24. Lucy
Lucy
When I unlock the front door of Leo’s house and walk inside, I’m greeted by three college-age women sitting on the couch, petting Wally.
“Oh. Hi,” I say, caught off guard.
“Hey. You’re Lucy from the diner, right?” The pretty brunette stands up and walks over to me. “I’m Anna. Nick’s twin sister. And Travis’s girlfriend.”
“Oh, it’s great to meet you.”
She pulls me into a hug. When she lets me go, the two blonde girls come over to me and introduce themselves.”
“I’m Briar. Blake’s girlfriend.”
“And I’m Poppy. Nick’s girlfriend.”
I stare at Poppy. “I love your YouTube channel,” I blurt out.
She beams. “Really?”
“Yeah. I’ve been a subscriber for almost a year.”
Her smile turns warm. “You made my whole day. Thank you.”
We move to the couch, where Wally is still lying down. I slide him over so there’s room for everyone to sit.
I can’t believe how kind and welcoming they are. Especially to Wally. Seeing them dote on him makes me warm and fuzzy all over.
“Your dog is the cutest,” Anna says, scratching him behind his ears.
“I hope it’s okay that we came over to play with him,” Briar says. “When the guys told us that you moved in and you had a dog, we got so excited.”
“It’s more than okay,” I say, chuckling at the sleepy, happy look on Wally’s face as he cuddles between all of us. “He loves the attention. He’s in heaven.”
“So how are things going for you?” Poppy asks.
“Yeah, do you like living with a bunch of guys?” Anna asks. “Sorry if my brother is annoying. He can be kind of loud and obnoxious.”
“No, he’s great. They’re all great. Honestly, this is so kind of them to let me stay with them while I look for a new place.”
“Well, I mean, it’s the least Leo could do,” Anna says, her expression turning sad. “He told us about how he got you fired from that coffee shop.”
Poppy and Briar nod along.
“We’re really sorry to hear about your housing situation,” Poppy says gently.
“Oh, thank you.” I suddenly feel self-conscious. I brace myself for pitying looks and comments, but all I see is warmth and sympathy.
“If there’s anything you need, just let us know,” Anna says.
“Yeah, if you ever get sick of being around all this testosterone, just say the word. We’d love to take you out on a girls’ night,” Briar says.
That warm feeling burrows deeper in my chest. “That’s so nice of you. I’d love that.”
Briar gives my arm a gentle squeeze. “I lived here too a couple months ago, until I got my own place. Blake’s been my best friend since high school, so he let me stay in his room while I looked for a place of my own. They all made me feel so at home.”
Anna elbows her gently and flashes her a knowing look. “Blake especially made you feel at home, right?”
Briar rolls her eyes, but she’s smiling.
Anna turns to me. “Blake and Briar had crushes on each other since forever. But living together finally made them admit their feelings.”
“That’s really sweet.”
Anna quirks an eyebrow at me. “Do you and Leo have a thing for each other?”
Poppy gently smacks her shoulder. “Anna, don’t pry.”
“Sorry. I’m nosy,” Anna says.
I chuckle, even though I’m flustered by her question. “Leo and I are just friends.”
It’s the truth…even though I can’t deny that I find him attractive…
I push aside the thought. “So the three of you have been friends for a while then?” I ask, trying to change the subject.
Briar shakes her head. “I met Anna and Poppy when I transferred to Hollis last semester.”
“Anna and I have been friends since we were kids,” Poppy says.
I’m impressed at how tight-knit the three of them seem after only knowing Briar for a handful of months. A longing feeling hits my chest. I hope I get to be friends with them too.
After my mom died and I became homeless, I lost touch with all of my friends from high school.
“Now that you’re living with the guys, we hope you’re cool with us trying to get you to hang out with us,” Poppy says.
I nod excitedly. “I’d love that. Seriously.” I suddenly feel self-conscious. “I know I’m kind of an outsider since I’m not a student at Hollis, but if you guys ever want to hang out and don’t mind me tagging along, that would be awesome.”
Anna waves a hand. “Oh, we don’t care that you’re not a college student.”
“Yeah, that doesn’t matter to us,” Poppy says.
Briar grabs my hand. “You’re officially adopted into the girl gang.”
I smile so hard, my cheeks ache. We spend the next few minutes chatting and visiting. After a while, Wally gets a little restless, so I get up to take him for a walk, but they ask to come too.
When we get back to the house, Leo is home. He walks up to me, grinning.
“I’ve got awesome news,” he says. “I got you a job interview as an assistant to the physios for the men’s hockey team.”
My jaw drops. “What? Wait, are you kidding?”
He shakes his head. “I’m serious. They need someone to help out part-time, so I told one of my coaches about you. I told him you were interested in massage therapy and that you have a great work ethic. They want to interview you.”
I drop Wally’s leash and squeal. I jump into Leo’s arms and hug him tight. He spins me around.
“Oh my god! Leo!”
He spins me around again. When he sets me down, I’m giggling. Wally lets out a happy bark.
I can’t believe this. I never thought I’d be able to have an opportunity like this. Not without a college degree. But Leo made it happen.
That giddy, tingly feeling is back in full force as I look at him.
That’s when I notice Briar, Poppy, and Anna standing off to the side, staring at us with amused smiles on their faces.
“Oh. Hey, guys,” Leo says, his cheeks turning pink. He clears his throat, then turns back to me. “I’ll give you the contact info to set up an interview.”
Excitement rockets through me. But then, a second later, my nerves kick in. I’ve never had a proper job interview like this. What should I wear? I should probably put together a resume too.
And since this job entails working with physiotherapists, I should probably do some research on physical therapy and physiology. And hockey. I don’t know anything about the sport, but I need to learn if I’m going to be working with a hockey team.
“Shoot, there’s so much I need to prepare for,” I say.
Leo just smiles at me. “It’s okay. I’ll help you.”
“I can help you too,” Poppy says. “I’m actually posting a new video on my channel tomorrow about anatomy and physiology. That might be helpful to watch.”
“I’m premed, and I know that’s not the same as physiology, but we learned about sports medicine in one of my units,” Anna says. “I can send you all my notes.”
I stare at them, stunned at how helpful they’re being. “That would be amazing.”
“You’re gonna kick ass in this interview, Luce,” Leo says.
Even though I’m still nervous, Leo’s confidence in me means everything.
He gives me the contact info. After Poppy, Anna, and Briar leave, I grab my phone and call the number.