My phone buzzes with a new message notification and I pick it up, blocking out Lexi and Fox’s argument.
LEANNE: Are you okay?Did Fox do something?
ME: uh, yeah… he tried to kiss me.
A few seconds later, her reply comes, and I can practically feel her shock through the screen.
LEANNE: WHO TRIED TO KISS YOU?!!!
ME: Fox freakin’ Wilder.It was weird
LEANNE: WTF???WTAF?Fox tried to kiss you?Omg, do you need to get out for a bit?Grab a milkshake and let's go for a walk?
I glance at my phone.It’s 7 p.m.I leap out of bed, too jittery to stay here any longer.Fox isn’t in the living room, which is a relief; I can’t face him right now.My heart still races and my stomach feels tight and twisted.I grab my keys and head out of the apartment, letting the door click softly shut behind me.
Sitting across from Leanne at a cozy café near campus, I sip my milkshake, feeling the cold ice cream and milk begin to melt my nerves.I didn’t realize I needed this, but now it feels like exactly what I was missing.
“Okay, spill it,” Leanne says, spooning a bite of ice cream with a raised eyebrow.“What’s got you this worked up?”
I clear my throat, still piecing the words together.“I got home, and out of nowhere, he asked if I was dating Landon.”
Her eyebrows shoot up with a half-smile.
“Yeah, I know, right?So, I asked him why he cared.He tried to brush it off like he didn’t, as long as I didn’t bring Landon to our apartment to…you know.Then I told him it’d be nice if he quit bringing his girlfriends over, considering how…loud they are.”
Leanne tries to stifle a laugh.
“Then he hit me with this question—if I was jealous, if I wished it was me instead of his girlfriends.”
“Wait—Fox said that?”
“Yup.He started closing in on me, and I’m literally backed against the wall.He leans in—he was actually going to kiss me—but Lexi walked in, and it all…stopped.”
Leanne’s eyes go wide as she drops her spoon.“Wait, he almost kissed you?”
I take another nervous sip, letting the cold settle in.“I have no idea what that was.I mean, this is Fox we’re talking about.”
She shakes her head.“Shit.I mean I know I wanted the universe to bring you guys together but this… this is freaking sudden.I gotta ask, has he ever flirted with you before?”
“Fox doesn’t flirt with me.If he’s not glaring at me he’s throwing insults at me.”
“And all of a sudden he’s concerned with who you date?”
“It’s weird, I know.But why would he want to kiss me?Isn’t he straight?”
“Listen, Cam, I hate to say it, but sometimes straight guys get these…messed-up ideas.They get curious, especially in college, and they think it’s harmless to ‘try things out’ with someone gay just to satisfy their ego and curiosity.”
“That’s actually a thing?”I ask, horrified.“People use someone just because they’re curious?”
She nods.“I’ve heard it more than I’d like to admit.If he’s never shown interest before, he could just be curious.And…sorry to bring it up, but you’re also a virgin.”
I roll my eyes.Oh, not this again.The ‘virgin’ thing is starting to frustrate me.“Seriously?”
“What?We both know you’re a virgin and that’s cool.So let’s not get into that.”
I scoff.“Yeah, whatever.”
Leanne’s mouth quirks up in a smirk.“But look, it’s probably just him testing the waters now that he knows for sure.He sees you’re gay, and now he’s suddenly ‘curious.’That, or he wants to feel in control somehow—especially with that little dig about who you should and shouldn’t date.”
