“So am I,” she says, but averts her eyes at the subject of her brother. “He’s on his way over, which doesn’t give us much time to talk about…well, everything.”
“Would you prefer to wait?” I ask her, even though that’s the last thing I want to do.
“Maybe we should,” she says. “You’re still not all the way back yet. You need more rest. It’s been a long night for you—”
“It was a long night for both of us,” I tell her, resisting the need to touch her. To hold her in my arms like I did last night. “I have the whole day to rest and recover. One conversation isn’t going to derail that.”
“Are you sure?”
The crack of a key turning in the lock startles Leti away from me. Andrew steps inside, dark circles beneath his eyes, his button-downshirt from last night wrinkled. He takes one look at us and rolls his eyes. “You two a thing now?”
I cringe, and when I look at Leti, her eyes shift to the floor like it’s the most interesting thing she’s ever seen. It’s the worst possible timing for that question. We haven’t asked each other that yet, even if in my head Leti and I are already a done deal. But Leti? She needs more convincing.
“Prying into our personal lives already?” Leti scoffs. “That was quick.”
“Is that a no?” he asks, painting the picture of indifference, but I know better. “Why don’t you send me a postcard when you make up your mind.”
“I think”—I clap my hands and speak over whatever barb Leti’s about to let loose—“that you two need to talk. Preferably outside, so I don’t get another headache when it turns into the inevitable screaming match.”
I look Andrew in the eye, narrowing mine at him slightly, hoping he’ll remember our conversation from last night. He was on thin ice before that postcard comment, but now he’s pushing it. He has to be the one to extend the olive branch. Leti might not take it at first, but I can work on her later.
“Fine,” Leti says, only agreeing because of my injury. I’ll be milking that for as long as possible, thank you very much. “Let’s go outside and talk.”
32
Leti
Andrew follows me out into the parking lot, raising a brow when I stop under a large oak tree. This spot is as good as any for the conversation we’re about to have. My brother hates getting into arguments in public, so I’m hoping the passersby will keep us civil. I, for one, couldn’t give less of a shit about who knows we’re fighting, so this is just me being petty.
“Well?” I ask when he doesn’t say anything. “Are we gonna stand out here like two idiots, or are we gonna talk?”
“Why did it have to be him?” he asks finally. He still won’t look at me. “Of all the people you could choose to be with, why did it have to be my best friend?”
I blow out a breath, becauseboyhave I been asking myself that same question for weeks. Not that we’re together exactly, Julian and I. But maybe as together as I’ve ever gotten the chance to be with a romantic partner. Now, fuck if I don’t want anybody else.
Not that I can take anything he said last night to heart, no matter how much I want to. What kind of a person would I be to hold him to the feelings he alluded to while suffering from a head injury?
“I don’t know,” I tell him honestly. “It’s not like I chose forany of this to happen. Being your friend is a point against him, if anything.”
“Are you and Julian together now?”
I cross my arms over my chest and force down a groan. “I don’t know.”
“Do you knowanything?”
“Okay, stop it already. It’s bad enough we’re even having this conversation. Don’t bullshit me when I’m trying explain how this happened.”
“I already know what happened. Julian told me yesterday,” he says. “What I need to know is that you won’t hurt him.”
Finally, I look him in the face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means I know you.” He puts his hands in his pockets, staring out into the parking lot instead of at me. “The only person in this family you come through for is Elena.”
“Because she’s the only person in this family who comes through forme,” I say. “Elena and Bella are my favorite people, but they’re not myonlypeople.” It was far easier than it should’ve been to include Julian in that list, but there’s no erasing him from it now.
“And Julian is my best friend, which is a point against him by your own admission,” Andrew says. “He didn’t tell me why you couldn’t stand him at first, but he didn’t have to. It was because of me. Because you found out he was my roommate and decided to hate him on principle without giving him a fair chance.”
I hardly have an argument for that, even if I did change my mind about Julian eventually. “We grew up together, Leti. We know every little way there is to hurt each other, and we’re not afraid to abuse the shit out of that knowledge. We do it over and over again. We’ve been doing it all our lives. I think it’s the only thing we know how to do at this point. Which is exactly why I don’t trust you not to hurt him.”
