Ody got on the bike and wrapped his arms around Mano’s waist. Mano took off, the wind rushing around them. Every time he braked, Ody’s body pressed against his back, making his chest tighten for reasons he didn’t want to examine.
They arrived in Kallithea and walked through the warm air, the breeze brushing against their faces.
“I didn’t expect you to text me to hang out,” Ody admitted.
“Why not?”
“I’m the one who texts first. And…” He paused. “After what happened at my place, you barely spoke to me at school.”
He didn’t have to explain. They both remembered.
Mano swallowed. “Uh… no… it was just that your friends were there and…” He stumbled over the words.
Ody could see the embarrassment. “Do you wanna sit on a bench? Grab some coffee?”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
They got their coffees and walked for a bit before settling on a bench.
“Are you still seeing Ranya?” Ody asked.
“Yeah.”
“Oh… cool.” He stirred his coffee, staring ahead.
“I asked her to come with me to Serifos. We couldn’t just not go out.”
“That’s the only reason?” Ody looked at him, taking in the sharp line of his jaw.
“We have great sex too,” Mano said, meeting Ody’s eyes.
His stomach twisted at the words.
Mano’s phone rang. He glanced at the screen, jaw tightening as he exhaled. “Where were we?” He put the phone on silent and looked back at Ody.
“You’re not gonna answer that?”
“No.”
“A girl?”
“Worse. What were we saying?” His tone held irritation now. Ody didn’t respond. “Oh, right. The fucking with Ranya.”
Ody shot him an annoyed look. “You don’t have to be so graphic.”
Mano chuckled, smirking. “What’s the big deal? It’s not like you’re not doing it with Anna. We’re guys. It’s normal to talk about this stuff.”
Ody knew that. His basketball friends talked like that. So why did it feel different hearing it from Mano? Why did it bother him so much?
“We’re friends, right? So tell me… how often do you do it?” Mano asked, grinning at Ody’s pure awkwardness. “Ranya’s wild, by the way. She loves being tied up and slapped—”
“Stop it,” Ody snapped, turning forward, jaw tight.
“Why?”
“I don’t care how you do it with Ranya,” Ody replied, still staring ahead.
“We’re just talking about girls. What’s the problem?”
