13. Daisy
DAISY
Liam orders pretzel bites and a Coke. I grab a water.
“Are you sure you don’t want one?” He holds out his plate for the second time since we sat at the counter that overlooks the lanes.
Violet is up, and Gavin stands behind her. I can’t hear his words well enough to know if he’s being encouraging or taunting. Her annoyed glare suggests the latter, but I get the sense that even if he was telling her how great she was, she’d still find a way to be irritated with him.
“No thanks.” I sip on my water as he chews happily.
I’ve never had a serious boyfriend. I’ve dated a couple of guys, but one was in high school and the other was last year and only lasted for a few months before he transferred to another school.
Both of those relationships started as a friendship and slowly grew into more, so sitting and talking with Liam is as close as I’ve been on a date with someone I have a real crush on.
And I’m not nailing it.
He has no problem with the silence between us. He comments on the game in front of us, and he smiles at me a lot, but there’s no conversation about school or life or really anything except bowling.
I can’t help but compare it to hanging out with Jordan. Silence with him feels different, and even though I know Liam is objectively more my type, I kind of wish it was Jordan sitting here. Which, of course, makes me feel ridiculous. This is everything I’ve wanted.
“Where are you from?” I ask as he pops a pretzel bite into his mouth.
He chews and washes it down with soda before answering. “Washington. You?”
“Here. Well, not Valley, but Arizona. Near Flagstaff.”
“That’s cool. Do you go home a lot on the weekends and stuff?”
“No. Not really.”
His stare isn’t menacing, but the way he looks at me tells me he’s surprised by my answer.
“Well, I have Violet, so I have family here. And our families visit us.”
It isn’t a lie, they do visit us, but it’s a sunny spin on it. Mine have been twice—once to bring me freshman year, and the second to a homecoming game last year that Violet’s dad, my uncle Mason, organized.
“Right. Yeah, that makes sense.” He pushes the plate away and leans back in his chair. He calls out to Gavin when he gets a seven-ten split. “You can still do this.” He claps and nods to him.
“I can see why they made you captain.”
A slow smile lights up his face. “Thanks.”
I ask him a little about hockey, and we eventually get to talking about physics and school. It’s weird. We’re having a nice conversation, but I don’t feel like I know him any better. Or that he learned anything new about me except where I’m from.
When the game is over, we all say our goodbyes. Gavin gives us a ride back since he’s next door. In the back seat, I watch the houses go by and replay the night in my head. What a weird turn of events.
“Here is fine,” Violet says as he goes past The White House.
“I can take you all the way. It’s no problem.”
He pulls up in front of our house. Violet doesn’t give him so much as a goodbye before exiting his SUV.
“Thank you,” I say for the both of us.
He turns to smile at me as I get out. “Any time.”
Violet is already inside, shoes off, raiding our fridge when I walk in the house.
“You could have at least said thank you.”
She rolls her shoulders as she scoops leftover pasta into a bowl. “He gets under my skin.”
“I really didn’t know he was going to be there. Sorry.”
“It’s fine. I can be the bigger person.”
“Is this still because he hooked up with your roommate?”
She shoots daggers my way.
“I get it. I do. You liked him. He pretended to like you and then slept with your awful roommate. Just making sure nothing else happened tonight.”
“That and because he thinks he’s all that.” She sits on the counter while her pasta is heating in the microwave. “You and Liam looked cozy.”
“Did we?”
“Yeah. Did you finally ask him out?”
I sit beside her. “No.”
“Why not? I saw the way he was with you. He likes you.”
“I’m not sure.”
“Do not play the dumb girl on this one. He likes you. Everyone can see it.”
“I’m not playing dumb. I know he likes me as a friend, but I think that’s all it is to him. I can’t explain it. His touches are playful and sweet, and we talked all night, but…”
“But?” she prompts when I don’t finish my sentence quickly enough.
“I was kind of bored.”
“Wow.”
I feel silly admitting it out loud. I’ve been dreaming of hanging out with Liam for months.
“Maybe you just set him up to some impossible fantasy of who you thought he was.”
“Maybe.” I hop down. “I’m beat. Thanks for coming tonight, Vi. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Love you,” she says.
I kiss my hand and fling it toward her, then head upstairs.
In bed, I think about what she said. Did I make Liam out to be so amazing that even he couldn’t compare? He’s a great guy. No question about it. I’m almost asleep when my phone pings.
I didn’t get a chance to talk to Jordan much after the first game. I meant to ask him about tutoring. Looks like he had the same thought.
Get home okay? Tutoring tomorrow?
Turning on my side, I tap out a response with a smile. Made it home just fine. Let’s try tutoring at your place. Maybe a change of scenery will help.