Chapter 2
Brian
“Absolutely not,” I say, barely looking up from my video game to flip my shaggy, jet-black hair out of my eyes.
“Oh, come on, Brian! We need you. It has to be a team of four, and you are our strategist,” Celia pleads.
I don’t turn from the screen to look at her. I can’t. I’ll cave too quickly, like a sad puppy desperate for her attention. Just the thought of her chocolate brown eyes and warm, tanned skin is enough to heat my cheeks. I choose not to say anything, instead focusing on my avatar’s sword.
“Brian,” she demands, her bossy tone replacing the pleading one.
Celia moves to stand between me and the screen. Her buttercup yellow skirt swishes with her movements. And, just like that, I’m totally consumed by the shapely, perfect legs that now block my view. I swallow tightly and try to slow my breathing. She can never know how I feel about her. She’d kick me out of our shared apartment like Princess Peach dropping a banana peel in Mario Kart. I’d be spinning out and over the track while she, Katie, and Jacob race past me, never looking back.
I sigh and close my eyes.
“Brian, we need you. And think of what your share of the money could buy! You could get a whole new…” she pauses, waving her hand at my gaming chair and headset. “...video game setup,” she tries.
“Celia, I work like fifty hours a week, have no children or pets, no hobbies outside of video games, and split all the bills with you. What do I need the prize money for?”
I finally glance up at her face and see her cheeks flush as she looks away. That’s new. Celia is never cowed or embarrassed by anything.
“Well, maybe I want the money for new dresses and apartment decor,” she says, feigning certainty that, in my years of experience as her friend, doesn’t quite ring true.
I can tell she’s lying. This is important to her beyond just the competition. She needs the money for something she doesn’t want to tell me about. But I won’t call her out on it. If she wants to tell me, she will. Instead, I lean back into my gaming chair and continue to look up at her, waiting for her to say more.
“Please, Brian. You know everyone on our team already. It will be fun!”
I wince as she widens her eyes and pushes out her bottom lip. Dammit. I can’t say no to her, not ever. And she knows it. I sigh and close my eyes.
“Fine,” I whisper, already regretting my speedy capitulation.
But when I hear her quietly cheer, my heart perks up just a little, knowing I’m the one who made her happy.