Page 83 of Friends That Heal Us
“Have you ever asked a guy out?”
I pause for a moment, thinking if I have. “No.”
“See. I can’t do that.”
“Okay. I get your point. Has he ever asked you out?”
She shakes her head. “I keep waiting for him to, and he never does. We keep running into each other and nothing happens.”
My head tilts. “Then how did he know you were here?”
“I told him the last time we ran into each other where I worked.”
That’s interesting. He stops by and leaves. Either he’s really shy or is this the kind of dating that is going on? Hopefully not.
“How do you know him?”
“We went to school together.”
“You should ask him out.”
She narrows her eyes at me. “Did you ask that one guy out?”
“Ezra?”
She nods, leaning both her elbows on the table with her brows raised and a smirk on her lips.
“No.”
“See,” she says, leaning back in her chair.
She got me there. I forget how wise some teens can be.
“Is he your boyfriend?”
“No, it’s a long story.”
Liv smiles and raises her eyebrows up and down. “He’s really cute. You two are cute together.”
Now it’s my turn to get shy, as my cheeks heat. I grip my coffee cup nervously. “Thanks.”
To this day, I still get butterflies whenever Ezra’s name comes up around me. It’s ridiculous, because how can my stomach still flip at the sound of his name as if I’m in high school all over again?
I don’t know if it’s because of everything we’ve been through, or the history we have. But that tiny rush, that flutters through me, hits me every single time. But lately, that tiny rush has been feeling more like nagging worries. After he told me where he stood, I can’t explain it but something just made me shift into even more worry. But I know there isn’t anything I should worry about. I just am. It’s something hidden beneath the surface that I can’t control.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
EZRA
I’m walkingthrough the grocery store to get a few ingredients for dinner. It’s been a cloudy, cold day, so I want to make soup again. Vi liked my last batch of soup, so I think I will try a different one.
Something about the smell of soup simmering on the stove on a cloudy day always hits the spot. The warmth of it wraps around the house like a warm hug. It’s comforting in a way. Even though the outside is gray and ugly, there is something calming and relaxing on days like this. It makes the entire world feel quieter and peaceful.
And then my peacefulness is wrecked by the sight of her.Fuck, I groan to myself.
Damn, first her mother and now her. Of all the grocery stores, why this one? I need to find a new grocery store.
Should I walk out? I’m not in the mood for her, and I already know how this is going to go down.
