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“Anyone else know?”
He shook his head. “Just you.”
“You guys’ll figure it out. It’s all new to you, Ry. You hated him, then became friends with him, then shared him with your ex-girlfriend, and now you’re dating. It’s a very confusing dynamic.”
“We’re not dating,” Ryan corrected her.
“OK,” she said sarcastically. “Keep telling yourself that.”
“Speaking of dating,” Ryan said, sitting up. “Since he’s picking you up, can I meet him?”
“I…well, he’s not coming up. I’m meeting him in the lobby.” She gathered her suitcase and carry-on and brought them both over by the door.
He got up and followed her, still holding the throw pillow. “Then I’ll walk you down, carry your bags for you. I wanna…I wanna meet him, Amara.”
“Why?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Listen, you will. I just…not yet, OK?”
They looked at each other. “Does he know about me? About us?”
She looked away. “He knows…that I have a male roommate. He doesn’t know you’re a 23-year-old smokeshow, doesn’t know you’re a professional hockey player, and he doesn’t know we dated or slept together.”
“I wouldn’t really call what we did sleeping.” He winked and threw the pillow at her, but she didn’t react. “So that’d be a no then. Does he know about Hayes?”
“Fuck no, he doesn’t know about Tyler. Are you insane? What happened with me and Tyler is the kind of shit a girl takes to her grave.”
“You ever gonna tell him about either of us? I mean, we’re a part of your life, Amara.”
“Yeah, a part that I’m not ready to share with him just yet.”
“From a guy’s perspective? The longer you hide it, the more pissed he’ll be.”
“From a jealous guy’s perspective, you mean. Jake’s…he’s not like that.”
“Mar, you’ve known him for like, five minutes. You have no idea what kind of crazy he is.”
“Well, some people don’t air out their crazy right out of the gate like you did, Baylor.”
He rolled his eyes. “You know what? Have a good trip,” he mumbled, pushing his way past her and out the door.
She followed him. “Ry, wait!” She pulled the back of his shirt to stop him. “I’m sorry.”
He turned around. “Don’t be. You’re right. I’m crazy.” He threw his hands up in the air and let them fall. “I’m anxious, I’m a…what’d you call me? Oh, a pathetic slut, and apparently I’m fucking gay now, too. I’m such a horrible person that you won’t even let your new boyfriend know I exist. I get it. There’s nothing to be sorry for, Amara. I’m a fucking piece of shit, and you never miss an opportunity to remind me of it.” He walked down the hall towards his room. “Don’t follow me!” he called, slamming his door.
She stood there, motionless, as she got a notification on her phone.
J: I'm downstairs, beautiful.
Grabbing her bags and starting towards the front door, she turned and looked back at his room, wanting to say goodbye.
Instead, she just left.
???
Ryan had just gotten out of the shower and was preparing to pack his bags for his trip out to Minnesota tomorrow morning when he heard a knock at the door. He threw on a pair of shorts and went to answer it.
