Page 108 of Life of the Party

I was smoking and mindlessly staring at an old episode ofFamily Guywhen my cell phone rang.“Layla…you got me on my knees…”

I hoped it wasn’t my mom again. She’d called earlier to wish me happy birthday, her voice overly chipper, like we’d spoken just the other day, not a month ago, when I was storming away from her favourite daughter’s wedding. That’s how things went with my parents. It was easier for them to ignore the issues than to deal with them properly, to let them fester just below the surface—always present but never talked about.

They could act like nothing happened all they wanted, but I still hadn’t forgotten how they’d treated Grey. I hadn’t forgiven them for it either.

I fished through my purse and found my phone, nodding along to the song. “Hello?”

“…Zee?”

I sat up, stunned. Holy shit. “…Riley?” My entire being was startled by the unexpected sound of his voice, so unmistakable, so familiar in my ear. “Is that you?”

“It’s me.” He chuckled. “I know I shouldn’t have called…I just wanted to wish you happy birthday.”

“No, no. I’m glad you called.” The moment I spoke the words, I realized they were true. There was no denying the instant, explicit joy that surged inside me, hearing hisvoice again. It just felt…right. “I’m sorry, I can’t get over…I can’t believe it’s you.”

“Don’t I sound the same?” He wondered.

“Yeah,” I answered thoughtfully. “And no at the same time. You sound older or something. Different.” I giggled nervously. I lit a smoke and leaned back against the pillows, amazed by how flustered I was. This was Riley, my oldest friend.

And my heart was pounding in my chest.

“What about me? Do I sound the same?”

“You do. You sound exactly the same.” He spoke wistfully. “Just really far away.”

“I guess I am.” I realized, sadly. “So…what’s new with you? Are you in school now?”

“Yeah. Bible school. Emily and I live in the dorms here.”

“Together?”

“No, separate.”

“Oh.” I breathed with relief. The thought of him living with the Christian was too much to bear. “So, you’re in a Bible school.” I couldn’t keep the surprise out of my tone, though I honestly did try. Never in a million years would I have pictured Riley there, of all places. I knew his views on certain things had changed; I just hadn’t realized how much. I tried to be supportive, though. “Do you…like it?”

“Yeah, I do, so far.” He seemed relieved. “It’s really good.”

“What do you…do?”

“What you normally do at any school. Learn.”

“But what do you learn about?”

“The Bible.” He teased. “It’s not rocket science, Mac.”

“Shut up.” I giggled. “I didn’t know.”

“You sure you don’t want to rethink the whole higher-education thing?”

“Shut up, Riley! Be nice!” I laughed. It felt really good to laugh with him, like old times again. I smiled into the phone.

“Okay, okay.” He chuckled. “Sorry. I forgot how much fun you were to bug.”

“You did?”

“No. I could never…” Riley cleared the laughter from his throat. “Anyway, big plans for tonight? Grey taking you somewhere nice to throw up, or are you staying in?”

I rolled my eyes, sighing theatrically. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. This was going too well, wasn’t it?”

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