I shake my head. “That’s what you took from that? What about the whole completely untrue ‘I hate him’ part?”
“You do—or did, at least,” Jared points out. “I’m with Dáithí on this. I like Ari too—he’s probably my favorite from the security team. Though, and sorry for the tangent, I think he’s got something going on that he doesn’t talk about. A bad breakup, maybe? Or did he lose someone during the anomalies?” He directs that to Dáithí, who shrugs.
“We all did. I don’t remember there being anyone in particular for Ari, unless it happened before I met him. But if there was, it’s a well-kept secret, because nobody’s ever talked about it.”
My ears have pricked right up, and I have a million questions, but I stay quiet. They’ve gotten off topic, and that’s to my benefit. If they can stay distracted until Ari gets here, they’ll have to drop the subject then.
Anyway, it’s not true. I never hated Ari. I hated that he judged me so harshly, and I hated that even then, I was ridiculously attracted to him, but I never hatedhim, even when it seemed like he hated me.
Jared and Dáithí are still talking about secrets that Ari may or may not have when the doorbell rings. I’m low-key disappointed that they’ve been interrupted, because they both know him better than me and I was learning a lot. But I’m also excited to see Ari.
Man, I’m so fucked. Is this because of my hormones? Because my friends are right that things changed fast.
On the other hand… who cares? Why can’t I have another friend? And if I’m attracted to him, well… so what? That doesn’t mean I have to do anything about it.
Dáithí comes back into the room with Ari behind him, and the same stupid grin I was wearing earlier stretches across my face.
“Hi,” he says, I guess to the room in general, though he’s looking at me, his lips curving into a smile to match mine. After a second, he drags his gaze away from me and nods to Jared. I remember suddenly that Jared and Dáithí are technically his bosses’ partners, which means this dinner might be a little weird for him. Oops.
He and Eoin are friends too, though, and he’s known Dáithí for a long time. And it’s too late to change tonight’s plans, anyway.
Fuck it.
I bounce to my feet and grab the printout from the coffee table as the doorbell rings again.
“That’ll be the steaks,” Dáithí announces, but I’m not listening. Ari’s already moving toward me, and we meet in the middle of the room.
“Look, I have a new diet plan,” I tell him, and he takes the papers, smiling at me before he turns his attention to reading them. I helpfully read over his shoulder and point out the parts that Edison wanted me to pay close attention to. “I have a new training plan as well,” I tell him when he hands the papers back. “It’s a work in progress, though, because Coach and Edison want to find me some special instructors.” I’m barely aware of Dáithí and Jared heading into the kitchen to get started on dinner, too invested in telling Ari everything that happened since I last saw him. In my defense, he’s just as invested as I am, asking a lot of questions—some of which I didn’t even think of.
“This is great, Felix,” he says at last. “Edison thinks you’ll see a change within a few days?”
I nod. “He said the increased protein in my diet will make a difference to the emotional surges pretty much right away. The trick is making sure I’m still getting the carbs I need to handle practice and games. We already talked to the chef at the clubhouse and the team nutritionist, and we’re going to have daily meetings for a while until we get the balance right.” I inhale deeply. “The anger hormones might take a little longer, but honestly, I’m so thrilled that things might get better that it would take a lot to make me angry now.”
Ari laughs. “It might help that Sarcnet is gone now too. He was the one who pissed you off the most, right?”
I blink, surprised that he knows that. “Yeah. Was it that obvious?”
He shrugs. “Ah… not really. I’m trained to notice stuff like that.”
He’s trained to notice when hockey players hate their teammates? I open my mouth to tease him a little, but he looks away awkwardly, obviously wishing he’d never said anything, and instead I try to think of a way to change the subject.
“So, that’s the violence and the weeping taken care of,” I joke. “But there’s nothing they can do about the horniness.”
The words fall into a little silence, definitely not easing any of the awkwardness. Dáithí and Jared have fallen quiet in the kitchen, and I’m pretty sure they’re eavesdropping. It’s hard to care about that when Ari can’t meet my gaze.
“I’m sorry,” I start to say, just as he blurts, “I might know someone who can help.”
We stare at each other.
“What?” I ask faintly. He doesn’t mean what I think he means… right?
Is my new-friend-sort-of-crush pimping me out?
“I talked to an acquaintance today. A researcher. I’m sorry, I know I shouldn’t have discussed your situation with anyone without your permission. I promise I didn’t use your name, and if you’d rather not?—”
“Wait. Stop.” I hold up a hand. “You talked to a researcher about my puberty?”
He nods miserably. “I’m so sorry.”
