Page 23 of Sunflower Persona
It turns out that thinking about it doesn’t take long.
As soon as I’m free from his intoxicating presence, my choice becomes crystal clear. I can’tnotgo. This is the opportunity I’ve been so desperately looking for to make new friends, Gage and my crush be damned. If somethingdoeshappen there…well, that’ll be icing on the cake.
Chapter 9
Kori
Head up. Make eye contact. Smile.
The mantra plays on repeat in my head as I march through the near-empty city streets. It’s a completely different vibe than the weekend. Hell, it’s practically a ghost town in comparison. I’m sure it not even being ten is also a contributing factor.
I think I like it better like this.
There’s no line outside Cutter’s, and the crowd isn’t any thicker inside the hazy bar. It’s certifiably dead. Aside from Gage’s friends grouped up by the counter, there are only a few lone strangers tucked away in quiet corners with their liquor.
“Kori, you made it.” Evelyn waves with enthusiasm, as if I couldn’t have found the group on my own.
Unsurprisingly, Karis and the flirty one are here too. Both locked in an animated conversation with Gage, who’s leaning against the other side of the bar with a bored expression. The man who greeted me the first time I went to Double Teep is also here—dressed for an office, not a bar—with a blond woman in his arms who he stares at like she’s his entire world. My eyesgloss over the pair. Giving them any more attention would feel like intruding on a private moment.
With a sheepish smile, I wave back and walk closer. At Evelyn’s exclamation, Gage’s attention shifts from his friends, and his face softens with a half smile. I don’t have a chance to process it or respond, because my new friend greets me with a hug and starts introducing me to “the whole crew.”
“You already know Gage and Karis, obviously. The love birds are Jamie and Morgan.”
“James,” the blond woman corrects but doesn’t take her focus off her boyfriend.
“And this is Nathan,” Evelyn continues, not missing a beat as she gives a name to Gage’s other friend.
“We’ve met,” Nathan says with a flirty smile that feels forced, slinging an arm over my shoulder. “Good to see you again, Yellow.”
My whole body stiffens under his touch and the skeevy way he purrs the nickname.
“Her name is Kori. Use it,” Gage practically growls and pulls his friend’s arm off me with a sharp tug.
Nathan’s smile only widens, but he puts his hands up in surrender. “My bad. It’s good to see you again,Kori.”
“Don’t mind him. He doesn’t know how to be anything but an asshole,” Karis says as she maneuvers herself between me and her friend. “I think he was dropped on his head as a baby.”
“You’re one to talk. You love to push people’s buttons,” Nathan protests.
“But I’m not a creep when I do it.”
“I’m not a creep.”
“Oh really? Let’s ask Kori. Hey new girl, do you think Nathan is a—”
“Enough, both of you,” Gage cuts in with a glare.
They both grumble under their breath but turn their attention away from me. The tension in my shoulders eases, and I give my savior a grateful look.
“I would apologize for them, but if I did that every time they acted like idiots, it’s all I’d ever do.”
“They aren’t too bad,” I say as I twist one of the gold hoops through the strands of a braid.
“You don’t have to lie on their account.”
“They’re a lot,” I admit.
“That’s an understatement,” he says with a huff. “Do you want a drink?”
