Page 52 of Say Yes to the Nemesis
I stand and grab my coat. The crowd has thinned. Bennett is long gone. Ryan follows me toward the front door, quiet.
Outside, the air is cold and clear. He holds the door without saying anything. We walk a few steps together, not looking at each other, but not walking away, either.
The gravel crunches under our feet. Behind us, the Tin Shed’s neon sign flickers.
Ryan stops first.
“You didn’t yell at me tonight,” he says.
That surprises me a little. But he’s right.
“You didn’t deserve it,” I say. “Even when you stole my favorite category.”
“You knew the answer,” he says. “You earned it.”
He snorts softly, then looks at me for a long beat. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. Just because I’m competitive…”
“That’s not what I’m asking.”
I go still. “Oh.”
“Day before yesterday,” he says, voice low. “When I called your name… you flinched.”
I dig my toe into the gravel. I was trying to forget that. But now that he’s said it, I can’t avoid it.
He sticks his hands in his pockets, not pressuring me. Just… waiting.
I glance at him, trying to read his expression. But there’s nothing on his face. Just patience.
“I flinched because it felt like a joke,” I admit. “Like you were about to say something awful. I braced for it.”
“I wasn’t,” he says softly. “I mean it.”
“Maybe you didn’t mean to…” I trail off.
He reaches out, fingers brushing my arm, pulling me gently toward him. We’re not exactly embracing, but we’re close.
“I can be nice,” he says. “I try to be nice to other people. I could try with you.”
That makes me smile. “That would be okay.”
“You walking home?”
“Yeah. It’s only a few blocks.”
“Me too,” he says. “So… maybe we can walk together.”
He stares at me. I nod. “That would be good.”
God help me, this conversation sounds like two people who’ve never spoken English before.
I shove my hands into my coat pockets and walk beside him.
“You were good tonight,” he says.
“I’m always good.”
