Lauren: None of your business. I’ll drop off Oreos in an untampered package. Take it or leave it.
Clay: Unacceptable. Your presence is required.
Whatever. He could have my silence as a counter-offer. I went back to flipping through the channels, occasionally checking in with Jenny. The baby shower had not been well attended, and therefore, Jenny was robbed of the chance to drop off a gift and sneak out like she’d planned. She was currently being forced to play games such as sucking juice out of a baby bottle in a chug-off and identifying baby food flavors spread across diapers to look like baby poo. Basically, an introvert’s worst nightmare.
17
___________
Clay
Parker and Evan had already written me off as a lost cause. The gamer rocking chairs Evan had in his living room were super comfortable, the perfect place to read on my phone and swap texts with Lauren. Maybe I would have liked video games more growing up if Parker hadn’t been so competitive. He didn’t sulk when he lost anymore, but I’d given up on winning against him years ago. At least when it came to the virtual game of football. In a real game, all bets were off.
It had been a while since I’d played on a PlayStation, and I kept mixing up what the triangle button did as opposed to the square or circle button. But I seriously wasn’t interested in another tutorial along with ribbing about how I could fix a truck but couldn’t handle a game controller.
“Who do you keep texting?” Evan asked.
“Oh, I have to find a date for Friday.” It was better to bring it up now. I had no doubt both of them would find out about my double date with Lauren one way or another. Melissa and Connor weren’t exactly known for keeping their mouths shut. Plus, I might need some help finding a date if Melissa didn’t come through.
“Why Friday?” Parker asked. He weaved and bobbed with his player on the screen, his eyes never leaving it.
“Melissa talked Lauren into going on a blind date and she thought it would be less awkward if I was there with a date too.”
“How is that less awkward?” Parker scoffed. “You two hate each other.”
“Do you want to bring a date and go instead of me?” I asked.
“Nope.”
“My girlfriend and I could go along with them,” Evan offered.
I had not thought of that. And I needed a reason that couldn’t happen. Stat.
“Melissa thought it would be better if it was blind dates for both of us. You know how it is if one couple is all over each other and the other has to sit there and watch.”
I hadn’t met Evan’s girlfriend, so I didn’t know if I was on target or not, but he shrugged, looking mollified. “True. My girl is not shy with affection. She says her love language is touch and mine is words of affirmation. She made me read this book—”
Parker elbowed him before he could continue. “Shut up and play, Evan. No one wants to hear about your love languages.”
“Right, right.” Evan was quiet for about three seconds before asking, “Who are you gonna bring, Clay?”
Didn’t know, didn’t care. Lauren was talking to me. Wanted me along. That was the important part. But I probably needed to call Melissa, considering I kept throwing her name into this. Three months ago, she offered to set me up with a friend and I told her never. With any luck, never was about to turn into just this once. “I’m letting Melissa set me up with someone.”
Parker laughed. “One of the perks of being the black sheep in the family—I don’t get roped into stuff I don’t want to do. Have fun with that.”
Oh, I planned to. “I’m gonna head out, guys. It’s been real.”
They swatted me off like a fly, not even trying to beg me to stay. Once I was in my truck, I called up Melissa, who sounded way too happy to hear from me, even at ten p.m.
“Clay, what’s up with you?”
“Not much. It looks like I need a date for this Friday night.”
“Well, okay then. I’ll see what I can do. Is this for a double date, perhaps?”
“Yeah. With Lauren. Who is she going out with?”
“His name is Noble.”
