too much like that first conversation we had back in August. “What I’m trying to say is, you haven’t been here much lately.”
She lifts her brows. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”
I take the pillow off my bed and throw it at her head. “You’re acting like a bitch, Cals.”
“I’ve learned from the best,” she says, laughing and throwing it back at me.
“Ha-ha-ha. No, seriously, what brings you here? Hayden piss you off or something?”
“No, I’m doing an intervention, that’s what I’m doing! I figured you’d be in the library with your nose stuck in a book or working or something, so I’d get a chance to corner you when you showed up later. But you ruined my plans, you know, being here and all…” She narrows her eyes at me. “What are you doing here?”
I spin in my chair and pick up the book. “Studying. Or I was, but my mom called.”
Callie crosses the room and pulls the book out of my hands. “Not anymore.”
“Hey, I have to…”
Once again, the door abruptly opens, interrupting me.
“Please tell me I’m not late!” Chloe says as she barges into the room. She’s panting, her cheeks flushed, and her dark curls are a mess.
“Right on time!” Callie reassures her. She throws my book on her bed and goes to her closet.
“Good, I was running down to grab our order.”
Only then do I notice the spicy smell spreading through the room. My stomach growls, reminding me I forgot to grab lunch between my classes earlier.
I watch Callie squat down, her face turning into a grimace just for a moment as she does, but as always, she ignores it as she pulls something from the bottom before standing up.
“What is all of this?”
Callie turns around and lifts a familiar bottle in the air. “I told you. An intervention.”
“It looks like tacos and tequila,” I deadpan. And now I’m really hungry. My stomach growls loudly, confirming it to the whole room.
“What was that?” Callie’s eyes narrow at me.
“It sounded like a bear.”
“That was my stomach, you dumbass.” Sighing, I shake my head. “Why are we having an intervention again?”
“Because apparently, you’re two, and we can’t expect you to take care of yourself.”
“It’s been a long day.”
I grab a stack of cups that I keep in my drawer and pull it out. Together we sit down on the floor. The space is small, but we squeeze together and start opening the boxes.
The first bite of tacos has me moaning loudly.
“So good,” I murmur as I chew. I haven’t had decent Mexican food since I got back from home. Not that anything can actually compare to Mom’s cooking.
“I know, they’re my favorite to order from.”
“You still do that?” Chloe asks.
When Callie first got here, she rarely left the dorm except to go to her classes and to come to Cup It Up. We joked that she’s on a first-name basis with all the delivery guys around campus and has them in favorites on her phone.
“Hey,” Callie says, elbowing her, “I’ll have you know that I mostly go to the cafeteria now, and we occasionally cook.”
“She isn’t hiding anymore,” I mock-whisper.
Callie huffs. “I was never hiding.”
As one, Chloe and I turn to Callie, giving her who-are-you-shitting looks. Her cheeks flush a bit. “Okay, maybe a little.”
“Cooking, huh? That sounds cozy.” Chloe grabs another taco while I work on opening the tequila bottle and pouring some for each of us.
“Cooking, heating up pre-made stuff Hayden’s grandma made, it’s all the same, right?”
We all burst into laughter at that.
“Yeah, right.”
“Keep telling yourself that, chica.”
As our laughter slowly dies, I look at my two friends. Things have been really hectic since this semester started, but not just that. Things have changed. And they’ll keep on changing. It would be so easy to blame everything on circumstances, but I have to admit it was partly my fault too.
“I really missed you guys.”
I haven’t even realized how much until this very moment. Sitting on the floor of our room, drinking shitty tequila, eating tacos, and talking about mundane things. I missed these moments, missed my friends.
Callie wraps her arms around me. “We missed you too.” Pulling back, she slaps me over the head.
“Ouch, what was that for?” I rub at the back of my head.
“That was a reminder that you have to hang out with us more.”
“I know,” I sigh. “Things have just been so busy.”
“You were busy last semester too,” Chloe chips in, sipping on her drink.
“And that doesn’t explain why