Page 30 of Kismet

“’Sup, B. How ya been?” We don’t hang out as much as we used to. We don’t really have classes together anymore, and he doesn’t come to the frat parties often. We used to hang out damn near every day, but that’s okay. People drift as they get older. Doesn’t mean we aren’t close.

“Pretty good, bro. Classes have been chill this week. How about you?”

“Same, honestly. Did you go home for winter break?” Branson, along with all our other friends, lives in Bellingham, which is about four hours northwest from here. When I was growing up, my family lived there too, but a few years ago, my parents moved back to Dallas.

“Yup, sure did. You went to Dallas to visit your folks, right?”

“Yeah, it was nice to get back home and nice to get away from the frat.”

“You’re moving out at the end of this school year, yeah?”

Our server comes over and drops off two Cokes. Branson must’ve ordered them before I arrived.

“Mmhmm,” I reply, taking a drink. “The day after graduation, I move into the new house, and I can’t fucking wait. I appreciate the experience that frat’s given me, but I’m ready to not live with thirty other dudes.”

He laughs. “I don’t blame you. I live with two other dudes and that can even be too much at times. I can’t imagine.”

“What’re your plans after graduation? Moving back home?”

“Me and Luca are taking the summer off, but I’m going to work with Luca’s dad in the fall. We’ll probably live with our parents for the summer, then move into our own place once we start working. We haven’t figured out all the details yet, aside from the job.”

“Moving in together already?” I tease.

He chuckles, raising a brow. “Bro, we literally live together now. What are you talking about?”

“I’m just fuckin’ with you. It just seems different, moving in together as a couple versus you each having your own rooms.”

“We haven’t slept separately since we started hooking up. His old room is a storage area now,” he replies before taking a sip of his Coke.

I’m not surprised at all to hear that. They’re practically joined at the hip and have been for years.

“So, what’s new with you?” he digs, playing with the wrapper to his straw. “Seeing anyone?” He waggles his brows at me suggestively, and while I didn’t come here to spill my guts about Stone, it would feel good to talk to someone about it. So, what the hell?

Heaving a sigh, I meet his stare. “Shit, man, I don’t know what you’d call it, but there’s someone alright.”

“Well, color me intrigued.” He chuckles. “Go on, then.”

“There’s this guy I’ve hung out with a few times. We’ve made out, but never more than that.”

“So, what’s the problem?”

“I guess I want to ask you how you handled being with Luca when you knew you shouldn’t be. Because it was considered wrong.” Branson and Luca are stepbrothers—it’s not as weird as it sounds—but Luca also had a girlfriend when they started exploring their relationship. If anyone could even remotely understand what I’m dealing with, it’d be Branson.

“My feelings for Luca were never wrong in my eyes, and that’s all that mattered to me. If you ask me, fuck what society says. Fuck what they deem “acceptable.” They don’t know you or your situation, and even if they did, it wouldn’t matter. Attraction, sex, love, all of that is hardly ever black and white. If it feels right to you, then go with it, man.”

Our server drops off our food, and we both dig in as I ponder over his words. “How’d you navigate Luca having a girlfriend? Didn’t that hinder things?”

He finishes chewing his bite. “Him and Courtney were never going to be the end all, be all. We all knew that. Their relationship was over long before it actually was. Yeah, the timing of it all wasn’t the best, but we were always bound to happen. It was only a matter of time. To be honest, if I had the chance to go back and do it all over again, I wouldn’t change a thing. I know that sounds harsh, but we were what each other needed at that time. You can’t fight fate.”

“Damn,” I mumble.

“So, who’s the guy? And I’m guessing he isn’t single.”

I tense, not wanting to give too much away. “He isn’t single, but I can’t say anything more than that.”

Nodding, he says, “Do what feels right. It won’t always please everybody, but that’s okay.”

We finish eating, and spend the next hour catching up before parting ways. I head back to the frat house, where I hole up in my room and work on some homework until the sun goes down.

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