jeff asked me about Rowan last night,” Carrie says just as the waitress sets our food on the table.
“Huh?”
“Yep. He asked about the guy you went on that date with, so I told him you were serious about him. He seemed pretty excited for you.”
“Jesus,” I mutter. “You’d thinkhewas the one going on dates with Rowan.”
Carrie laughs.“Jeff just loves you. Remember when I got stranded by that Motel 6 a year and a half ago, and he was at work, so you came and saved me? Ever since then, he’s had it in his head that you’re this amazing guy.”
“I was just doing what I was supposed to,” I deflect, taking a big piece of waffle and shoving it into my mouth.
“That’s what I said. But Jeff insisted that none of his siblings would have done it for him. He really thinks highly of you, even if you’re not super involved with anyone’s business.”
I don’t say anything to that, as I’m not sure how to take it. It feels like an insane amount of pressure to have Jeff like me somuch. I wasn’t aware that he had expectations or opinions of me, and knowing so kind of weighs me down.
“Anyway,” Carrie continues. “What are you going to do when you get home? About Rowan, I mean.”
“I’m not sure,” I answer honestly. “He’s called a few times since that night at my apartment. He messaged the day I flew here asking when I was coming back, but I never responded.”
She gives me a pointed look and says, “Well, that’s rude.”
I shrug.“I didn’t know what to say.”
“That you’re coming back today?”
I groan. “I mean, outside of that. If I respond to his one message, that opens a pathway for communication, and I’m not sure what I want to say to him.”
Carrie is silent after that, and we eat the rest of our food in peace. As the waitress drops off the check, I grab the yellowed piece of paper and stand. My sister follows me to the register.
“Paying together?” the waitress who took our order asks, and I give her a curt nod as she taps away at the old machine. “Say, are you from around here? I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”
“Uh,” I start, sending my sister a glance. She’s grinning. “Yeah. I grew up here. But I recently moved away.”
“Oh!” the woman says, her black hair swaying in its ponytail with every exaggerated movement. “That would explain it. I just started working here, so that’s probably why I haven’t seen you.”
