Page 52 of Well, That Was Unexpected

“Um. Like, how I messaged you out of the blue and stuff?”

Her gaze skitters away from mine and she looks out onto the sea, then back toward the forest. Then her eyebrows raise and she waves madly. “Hey! Hey, guys! We’re here!”

Sure enough, walking out of the shade of the trees is the rest of our group. Eleanor and Kiki laugh and jog toward us, Rina and the camera guy walking briskly behind them, looking very grumpy.

“What happened back there?” Rina says through clenched teeth. “We’ve been looking for you two.”

“Oh!” Shar says. “I’m sorry, I was taking pictures of the monkeys and I didn’t realize we’d gotten separated.”

“We would’ve called,” Rina says, teeth still clenched into a smile so angry it looks more like her just baring her teeth, “except Kiki and Eleanor don’t have their phones with them, and I don’t have your personal cell numbers.”

“Yeah, sorry, I left my phone in the car because I didn’t want the monkeys to get at them,” Kiki pipes up.

“And I’m thirteen, so I don’t have a cell phone,” Eleanor says, smirking.

Rina narrows her eyes at them. Like me, she probably doesn’t believe for a second that Kiki would leave her phone in the car.

I realize that Sharlot and I are no longer holding hands. Did I let her hands go, or did she pull them away when the rest of the group found us? And come to think of it, the rest of the group didn’t find us so much as Sharlot led them to us. A knot of worry forms in my stomach; why had Sharlot been so eager to get the group back? We were having a good time without them, right? Or have I just really, really misread the moment and she was actually squirming to get away from me? The knot in my stomach turns into a rock, all-consuming and impossible to get around, weighing everything down. That must be it. She must’ve found me unbearable.

As though to prove my point, the rest of the way back to the car Sharlot pointedly walks with Kiki and Eleanor, winding her arms through theirs so there’s no chance I could walk next to her or anything. I put my hands in my pockets, my cheeks burning with shame. I wish I could disappear; I wish I could just hide in my room and pretend this whole day never happened. How did I miscalculate it so badly? I thought we’d been having a great time, that we were actually connecting with each other.

You’re bad with girls,a little voice in my head says.You’re a nerd; you spend all your free time gaming. Face it, George, you’re not the kind of dude who’d get girls, aside from ones who are after the family wealth.

God, I really want a hole for me to disappear into. I’m quiet the whole way back to the car, not bothering to strike up a conversation with anyone. Kiki and Eleanor regale Sharlot withstories about their hike, and I notice Rina gesturing at the camera guy to focus in on me; I guess I’m looking visibly down. With some effort, I look straight ahead instead of down at my feet as I walk, trying not to look like my entire world is crumbling.

Okay, so maybe I do have melodrama running through my veins after all.

Once inside the car, I pretend to doze off, leaning my head against the headrest and closing my eyes. I even let my mouth fall open slightly, just to make it even more convincing. The others talk among themselves for a few minutes, chattering about how fun the monkey forest was, but after a while they all quiet down, probably absorbed by their various phones (minus the phone-less Eleanor, who’s probably taking the quiet time as a chance to work on her plans for world domination). Now I totally empathize with Papa wailing and running away flailing every time he gets upset because I definitely am feeling the urge to do a bit of wailing myself.

Finally,finally,we get back to the hotel. I practically scramble out of the minivan as soon as it stops. Then I catch myself and stand there in a very gentlemanly fashion and help the others out. My heart squeezes painfully when Sharlot, upon seeing my outstretched hand, bites her lip and touches it for the barest second as she climbs out. The moment her feet touch the ground, she lets go of my hand, as though it burned her to touch me.

Why?

Or something less whiny and dramatic. In other whys: Why has the dramatic flair that’s apparently been lying dormant inside me chosen this particular time to erupt?

We thank Rina and the cameraman for their hard work and then the four of us walk in painful silence toward the villas. Eleanor looks up at me and widens her eyes meaningfully.What the hell did you do, gege?

I raise my eyebrows and shrug.Nothing, I swear!

Behind her glasses, her big eyes narrow.Yeah, right. When we get back to our villa, I am going to dissect every moment you spent with her and we will find out exactly where you messed up, because you definitely messed up.

We stop in front of Sharlot and Kiki’s villa, and Eleanor says, “We’ll see you at tonight’s dinner!”

“Looking forward to it,” Kiki replies with an affectionate grin at Eleanor. The two of them really get along as thick as thieves.

Meanwhile, Sharlot and I are standing in front of each other in what is quite possibly the most awkward moment known to humankind. Case in point, we’re each staring at our feet. Even our feet are embarrassed; since we’re both wearing sandals, I can see how our toes are curling in, as though they don’t want to be part of this awkward time.

“Um, so I’ll see you later,” I say finally. The air around us is so thick it feels like I’ve just talked underwater, my words fighting through sludgy air to get to her.

She nods, her gaze flicking up at me for a split second before darting away again. “Yeah. Later.”

I turn to leave. I know when I’m not wanted, and I’m not one of those guys who think no is a challenge to press harder.

“George!”

There’s so much urgency in her voice that I whip back around,my heart hammering so hard I can feel its thuds in my hands. “Yeah?” I hate the naked hope that leaps into my mouth, making my yeah so desperate and raw.

Sharlot meets my eye, and the expression on her face is a mirror of all the things I’m feeling. I’m sure of it. She feels the same way about me. She likes me too, I can see it plain as day, but something holds her back.

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