I hang up, sliding my phone back into my purse. “Sorry about that.”
He shakes his head. “Don’t worry about it.”
“What were you saying about tomorrow?”
He shakes his head again, this time almost imperceptibly. “Nothing.”
I take a short breath, feeling like eggshells are ten miles in each direction as I debate my next move. “So, I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Yeah. I have physical therapy at three if you’re working.”
“I traded my shift with someone, so I’m working in the morning.”
“That was nice. Well, I’ll talk to you later.”
Was I just rejected?
Can you be rejected by a friend?
Is it supposed to sting this badly?
28
Arlo
“Do you want the bad news or the worse news?” Lincoln asks me as I get home, a flashlight in his hand.
“You mean the bad news or the good news?”
He shakes his head in exaggerated gestures.
“Why are the lights out?”
“That’s the worse news,” he says.
“What?”
He drops a duffel bag near the door. “Turns out the roof of this house is almost as old as the house. Apparently, the leak has spread and gotten so big that the water got into the wiring, which is also fifty years old, and fried the entire electrical box.”
“What? How? Aren’t there breakers?”
“I don’t know. I’m just relaying what the insurance guy said when he came out to look at it while you were gone.”
“I thought he was coming tomorrow?”
“Paxton called when the electricity went out, and they sent someone over as an emergency. The house is deemed unsafe, so we can’t stay here.”
“What?”
He nods. “Paxton packed most of his shit and dropped it at his mom’s, but he’s staying with Candace, and Caleb packed and left to stay at his parents. We packed up most of your stuff from the living room and moved all the furniture down to the dining room, so it’s not ruined.”
“Thanks, man. You guys should have called.”
He waves me off, knowing I wouldn’t have been able to help much, even if I’d been here.
“Are you staying with Rae Rae?”
He nods. “You can come, too. Or Rae’s mom was here helping us pack, and she said you’re welcome to stay her place if you want.”
“That wouldn’t be weird at all,” I joke.
He scoffs. “It would be if it weren’t her. Or, you could ask Olivia?”
I think of her call with Matt. I could tell she was giving him the cold shoulder, but I haven’t figured out if it was legit or just for my benefit. “So, if that’s the worse news, what’s the bad news?”
“Well, really, there’s a shit ton of bad news. I just didn’t want to tell you there were more than two shitty things, but they have to replace the entire roof, re-blow insulation, and then fix the ceiling, but due to the age of the house, there’s likely asbestos in the ceiling which means we won’t be allowed back in here until it’s all fixed. Oh, and the wiring.”
“So, in a nutshell, we’re fucked.”
He nods. “Pretty much sums it up.”
“But you’re going to go play house with your hot as fuck girlfriend in her brand-new apartment and pretend like it sucks but really celebrate this as a small win.”
“Basically.”
I shake my head.
“I’ve got all your clothes and school shit together,” he tells me. “I’ll help you load it in your rig.” He grabs a bag without waiting for my response and heads outside. I push the button on my fob to pop the trunk and grab my phone.
Me: Mind if I borrow that hide-a-bed tonight? We’ve been kicked out of the house for safety.
Liv: What?! OMG. Yes. It’s yours.
Liv: Do you need help?
Me: No. My roommates got most of it all wrapped up. I’ll be over shortly. Thanks for letting me crash.
Liv: No problem. See you soon.
“You got it figured out? Seriously, you’re welcome to come and stay with us. You can even try putting the moves on Poppy.” He chuckles as he says this.
“I want to rise to the challenge, but I think I’m going to crash at Liv’s house. They have a hide-a-bed, and they’re close to campus.”
Lincoln smirks.
“What?”
“Nothing,” he says, shaking his head. “Absolutely nothing.”
Twenty minutes later, I pull back into Liv’s apartment building. She meets me in the parking lot with a small rearview mirror hanger and a dolly cart. She’s out of the red dress she wore to dinner, wearing a pair of sweatpants that say Brighton and a sweatshirt that says Texas.