Chapter 8 Cecily #2
I sigh in relief. “Perfect because I was a little worried for a second there.”
“Worried about what?”
“I was worried you were looking at my ass coming up the stairs.”
He smirks. “I was looking down at my own feet, making sure I didn’t trip and fall. I wasn’t looking, I swear.”
“You’re a perfect best friend for me.” I groan. “I’m so relieved. I’m so tired of everyone needing or wanting something out of me, you know? It becomes really exhausting after a while. Dylan, it’s everyone I meet that has these extreme expectations, and I’m starting to think it’s me.”
He says, “It’s not you. You’re really cool, and people like to take advantage of cool people.”
“I’m cool?” I question.
He nods. “And kind and outgoing and—are you always like this? Or am I only seeing a fraction of you?”
I smile. He is so insightful and thoughtful, and I love the heck out of it. “I don’t know. I’d like to think that I am, but people tell me that it’s fake, that I do it for show, or––”
“Stop right there. Don’t let those words live in your head. Just be yourself and fuck the haters. They’re winning every time you recall their words.”
I grin. “Yeah, fuck the haters. Do people use you, too?”
He leans back and sighs. “Apparently, I’m only good for my hockey stick. Hooking up with a hockey player who might go pro means I’m treated more like an object than a person. And if I’m being honest, I liked that for a long time, and then it just got old.”
“Your ego needs new things to get high off of. You’re experiencing hedonic adaptation. Totally a normal human thing. It happens to me with posting or getting brand deals. I get very excited and overly happy, then the thrill dies down. But I’m able to take the action still.”
“I think that’s cool as shit you have that, Ce. People care about what you have to say; they buy the shit you post about. Being an influencer is cool as fuck. You should be proud of yourself, and not in a mocking way. I know it’s not easy, so seriously be proud of yourself.”
I smile at his kind words. “Thank you. That means a lot to me, bestie.”
He rolls his eyes. “If we’re gonna call each other best friends, we need to know everything about each other.
Down to the nitty-gritty. Once word gets out to the team about you?
And they find out how cool you are? What you look like?
I’m going to catch a load of shit from all of them, so if we’re doing this, we need to do it right.
And once you start coming around, they’re all gonna want to hook up with you. I don’t know if you want that.”
I shake my head. “No, I don’t hook up. I lost my virginity to Bethany’s brother. And then I slept with my boyfriend. And that’s it.”
“Two guys?” he asks with two fingers in the air. “You only slept with two guys?”
“Yeah. How many have you slept with?”
“God, I’m going to hell.”
I laugh. “Shut up. Are you fricking serious? How many?”
He shakes his head. “I’m not drunk enough for this conversation.”
“You’re not allowed to be drunk at my house,” I make clear. “I’m not judging.”
“I lost count.” He begins to think as he puts up his fingers. He reaches five and keeps going. Oh my god, more than ten? I can’t help the judgment now. He’s almost to twenty.
“How do you remember all of their names?”
He chuckles. “High school, summer parties, and game days.”
“You’re a man whore! It’s no wonder your friend calls you dildo. That’s what you are to all these girls. Are you serious? Sixteen?” My brain is trying to process that. “You must be a professional at this point.”
“I told you,” he explains. “It’s the hockey. All the girls want a taste, and when I’m drunk, I don’t say no.”
“Well, if I ever need tips, I know exactly who to talk to.” I stare into space. I wasn’t expecting such a high body count. I mean, it’s a lot. “You would give me tips if I asked?”
Dylan’s lips press together. “That’s what best friends are for.”
I smile. “This is perfect. I’ve needed a friend like you for a long time.” I sit on the couch and hang over the back of it because he’s still sitting at the dining table. “Dylan… do you believe in coincidences?”
He shrugs. “Never really thought about it.”
I smile, taking a moment to think. “I don’t.” I nod, thinking about how Dylan walked into the gym that day, and something about him felt familiar. “I think there’s a reason for everything. When you think about the timing, the places, the people, it’s all working for your favor, don’t you think?”
He listens attentively from the dining table chair.
I continue, “Some people come into your life, and it’s like…
life-altering. I don’t know. People carry vibes, whether from past problems or current ones.
Their decisions lead them to certain places, and suddenly, you’re in the room with someone you’ve never met before, but you feel like you’ve known them forever.
And even on social media, the vibes don’t lie when you’re on there.
As much as people want to save face, you know, it’s apparent the second you hear them talk, when they formulate their words, their perspective. There are no coincidences in life.”
Dylan’s staring through me, deep in thought. I think I’ve lost him, and then he walks over to the couch and sits next to me.
“You’re really deep, you know that?”
I sit normally and tuck my feet under me. “I just think life is beautiful, and it’s such a shame how everyone gets so wrapped in their own heads, and somewhere along the way, the beauty disappears.”
“It sounds like you believe in magic,” he says.
I shrug, playing with the thread on my leggings. “People think I’m too much––”
“Forget about them. They probably don’t like how in tune you are.
People like to save face, as you said, so when someone as vibrant and aware as you comes along, they don’t know how to act because you’ll call them out on everything.
You’ll point it out, and trust me, a lot of people don’t like that. It’s not a you problem though.”
A smile spreads across my face. It feels good to be seen. “Am I freaking you out with all this talk?”
He shakes his head. “You’re just appreciating life and how it plays out. It’s a gift, really. Everything about you makes sense to me now.”
“It does?” I question.
“You have followers because your outlook on life is inspiring. Your awareness means you take really good care of yourself, and your routines mean you stick to it. I don’t think I’ve met anyone like you before.
And the platform you have, I mean, people clearly care about you and what you have to say. ”
“Or they just care how I look in a bikini,” I counter. “People love vanity.”
“I’m going to call you out on something,” he says. “You’re always talking about people telling you things, and they’re almost all negative. For someone as insightful as you, it seems like you’ve really let others talk you down.”
I stare at the ground. “So, you know how I told you that I was raised with five boy cousins?”
He nods.
“That’s because my parents couldn’t take care of me, so I lived with my grandparents.
My two uncles had sons. They all still lived with my grandparents.
It’s confusing because they’re not my blood, yet I consider them my family.
So, yeah, my uncles lived with my grandparents since forever, and so, I was the only girl, and my grandma would tear me apart.
” I stare at the TV, thinking about her and the things my mom has said.
I continue, “My mom isn’t the best either.
She’s said some horrible things to me, and I think my outlook on life is a coping mechanism, but I don’t know. ”
He’s staring at me when I look up.
He huffs, rubbing his temples. “Coping mechanism or not, it’s really mature. And about your family… What?” He almost laughs. “That’s the craziest shit I’ve ever heard. Was your dad there too?”
I shake my head. “My stepdad left my mom, and it devastated her. She’s a raging alcoholic. Couldn’t keep a job, couldn’t keep the house. I wasn’t going to live with my stepdad and his new girlfriend, so I stayed with his parents because they were the only family I knew.”
“And this makes even more sense now. This is why you’re already so successful.”
I politely smile. “Yeah, I guess. Nobody in my family would ever pay for this college tuition, this apartment, or anything. I was going to become a barber at first, and the schooling cost a couple thousand dollars or something like that, and I was given a big fat hell no, even though I promised to pay them back.” I laugh thinking about it now.
“But there’s no such thing as coincidences.
It led me here, and I can’t complain about where I’m at right now. ”
He leans forward. “Ce, you are officially my best friend. You’re telling me this, and I think I know what you need.”
I light up, feeling myself breathe. “What do I need?”
“This weekend you’re coming to Rocky’s house party. You need to have some fun. I’ll introduce you to people, and it’ll be a good time.”
“A party?” I sigh. “I don’t know about that, Dylan. That’s not really my thing. I was honestly hoping you were gonna say let’s go for a seven-mile hike or something.”
He scoffs. “I have no idea if there are any hikes around here.”
I nod. “There are many.”
He brushes that off. “Back to the party. Just come. You’re gonna have fun.”
“I don’t drink.”
“You don’t have to drink,” he argues. “Look, from the sounds of it, you’ve been forced to be the adult all your life.
And it’s great that your stepdad’s family took you in for the time being, but you’re here now.
You’re only in college once. You can let loose a little bit.
One party isn’t going to ruin your work or your studies, right? ”
I shrug. “I guess not.”
“Okay,” he leans back, satisfied with himself. “You’re coming with me, and I’ll deal with shit from the guys. But just as a warning, they’re all fucking horndogs.”
I poke him with my foot. “You have no room to talk, puck boy.”
He smirks.