Page 22 of The Prospect

“What? That’s not possible,” I tell him, finding no faults. “What am I missing?”

“Haze.” He commands my attention. “The first thing we both need to do before any of this is get our respective love interests on board. Don’t you think so?”

He’s right.

Sometimes, the simplest of things are always the easiest to overlook. The truth is, unless Amira and Hart are actually interested in the potential of pursuing something with the two of us, this plan is doomed to fail before it’s even begun.

“I’ll tell you what,” Green says. “We’ll give it till Monday. You talk to Amira. I’ll talk to Hart, and somehow, someway, if we both work our magic…” He’s back to confidently smiling over at me. “We’ll make this thing happen.”

EIGHT

H A Z E L

Nights on campusare always the same: come back from class, hit the showers, get dinner, get started on some homework, get ready for bed, watch a movie, and go to sleep.

I like consistency. I like routines. By nature we’re creatures of habit, and for me, this has been mine for four years straight.

I’m about halfway through my nightly routine, hunkering down on a modern-day art piece I need to finish up before class next week when Amira comes rolling into our bedroom, boisterously laughing as she waves goodbye to some friends in the hallway.

I’ve been waiting for the right time all weekend to talk to her about Green and I’s plan, but every night, she’s either been MIA or crashed out on her bed by the time I’m ready to talk.

I can’t put it off much longer. I know I need to speak to her and given that she seems to be in a cheerful mood, now seems better than ever...

“Hey, Hazel!” she calls out to me, flinging off her jacket and tossing it so that it lands on the back of her desk chair. “You missed out on a really fun party tonight. Seriously, Jacob from the other building shotgunned at least eight beers and then threw it all up over Flora. Isn’t that justsofunny?” She can’tseem to stop herself from laughing as she falls back down onto her bed in a snort.

“Hilarious…” I say dryly, yet as interested as one can be when hearing about someone projectile vomiting. “Actually, Amira…” I set my paintbrushes to the side and turn in my chair to face her. “I uh—wanted to talk to you about something. Do you have a minute?”

“Sure thing.” She stands up and paces her way across the room toward her drawers. “I’m just about to get ready for bed though, do you mind?”

“Not at all,” I tell her with a wave of my hand as she scrumages through her messy drawers. “I um—just wanted to talk to you about the other night.”

“‘The other night’?” she repeats back to me, whipping her T-shirt over her head and exposing her completely lace, sheer bra in the process.

Amira and I have been roommates for years now. This is nothing I haven’t seen before, but given that now I’m looking at her as a future love interest for my best friend, well, I can’t help but feel immediately awkward.

Amira has always had this perfect body—her genetics really came in handy there. She’s got this model-like figure with refined features, flawless skin, and a downright frustrating ability to lure in anyone she wants. Frankly, I don’t know why she even came to uni. Amira could’ve easily had a whole career devoted to modeling alone. Hell, she could wear a paper bag and she’d still look like a million bucks. Maybe if I looked like her, Green would see me as more than just a?—

“Hello, earth to Hazel?” Amira probes me once more, breaking me free from this co-comparsion complex. “Are you there? You just zoned out. What were you saying about the other night?” she pries.

“Sorry, I…uh…was wondering…” I clear my throat once more as she pulls an oversized tee over her head and falls back onto her bed. “Do you remember my friend,” I regain strength over my words. “Daniel Green?”

“Daniel Green?” She seems to run the name through her mind a few times over before finally, it seems to click. “Oh yeah, the guy you were sitting with in the booth at the pub. I remember him. He wassexy. What about him?”

The compliment alone makes my insides clench, my heart go heavy and my emotions to well up my throat. “Well…” I finally understand how Green felt the other day. “I was wondering if maybe you'd be interested in being set up with him? You know, to date?”

Amira peers up from her manicured hands and meets my eyes with a dumbfounded stare. “What?” Her voice is low and full of uncertainty. “You want to set me up with Daniel Green?”

I nod, trying my best to mask my hesitation as I cheerfully smile. “Yeah, you two seemed to really hit it off the other night, so I thought hey, why not? You’d be a cute couple. Don’t you think so?” I wince.

“But, Hazel…” Amira readjusts herself to sit back along the edge of her bed. “I thoughtyouliked him.”

I attempt to swallow, but somehow, I manage to choke on the dryness in my throat instead. Christ, I knew she’d remembered. Her comment back at the pub last week was confirmation of that.

“I’ve heard a lot about you…”

How could I have been so stupid?

Immediately, I’m transported back to my first year of uni where in an attempt to get to know Amira better, I took her up on one of her initial offers to go to a local off-campus party. Little did I know what exactly I was in for…

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