Page 64 of It's in the Contract
I frown, confused. “We played video games . . .”
“Yes,” Zeke nuzzles my hair, and I swear my heart skips a beat. “I want to show you things that I . . . that I care about.”
I wait for him to go on.
“Will you play D&D with my brothers and me?”
I pause. It should be funny, this question that he’s taking so seriously. But I know how much it means to him. I know that his friends, the ones that hurt him so badly, used to play. So I know what this question means.
Does Zeke think . . . that we’re really friends?
Is Zeke feeling about me the way I’m feeling about him?
“Yes,” I say. “Yes.”
And he squeezes me tighter and doesn’t let go as we awkwardly make our way back toward the elevator, holding each other. People give us some funny looks, but it’s Seattle. It’s not like they haven’t seen anything stranger.
My heart pounds, and this time it’s not from fear.
It’s Zeke. It was always Zeke, it just took me until now to admit it.
I’m falling for him.
But . . . there’s a big difference between hanging out with a nerd and dating one. The scorn Destiny Chodekwitz endured proved that last year. Hanging out with him at school and dealing with people’s strange looks and judgment is hard enough. I’m beating Brielle, but nothing is guaranteed. People can still change their votes, and I can’t throw away the crown just because I like Zeke.
I like Zeke.
We leave the building and breathe in the fresh fall air. The leaves in the trees surrounding the parking lot are red and gold, and I can appreciate their beauty now that I’m not fighting panic. Slowly, ever so slowly, we unwind from each other. The chill feels even more intense after leaving Zeke’s arms.
Zeke smiles at me shyly, and I smile back.
“Thank you,” I say with all the sincerity I can muster. “I couldn’t have done that without you.”
Zeke grins, and I notice two adorable dimples in his cheeks. We walk through the parking lot, and the residual sweat clinging to my neck feels like ice.
I’m quiet, processing what just happened. What I just realized.
I cannot let Zeke know how I feel. It would ruin this very tenuous thing that we have. It would ruin him.
Because he’s leaving at the end of the semester. And if I care about him at all, I won’t let him get hurt again.
Twenty-Four
Time to party, my friends. See you on my parents’ yacht tonight at 8. Come hungry and ready to dance!
Instagram caption by @briellewilliamsplus.
“Callie,”Suzy hisses. “What were you thinking?”
She pulls me aside from the group standing on the pier. Waves from the bay splash and lap through the boards underneath our feet, and I can already hear a song with a strong beat pounding from the yacht to my right. Someone aboard laughs loudly, and someone else sings along off-key to the pop song playing. The orange evening light is darkening into night, and overhead some of the stars are peeking through clouds.
I told Emma and her friends to meet us here so we could attend Brielle’s party. I honestly don’t know if Brielle and her crowd would let them on if they weren’t with me.
A slight chill in the air wafts from the water. I’m glad to be wearing a black peacoat over my red dress. When the breeze hits, I catch a whiff of my perfume of choice today—a lovely peony scent, for good luck. My nails, freshly painted as of this morning, are scarlet to match my dress and heels.
Suzy whispers so they don’t hear, and Emma is talking with Tina, so I think we’re safe. Taylor stares out over the water. Zeke opted out today, saying that he had to catch up on his content creation, so he’s home playing video games. I try not to be too disappointed.
“What’s going on?” Suzy asks. “I mean, it’s fine, we all need to be more inclusive anyway, but this is a big change for you.”
