Page 24 of Cream and Punishment
“Sometimes evenafterthey tell you otherwise,” Kris added, oh-so-helpfully. She hesitated, as if choosing her words carefully. “I think you tend to handle rejection a little…differentlythan most people. Even when they haven’t officially rejected you. Unless someone is overwhelmingly positive toward you, your default is assuming they hate you.”
I shrank in on myself, heat flushing my cheeks. I couldn’t even deny it. If it hadn’t been for Annie telling me that she liked hanging out with me, I would’ve thought she wanted to boil me alive for inconveniencing her with my questions about a book. And when I took too long getting the tip ready for the pizza delivery guy, I assumed he hated me, too, for making him wait. “But this is different. He has every reason to hate me.”
Another dubious look telegraphed between Annie and Kris.
“But has he done anything since then to show that he hates you?” Annie asked.
“Glaring at you, spitting on you, insulting you, naming a slug after you,” Kris supplied.
I shook my head, taken aback by the options. “What do you have against slugs?”
“Focus,” Annie reprimanded. “Has he done anything like that?”
I swallowed hard, my insides squirming and beating the fries into a pulp. Ew. “Not yet.”
Aside from bringing up my bakery, he hadn’t done anything remotely malicious. I mean, there was the whole not-looking-at-me and standing-as-far-from-me-as-possible stuff. That hurt. A lot. But I couldn’t exactly blame him.
Annie raised a brow, propping her forearms on the table and leaning in. “Walk us through every interaction you’ve had with him since the party.”
So I did. I told them about moving in, the snake scare—after making each of them swear they’d never tell Lex, of course—and running into him this morning. By the end, my water was as empty as Annie’s glass.
“He couldn’t even look at me this week,” I argued, frustration welling in my chest at their doubt. Why couldn’t they see it? “Lex even said that was weird for him. And Iknowit is, because he had no problems being around me or making eye contact before I ruined everything. He was pretty normal when he thought I was in danger, but the moment he knew I was fine, he went right back to avoiding me.”
Annie sat back with a sigh, shaking her head. Even Hattie had sobered long enough to listen to the details, though her lips still twitched with the threat of a smile.
Kris patted my hand, hermother lookin place on her face. Stern, but loving, stepping into the role I’d apparently disappointed Annie too much for her to fill like usual. “Dekker, honey, I feel like you’re being too hard on yourself here.”
I scoffed, pulling my hand away to cross my arms. His chance at happiness was gone because of me while I got to continue living my life with no repercussions but a missed job opportunity. If anything, I wasn’t being hard enough on myself.
“Just” —Kris sighed as well— “promise me you’ll at leasttryto open your mind to the possibility that he doesn’t hate you.”
I mean, they were wrong, but okay. I could try to be objective. That’s how I’d be able to prove my theory right, anyway, so it would be a win for me either way. “Alright, fine. I promise.”
“Excellent.” Annie clasped her hands together, a wicked gleam in her eyes. “And if hedoeshate you, I can beat some sense into him for you.”
Watching five-foot-two Annie against probably-six-foot rugby-physique Max would be the fight of the century. And you know what, I think Annie would win. She’d fight dirty.
I laughed, wiping my hands with my napkin. “No need. Can’t have you getting booked for assaulting a federal officer.”
“I didn’t say I’d getcaught,” she muttered.
“Well,” Kris stood, her sundress fluttering with the movement and bare biceps rippling, “I don’t know about you guys, but I bet that guy over by the Pac-Man is dying to get his butt kicked by a girl tonight.”
Hattie stood as well, straightening the spectacles on the end of her nose. “I’ll take those odds.”
nine
Bysomemiracle,Imanaged to make it a whole week before I had another run-in with Max, much to my friends’ disappointment. And by “miracle,” I mean “as a result of taking drastic measures.” Leaving at a different time every morning after checking the peep hole and listening for sounds from his side of the wall, running past his door every time I passed it—actual, honest to goodness running that I hated with every fiber of my being—and, while bringing in my dino chicken nugget throw pillow when it arrived, faking a spontaneous phone call.
Unfortunately, my good luck had finally run out. I’d grown complacent.
Friday morning the week after I’d made that stupid promise to Kris, I only left five minutes earlier for work than I had the day I’d run into him in the hallway. After working double shifts for seven days straight, I didn’t have the energy to run past his door this time. Lex had had to take a raincheck for girls’ night last night yet again because of work, so with any luck, Max wouldn’t be up this early for his workout—the maniac. A girl could hope.
Futilely, apparently, since his door opened at the exact moment I walked past it.
“Aw,turkey nuggets,” I muttered, seriously tempted to say a four-letter word that would’ve earned me a deposit in my brother’s swear jar instead.
He looked suspiciously alert this morning, his dark eyes smiling to match the grin on his face. “Good morning, Dekker.”
