Page 22 of Brick Wall
She opens my door and holds out her hand. I’ll follow Viv just about anywhere, but I need answers first. “What are we doing at the library? Classes haven’t even started yet. Oh, my god. Tell me this is the punchline for your sexy sex joke. You’re not going to haul me into the reference section and pull out books with a bunch of diagrams, are you? Because yes, I’ve been in a dry spell, but?—”
“A dry spell? Maggie, you were in the damn desert.” Viv gives it to me straight as we make our way slowly through the empty lot.
She’s right, so I don’t comment. There’s not much to say. After my ex-boyfriend shattered my faith in humanity, I wasn’t really feeling any kind of desire other than a deep and burning need to punch him in his stupid face.
That’s part of the reason I was happy to go along last night. It’s been way too long since I even felt like flirting, letalone kissing a guy. I figured I was safe, that I had some sort of immunity to sexy party boys bestowed upon me by the Patron Saint of Asshole Exes. Come on, there has to be one.
Did I think for a second that I’d end up having the best sex of my entire life in a borrowed bathtub? No. No, I did not.
Nothing about my encounter with JT was expected, and that’s another reason that I needed to make my escape. He slips past my well-built defenses way too easily, and that’s not something I can afford to risk.
We bypass a staircase and head right to the elevators. Viv pushes the down arrow before tapping out a message on her phone.
“What are you up to? Is that some secret library code? Are they going to let us in the back door?”
The elevator doors open, and we step inside. Viv pushes another button and turns to me. “Yes, the library is open. No, we are not going in. But if there’s a secret entrance, I guarantee Josie Reynolds knows about it. She’s cool. We had art history together last year. She would totally sneak us into like a rare book exhibit or something, but that’s not where we’re headed, my lovely. You need medical attention. I know, I know, it’s just twisted. You’re probably right. But just to be on the safe side, I texted Mike, one of the trainers. He’s going to meet us at the gym in an hour.”
“Viv, I’m fine. I need ice, ibuprofen, and a few hours of daytime drama while I wait for my ankle to stop throbbing.”
She nods. “You’ll get all of that, and probably an x-ray. But first, a quick change, and then coffee.”
“Coffee?” I ask, as she steers me into a restroom and thrusts a small tote bag at my feet. Viv and I passed boundaries somewhere around the sixth grade, so she helps me out of her dress and into the comfy clothes I wore to her place last night. I feel infinitely better in these than I did in that rumpled dress, and I’m grateful she thought to bring them.When I gingerly slip my feet into my slides, I’m once again grateful for my bestie’s presence of mind.
“Yes, coffee. Also known as Nectar of the Gods. Haven’t you heard of it?”
“Hmmm…it does sound familiar…”
“Trust me,” she says, laughing and looping her arm into mine as we slowly leave the restroom, “you’re going to love it. It’s hot bean water, but it’s going to be all the rage, I’m telling you. Besides, I didn’t just bring you to my favorite place on Earth to drink sugar-laden caffeine. I also brought you here because you have had the sexy, sexy sex. And I need all the details.”
“Are you telling me you didn’t have the sexy sex last night with your boy Lanza? Because that definitely seemed to be on the agenda as he whisked you out of the party and back to his place.”
I waggle my brows at Viv, and though she’s smiling, there’s an undercurrent of tension just below the surface. “Of course I did. He’s my hookup. So, we hooked up. It’s what we do.”
I slow to a stop on the sidewalk, which isn’t hard to do, seeing as we’re going at a snail’s pace. “It is what you do. I know more about Jake Lanza’s anatomy than his doctor does, and that’s just from the stories you told me last spring. So…what aren’t you telling me?”
Viv shrugs and we start walking again. “There’s nothing to tell, honest. Jake and I have great sex together, but that’s all it is. Neither one of us wants more. I certainly don’t. I never did. I’m the one who suggested the no-strings thing. So why did I have an internal mini freak out when I saw him locking lips with one of the girls from Sigma this morning? I have no idea. Because Jake is just a dick with a very hot body attached. And who needs a dick, anyway? I mean, they’re great and all, but they’re not, like, wardrobe staples, you know?”
I don’t know. But I am intrigued, so I nod like I know.
“They’re accessories, really. Like a Chloe bag. Fun to show off, and the envy of half the girls at every party. It’s a great bag, but it’s not an everyday bag, you know? It’s the kind you trot out at weddings or fancy dinners, or when you just need to feel pretty. But your Lulu belt bag? She’s an everyday bag. She’s always there for you.”
“Like a best friend?” I ask, trying to follow her train of thought.
Viv shakes her head as we enter the coffee shop. “No, more like a vibrator.”
And, of course, the place goes silent the second we step in, and my bestie practically shouts the wordvibratoracross the room.
I’ve never been to Drip, but it looks just the way I pictured it in my mind. Viv loves this place, though I suspect that’s true for most of the student body and the faculty. My uncle raves about their toffee crunch macchiato, and I know Viv gets her caffeine fix here daily.
We step into line, and I scan the menu. I like coffee that doesn’t taste at all like coffee, so I’m deciding between an iced white mocha and a frozen caramel delight when I realize Viv’s no longer beside me. She’s leaning against the counter with a dreamy look in her eye—the look of love. And it’s directed at the coconut milk flat white that’s just been placed in front of her.
Living up to his Best Barista Ever title, Viv’s friend Theo fixes my drink and brings it over to the table Viv found for us. Soon enough, we’re settled in, and I’ve got my leg propped up on a chair and an ice bag—courtesy of Theo—resting on my ankle.
“So…are you going to give me any of the sexy sex details?” Viv asks, taking a bite of her muffin.
“That depends,” I hedge. “Are you going to share?”
I steal a bite of her muffin in the hopes that it will distracther from her probe into my recently resurrected sex life. Besides, the comeback was short-lived. Earth-shattering and glorious, but short-lived.
