Page 42 of Pick Me

Why did I feel like I’d offended him?

I tucked my phone in my pocket and scurried back to my room to get ready for the day, doing my best to ignore Jackson’s weird demeanor.

“Have you noticed anything weird about Jackson recently?” I asked, tossing the lettuce in my salad aside before looking up at my blonde-haired friend. Britt had a burrito inches from her mouth before she dropped it onto the table and narrowed her gaze.

“Uh, Jackson?” Her voice peaked as she flicked her ponytail to the side.

“Yeah, you know, Jackson. He’s the really wide guy who wears a baseball hat so often if I didn’t live with him, I’d think he was bald under there.”

A smile quirked across her face with the subtlest hint of amusement as she wiped her hands on her napkin. “I know who Jackson is.”

“Cool. Then why are you acting like it’s a weird question?”

She shook her head, still mildly amused about something. “Nothing. I’ve not noticed him being any weirder than usual, but I don’t live with him.”

“Mm-hm.” Not the answer I was hoping for.

“What’s he doing?”

“I don’t know.” I crinkled my nose, trying to figure out how to put my thoughts into words. “He’s just. Uh, I guess…”

Britt raised her brows, patiently waiting for me to explain, but I was having trouble getting anything out.

“He’s acting weird.”

“You said that already. What’s he doing?”

“He’s barely talking to me.”

“Okay, I thought you’d like that, though? You tell me all the time that you can’t stand each other.”

“No, it’s not that. The silence is golden. It’s just the things associated with the silence that’s getting to me.”

“Like?”

“When he does talk to me, he looks at me with these shifty eyes and he’s very cryptic with his words.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, and the sweating. He’s sweating more than usual. Not that I know his sweating habits, but I’ve never seen someone with sweat trickling down their face while in a temperature-controlled apartment.”

“Okay.”

“And it’s not just that. He keeps talking to himself, mumbling things under his breath.”

“Does he?” Britt’s voice brimmed with undeniable interest now. She pushed her burrito to the side so she could lean over the lunch table, and whispered, “I think I know why.”

“I do too,” I stated. After studying him for the past couple of days and thinking about the situation, there was only one conclusion.

“You do?!” Her lips parted and she blinked rapidly.

I waved her off, using my fork to pierce through a tomato in my salad before popping it in my mouth. She watched me the entire time. When I swallowed, I said, “Of course. It’s obvious when you look close enough.”

Her smile widened. “I’m so relieved you’ve said that. It’s something that’s been playing on my mind for so long, but I didn’t want to rock the boat and mention it to you.”

“Yeah. Looking back on it now, it’s so clear. I guess I just hadn’t spent enough time with Jackson before now to really see it.”

“Yeah.” Britt nodded furiously. “Makes complete sense why he was hiding it. He doesn’t want Tanner to know.”

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