Page 38 of With Love, from Cold World
Freestyle
“What is this?”
“The Random Number Generator Game,” Asa said, waggling his eyebrows. “I just invented it. Well, based one hundred percent on your original idea. So I guess you were right that you’d end up doing all the work if we ever paired up together.”
She looked over the list again.Tell me a secretmade her stomach flutter; the notion that she’d ever compliment Asa to his face or ask him for a compliment turned that flutter into a pit. She understood the concept now—a list of conversation starters that you’d have to answer without giving yourself the chance to be scared of them first.
“Contest?” she asked.
“Arm-wrestle, who can create the longest paper clip chain in twenty seconds, it doesn’t matter,” he said. “And before you ask, freestyle just means come up with something on your own. Really it’s because I couldn’t think of anything else.”
She took another sip of her drink automatically, but she’d already forgotten that it was hot chocolate and not coffee. This time she couldn’t stop herself from making a face. “It’s late,” she said. “I’m expecting Daniel to call back any minute.”
“So we use this to pass the time.” He pulled out his phone. “Is there an app for the random number thing?”
She sighed, giving in. “Try random dot org. It uses atmospheric noise to generate its numbers, instead of a pseudo-random algorithm.”
He raised his eyebrows at her. “Okay, but you’re not allowed to makeI’m a huge nerdyour secret, because that one’s out.”
She couldn’t help but laugh. It was funny, how much she didn’t mind his teasing when she knew that the spirit behind it was friendly. It actually made her feel oddly warm and fuzzy inside, the way he called her a nerd as if he liked it.
“I’ll go first,” he said, tapping his phone before turning it to her so she could see the number seven on his screen. “I can’t stand... hmm. I can’t stand hot chocolate.”
“Oh my god,” she said. “Me, either! I mean, it was very nice of you to bring me this, but yeah. It’s not my favorite.”
“Whoops,” he said. “Slip of the tongue. I meant to say I can’t stand raw onions. But I guessed you didn’t like it, from the way your nose crinkled after that first sip. Why didn’t you say anything?”
Lauren couldn’t believe he’d set her up like that. She couldn’t believe she’dfallenfor it. “Chocolateis not a valid slip of the tongue foronions,” she said. “And we’re only on the first question and you’re already cheating! That can’t bode well.”
“I should’ve warned you,” he said. “I play dirty. May I?”
He reached for her hot chocolate, and she shrugged, letting him take it. Only one question in, and she could already see how this game could be dangerous. His words were ringing in her head—I play dirty—and she couldn’t help but watch as he lifted her cup to his lips, putting his mouth where hers had been, and took a sip. Right now, if he asked her to tell him a secret she had no idea what filthy fantasy she’d blurt out. She wouldn’t be able to think of a compliment that wasn’t rated R, wouldn’t be able to dare him to do anything without her pulse racing. When he handed his phone to her, she almost dropped it.
“Number five,” she said, consulting the list. “Would you rather... live in the mountains or near the ocean?”
It sounded like a bland influencer poll on social media, but it was all she could come up with off the top of her head until she got herself back under control. From Asa’s expression, he clocked that she was playing it safe, but he didn’t call her on it.
“Well, I’ve done the ocean thing, so I guess the mountains,” he said. “But it’s not like I live right next to the ocean, so that might be nice. I don’t know. They both sound cool.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re terrible at this game.”
“Mountains.”
“Okay,” she said, handing him back his phone. “It’s—”
“No, ocean. I’ve always lived at least within an hour of a beach. I think I’d miss it if I didn’t.”
“So you must be from Florida originally, then.”
“Born and raised,” he said. “My dad’s a pastor in Hernando County. My sister lives here in Orlando, though.”
Lauren wanted to ask him more about his family, but something in his face had closed off, like he’d already said morethan he meant to. She didn’t know the rules of the game. Were follow-up questions allowed? But then she thought about her own past and decided, no. Better not to setthatprecedent.
They went back and forth a few times, clearly taking it easy on each other. Lauren gotAsk me anythingand Asa only asked her if she’d ever ended up ordering those cat-print pants; Asa gotI can’t standagain and revealed that he hated readingThe Scarlet Letterin high school.
“The story itself sounds so good,” he said. “So much drama with Hester and Dim-dude or whatever that guy’s name was. And the symbols! Everything’s a symbol and I’m sure it’s brilliant, but I felt like I couldn’t understand an actual goddamn word of it.”
