Page 32 of Bending The Rules

Our eyes met for a second, and then I looked down at my plate as I bit the inside of my lip, dragging the flesh between my teeth.

“Uh-oh,” he said, when I didn’t say anything. “Is that look because I’m alone in that sentiment.”

My eyes shot up. “No. Not at all. I missed you every day. It fueled my anger, to be honest.”

He chuckled. “Well – and this is something I told myself, over and over – you only stay pissed about something when you care. So I was glad to take anger over apathy. As long as you feltsomething.”

“Oh I definitely felt something. Like I wanted to pop you upside your damn head,” I laughed.

“I’ll take that,” he nodded. “I get it. Like I said, I never blamed you for being pissed. Youdeservedto be pissed. I just didn’t realize you would stay out of the country for seven goddamned years to avoid talking about it.”

I shrugged. “What can I say, I was committed. It’s a rule.”

Justin clapped his hands together as he leaned in. “Rule seventy-eight, about not half-assing. I knew it.”

“You always think you know something.”

“Because I do. Just like I know your boy Russell is a blogger masquerading as a novelist.”

“Daaamn,” I said, putting my fist to my mouth. “I never called Cat a wanna-be Whitley Gilbert about her little art gallery thing, did I?”

“No, because youliterallycalled the girl Whitley!”

“Well Justin, if the shoe fits…”

“So you won’t mind me calling ol’ boy Nigga Bourdain then, right?”

“I can’tstandyou!” I laughed, shaking my head. “Why are you doing him like that?”

“Because that fool didn’t think to come talk to me about marrying you. I’m roasting him, on sight, whenever we officially meet. He has to learn. If you love him, you won’t have Jason and Joseph around at the same time, either. That wouldn’t be pretty.”

I squinted. “Wow.Justin, he doesn’t even know about you. I mean… about our history.”

The laughter melted off of Justin’s face, getting replaced with an expression I could only describe as baffled. “How is that even possible?”

“It just…” I shrugged. “Never came up, I guess.”

He frowned. “How long have you known him?”

“Two years.”

“And in two years, you being mortal enemies with your best friend since childhood never came up? Do you even talk to this man?”

I scoffed. “Of course we talk. About lots of things.”

“What, his extensive traveling?”

“Ourextensive traveling. And politics, and pop culture, and world religions, and philanthropy, and literature, and—”

“Does he know you used to beobsessedwith Aaliyah? That once, at a buffet, you piled your plate up with cottage cheese because you thought it was chopped marshmallows, and put a huge spoonful in your mouth? That your favorite insects are fireflies, and we used to go in the open fields at BSU at night to catch them? That whenever your dreams start with you drinking a glass of lemonade, they come true? Does he—”

“Justin, I—”

“Know about your family?” he finished, like he hadn’t heard my interruption. After that last question, he waited, expectantly, and I let out a deep sigh.

“He knows that Marjorie and Greg adopted me when I was seven. But he doesn’t know about before, no.”

Justin shook his head, then reached across the table to grab my hand. Tears threatened to well in my eyes as he ran his thumb back and forth over my knuckles. “Tee… why are you marrying somebody that doesn’t knoweverythingabout you? Does he even know how amazing youreallyare?”

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