Page 72 of Fostering Chemistry
“Can you tell me about it?”
“I hurt Mia.”
That was the last thing I expected him to say. And I wasn’t entirely sure what he meant by ‘hurt.’ I sat up straighter, leaning in. Trying not to look as alarmed as I felt. “She’s hurt? Is she okay? Where is she?”
“Not like that.”
He held up a hand when I started to jump up, and I waited, somewhat impatiently, for him to find the words. “I said something. The wrong thing. And it hurt her.” He paused, as if trying to figure out whether he had to provide any other relevant info. “The other night.”
For Cody, that counted as a big speech. I tried to figure out what night he was talking about, and then I remembered they’d gone to watch that television show, that extra credit thing for their chemistry class.
Though I had three years' experience helping my roommates through various concerns, I didn’t quite know what approach to take with Cody. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.”
Okay. Then why was he here? But I couldn't ask it like that. “Have you... I assume this happened at the movie night, right?”
He nodded.
“Have you talked to her since then?”
“No.”
Silence grew, but I waited again. With Cody, you had to give him time to phrase his thoughts.
“Talking was the problem in the first place.”
I couldn't argue with that. For some reason, words just never came easily to him, but holy crap, he could express himself through music like no one else I'd ever known.
“I... I didn't mean to say… what I said.”
“Do you think she knows that?” I asked carefully.
“No.”
“Can you tell her that?”
“No.”
He wasn't leaving me with a lot of options as to what to advise. He was gazing off to my right. Not focused on anything, but again I got the sense this was a time to wait him out.
Finally, he looked directly at me. “I like her.”
“As a friend or roommate, or...”
“I like her,” Cody repeated, and that gave me my answer.
“Well, going with her to the movie night was a good start. I'm sorry it didn’t work out the way you wanted it to.”
“How do I fix it?”
“I wish I had a magic solution for you, but you’ve got to talk to her. Unless you, you know, write her an opera explaining how you feel. That was a joke, by the way,” I clarified.
“What do I say to her?”
“First, apologize for whatever you said that hurt her, and then...”
God, I didn't know how to advise him. I hadn’t even had a girlfriend in over a year. Probably I wasn’t the best guy for this conversation.
