“—and I remembered you said something about wanting to get to know your neighbors better, and I thought...”
I raised both my eyebrows, bouncing my gaze back and forth between the two of them. Jolene was obviously uncomfortable. She clearly didn’t know this guy at all. I should have just let us spend an awkward afternoon with Dad and Jeremy. Instead, we were going to spend an awkward afternoon with this guy. A prospect he didn’t look all that excited about either.
“Ah, sure,” Guy said after too long a pause. “You guys want to come in?”
No, but I followed Jolene inside.
“Wow, your apartment is really cool.” She looked at me with wide eyes like I needed to agree with her. It was fine, I guessed. Big TV. Massive movie collection.
“Yeah, it’s cool. Hey, it’s really cool that you’re writing Jolene that letter for her film program application. It means a lot to her.”
Jolene shot me a look like I’d said something wrong, but all Guy did was laugh.
“We need more minds like hers making movies. You guys want a Coke or something?”
We nodded, and when he stepped into the kitchen area, I tugged Jolene to my side. “What are we doing here?”
She didn’t answer me.
Guy came back with our Cokes, and the sound of three cans popping open in unison broke the tension somewhat. “So are you a sophomore like Jolene?” Guy gestured to her with his can.
“Yep.”
“Good times,” he said. “You play any sports?”
“Baseball and some ice hockey. I used to play soccer—not like Jolene, but I’m okay.”
Guy’s eyes lit up, and he looked at Jolene. “I didn’t know you played soccer. You probably end up with a bunch of bruises on your legs.”
That was maybe the strangest response he could have made. I tried to catch Jolene’s eye, but she was focused on her Coke.
“Yep. I totally bend it like Beckham.” She stepped forward to a ceiling-high bookcase full of movies, and quicker than should have been possible, plucked one from the shelf. “Hey, you’ve got it.”
“Of course.” Guy looked over at me. “Keira Knightley, am I right?”
I should have smiled or nodded or something, but I didn’t. The way he’d said her name was, I don’t know, wrong. I didn’t feel like agreeing with anything he said.
“So can we watch it?”
I raised my arm toward Jolene, as if I could get her to take her request back. I’d already been trying to chug my Coke as quickly as possible so that we could leave. How was she not picking up on how weird the vibe was? Asking if we could stick around for another couple hours... What was wrong with her?
“Be my guest.”
Jolene looked past Guy to where I was mouthing the wordnoand shaking my head.
“Oh yeah, that’d be cool another time.” I stepped closer to Jolene and set my empty Coke can on the coffee table. “We actually have to get going.”
Jolene put the movie back slower than was strictly necessary.
“That’s too bad,” Guy said. “You’re welcome over anytime. Adam, it was good to see you.”
“Yep,” I said, putting my hand on Jolene’s back and steering her to the door. “Thanks for the drink.”
“You, too, Jolene.”
Once we were back in the hallway and the door was closed behind us, I turned to Jolene. “Promise me we will never be that bored again.” Almost before I’d finished speaking, she was rounding on me.
“What was that?”
