I open my mouth to respond, but she beats me to it again. “So are you single?”
That one catches me off guard. I blink a couple of times before answering. “Uh—yeah, but—”
“Well good,” she says brightly. “Because I’ve been meaning to talk to you for a while.”
I blink again, but she leans back in her chair. “I always see you around campus and I told my friend the other day that you’re actually really handsome.”
“Oh,” I say. “Well, thanks, but—”
“And you seem nice,” she continues, waving her hand casually. “Not like those guys who think they’re cool just because they go to the gym twice.”
She laughs. Loudly. Very loudly.
I try again. “I actually need to—”
“So what year are you in?” she asks. “Because I’m a junior, but technically I should be a senior except I switched majors and—”
The words just keep coming. She starts telling me about her classes, her roommate, something about a professor who hates her, and a dog she had when she was a kid. Every time I try to say something, she talks right over me again.
I’m fucking trapped.
I glance toward the counter, briefly considering whether leaving my laptop and running out the door is an option. That’s when I suddenly feel a hand rest on my shoulder. “Hey babe.”
I look up, completely thrown off, and see Maddy sliding into the chair beside me. Her arm wraps loosely around my shoulders.
What the hell is happening right now?
The girl across from us freezes mid-sentence. “Babe?” she repeats, her eyes widening dramatically. “Oh my God—wait. Are you two, like… a thing?”
Maddy tilts her head and smiles easily. “Yeah, girl. This is my man.” She glances at me. “Right, babe?”
For a moment I just stare at her. But then it clicks.
She is a genius.
“Yeah,” I say quickly, shifting a little closer to her. I slide my arm around her waist, pulling her just slightly against my side. “This is my girl.”
The redheaded girl straightens immediately, hands flying up. “Oh my God, I’m so sorry!” she says. “I didn’t know you had a girlfriend!” She turns back to me, mock-scolding. “Why didn’t you tell me you had a girlfriend?”
“...You didn’t really give me a chance,” I mutter and she looks between us again, smiling wide. “You two are so cute together. Like actually adorable.”
“Thank you,” Maddy says sweetly.
The girl waves dramatically as she backs toward the door. “Okay, I’m gonna go. Sorry again. Love this for you.”
The little bell above the café door rings as she leaves and for a second there’s silence, but then Maddy and I look at each other and immediately lose it. She pulls away from me as I lean back in my chair, laughing so hard I have to run a hand over my face.
“Oh my God,” I say, straightening again. “You just saved my life.”
“You looked like you needed it.” She grins. “I saw you glance over to the door at least five times.”
I shake my head, still laughing. “I tried to interrupt her like four times, but she did not pause for goddamn oxygen even once.”
Maddy laughs again, leaning back in her chair. After a moment I glance at her properly and notice she’s still wearing her work shirt. “Wait. Were you here the whole time?”
She looks down at herself and snorts. “Oh, no. My shift ended this afternoon. I just came back because I forgot my phone.”
I nod slowly. “No surprises there.”
