Bree out of her trance, and Bree nearly dropped her fork onto her lap.
“No,” she said. “It’s fine. I’m just…I’m not hungry.”
“So no popcorn at the movies, then?” Kyle spoke with a smile.
Bree shot a look at me before muttering, “I don’t think so.”
I finished my plate before anyone else did, and I leaned back, once again scanning the restaurant. I would literally rather be anywhere but here; that was not an exaggeration. Kyle was right. Bree seemed nice, but she definitely wasn’t my type. Even if I wasn’t reeling from what I’d seen a few weeks back, I wouldn’t go for her.
Michelle pushed her plate away, wiping her mouth with her napkin. She set a hand on Kyle’s leg beneath the table, saying, “Can I scooch by?”
“Sure,” Kyle spoke, practically leaping to get out of the booth and let her free, probably to go to the restroom.
Once Michelle stood near the table, she gestured for Bree to go with her. I let my eyes travel along her once. If Michelle was older, if she wasn’t my little brother’s girlfriend, she’d be more my type than Bree…
With a sigh, Bree inched closer to me, snapping me out of my mind: “Excuse me.” She did not even look at me as I moved, giving her the space to get out. She and her sister walked off, leaving me and my brother at the table.
I sat back down, and was instantly greeted by a frown.
“Dude,” Kyle spoke, “what’s wrong with you? You’re acting like a jerk.”
“I am not,” I said with a frown that mirrored his. If he thought this was me acting like a jerk, I could be a whole lot jerkier. This was me trying to be nice even though being here was not what I wanted to do.
“You’re hardly looking at her, you’re not even talking to her—”
“Hey, she’s not exactly welcoming, either,” I shot back. “I don’t think she wants to be here, same as me.”
Kyle looked like he wanted to strangle me. “That’s the thing with Bree, Calum. She doesn’t want to be anywhere.” His words came off strange, and all I could do was blink in response. “She doesn’t go out. She doesn’t have friends. She doesn’t do anything. When I told Michelle you were coming home for a while, after I told her what happened to you…” He shrugged. “We both thought it would be good.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what he was trying to say. Good for me, good for her, good for the both of us? How was setting me up with Bree good for her? It wasn’t my fault she didn’t get out of the house or had no friends.
“But you’re being an ass,” Kyle finished.
“I am not being an ass.”
“You are. You’re not even trying. I wouldn’t be surprised if they came back and called the rest of the night off.”
That would honestly be good news.
Kyle shook his head, whispering, “Please, Calum. Be nice to Bree.” He must either really care about Michelle’s sister or didn’t want my actions to make him look bad. Whichever one it was, I couldn’t argue with him.
I supposed I hadn’t been trying enough on this date. When they got back, I’d try harder, even if nothing lasting would come from tonight.
Chapter Five – Bree
I knew this would be a mistake. I knew it. I knew it, but I couldn’t convince Michelle that it was a bad idea, me going along with her on a double date with Kyle and his brother.
Calum was…well, besides the fact that he looked like a more handsome, more mature version of his brother, what I expected. He wasn’t interested in me or this stupid double date. I’d seen him watching the restaurant, staring at my sister like he wished I was her, half a dozen times. I wasn’t blind, and I wasn’t stupid.
The only thing I was was done.
And sad and depressed, but that went without saying.
I followed Michelle into the restroom, and after she checked whether we were alone, she whirled on me, folding her arms across her chest. “Bree,” she said, sounding like Mom, sounding like she was scolding me, for whatever reason.
“What?” I asked, not understanding why she was giving me such an attitude. None of this was my fault, and it was a damned good thing I didn’t come to this date expecting anything, otherwise I would’ve been even more hurt by Calum’s lack of interest.
I’d learned years ago to never get my hopes up. It was