Chapter 24
Claire
Moving day.
I’ve already neatly packed my boxes, and I’m just waiting for Zach and Ryan to arrive to do the heavy lifting.
Something about knowing the two people helping me are Zach and Ryan sends flutters in my chest. I’m anxiously pacing my kitchen when I hear footsteps on the staircase outside, then a knock on the door.
My first thought is, I hope it’s Ryan.
And I shove that away, opening the door quickly to find out who it is.
Ryan.
“Hey.” My voice sounds breathless, so I swallow and try again. “Hi! Thanks for coming.”
He grins widely, the smile that makes all his female students weak in the knees. “I’m happy to help.”
We stand there staring at each other for a minute before I remember my manners. I step out of the way and gesture inside. “Come on in.”
As Ryan steps into my apartment, I catch a glimpse of his shirt. It’s a triangle surfing, and the words say, “Catch a (sine) wave.”
I snort a laugh. “That’s a great shirt. Where did you find that?”
He looks down at his chest and grins back up at me. “Kai sent it to me. He’s, uh, trying to get on my good side.”
“He’s excited for you to visit this summer, huh?”
“Something like that.” He claps his hands and rubs them together. “So this is your place? Or…was, I guess. I’d ask for the grand tour, but that seems pointless now.”
“I’ll still show you around,” I say. “We need to fill time until Zach shows up.” I show him around, anxiously babbling about rooms and decor that isn’t visible anymore.
Ryan doesn’t say much, just looks around and takes it all in.
But it feels very personal, like taking our friendship to the next level.
He’s seeing where I go after work, where I relax and write my book. Where I sleep.
“And your new place is bigger?” he finally asks.
“Yeah, it has one more bedroom. But we’ll use it as an office for Zach.”
Ryan smirks. “I’d love to ask how his app is going.”
I swallow hard. “He’s, uh, moving on to a new venture.”
Ryan’s brow rises, but he doesn’t laugh like I expect him to. “So what’s his new project?”
“He’s…making an online course.”
Ryan clenches his jaw, and NOW I can tell he’s struggling not to laugh. “And what exactly is his expertise?”
My lips press together as I fiddle with my ring. “Making apps,” I finally say.
It’s ridiculous. I know it is. When Zach told me last weekend that he was abandoning his app, I felt a surge of relief. Finally. Maybe he’d get an actual job that paid a regular paycheck, something that would teach him to have a schedule and force him to work hard and reap his reward.
But instead, he said he was going to create an online course. With Tyson, of course, because the two of them can’t do a single thing without each other.
My reaction was a mixture of Ryan’s urge to laugh with an overwhelming desire to cry.
The thing is, I don’t care what his job is.
He could be working at McDonald’s, and that would be fine.
In fact, I’d be happy for him. I just want him to learn the value of hard work and the effort needed to actually pay bills.
If he goes from his parents’ support to me covering all the bills, will he ever learn?
Ryan opens his mouth to say something, but he’s interrupted by a bang on the door. “Saved by the knock,” he says with a smirk, and we both head to the front entrance.
I open the door to see Zach’s big smile. “Hey babe.” He grabs me around the waist and gives me a rough kiss on the cheek.
I pull back, glancing at Ryan, but his focus is on the kitchen to his left.
“Ryan,” Zach says in acknowledgment.
Ryan tips his head at Zach. “Zach.”
There’s a weird moment where they stare at each other, then Zach claps his hands together. “Look at you,” he says, glancing around at all my boxes. “All ready to go. This should be a piece of cake.”
“I sure hope so,” I say brightly.
“It’s no problem when you’ve got these muscles.” He flexes his biceps and gives me a wink, sparing a quick glance at Ryan.
“Careful, you might pull something,” Ryan mutters.
Zach grabs a heavy box full of books, sends a meaningful look at Ryan, and lifts it with barely a grunt. “Good thing you’ve got a strong fiancé.” He exits the apartment, and I turn to Ryan.
“I guess we’re starting. Are you ready?” I ask.
He gives me a half-grin then picks up the nearest box. “Yep. Let’s get you moved.”
An hour later, we’ve used Zach’s truck to move one load of boxes from my old place to the new one.
It’s Zach’s first time seeing it in person; he didn’t want to go apartment shopping two weeks ago and just asked for pictures of the choice with the biggest office.
He seems excited about the new place, though.
Zach and Ryan don’t say much to each other, just passing boxes back and forth, lugging them up the stairs, and loading them into the apartment. I try not to read into it.
When we get back to my old place, Zach gets a call from Tyson. “Hey, man,” he says, answering the call. His mouth falls slightly, and his eyes turn to me. “That’s today?” He pauses and checks his watch. “Yeah, no problem. I’ll be there in an hour.” He hangs up and looks at me.
“What do you mean, you’ll be there in an hour?” I ask. Ryan walks back inside the apartment and heads straight to another box.
Zach’s expression is apologetic. “I totally forgot. There’s this training Tyson and I signed up for. It’s live online at noon, and I have to be there.”
“But I’m moving,” I say. I glance over at Ryan, who seems unusually preoccupied with lifting that box. “I need your help.”
“You can do it.” He gestures at Ryan. “You’ve got him. Right, Ryan?”
Ryan glances up at Zach, and Zach gestures between us.
“You can stay and finish helping Claire after I leave, right?” Zach asks.
“Yeah, of course,” Ryan says. “I figured this would take all day, so I didn’t make other plans.”
His words are a clear dig at Zach, who doesn’t seem fazed at all. “Awesome.”
“But what about your truck?” I ask Zach. “We can’t fit everything in my car—or in Ryan’s.”
An awkward silence fills the space.
“Aaron has a truck,” Ryan offers. “My roommate. I can call him. He’s off work today.”
“I’m off work every day,” Zach says. He’s trying to brag, but that’s the last thing that would make Ryan jealous.
“Cool.” Ryan pulls out his phone and taps on the screen, then holds the phone to his ear and disappears into the kitchen.
My cheeks flame with heat, embarrassed that Ryan is witnessing this exchange with Zach. He already doesn’t like Zach, and now we’re just adding more fuel to the fire. “There’s no way you can reschedule?” I ask Zach softly.
He shakes his head. “Sorry, babe. But at least you’ve got Ryan and his friend. You’ll be fine.”
I want to protest more, but Ryan comes back out of the kitchen, phone in hand. “Aaron’s coming with his truck,” he says. “He’s bringing his girlfriend Pam, and they’ll both help.”
“They don’t need to,” I protest, instantly feeling guilty for ruining their day.
Ryan shakes his head. “Aaron says this is pick-up truck tax. Everyone asks for his help, so he’s an expert at moving. Besides, I’ll need another guy to help me move the furniture.”
I look around my apartment, overwhelmed at the idea of how many trips up and down the stairs Ryan will be taking to move my stuff. “I’m so sorry.”
Ryan just grins, then reaches down and lifts a box of throw blankets. “It’s all good. That’s what friends are for.”
Zach leaves half an hour later, right after Aaron and Pam arrive.
There’s a brief chaotic moment with saying hello and goodbye, but Aaron and Pam get to work right away.
They’re all smiles, laughing and joking with Ryan as they pass each other in the hallway, but I have such discomfort at seeing them walking around with boxes and bags of all my belongings.
“Sorry again,” I say to Pam as we pass each other in the hallway. She has two big bags of my clothes, and the sight of her struggling fills me with guilt.
She shakes her head and gives me a warm smile. “It’s what friends are for,” she says, echoing Ryan’s words.
“Yeah, but you’re not my friend.” I immediately regret the words as they leave my mouth, but she doesn’t take them as an insult.
“You’re Ryan’s friend, and Ryan’s one of the best people I know. If you’re important to him, you must be ‘good people,’ too.” She walks past me with the bags, not letting me argue with her anymore, and I head into my bedroom to grab a few more bags of clothes.
Her words hit me hard. Good people. That’s what I want to be known as. A good person. Is that my reputation?
A lot of who I am is wrapped up in my family, and I know people respect my parents as good people.
But what about Zach? Does he have a reputation for being a good person?
He’s not disliked, per se. People enjoy being around him because he’s fun and outgoing.
But is he known for being selfless and considerate?
My eyes catch on Ryan and Aaron lifting the heavy mattress off my bed, and they grin at me as I move out of the way so they can carry it through the doorway. Now those are some good people, I think to myself. The kind of people I want to surround myself with. The kind of person Zach says he is.
But he’s not here.