Page 10 of Old Acquaintances

I snap to my phone, ready to shoot Johnny an angry text when I receive one from Tucker.

Tucker: It’s my birthday.

Ella: It’s MY birthday.

Tucker: I didn’t get you a present.

Ella: You’ve never once given me a birthday present.

Tucker: Not true.

Ella: That your mom didn’t buy.

Tucker: Not true.

Ella: Liar.

I notice the blankness above our text exchange. I wonder what the last message I sent to him seven years ago would have been.

Probably,Why are you avoiding me?

In and out of the hospital, half-drugged on pain medication, I had zero pride when it came to bombarding his phone with needy messages.

An announcement is made about my boarding group, and I stand. Noticing Tucker’s absence in my periphery, I search for him, finding him suddenly right beside me.

He looks down, casting his eyes over my hair, body and face, and swallows. “Hey, Beautiful. How are you?”

My eyes straight ahead.

I hate him. That’s the only thought I want to entertain. He’s a horrible, selfish person and you don’t care about this bubbly, dizzying feeling you’re suppressing right now. You don’t care about the deep, smooth sound of his voice when he says:

“Your hair looks nice.”

“Shut up,” I mutter.

“You’ve got a little bit of gray in the back.”

I gasp, “I do not!”

He nods. “Right here.” He tugs at a strand of hair.

I reach back and smack his hand. “Stop touching me!”

I stare at the amusement in his eyes and my chest heaves. It’s weird, this energy between us. We’ve done…questionablethings together in our past that have put us in a weird energy, but this feels different.

I’ve hated him before, but not after a period ofnothating him. I know the best of him now. I know what it feels like to crave his presence. That’s what makes it hurt so much, now seeing the shitty human being he turned out to be.

He repeats, “How are you?”

“You already asked me that.” I follow the crowd to check in, and Tucker falls in place by my side. “Stop following me.”

“I’m not following you, we’re going in the same direction.”

“You can walk behind me.”

“Well, that would look like we’re not together.”

“We’renottogether.”

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