Page 3 of Austen Persuaded

“She’s alive.”

“We don’t have to pull the plug.”

Through the fog of my mind and my blurry vision, I recognized the words and my two roommates sitting at the foot of my bed, looking bored. Rubbing my bleary eyes to clear away sleep, I revised my assessment. No, they weretryingto look bored.

“Aww, how sweet. You guys were worried about me,” I tried to say, though my voice was so scratchy that I doubt it sounded like any human language. Rafael came to arrange pillows behind me while I eagerly clutched the water bottle from the nightstand next to me.

In retrospect, I probably shouldn’t have driven myself home last night. I was more than a little exhausted, and I fell asleep within minutes of taking nighttime cold medicine.This stuff is nasty, I remembered thinking just before passing out.

“I’ll get you some more water,” said Rainn, rearranging his Twins hat over his short, messy hair before heading to the kitchen with my water bottle.

“Do you need some, uh, soup?” Rafael asked, sounding uncharacteristically anxious. “Crackers, more meds, or something?”

Rainn pointed at the floor as he returned to hand me more water. “We stacked a few extra boxes of tissues next to the bed.”

“At least let me tie up your hair, sweetie,” Rafael said, not waiting for permission before he rearranged my matted hair into something resembling a messy bun or ponytail—I couldn’t tell.

Rainn started to sit down but then jumped up. “Oh, how about some hot tea? I can go start the kettle.”

“Can you guys just … like, sit?” I asked, exhaling loudly as I grasped the blanket nearby, which was disturbingly damp. “All this movement is exhausting to watch.”

They stared at me blankly. With his brow furrowed, Rafael ran his fingers through his black hair, streaked with blue. He glanced helplessly at Rainn, who had that look almost of a deer in the headlights, like when a woman talks about her period.

I rolled my eyes. They were the best roommates and the best friends, but they were suchguyssometimes. “OK, so you’ve never seen me sick before. Blah, blah. I’m just like any other person. Stop being so weird.” When they looked suitably chastised, I glanced toward the bedside clock. “Now what have—holy crap, it’s 4 pm? Why did you let me sleep all day?”

When they didn’t answer, I pursed my lips. “What? You both have a weird look.”

“You were sick. And sleepy.”

“And medicated.”

“Well, yeah, obviously,” I said impatiently while trying to stretch my achy limbs. “But the meds last eight hours, right? It’s been, like … I don’t know how long. I’m still too fuzzy headed to do the math, but at least double that amount of time.”

“Yeah, you slept a lot.”

“I was asleep all that time?”

Silence.

“Well—” Rainn said slowly before Rafael jabbed him sharply in the ribs. “Pretty much.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Out with it. What happened? You’re both being ridiculous.”

Silence.

Rafael came over to sit closer. “Annie, how about we talk when you’re feeling better? I think you’re going to feel so much better after some soup and more rest, maybe some trashy TV—”

“Out with it. Now.”

He sighed. “I had to try.” He looked at Rainn, who nodded reluctantly as he rubbed his square jaw.

“So, this is awkward, honey. But you wanted to know. So, uh, you did wake up this morning, and you were kind of loopy still, from the cold meds, we figured.”

“OK,” I said, looking back and forth between them. “And I did something embarrassing or … what?”

“I wouldn’t say that. But you saw something on Instagram that upset you, and you started wailing and quickly downed more cold meds. You weren’t exactly incoherent at that point, but you wouldn’t say a word to us, only buried yourself under the covers until the meds kicked in.”

I heard nothing after the wordInstagram. I wasn’t sure how I continued to breathe. It all came rushing back to me. Him. A selfie at an airport. A boarding pass from NYC to MSP. Hashtags I wasn’t familiar with.Block. Block him.I had to block him out. Nyquil. He didn’t matter anyway. He meant nothing now. Healwaysmeant nothing. He was just a blip. I wouldn’t see him if he did visit. If I did see him, who cared? I’d give him a dazzling smile, maybe a smirk. Or maybe I’d ignore him. Better yet, maybe I’d give him an apologetic smile. I did reject him, after all.He probably hates me.And that’s fine. I’d hate me too, if I were him. But I’m not. I’m me, and I’m awesome. Brandon thinks I’m awesome. I should call Brandon. Before this med makes me pass out. Calling Brandon. Grrr, it went to voicemail. Why isn’t he answering? He never answers his phone. Well, I know people prefer texts. I prefer texts. But I wanted to hear his voice. I’m sure he’ll stop by later. Because he’s the one. HE is the one for me. He is, Brandon, not …

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