Page 40 of Didn't See That Coming

The two girls look down guiltily at their feet. But of course,since this is Eleanor Roosevelt we’re talking about, the guilt doesn’t keep her down for long. In the next moment, she grins up at me and says, “But don’t you worry, Ci, we’ll make it up to you.”

Sarah Jessica nods.

“Uh, no need, I’m totally fine. I think it’s better if I lielow….”

“I insist,” Eleanor Roosevelt says, beaming. “Don’t you worry about a thing. We’ve got it all under control.”

And with that, they march off, leaving Liam and me gaping after them.

“What just happened?” Liam says. “Why do I feel like I’ve just been drafted into something bordering on illegal?”

I bite back my smile. “You’re probably not way off there.”

Liam nods slowly. “Should I be scared?”

“Yes,” I say without hesitation, then I can’t help but laugh, and it feels good to laugh in school. To laugh non-ironically, to laugh and have it be not about laughing to hide my hurt or sadness or shame. To laugh purely because I find the situation funny. To laugh with…a friend. It hits me then how long it’s been since I could laugh like this with someone at school.

That was the first day of change. The next project meeting we have, Liam and Peishan start speaking up more. What about a puzzle game? Or a gentle farming game? Or, sure, an FPS, but one that’s meant for everyone and not just for a very specific subsection of the audience? Jonas becomes increasingly quiet and more sullen, and while his grumpy silence makes things somewhat awkward, I’m really good at ignoring his presence.

Even though the change is great, I still retain my nickname of Crazy Kiki. I guess it’ll take more than just our little group changing its dynamics to get rid of the nickname, but you know what? I can live with it.

A handful of days go by, and Liam and I no longer feel the need to spend recess hiding away in the library. We start going to the canteen for food, where Liam slurps at his soto ayam. I’m not sure how he makes eating chicken soup noisily adorable. “Argh.” He looks down in dismay at the yellow spatters on his shirt.

I can’t help but laugh. In addition to being kind of a noisy eater, he’s also really messy. At the end of every meal, his plate or bowl is surrounded by little spatters of food, which he’s considerate enough to clean up. He glances at my clean eating space and goes, “How do you manage that?” and it’s so cute I could just die.

“I came prepared.” I whip out a packet of baby wipes and hand one to him.

“Thanks.” Liam scrubs at his uniform, and the stains get wider.

“No, not like that.” I grab the wipe from him and dab at his shirt. “See, gently, like this, so you’re not spreading the stain everywhere.”

It strikes me then that I’m touching him. With my hands. My hands, which are on his body.

My head explodes like a watermelon. Or at least that’swhat it feels like. And now that I’ve realized this, I can’t unperceive it. My hands! Are on his chest! I can feel his pecs! Ooh, his pecs. They are very…pec-y. My tongue darts out and licks my dry lips. It’s official: I am a pervert. I jerk back as though touching him has burned me. I can’t even look him in the eye. My fingertips are tingling where they touched his pecs. I give him the wipe and mutter something like “I think you get the gist.”

Liam takes it from me, his fingers brushing the back of my hand, leaving a tingling line, and dabs at his shirt.

All right, time for me to start Operation Find Out Who’s Liam’s Crush. I clear my throat. “So Eleanor Roosevelt told me that you’ve signed the contract and NDA for the Lil’ Aunties?”

“Oh yeah.” Liam shakes his head. “I really wasn’t expecting a twenty-page contract. I showed it to my dad, who’s a lawyer, and he was very impressed. And concerned. But I assured him it was for a good cause.”

I have to bite back my smile at the image of Liam convincing his dad to let him join Lil’ Aunties. “So now that you’re officially in, we should start building your profile.”

“Okay,” Liam says easily. He pushes his bowl aside and leans forward, resting his elbows on the table. Surely, he must know how irresistible he is. He must.

I take out my phone so I can take notes. Also so I have something else to stare at besides Liam’s annoyingly handsome face. “Okay, first question: What are you looking for in an SO?”

He shrugs. Is it just me or do his eyes seem to soften as he looks at me? It feels like he’s looking at an old friend. There’sa soft, familiar comfort in his expression, and I wonder if he’s going to realize that I am Dudebro10. “Someone who’s into the same stuff I am, I guess.”

“Warfront Heroes?” The moment the words fall out of my mouth, I wish I could grab them and cram them back inside.

He smiles. “Yeah, I would love to play with my girlfriend.”

Oh my god. The thought of playing together with Liam, and not as Dudebro10 but as hisgirlfriend,fries my insides to a crisp. I would kill to do that. Oh yeah.

“Girl gamer, got it.”It meeee,my insides squeak. “Anythingelse?”

“I mean, I’m into making breads, but that’s a me-thing, so I don’t feel the need to be doing that with anyone else. Would be great if she’s into eating them, though.” He takes a sip of his drink. “I would love to be able to bake for her.”

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