“Freshman year, the coffee shop on 5th?” Autumn looked at Jack, who shrugged in agreement, his mouth full.
“Hey. Sorry I’m late.” Gia approached our table in a flurry as she pushed the tangle of red curls from her face. Dramatic eyeliner highlighted her jade-green eyes that lit up as she sidled up next to Jack, who adjusted himself toward her, welcoming her closer. Gia kissed Jack, and I knew I’d been way off.
“We met there, but the inflatable screen showing the double feature ofRaiders of the Lost ArkandThe Mummywas our first friendship date,” Jack corrected, pulling Gia into his side where she tucked nicely. “And what, we’re going on two years since you stumbled into camp after taking care of those animal deathtraps all day, right?” he asked Gia with a smirk.
She leaned away from him, affronted. “They’re called horses,” Gia admonished, unable to hold back her smile. “Sometimes, I wish I was still an intern in Wildwood. Homemade s’mores by my new crush after work was the best perk.”
Jack hugged her side. “It’s like you were always supposed to find me here.”
“Hard having to find you over and over again, since we’re apart months at a time.” Gia’s tone lost its playfulness. His face fell, but he recovered quickly as she kissed his cheek. “Sorry, I just miss you, babe.” She gave him a smile, and the tension lines in Jack’s forehead relaxed once again.
“Miss you too.” He pulled her in even closer.
Ren jumped in to lighten the mood. “When was our first friendship date?” he asked, as if I could ever forget.
“Easy. Your first day. I think you told me you had access to my schedule and that I couldn’t get out of taking you out for a drink to celebrate.”
Ren had that way about him. He always knew I needed a little bit of a push to socialize and take care of myself, and he was happy being the one to tug me in the right direction. Case in point: camp.
“A scandalous office affair, I’d imagine,” Autumn teased, and we all laughed.
“Songs will be written about this bromance,” he told her with all seriousness. “You know, Jamie’s a big deal back at the office. About to become senior associate and everything.”
Autumn raised an eyebrow. Did everyone else notice that he was directly addressing her?
“I’m not surprised,” she said sincerely. “I’m sure he’ll be running the place soon enough.”
It suddenly felt a hundred degrees in here. I resisted the urge to fan myself. “I don’t know about that…”
Autumn focused her attention on me and the world fell away, making the lull in the otherwise boisterous mess hall obvious.
“It’s too quiet here. Maybe we should see if the one-man band takes requests?” I asked.
We all looked for Leo, but he was nowhere to be found. Autumn and Gia began chatting about Gia’s week, different animals and places she’d gone to help. Turned out, Gia had found a new job doing house calls and equestrian center visits in the Greater Portland area.
The knot in my gut eased. Any tension lines I’d been carrying had probably also left the building. Jack and Autumn were friends, best friends, and based on their interactions, they had an easy camaraderie that I had only come close to experiencing, and that person sat right next to me. How had I never seen it with Ren? I knew then that I needed to do more work to make our friendship thrive.
I’d promised Ren we’d play bingo for the night’s activity. We took our plates to the correct bins and headed out, but I couldn’tstop thinking of my luck tonight after learning about Jack and Gia’s relationship. It was wrong, but it didn’t stop me from feeling high as a kite.
“B-10,”Feliciacalledout.
We were playing a bougie twist on bingo, with prizes like bottles of wine and expensive chocolates, the grand prize being a stay at a winery on the other side of the mountain.
Too bad Ren and I weren’t paying attention. I hadn’t played bingo before and was having a great time until Ren started delving into my past life, but it was time to open up.
“So,Jamie. Can I call you that too?”
“Don’t give me that look. It was high school. Of course the pretty girl got to call me whatever she liked.”
“The pretty girl youdated.”
“She was an all-star athlete, on student council, and the most challenging person I ever went head to head with. I didn’t stand a chance.”
“Bet you still wouldn’t.” He snickered as he marked another spot on his bingo sheet. I didn’t know how he was paying attention.
“I wouldn’t take that bet,” I agreed, realizing I’d admitted too much thanks to whiskeys number three and four.
“What were you like in high school, anyway? Let me guess, you had that sameall-work, no-playambition that I love so much about you?”
