Page 107 of Just for Fun
“Yeah…”
I take a deep breath and go for it. “I want a spot for my brother in all of the focus groups,” I say. “For all the games. Ever.”
“Your brother?”
“And all of his friends,” I add for good measure. “They need to be in this thing, too. That way Owen doesn’t play alone.”
Alex clears his throat. “I’m assuming Owen is over twenty-one?”
“Is that a requirement to be accepted in these groups?”
“For the rated R ones, yes.”
I frown at that. “You sell rated R video games?” I’ve never heard of such a thing.
“There are different levels,” he starts explaining. “We have…”
I slash a hand through the air even though he can’t see me. “I don’t care. I don’t want to talk to you anymore.”
“Okay.” His tone is now quiet and subdued. “I’m sorry again. And I need you to know that Kyle doesn’t know about this. I…”
“Stop it,” I snap at him. “I need to go now.” I take a deep breath in. “I… Thank you for calling.”
I hang up before he has a chance to say anything else. I drop in my recliner, rocking back and forth while thinking about the strange things that happened today. I take a moment to decide whether I want to give Kyle another chance while knowing full well that I do.
I want us to try again, and I want a better ending for us. Actually, I don’t want an ending at all. I just want to be with Kyle.
Why is love so complicated?
THIRTY-TWO
Kyle
Last week wasthe first time that I got my hair cut for the first time in a very long time.
“Your hair is so thick,” the girl cutting it commented. “Chicks would kill for hair like yours.”
I’m pretty sure she was flirting with me, but with my brain solely focused on getting Zara back, not much registered beyond the surface.
“I didn’t know they had girls at the barber shop now,” I told her. And that’s as far as our dialogue exchange went.
Today, I am staring at myself in the mirror, amazed at how great of a job she did with my hair. It’s much shorter than before, and it doesn’t stick out uncontrollably when I wake up in the mornings.
My schedule is consisting of mainly days now. That’s what worked before when I was with Zara. Since I am trying to think positive and manifest us getting back together, I am also makingan effort in changing my work schedule. She works days, so I will work days as well. We’ll have evenings and weekends together.
“Fuck, I’m nervous,” I mumble to myself as I take in my outfit for the day. I have a light teal polo shirt one that’s paired with a very respectable pair of shorts and a pair of boat shoes on my feet. With my glasses on, I look very preppy. The first time her brother and his buddies met me, I was looking like a bum. I can only hope that he will find this more respectable.
Grabbing my key fob, wallet and cell phone, I leave the house and get in my truck. All my friends are gathered for the weekend at Evie and Cal’s parents out in the Hamptons. It’s a tradition for all of us, and I am bummed that I’m missing it this year. But Zara is more important, and God willing, there’s always next year.
The ride to the address that Owen gave me takes forty minutes, door to door in current traffic. According to my GPS, I will be there with fifteen minutes to spare.
Just as I am about to pull out of my driveway, I see a message from Alex popping up.
Good luck, man.
He knows what’s at stake today. I tried to be mad at him, but in the end, I did answer his calls every time he called, and each one invariably ended with him apologizing to me for fucking up my relationship with Zara.
I don’t reply to his message because I am too nervous about what’s to come. All the way to this party, all I can think about is Zara and how she might react when she sees me there. Owen told me that’s he wouldn’t be staying long because she hates parties, so my window of when I can talk to her is not very big.
