Page 23 of Unfix Me

While he continued to go on about why companies should let everybody work from home, I downloaded a job-hunting app. I didn’t have anything to put on my resume except for my two-year degree. Looking at it when I finished, I realized how pathetic it was. Taco Bell was sounding more realistic by the second.

After it came up with my suggestions, I started clicking ‘apply’ rapidly. If I wasn’t a match, they’d just trash it, so I didn’t see the harm. There was no way I’d read through each of the job ads. This wasn’t a long-term career and none of them paid enough for me to put in that kind of time.

Adulting sucked. My parents told me not to grow up so fast. Now look at me. I was grown up and I wasn’t having a good time.

“West, I swear to god,” someone roared from behind me. “You’re going to find yourself chained at the bottom of the Pacific soon.”

The bench moved as he sat down. I was hit by his juniper scent, but it didn’t send me into a minor panic this time. We hadn’t seen each other in a few days, even though he lived next door. I wasn’t sure where we stood on the friends front and for some reason, he made me more nervous than the others, so I didn’t take the initiative.

“What’d I do?” West asked, perching his chin in his hands.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe you sent some dude to my door for a study session. For a class I’m not even taking.”

“Did you let him in?”

“No, I didn’t let him in. What the hell is wrong with you?”

“He was nice and you like blondes.”

Kai scoffed. “I like blondes. Right, okay. Stop trying to set me up with guys on campus.”

I looked up from my phone. Shifting my gaze between the two of them, I tried to figure out what was going on. They were in an intense stare-off, except West was clearly trying not to burst into laughter.

“Why are you sending guys to his door?” I asked.

“Forfun,” West replied, waggling his brows.

“So, you’re like… Fucking with him?”

“No. Kai is a certified ass muncher.”

“That’s offensive,” Kai muttered.

“Fuck. My bad. Kai is gay.”

I blinked. “Oh. Uh, cool.”

Kai cocked his head. I felt my face heat under his stare, so I averted my gaze.

“He was nice,” West insisted.

“He looked breakable. Seriously, he was Tom Cruise sized.”

“Don’t height shame.”

“I’m notshaming, I’m exercising a preference, which you are very aware of. Don’t tell me you weren’t trying to piss me off.”

“Okay, maybe I was upset about you leaving on Saturday.”

“Talk to me next time instead of forcing me to gently let a guy down when he already seemed fragile.”

“Poor guy. Imagine being turned down by someone like you. It’s like shattering their dreams.”

Kai groaned and dropped his head onto the table. “I hate you.”

“What? I’m serious. Wouldn’t you be upset, Sen? Brooks?”

“Might as well be rejected by Chris Hemsworth,” Brooks agreed.

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