The response takes less than a minute.
Luke: Does she know?
Me: Yes.
Luke: And?
Me: And nothing. That's why I'm leaving. Because nothing can happen.
The dots appear and disappear. Appear again. Stay for a long time.
Luke: Meet me at Miller's before you leave. We need to talk.
I close my eyes. This is exactly what I was trying to avoid. But there's no getting out of it now.
Me: When?
Luke: Now.
I drive back to town with my stomach in knots. Miller's Diner is mostly empty. Sunday afternoon lull. Luke is in the same booth we sat in for breakfast a few days ago.
I slide into the seat across from him.
"Thanks for coming," he says.
"Did I have a choice?"
"Not really."
We sit in silence for a moment. The waitress comes by. We both order coffee. Don't look at the menu.
When she's gone, Luke leans forward.
"How long?" he asks.
"How long what?"
"How long have you had feelings for Callie?"
I don't see the point in lying now. "A while."
"Define a while."
"Six months. Maybe longer."
Luke's jaw tightens. "Six months. You've been dealing with this for six months and didn't say anything."
"What was I supposed to say? Hey Luke, I want your sister. Is that cool with you?"
"It would've been better than sneaking around."
"We're not sneaking around. Nothing's happened."
"But you want it to."
I don't answer. Don't need to.
Luke sits back and runs a hand over his face. "Christ, Ethan. Why didn't you just talk to me?"
