Leaning back on my heels, I check if Harper’s still asleep on the sofa. Suddenly, snooping around feels more invasive than it did when I started. The man covets his privacy, and I can’t invade it while he sleeps soundly. I carefully pull the throw blanket over Harper’s sleeping body. He sniffles a little, then dips down to curl across the length of the sofa. Honey rests her head on Harper’s extended arm, gazing up at me in obvious thanks.
“Take care of him?” I whisper to Honey.
She just yawns in reply.
I give one last lingering look at a peacefully sleeping Harper. Impulsively, I backtrack to the kitchen, and silently dig through the drawers for a paper and pen. A sticky note will have to do. I scrawl my phone number across the note along with my name, then stick it to the fridge. He probably won’t call me, but at least he’ll have my number. That comforting thought carries me all the way home.
5
HARPER
The sticky note from Jackson is slowly losing its adhesiveness. It haunts me daily, just daring me to use the number each time I open the refrigerator. But I won’t. Pretty boys like Jackson only ever cause pain to boys like me. Jocks and nerds only get together in the movies, not in real life.
My phone vibrates gently on my desk. Oh, it’s Andy. Great.
Andy
Are you coming to movie night at the farm?
No
Whyyyyyyyyy
I don’t want to have to get a ride
Colby and Eli will bring you! You’re on the way!
Can I throw popcorn at people?
…… if that will get you to come, then the answer is an unequivocal yes
Fine
don’t sound too thrilled
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
far too many exclamation points
yay!
that’s way better
Hate you
Might as well get dressed.The temperature outside has finally dipped with our first cold front of the year. I tug on a pair of black skinny jeans and a cream cable-knit sweater. Andy says it makes my eyes lookpoppin’, whatever that means. The outfit says put together, but my beat-up all-black Chucks say otherwise.
Andy must’ve been in coordination with Colby or Eli because, literally moments later, there’s a knock at my door. But when I open the door, Jackson is standing with one leg on a stair and the other on the porch. The odd position puts us almost at the same height.
“Hello,” Jackson says, voice pitched low, smile on his lips.
Fuck this motherfucker, what the fuck?
“What are you doing here?”
Jackson gestures toward Trevor and Beau’s. “I was visiting Trevor and found out you need a ride to the movie tonight.”
“Andy just told me—” I stop myself. I grab my phone out of my pocket to find a text from Andy.
