The first time Jasmine and I had a conversation about diversity, during a quieter shift than tonight, we’d hit it off, and in the months since, I’d come to think of her as a friend.
I straightened to ring up another student, who was balancing five used textbooks that had to be separated into two bags. The struggle was real when it came to professors and their ridiculous syllabi. You’d think by now everything would be digital, but that was still not the case, not to mention that, for some students, it was a juggling act to decide which ones they needed most.
“So how are things with Tanya?” I asked once the aisles were clear of students again. It would be a long night if things didn’t pick up. But it was a Friday evening, and most students would probably be heading to one party or another.
Jasmine sighed dreamily. “Awesome. She’s coming up next weekend.”
I’d only met her girlfriend, who was a senior at a different university, on one occasion when she’d come up to the store to wait for Jasmine until after her shift. She was really nice and pretty, and they seemed to suit each other well.
“Hey, before I forget,” she said, slipping a flier toward me. “I promised Kellan to be pushy about showing up for the Pirates’ annual fundraiser at the bowling alley.”
“Sounds fun,” I said because bowling actually did, even though I wasn’t very good at it. Plus, they had old-school pinball machines there too. “I’ll ask Elliot about it too.”
“You mean the roommate who’s tied to your hip?” she teased. “That’s a given, duh.”
I grinned. “He makes a good wingman.”
“You’d be fine all on your own.” She winked. “You’re gorgeous, smart, and sweet. The whole package.”
I blushed, my sweaty glasses slipping down my nose. “Thanks.”
Since there were few customers, I helped stock some of the other stuff on the counter, like energy drops and key chains with the university logo, while Jasmine went back to the stockroom to retrieve a new shipment of gel pens for aisle twelve.
“It’s pretty dead tonight,” she said when she returned to the front of the store. “How about you take off early?”
“Are you sure?” I wouldn’t mention it out loud, but my aching calf muscle thanked her.
She nodded. “And don’t worry, I’ll definitely need you another time when I’m in a bind. But not the weekend of your brother’s wedding. I got your request for time off.”
I considered sharing the Dawson story with her, but I was still working through my emotions about seeing him again. I knew my hurt feelings were a bit ridiculous, but he was my first real crush. Despite him being intoxicated the night he suddenly showed up at my bedroom door, he’d told me he was aware of my crush, and he’d kissed me, and I’d thought maybe all my wishes had come true. Until he apparently sobered enough to realize he’d made a grave mistake. The way he’d left had gutted me. I was mature enough now to know I’d done nothing wrong. He was the shitty one, making me feel even more awful by ignoring me for years after. Every time Ryan brought him up, I wanted to puke, but the feeling had lessened with time.
“Cool, thanks,” I said, reaching for the water I’d purchased earlier in the evening. That was another of my instructions that I needed to get better about—keeping hydrated, and not with sugary sodas. I was also given a cast I was supposed to wear at night to help stretch my Achilles tendon, and that would probably help my current situation. Back to being more responsible. “Catch you later.”
When I got back to our apartment, I heard voices as I put the key in the door, and the moment I pushed it open, my earlier conversation about Elliot having a hookup flashed before my eyes. Quite literally. Elliot was sitting in a chair in our living room, his pants undone, with a guy on his knees before him. And shit, I’d have backed right out into the hallway again, but it was too late because my gasp had given me away.
I froze, not only because I’d walked into the middle of a hookup but because the scene before me was enough to make my mouth run dry. The guy had Elliot’s cock in his hand and was jerking him off.
“Morgan.” Elliot stiffened when his gaze connected with mine. The guy turned, his eyes hooded, his lips shiny, maybe from kissing Elliot. He was handsome and had cool blue hair, and my gut tightened for reasons I couldn’t unpack right then.
“This your roommate?” Cool Hair Guy drawled as his hand dropped to Elliot’s thigh. “Thought you said he wouldn’t be home.”
Elliot winced and looked away, likely embarrassed he’d taken a calculated risk.