“Chance, come on.”
He rumbles. “Youcome on. You’re here for a reason, and you know as well as I do that the man at the top of this building won’t bail you out of trouble twice.”
“I won’t ask him to.”
He rests his hand on my shoulder, long black ponytail draping down his chest. “Just don’t play her. I like that girl.”
I groan, clutch my head. “This is so fucked, man.”
“Don’t play her, Rev.”
“I won’t.”
“All the guys here have a thing for her. You hurt her or get her hurt, they’re all on your ass like white on rice, Rev.”
“You’re not helping, Chance. Shut the fuck up.”
He just laughs.
I glance at him. “They know she’s mine, right?”
He arches an eyebrow at me, laughing harder. “Like they could miss that. None of us are gonna break the bro code. But the code won’t help you if you fuck her over.”
“I won’t.”
“You know I’m with you, ride or die. But bro, you gotta know, the best thing for her is to cut her loose.” He pauses. “The best thing foryouis to cut her loose, unless you think you can be the man she deserves.”
I laugh at that. “The man she deserves. You mean God himself?”
Chance cackles. “You got itbad, bro.”
“Yes. I do.”
He shoves out of my room. “Good fuckin’ luck with that.”
No shit.
I don’t say that. I don’t say anything. I just sit on my bed for who knows how long, trying to convince myself that I’m man enough to cut her loose once and for all, for her own good.
Shit of it, I know, deep down, I’m not. I’m weak, and selfish, and stupid, and I’m gonna keep going back to her.
I’m so, so, so fucked.
9Story Time
Myka
He’s avoiding me.
I do my job, and he does his. He barely looks at me when he’s near me, and he doesn’t speak to me.
He thinks he’s doing it for me, probably. He has some hang-up, I don’t get what, but I see it. I heard it in what he said that night.
It goes on for another two weeks.
In the meantime, I field calls from my family about where I am, and fend off aghast disgust when I explain that I’m staying in Las Vegas. The city of sin. New Babylon, according to Grandpa.
I don’t try to explain, even to Ana.
