Page 161 of Bridesmaid Undercover
“You’re the one who ordered full eye contact.”
“No, I’m ordering you to be normal,” she says as she picks up our drinks and shots and carries them over to a couch. I follow her and we both take a seat. She sets the drinks on the coffee table in front of us and turns toward me. “Admit it, you ignored me when you got here.”
“Ehhh,ignoredis a strong word,” I say before taking down my Jell-O shot in one smooth slurp.
“It’s the correct word whether it’s strong or not.” She runs her tongue along the edge of the Jell-O shot, making me sweat, and then she pops the gelatin into her mouth. After setting the empty cup down, she looks me in the eyes. “Can we just be normal? Can we go back to having matching shirts and mugs?”
“I didn’t know we went astray from matching hats and mugs,” I say, even though that’s a blatant lie. I know what I’ve done, and the fact that she’s asking to “go back to normal” lays a heaping pile of guilt right on my chest.
“We are. We’re very astray.”
“Well, that makes me sad,” I say as I lean back on the couch and bring my drink up to my lips.
“You’re sad, I’m sad. If Maple didn’t ask about the dips, I think I would have gone home tonight and tossed my mug in the garbage.”
I gasp. “You wouldn’t.”
She slowly nods and picks up the other shot. “Yup, that’s how bad it’s gotten. You’ve done this to us.”
“Well, fuck, we can’t have you throwing out our matching mugs. Because that would be really sad.”
“The saddest.” She tips back the Jell-O shot into her mouth.
“So what do we do to avoid the throwing away of the matching mug?” I ask, feeling lighter, most likely from the alcohol I’ve consumed prior to this moment.
To my surprise, she scoots in closer so her leg that she’s pulled under her is barely caressing my leg. She puts her elbow on the back of the couch and leans her head into her hand. “I think we get it out in the open. Just say what’s been bothering you.”
Ha.
Not going to happen.
“Nothing’s bothering me.”
“You’re lying,” she says, leaning in even closer. I can smell her perfume. It reminds me of something woodsy, but clean and feminine—I can’t quite place it, but it’s doing all sorts of things to my head, making me feel fuzzy and delirious at the same time. “How about this, I guess why you’ve been avoiding me.”
Well, that doesn’t sound like a good idea. Then again, it’s better than the truth at this point, so I’d rather have her guessing than me telling the truth. I don’t think I can handle the repercussions of the truth.
“Sure,” I say. “Good luck because nothing is bothering me.”
“Liar.” She pokes my arm and then sips from her drink. “Okay, I have a theory. Are you ready for it?”
“You’re coming up next,” Polly shouts over to us with a point of her finger. “Get ready.”
I bring my attention back to Everly, who worries her lip. When her eyes meet mine, she says, “Sorry in advance if I tank your game.”
“You’re not going to tank it.”
“We shall see, but back to my theory. I think you’re awkward around me because you’re embarrassed.”
“Embarrassed about what?” I ask.
“That your plan to win Maple back didn’t work,” she says. “But there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Sometimes life just works out like that. You gave it a try, I gave it a try, and I think we just move on from here, you know? You don’t need to tuck your tail between your legs.”
“You think that’s why I’m being awkward?”
“Ah-ha.” She points at me. “You admit that you’re acting awkward.”
Uhh…ooops.
