“Oh, there’s one left.”
The guy smiles, holding out his drink. “Cheers.”
“Cheers—”
Our cans clink and I take a sip. The watermelon hardly comes through, but at least it’s carbonated, making it easier to go down. We stand there for a moment, nodding to the music.
“Do you go to Loyola?” he asks.
“No, I go to—” I pause, remembering what Daniel said. “I mean, I’m from out of town.”
“Oh, where?”
Think of a random city.“Portland.”
“Which one?”
I hesitate. “Maine?”
“That’s where I’m from,” he says brightly.
“I mean, the other one.Oregon.”
“Oh, I’ve never been there.”
“Thenthat’swhere I’m from.”
He gives me a look, as if trying to read me. “I’m Mark, by the way.”
“I’m Eric.”
“Are you here with someone?”
“My friend Daniel. He just went to grab some ice.”
“How long are you in town?”
“Uh, a few days. But I’m back pretty often,” I tell him. “I have family in Chicago.”
“That’s nice,” he says, nodding. “Hopefully that means we’ll keep running into each other.” He smiles, taking a sip of his drink.
I can’t tell if he’s flirting or just being nice. It’s usually safe to assume the latter. Beside us is the living room sofa, facing the television. Two guys are sitting there, playing Mario Kart. Eventually they both get up, leaving the controllers on the sofa.
“I was waiting for them to finish,” Mark says, eyeing the television. He looks at me. “Down for a game of Mario Kart?”
“I’m not very good,” I say.
He shrugs. “Neither am I. Can’t even remember the last time I won.”
“Then I’d love to.”
Mark laughs. I could kill some time until Daniel comes back. We take a seat on the sofa, grabbing the controllers. I’m a little rustier than I expected, losing the first round pretty easily. Unfortunately, the second round doesn’t go much better for me. Mark must have noticed my frustration because he starts slowing down for me.
I turn to him. “Are you letting me win?”
He smirks. “Maybe…”
“Don’t do that.”
