Page 18 of Just Bromantically Invested

But what if they don’t?

That subconscious thought stops me in my tracks. If they don’t hit it off, Penn will be upset, and then he’ll need a familiar face to turn to.I’ma familiar face. I’m the most familiar face he knows.

Well, shit. Not like I can leave now.

Though I can’t exactly wait around his apartment like I’mexpectinghim to fail. This is tricky. I need to be around if Penn needs me but not give the impression I don’t have confidence he’ll pull this off.

Hmm … could I say I’m expecting a delivery here instead of at home? For … some kind of reason. I’d stick around to clean up after last night, but he’s already done that. Besides, I have no idea if he’s got work on today or not. Luckily, I can show up whenever I like.

There’s literally no excuse for me to stay here.

I guess that leaves me with no other choice.

I’m going to have to follow them down to the cafe and watch from a distance. If things go south, I’ll swoop in. If they’re laughing and flirting and having the best time picking outcarpetor whatever it is straight people do, I’ll leave them to it.

It’s my best-friendly duty to check first though.

I grab the shirt I wore here yesterday from the hook by the door. Given I only wore it for about an hour, it’s clean enough, so I pull it on, make sure I’ve got everything, then head out of the apartment.

There’s a cafe a block over where they’ve probably gone, so I take my time, wanting to make sure they’re settled and talking by the time I get there. It’ll be easier to get the vibe from their date that way.

My feet are stubborn blocks of flesh, so even though I tell them to slow down, I get to the cafe way too fast. My gut is in knots, and I try to trick myself into believing that it’s because I’m invested in how this goes for him. That I’m a really goodfriend and I want him to make other friends, but I know it isn’t that.

If Lana reallywasjust a friend, I wouldn’t be here in the first place.

But if I know Penn—and I like to think that I do—Lana has big girlfriend potential. She’s practically screaminggirlfriendmaterial, and my man won’t be able to stop from getting sucked into that.

I need to make sure she passes the best friend check. That’s why I’m here.

Oh. And because I’m worried about him. That too.

Penn hasn’t been on a lot of dates. There have been women since college, but nothing that’s stuck long enough for me to be worried. And I’m not worried now. Obviously. But the lonely thing got me panicked, and I don’t think I’ve totally processed it.

Only now I’m here, gazing in at the large, busy cafe, I have no fucking clue what my next move should be. It’s crowded, and almost all of the seating looks occupied. There are small booths around a display of plants in the middle of the room, scattered tables filling the floor space, and long bench seats built in around the walls. The line to the right of the counter is long, and when I cautiously step through the front door, glancing around for a glimpse of Penn or Lana, I move to duck down behind it.

I’m a tall guy, and I’m not exactly small or dressed all corporately like most of the people here, but I make an effort to blend in and not weird out the people around me as I scan the area for my bestie.

Fuck. Maybe Penn’s not even here. Maybe they went to some other cafe, or even worse, what if the date went so well that it’s already over and they’re heading back to her apartment for alone time as I lurk here?

Though, I probably would have seen them if that was the case.

“Ah-ha!” I spot them on the other side of the counter, Penn’s back to me and Lana sitting directly across the small table from him. The tables are so fucking small they’d be able to lean forward and kiss, but I don’t think it matters how supportive I want to be, I’d never be able to get through watching that.

Already, it feels like … like there’s something evil curled up in my chest.

My teeth are grinding hard as I peer around the guy in the plaid button-up in front of me.

“Hey, you wanna step back a little?” he asks passive-aggressively.

I don’t know what the fuck his deal is, but I duck down and step away to be shielded by what’s probably somebody’s grandma instead.

“What are you doing?” she gasps, immediately clutching her bag to her chest.

“Just … it’s okay. Just spying on someone.”

“Spying?”

“He’s my friend, it’s fine.”

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