28. Noah
“Okay, it’s nice spending time with you instead of wanting to punch you in the face,” she admits.
“You loved punching me.”
“I still do,” she says as she punches me below my shoulder.
“God, you’re strong.”
“Maybe, you’re just weak.”
“Take that shit back.”
She shakes her head, getting up off the chair.
I leave a tip for Valerie, sipping on the water she gave us after we finished our drinks.
“I’m glad I got to see you guys!” Valerie shouts.
“Us too!” Dani raises her voice.
Dani walks out the door first with me following suit.
Sunset Cove Creamery is on the same side as Coastal Shores in the Promenade. It’s not far away at all but with the heat and sun blazing it feels like it’s miles away.
Opening the door to Sunset Cove Creamery, a cool breeze slaps me in the face.
Fuck, that feels so good.
Dani goes in first and I follow.
It smells like heaven in here. The sweet scent of waffle cones and nostalgia hits me in the face. I used to come here a lot when I was a kid. Little Noah was obsessed with ice cream. Adult Noah still has that obsession.
“What do you want?” she asks.
I look in the giant cooler, inspecting all the flavors they have. My eyes gravitate immediately towards mint chocolate chip. I point to it with my index finger, so Dani can see what she’s going to order for me.
“Hey, what can I get for you guys?” A guy that looks about our age with dark brunette hair asks us.
“He’s going to have a scoop of mint chocolate chip.”
“What size?”
“Medium in a waffle cone,” I say.
“How about you?” He turns his attention to Dani, scanning her from head to toe.
Why is he checking her out? Nah, fuck that, it’s annoying the shit out of me.
“A scoop of chocolate in a small cup, please.”
“Coming right up. Hey, do you go to SCU?” His eyes are burning a hole through Dani’s face.
“Yeah.”
“Oh, cool. I’m starting my junior year this upcoming semester. What are you studying?”
“Creative writing and magazine journalism. I’m going into my senior year this semester,” she says to him.
It’s like I’m not here anymore. He’s not even looking in my direction.
“Nice. So, you’re going to be…”
“An author. I’ve been working on my debut since middle school, actually.”
“Wow, that’s pretty cool. What do you write?”
“Romance.”
“I had a feeling.”
“How so?”
“I don’t know. You look like a romance writer.”
He’s making small talk with her while he’s putting her chocolate ice cream in a small cup.
“Oh, why? Do you think I look like a romance writer?” Her eyebrows raise.
“I don’t know.” He pauses. “Hey, can I ask you a question?”
“Sure,” she says as her lips form into a small smile.
I’m fiddling with my fingers because I need to do something with my hands. I think punching this guy in the face will be my next option.
“Are you a library book?”
She doesn’t say anything. Instead, she’s just standing there and waiting in anticipation of what he’s going to say next.
“Because I’d love to check you out.”
Where the hell did that come from? Okay, this guy crossed the line so far it’s no longer a line. It’s a dot. A fucking speck.
She chuckles, but not in the cute way she normally does. She’s uncomfortable, and so am I.
I put my arm around her. “Sorry man, she’s taken.”
She looks up at me, a smile slowly spreading across her lips and her eyes blinking rapidly.
“I didn’t know. Makes sense, though.”
“Why?” she asks him.
“You’re pretty and nice. I shouldn’t have assumed you were single. I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine,” she says.
No, it’s not fucking fine.
He hands Dani the small cup of chocolate ice cream and my waffle cone with mint chocolate chip ice cream.
She pays for our ice cream, barely making eye contact with the guy.
We sit down at the table closest to the door. She digs into her ice cream, but I can’t shake off how angry I am.
“Noah,” she says.
“What?”
“Calm the hell down. You didn’t need to rescue me with that guy. I can handle doing things myself. I was about to say something very snarky before you intervened.”
“I’m sorry. It just made me uncomfortable.”
Can I still beat the shit out of him?
“You still get these bouts of anger, huh?”
I have these moments when I get angry over the dumbest shit. Something in my body gets worked up. Sometimes I just have to let it out, or it just breaks me down bit by bit.
“You remember that?” I take a bite of my waffle cone.
“I remember one of our family game nights back in middle school and you completely lost it when I won. You ripped the game up and stormed into your bedroom, slamming the door behind you. Your parents thought it fell off the doorframe.” She takes a spoonful of ice cream as I feel my phone buzz through the table.
DIPSHITS
XANDER
Hey, so, we haven’t heard from Dr. Miller yet. I don’t know if she’s going to update us at all. We keep seeing gurneys being pulled out of rooms and into the elevators. She’s swamped with surgeries, man
ME
Shit, how’s my mom?
XANDER
She’s alright. Dani’s mom hasn’t left her side since we got here this morning
ME
That doesn’t surprise me. Speaking of Dani…
XANDER
Did you confess your undying love for her yet?
ME
No, you idiot. She’s been having this really horrible writer’s block, so I took her to Sweet Salty to see if it’d spark some inspiration for her
XANDER
I’m sorry did you just say Sweet Salty? As in your mom’s bookshop. The one that exclusively sells romance…
ME
Yes, dipshit
After that, we went to Coastal Shores for lunch and ran into Bella’s sister, Valerie, at the bar
XANDER
Who’s Bella?
ME
Dani’s best friend. You’d like her
XANDER
Maybe you should send me her Instagram handle
ME
Why? So you can fall in love with her on the spot?
XANDER
Oh, shut the hell up. What happened after you ran into her sister?
ME
We’re at Sunset Cove Creamery now. The guy who helped us out was flirting with Dani
XANDER
Somebody sounds jealous
ME
Of course I was jealous. So, I stepped in and told him we were boyfriend and girlfriend
XANDER
Wait, you did what now?
Ugh…doesn’t matter. I’m going to head back to the apartment and make sure that it’s all in one piece
ME
Why? Do you think Gray destroyed the place?
XANDER
Wouldn’t surprise me. Honestly, nothing he does surprises me anymore. Oh, by the way, ignore him when he does stupid shit. He’s trying to make up for the lack of manhood he doesn’t have
ME
Oh, shit
GRAYSON
You want me to beat your ass, Xander?
ME
Hey, look who finally decided to show up
GRAYSON
Sorry, I was taking a shower. I just came back from the gym. Did you know there are places guys can sweat in I never knew about until now?
ME
I had the same thought when Dani and I were walking to Sunset Cove Creamery. Dude, what the fuck is up with this shit?
GRAYSON
I have no idea
XANDER
I’d love to see you try and beat my ass, Gray
GRAYSON
Want me to set up a mat for when you get home then?
ME
Okay kids, this was fun and all, but I’m going to go now. Good luck beating the shit out of each other
I can’t imagine how my mom is feeling.
Annoyed that Dr. Miller hasn’t updated her yet.
Anxious.
Mad.
Upset.
And then there’s Grayson and Xander who are total dumbasses. All three of us are roommates. We live in the same apartment which is located off campus. I can attest they beat the crap out of each other on a daily basis.
There’s something that’s bothering Grayson because he’s been so testy lately. I don’t want to pry it out of him. I’m just going to have to let him tell me when he’s ready. It’s something that took a long time for me to get used to with him. Having patience.
“Hey, are you okay?” Dani pulls me back into reality.
“Xander has been at the hospital with my mom. He said they haven’t gotten any updates from Dr. Miller about Lizzie’s condition.”
I’m freaking the fuck out. What if she’s going to be like this for months? Years? What if she doesn’t wake up and she has to be hooked up to a machine for the rest of her life?
Throwing my napkin into the garbage, I rush out the door.
I need air.
I can’t breathe in here.