Page 11 of In Love with the Devil

“Oh, yeah." I had never noticed how consistent my taste in men was. Desperate to change the subject, as we pull up to the restaurant, I ask, "How’s Tom?”

“Don’t change the subject,” she chastises before getting out of the car, slamming her door shut.

Inside, after ordering our burgers at the counter, we sit in a booth near the window. The burger is so thick and juicy that I roll my eyes back and moan. “Jesus Christ. I needed that.”

“So what are you going to do about Dr. Michaelson?” Mindy dances her shoulders and wiggles her eyebrows with a big smile on her face, then stuffs her mouth with three ketchup-drenched fries.

“What do you mean? Nothing. He’s our doctor. Like you said, it would be weird. He’s just a cute stranger that's all. He told me to exercise more.”

“Yikes. Why?”

“He said it may get rid of my horrible periods.”

“Oh, I thought you were trying to tell me he called you fat.”

I laugh. “No, you silly.”

“Well, the good news is that we can go dancing every Friday night to take care of that. A little merengue here, a little salsa there, some reggaeton, and you should be good to go in no time.”

I giggle. “I doubt it will be that simple.”

“By the way, don’t think I don’t see how you changed the subject. Your little crush…” Her smile makes my cheeks burn. “Damn girl.Thatbad?”she asks upon seeing me blushing again.

I can’t help but chuckle from the embarrassment. “Enough about me. How’s life? I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“I know. With this job, everything is a constant hustle." A silence settles and right away I can tell that she has some bad news because she's not meeting my gaze, teasing, or giggling anymore. "Tom and I had a fight about a week ago. We haven’t talked since–”

“Why? What happened?”

“Stupid stuff, but I don’t know. Maybe we’re already growing apart. I knew it would happen.”She shrugs.

“Jesus, I’m sorry, Mindy. You guys were together for all of college. This is like when Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt broke up.”

“Oh, stop, you!” She chuckles. “You didn’t even like him.”

“I mean, he used to tease me way too much, but he made you happy. That’s all I need.” I shrug. Too many seconds of silence pass, and I wonder just how much is this affecting Mindy? The anxiety at seeing her like this makes me worry. What can I do? “Talk to me, Mindy.”

No answer, just dipping her fries in ketchup unenthusiastically. She sighs. I've never seen her this serious or affected by anything. "Mindy. You're always there for me. Please, let me do the same?" I lower my face trying to force her to meet my gaze.

She sighs again. “I actually think he had a little crush on you.”

“On me?” I exclaim. We glance around to see how many people are startled because of my big mouth. “I’m sorry. I think I just misheard you.”

She titters and shakes her head. “No. You didn’t.”

“That doesn’t make any sense, Mindy. What are you talking about?”

“Remember when you got too sick to go to the Sigma Alpha party last year?”

“Uhh… yeah.” The hesitancy is clear in my tone. I wrinkle my forehead and widen my eyes wondering what horrible thing Mindy has been hiding from me.

“Well, that night.. Tom asked me if I'd be willing to arrange a threesome with you.”

“What!” Again, we look around. “Jesus Christ, Mindy. Why–why didn’t you ever tell me this?" I gasp and cover my mouth. "I’m so sorry. I never–I mean, would never–”

Mindy raises her palm in the air to stop me from speaking. “Astoria, I know you wouldn’t, and that’s exactly why I nevertold you, 'cause I didn’t want you to feel like yet one more thing on this planet was your fault. Truth is, we’ve been slowly drifting apart since he made that request. I kind of feel bad because he was so drunk, but still. I couldn't see him the same way.”

I put my hand on top of hers and try to hide the guilt that's drowning me because it’s not about me right now. I never thought of him that way. Actually, I thought he hated me, so this is hard for me to believe. “Oh, Mindy, I’m so sorry. What a disgusting asshole.”

---