Page 55 of Friends Don't Kiss

“Everything okay?” Ethan asks.

“You good?” Noah echoes.

I rub my stubble. “Uh… not sure. I guess?”

Noah adjusts his glasses. “Anything you wanna share?” He’s not nosy, just being a good friend. On top of running the family general store, Noah is our resident geek along with Ethan, who recently moved back. Noah glances at my phone, but more out of concern. His gaze quickly settles on Justin. “When’s the next community dinner? I want to advertise it at the store. Get more people who need it to come.”

My thumb hovers over the app’s logo while Justin, Noah, and Chris discuss the next community dinner at Lazy’s—a get-together where food is free and the more fragile in our community have a chance at receiving help, through friendship and donations.

Kiara’s pretty face is staring at me in a neat little circle, with a heart next to her screen name: Pixie802.

I have no fucking clue what to do with that. Do I answer? If yes, how? This is when I need Willow, but of course, she’s locked up with the girls in the bathroom.

“What’s up, man?” Justin asks.

“I don’t even know where to start.”

“At the beginning,” Ethan suggests.

I give them the down-low of what Willow set up. Set the phone on the table so they can see for themselves. They all huddle over it once they catch the gist of what I’ve gotten myself into.

“Wouldn’t touch that shit with a six-foot pole,” Chris mutters, looking at the phone like it might bite.

“Willow set you up with that?” Noah asks. “That’s fucking catfishing.”

“That’s what I said. Didn’t know the word, but it didn’t seem right to me.”

“Delete your profile,” Noah instructs, looking anxiously toward the bathroom door, from where the girls are bound to reappear at any time.

What’s taking them so long?

“Wow-wow-wow,” Justin intercedes. He hovers his hand over my phone like he wants to protect it, while looking at it like it’s a bomb ready to detonate. “What’s the harm? Just say hi.”

“It’s wrong,” Noah says.

“Eh,” Chris argues. “It’s Kiara. What’s the worst that can happen?”

“I’m with Chris,” Justin says. “Go for it. This could be fun.”

Noah shakes his head but has no counter-argument.

“I don’t want to have fun at the expense of Kiara. That was never the goal.” I glance nervously toward the women’s bathroom, but there’s no activity.

“What’s your goal?” Ethan asks.

Taking a deep breath, and at the risk of losing my man card, I concede. “I… want to date her. I…” Fuck but these words are hard to say. “I care for her. And honestly, knowing she wants to date other guys, I just…”

“D’you try asking her out?” Justin says like I’m an idiot.

“Yeah—she won’t.”

“But she’s fine being on adating app?” Noah nearly screeches and pushes his glasses up his nose. “This woman isnuts. You sure you want to date her?”

My glower shuts him up, and the energy radiating from me must carry over because all four look at each other and nod in agreement. “Go for it,” Chris agrees. “Just don’t you hurt her. She’s the best. You know that, right?”

Yeah, asshole, I know that,I want to answer my cousin, but I don’t because my finger taps on the screen and now I’m staring at a chat box.

twenty

---