Chapter 19
Dean
It had been a long night, with barely any time to catch my breath. I knew alcohol could make people a little crazy, but it was a different beast when I worked in a bar. It sure made me wonder how booze was legal everywhere but weed wasn’t.
Despite the craziness and my rush to clean up, I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about my interaction with Oli. Something had changed from one moment to the next. I assumed I’d offended him somehow, but I wasn’t sure how.
This was starting to feel like a pattern.
As I flopped the mop onto the floor, I ran through the conversation again.
I’d never claimed to be all that smart when it came to my relationships, and though I was pretty intuitive, some things went over my head.
Sadie had gotten pissed at me a lot for it.
She’d give hints, I’d fail to catch them, and then it would be my fault that I didn’t do what she wanted.
God, was that a game Oli was playing?
“Can I ask you something?”
Remi looked over at me from where he was counting the money from the till. “Do you have to?”
“No.”
Refocusing on the mop, I targeted a particularly sticky spot. I was pretty sure it was from me pouring drinks, but it felt better if I just blamed it on Remi being reckless.
A loud sigh came from his side of the bar. “What is it, kid?”
“I’m not a kid.”
“I was in second grade when you were born. Accept that I’m wiser than you.”
“Yeah, sure.” Without looking at him, I pushed back my pride. “I think I upset Oli.”
“Obviously.”
I scoffed and turned to face him. Leaning my weight on the mop handle, I narrowed my eyes. “You can read him that well?”
“My instincts are fine-tuned to him, yeah. Like a lion protecting her cub.”
“So now you’re a lioness? Interesting.”
“Just spit it out. Clearly, you’re worried about him.”
“I’m not worried,” I argued. “I just feel like I keep saying the wrong things. Frankly, I don’t want to walk on eggshells around him.”
“Damn. Heard of a thing called empathy?”
With a growl, I started mopping again. “That’s not what I meant.”
“He’s picking up on your cues,” he said after it had been silent for a few minutes.
“I’m not giving any cues.”
“Not that you’re aware of. Even on a micro level, he’s noticing the things you don’t say. Or the way you say something. It’s your vibes, if you will.”
“So, he has anxiety or something?”
“Nah, not in the traditional sense.”
I wanted to tell him that he wasn’t being helpful, but he’d probably just capitalize on my confusion. Something about getting under my skin seemed to bring him joy, which was just annoying. And he knew that, so it was an endless dance.
When I finished with the floor, I walked into the back and hung the mop up. After dumping the bucket and spraying it out, I turned around. Swearing, I reared back.
“Where the hell did you come from?”
Remi had a smirk on his face. With his arms crossed, he looked a bit like a villain. “You need help understanding him.”
“No.” I walked past him, then stopped at the counter as I scanned the bar, looking for anything I might’ve missed.
“There once was a boy hard to read, who never shows all that he bleeds. He jokes when he aches, gives more than he takes, and hides all his truths in rare deeds.”
I snorted a laugh. “What the fuck was that?”
“A limerick, you buffoon. Look, there’s no shame in wanting to understand him. We all have unique experiences. They shape us in weird ways, and you clearly don’t know what you’re working with here. But you want to.”
“With all due respect, I don’t want your help.”
He leaned against the counter and quirked a brow. “No?”
“Nah, I’m good on my own.”
“Is that why you’ve been in distress since he left?”
Ignoring the question, I chewed on my lip for a second. “I’ll figure him out, but I don’t want to do it like this.”
“Like what?”
“Talking to his best friend.” I gestured toward him. “I don’t need the cheat code. If I fuck up a bunch of times, that’s fine, as long as I figure it out along the way.”
The way Remi stared at me made my skin crawl. I shifted on my feet, ready to bolt. I was finished here anyway, and my eyes were heavy from the late nights.
Just as I was about to walk away, Remi’s expression changed. His lips thinned and his eyes fell to the floor. “I respect that.”
My brows shot up. “You do?”
Meeting my gaze, he nodded. “The more you get to know Oli, the more you’ll see him.
People tend to give up on him quickly or hold him at arm’s length, but that makes it worse, you know?
He’s just . . . never been wanted. That’s all I’ll say about it.
” He cleared his throat, then nodded toward the door.
“Get out of here, and don’t get yourself arrested tomorrow.
Working around the age thing is a big enough hurdle.
Adding a felony to the mix ain’t a good move. ”
I breathed a laugh, but I just nodded before I headed for the door. I moved quickly, half afraid he’d start spinning poetry again.
Even though I hadn’t asked for much information from Remi, he’d given me a nugget.
It wasn’t all that different from what Oli had already told me, but it was clear that I needed to keep my eyes open from now on, otherwise I’d miss signs that were right in front of me.
Like giving him a reason to think he was being a nuisance all because he wanted to make sure I ate.
I was a dumbass. But it was fixable.
*****
The apartment was dark when I opened the door.
Not long ago, I would’ve assumed that meant Oli was asleep.
I’d seen a lot in the past month, though, and I knew that he was always awake when I got home.
Just like he was when I left my room every morning, even if it was early.
Maybe he was a light sleeper. More likely, there was another reason for it.
“Get up,” I said, flipping on the entry light.
Oli pushed himself up on his elbows, squinting his eyes. “Is it finally happening?”
“Depends. What’s your mind go to?”
“Zombie apocalypse.” He cocked his head, then shook it. “The Rumbling? We’ll never escape, so we might as well tuck in and live out our wildest fantasies before we’re squashed and barbequed.”
“I have no idea what you’re going on about.”
His mouth gaped comically. “You uncultured heathen.”
“I have food,” I said, holding up two paper bags.
“Oh my God. Jack in the Box? Have I told you I love you?”
“There’s a first time for everything.”
The grin on his face made my heart do a weird little dance. It sort of reminded me of the goofy way my buddy West acted, but that had never given me a palpitation. I must’ve really been tired.
“Plop that ass down,” he said, curling his legs so there was space for me. “I just have one condition.”
“You’re not in a place to set conditions.”
After I sat down, I looked over at him. He was silent, but his lip was pushed outward. It was more comical than anything, yet I found myself caving.
As if he could tell, he smiled again. “I’m making you watch something with me.”
“I’m gonna hate this,” I groaned.
“No, you’ll love it.”
While I dumped a pile of criminally greasy tacos on the table, he grabbed a metal case off of his bookshelf.
Like it was the nineties, he slipped out a DVD and fed it to his Xbox.
Honestly, I respected it. Streaming services had become dumb, greedy bastards.
I’d never been to a Blockbuster, but I thought it would be cool to bring those relics back.
“What is it?” I asked before I stuffed a taco into my mouth.
“One of the greatest anime to ever exist.”
“Poké Ball Z or something?”
“Poké Ball Z?” He looked at me like I’d stomped on his goldfish. “Are you . . . Dean, you have to move out.”
I waved a dismissive hand. “Just put your weeb shit on.”
“Oh, we’re gonna fight.”
I used a taco to hide my laugh. The way he plopped onto the couch made me wonder if he was as flabbergasted as he seemed.
It was just anime. I’d never been interested in trying it out, mostly because people always told me I had to.
Allegedly, it would change my life or some shit.
I hated overhyped things, so I just ignored them, but Oli seemed excited about this, so I guess I’d have to suffer through it.
“So, is this like Greek mythology or something?” I asked when I read the title on the screen.
“No.”
“But Titans are Greek.”
“I swear to God I’ll remove your spleen if you don’t shut up.”
With a snicker, I leaned back. When I felt his feet behind me, I stiffened and almost sat up, but then I decided against it.
“I made you a spreadsheet,” I said as the first scene opened. “To track your finances.”
“Okay.”
“Okay? It’s a damn good one. I use it for my own records.”
I was going to continue, but he was suddenly right beside me, putting his finger over my lips. “Shh.”
I snorted a laugh and swatted his hand away. “Fine, weirdo.”
As if the finger thing hadn’t been imposing enough, he reached across me and pushed his fingers into my jeans pocket. I was on the verge of shoving him back, but a second later, he pulled my dab pen out and held it up to me.
“You can smoke this in here if you shut the hell up.”
“You don’t have to bribe me.”
“I don’t like seeing you go outside in the cold to do it.”
Gently, I took it from him and brought it to my lips.
His eyes fell to my mouth, and he just watched me the entire time I took a hit.
Even though I knew he didn’t smoke, I didn’t try to blow it away from him.
His nose wrinkled a little when it hit his face and dispersed outward, all while he refused to breathe.
I waved it away, trying not to laugh. “My bad.”
He put his finger to my lips again, and this time I bit it hard, forcing him to yank it back.
“Jerk,” he muttered, but there was a soft smile on his face.
He settled back on the couch, this time shifting his legs so they were in my lap instead of behind me.
His calves were bare, and for a second, I stared down at them.
I thought about asking him to move, but I didn’t actually care that much.
And he looked comfortable. This was his bed, after all, and he should be allowed to relax.
I found him looking at me, so I turned back to the TV.
No talking during the show. Apparently, this was serious.