Page 51 of Trust Me

“Why are you so concerned with what I think about you?” I asked.

“Because I can see you’re a good person. No, I can feel it.” I opened my mouth to respond, but he continued quickly. “And if a good person hates me, what’s that say about me?”

“Don’t be stupid.”

His silence made my gut twist. I didn’t think I’d given the impression that I hated him, but it was written all over his face. Even when he tried to hide, he was an open book.

“I don’t know why you think I’d leave if I knew you were struggling,” I said after a few minutes.

He shrugged again. “That’s what people do. I share, they get uncomfortable, and the cool, chill Oliver Bennett becomes someone they no longer see as fun—just one of those guys with a shitty backstory who would probably be too much work to actually befriend.”

“That’s insane.”

“Yeah,” he sighed.

I kicked his leg under the table. “Not you or whatever your past is. All of us have shit, man. That’s not a reason to decide not to be their friend.”

“Some people want something easy.”

“Good friendships don’t come easy. Real ones don’t.”

Finally, he looked at me. His eyes were even more green than usual, and they might’ve been shimmering. “We don’t know each other, and you think I’m weird.”

“You are weird,” I agreed. “But hell, I made the decision to move into a one-bedroom apartment with you. I don’t really care if you have some quirks.”

“Even though it makes me annoying?”

I shook my head, rolling my eyes a little. “It’s annoying because I don’t know what the hell’s going on. I thought I was the one who misspoke or something.”

“Oh.” He sat up straighter, the lightness returning to his face. “In that case, do you want to know what made me into this hot mess?”

With a laugh, I straightened the cards. “Sure, but maybe don’t tell me everything at once. Let’s just get to know each other, okay?”

He nodded enthusiastically. “Definitely.”

I started packing my stuff into my bag, then got to my feet. He followed along beside me as I headed for the exit.

“Are you going to the party this weekend?” I asked.

“No. I mean, are you?”

“Remi agreed to let me leave early.”

He was silent, which made me glance over at him. As we exited, he looked deep in thought. When he lifted his head to the sky, letting the rain fall on his face, it was impossible not to wonder what was going through his mind. Nothing, maybe. A million things, most likely.

I tapped his chest with the back of my hand to get his attention. “Do you want to come?”

“To the party?” The way he said it was so full of excitement that it all but confirmed he’d been waiting for the question. “With you?”

“Sure. We can drive together.”

He nodded quickly. “I don’t drink, so I can drive.”

“I don’t intend to get drink much, but that sounds good.”

“We can take my car. It’s nicer.”

“Well, you don’t have to be rude.”

“You know it, I know it, the world knows it. I bet the mechanic who fixed it was dying to give it a proper burial.”

I muttered something under my breath that would have my mom glaring daggers at me. Oli just laughed, then slung his arm over my shoulder as we walked.

“Don’t worry. I’ll drive you wherever you need to go if that thing craps out on you.”

“It’s in perfect condition now.”

“I’ll drive you anyway. Or maybe you should drive me. I’d look good as a passenger princess.”

I’d gotten myself into a world of weirdness with this one, that was for sure.