Page 32 of Don’t Be A Stranger

“It’s not that bad.”

I can’t help but laugh. Not that bad?

“Dude, we used to be attached at the hip and now unless we’re drunk, we’re dancing around each other.”

River rests his hands on the top of his head and does a pointless spin before turning back to look at me. “If we do this—”

It should be embarrassing how quickly I perk up. River must notice because he puts his hand up to keep me quiet for a second longer.

“How would this work?” River asks. “We just screw every now and again?”

I’m glad he brought that up.

“No, that’d be too complicated and messy, which is the very thing we’re trying to avoid, right?”

River nods.

“So, we keep it strictly just for the summer.”

I really think this is the perfect solution. We don’t have to commit to anything and we get to explore this newfound curiosity all while not having to destroy our friendship. It seems like the best of both worlds, honestly.

River studies me for a moment and all I can think about is him saying yes. Like I need him to or my entire world is going to fall apart right in front of me.

“And then things go back to normal in the fall?”

“Yes.” I quickly nod. “Right when school starts and Lily gets here.”

If anything, I think this whole setup will further prove to us that we’re meant to be best friends. Not romantic soulmates.

“Let’s do it,” he says in a way that someone would respond to grabbing lunch, not hooking up with your friend.

“What?” Everything in me comes to a halt and I’m wondering if I heard him correctly. Of course this is how I wanted the night to go but I had my reservations.

River leans back against the car, always one to go through the motions. “You know, I was kind of thinking that since you suggested it, you would have wanted this answer.”

“No.” I clear my throat. “That’s—yeah no, that’s the answer I wanted.”

“Okay, cool,” he says so casually it’s almost eerie how well this is going. I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop. I convinced myself on the entire taxi ride here that there was no way River was going to agree to this. I just knew I couldn’t sit back at the apartment and do nothing about us for the rest of my life. Now that I’ve spoken my proposition out loud, I’m not quite sure where to go from here.

I mimic him. “Cool.”

Because what else am I supposed to say? Hey, thanks for letting me have you for the summer, because I know that it’s all I should ever allow myself to want from you?

No. I’ve already met my desperate quota for the evening.

“So.” The word hangs in the air as I rock back and forth on my heels, trying to wrap my head around this outcome. I give him my best smile. “What ground rules are we thinking?”

That earns me a laugh. “What are you talking about?”

“I mean, I know winging it is kind of our thing but I can’t have you falling madly in love with me so—”

“Me? Fall in love with you?” he gasps. “I’m a man of willpower, Summer.”

Whatever helps him sleep at night, I guess.

He continues to try and prove his point. “You’re the one that suggested this whole thing, so I can only assume that you’ve been thinking about this for god knows how long. If anything, I should be the one worried here.”

“Rule one.” I ignore his accusations, knowing I can’t succeed at arguing with that. “This is all completely physical. No talking about plans after the summer. No feelings.”