Damien
"She's cute."
I don't look up. I already know it's that girl from the front row. The one who kept giggling every time I spoke.
"Vivienne?" I ask, tone flat.
"No. Well—yeah, she's adorable, obviously. But I meant you."
That makes me look.
She's smiling at me—full teeth, full confidence. Blonde hair tied in a neat ponytail. Med student. Probably top of her class. The kind of girl people expect me to go for.
The kind of girl I used to go for.
I blink. "Sorry?"
She shrugs. "You're cute. And I've seen you around. Figured it's worth a shot."
I glance at the door. Vivienne said she'd be back in two minutes.
"I'm not interested."
"Really?" Her head tilts, smile still annoyingly intact. "Because it doesn't look like you're taken. That was your sister or something?"
I should say yes.
I should lie, say Vivienne is my girlfriend, throw off the scent.
But I don't.
"She's not my sister," I say instead, jaw tight.
"Oh." A pause. "So you are single."
I don't answer that.
Because I don't know what the hell I am when it comes to Vivienne.
"I'm grabbing coffee with some of the others later," the girl says, stepping closer. Too close. "You should come."
She puts a sticky note on the table. Her number's scribbled in glitter pen.
"Just in case."
And then—because of course this is how my day's going—Vivienne walks back in, iced coffee in one hand, her lip gloss smudged slightly like she just licked it off.
She freezes.
Sees the girl. Sees the sticky note. Sees me.
There's a shift in her eyes. Just a flicker.
But it hits harder than I expect.
She walks straight to me and smiles—sugary sweet—before planting herself in the chair again.
Then she reaches for my water bottle, sips it, and puts her hand back on my thigh like nothing ever happened.
The other girl clears her throat.
"I'll, uh… see you around," she says, sounding unsure now.
I nod once.
Vivienne watches her go. Then turns to me slowly. "Friend of yours?"
"No."
"Hm."
She doesn't say anything else. Doesn't need to.
But she shifts closer than before. Tucks her arm through mine like she's holding onto a secret.
And the thing is?
I don't pull away.
Not even when I know I should.