Page 32 of Changing the Play

He’s silent for a moment, and then he sighs. “Maybe we shouldn’t get coffee after all.”

Um, what? What in the world changed in the last thirty seconds? “Um… alright. Can I ask why?”

His lips press together tightly as he runs a hand through his unruly hair. He looks… angry, and I can’t quite figure out why. If anything, you’d think this is the reaction I would have gotten when we woke up, but I guess not. He’s quiet for so long that I step toward him, hoping I can skirt around him and make it out of the bedroom without further incident. I make it about three steps from him when his jaw tics, and he makes a frustrated sound low in his throat. “So Parkerisyour type, then?”

I stop abruptly, my mouth dropping open in shock. Wait, wait, wait. How did we get here? “What?”

He sighs, his fingers continuing to tap out their uneven rhythm on his palm. “I just didn’t know. When I met them, I briefly wondered if they were the type you usually go after. Guess I have my answer.”

My brain does the record scratch sound as I piece together what he’s saying. “Oh my God. Are you… jealous?”

His eyes snap to mine. “No! Why would I be jealous?”

I almost laugh. I want to. This is honestly so ridiculous. I don’t want to believe that he could be interested in me. I can’t give myself false hope. But between this very obvious jealousy and the way he was touching my face? I think I can afford to be a little honest with him. “No. Parker is not my type.”

He stares at me for a second, not moving, barely breathing. “But you’ve had sex?”

If I had water in my mouth, I would be doing a spit take. “I’m sorry.What?No! I’ve never had sex with Parker.”

He blinks at me, his jaw opening and closing, looking a bit like a fish out of water. “But yousaid…”

“Slept together, West. Like in bed. Normal sleeping. Not sleeping together like sex. Good lord.” All the tension seems to leave him at once, and I truly don’t know what to make of it. “Oh my God. Let’s just go to the coffee shop. I need caffeine. Unless, of course, you really don’t want to go now.”

He shakes his head quickly. “No. I still want to. I’m sorry. I don’t know why I was acting like that.”

I can’t resist rolling my eyes. This is a hot mess. “Okay, then. Let’s go.”

Luck would have it that the second we walk into the coffee shop, we almost collide with Parker. Literally.

They’re looking down, probably in their head about something, and almost walk right into me. “Oh, my bad.” They raise their eyes and realize who I am. It takes approximately point five seconds for Parker to connect the dots of who I’m with, and they get a cat that ate the canary grin on their face. “Well, well. What do we have here? Is my little Darcy doing a walk of shame this morning?”

“No, actually. We’re just getting coffee.”

West is suspiciously quiet, and Parker is studying me like a bug under a microscope. “Hmm,” they muse, eyes dropping. “I’d believe that if you were wearing your own pants.”

Crap. I forgot I had West’s sweatpants on. “Mind your own business, Parker.”

Parker laughs, and West is still being too quiet. Who knew it would be Parker that would ruin my friendship with West and not my inappropriate feelings?

Didn’t have that on my bingo card.

“Just ignore them,” I say, turning to West.

He glances at me before giving Parker his attention. The corner of his lip tilts up in a smirk. “Bold of you to assume having sex with me would lead to a walk of shame, Parker.”

Parker cocks their head to the side, watching West with appraising eyes, before breaking into cackling laughter. “I like him, Darce. You should keep him.”

I stare up at the ceiling, silently pleading that a hole will appear and swallow me. “West,” I groan, irritated. “Don’t encourage them.”

West chuckles, brushing his shoulder against mine. “I’m just saying, Darcy. It’s rude of them to assume that you’d be sneaking out in shame after having sex with me. Which we didn’t do,” he adds, looking pointedly at Parker.

Parker seems downright giddy, clapping their hands excitedly. “This is my favorite day ever. I’ve gotta get to class. Have fun with your straight boy, Darce.”

Why they felt the need to put “straight boy” in air quotes I’ll never know.

“Ugh.”

West laughs. “They’re something else.”

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