Part 34 (1/2)

”Yeah,” she presented her best disappointed face, always the actress. ”Maybe another time?” she asked.

”Sure.” Brian smiled, googly eyed. If he only knew Becca was attached to a homeschool beefcake.

Not knowing how to say good- bye, nor really wanting to, I blurted, ”Want to get coff ee sometime?” at Leo, a line direct from the list of top a.s.shole- isms.

”Maybe,” Leo answered, kind of sounding like an a.s.shole himself.

”That would be great,” Becca pushed. That he would maybe want to get coff ee with me? I felt like I was morphing into one gigan- tic a.s.shole as we spoke. Like, literally a human- sized hole in an a.s.s.

”Better get in line so we can get seats. Nice meeting you guys.”

Brian winked. I always said never trust a winker.

Or anyone else for that matter.

Leo and Brian walked away, and Becca and I headed for my car.

--1 ”What happened?” she asked.

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”What do you mean?” I played dumb. Or maybe I just was.

”That was your big chance to charm Leo back into your evil clutches, and you totally choked.”

”I didn't choke. He didn't want to see me. Or watch Reanimator with me. Or drink hot caff einated beverages with me.” I stomped ahead of Becca, who called after me, ”Slow down!”

I stopped and waited for her to catch up. ”I need to sit down,” she said. We plopped down on a parking block, so Becca could rest.

”I f.u.c.ked this up, didn't I? Not just today, but, like, forever.”

”Possibly not. Leo did say maybe. He could have fl at- out said no and called you a t.w.a.t.”

”Leo has never used the word 't.w.a.t',” I guessed.

”Well, more people should.”

”Do you think I'm a t.w.a.t?”

”Not all the time.” I fl icked Becca's arm. ”Watch it. I bruise eas- ily. What I meant was, maybe you are a t.w.a.t sometimes, but Leo already knew that. Maybe he understands. I mean, you just lost your dad, and then his brother goes and dies. People deal with death in all sorts of weird ways.”

”Really? I hadn't noticed, Davis Humper.”

”Did you seriously just use the word hump?”

”Don't forget Davis.”

”Wish I could.”

That night, as I replayed every detail of my debacle with Leo, my phone buzzed on my nightstand. It was a text. From Leo.

Yes to coffee. Tomorrow?

-1- f.u.c.kbaskets. What made him change his mind? Was this his oppor- 0- tunity to tell me off ? To make up? To introduce me to his fi ancee?

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I didn't want to wait and give him a chance to change his mind.

Have to work tomorrow.

After work OK. 7:30 @ Brew Town?

OK.

I waited for more texts, felt like I should say something else but lacked the words to express anything. What would I express if I had?

I wished my mom had homeschooled me, so I had the gall to write sappy love notes like Caleb. But Leo wasn't the sappy love- note type.

I didn't think. Whether or not he was, I wasn't. I couldn't even handle those three little words.

I handled liking the guy who said them even less.

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