but he had also inherited quite a lot. My mother, on the other hand, had grown up in a tiny house with parents who had both worked long hours at tough jobs to provide for her and her sisters. Her parents had helped her where they could, but she’d worked hard for most of what she had, and my mom had made sure I knew where she’d come from and how hard she had worked to ensure that I had a better life than she’d had.
I led Dre into the house through the garage, showing off the kitchen, the back patio, the sitting room, and the living room.
“You have two living rooms?”
“One’s for watching TV and hanging out; the other’s for when my parents have guests. They do a lot of fundraising here.”
I showed Dre all around the house, avoiding my bedroom until I had run out of rooms to show him. At my door, I pushed it open and he dashed in like he was afraid I was going to change my mind and refuse him entry, but I doubted I could have refused Dre anything.
“It’s so clean. And you make your bed?”
“Every day,” I said. “It only takes a minute to do while I’m waiting for the shower to warm up.”
Dre thumbed through the books on my shelves and examined the photos on my dresser and the awards hanging on the walls. He opened my drawers and my closet, and I let him because I had nothing to hide from him.
“I’m seriously concerned about the lack of you in this space.”
“There is plenty of me in here.”
Dre stood in the center of my room and held out his arms. “Where? I mean, who decorated this place?”
“My mom.”
“See?”
“But I don’t mind,” I said. “It’s not like I have burning opinions on bedding sets or wall colors.”
“You should still be allowed to be yourself in your own bedroom. It looks like no one even lives in here. What would happen if you left your bed unmade or didn’t put your books away or bought a TV and a PlayStation?”
I shrugged. “I don’t have a lot of time for video games or TV.”
“That’s not the point!”
“I’m sorry my bedroom doesn’t meet your expectations.” I stood stiffly at the door, feeling attacked. “Feel free to leave anytime.”
Dre’s shoulders slumped. “That’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean?” I asked. “Because I’m exhausted trying to please everyone and I thought, you at least, were the one person who accepted me the way I am, which just happens to be tidy, organized, and boring.”
“I’m sorry,” he said. “And you’re not boring.” Dre walked toward me and slipped his arms around my waist. “At least, you don’t bore me.”
I put up a token resistance to his charm offensive, but I was beaten the moment he touched me. “Are you sure?”
“Sometimes I forget how different we are,” Dre said. “I see a blank wall, and all I can think about is what colors I can paint it. You don’t. And it’s not a bad thing or whatever. I like your sport coats and ties and loafers, even though I’d bathe in honey and roll around in fire ants before wearing them myself, and I like that you like them. They’re what make you so damn sexy.”
“Really?”
“Those sexy, sexy argyle socks?” Dre bit his knuckle and made a sound like he was suppressing a groan. “You’re lucky I didn’t jump you on that stage in front of your classmates.”
“Speaking of my classmates,” I said. “I might have invited a couple of them over for pizza tonight.”
Dre’s arm around my waist loosened. “So when do I need to be gone by?”
“Gone?”
“Obviously, I can’t be here when they’re here.”
I shook my head because he’d misunderstood me. “No, they want to meet you.”
Dre’s look of hurt turned to shock. “You told them about us?”
“Heavens no. But I told them that it would be rude for me to let you spend the night sulking in your hotel room, replaying in your head how badly I destroyed you during the debate, and that the gentlemanly thing to do would be to invite you for dinner. We’ll have to pretend to hate each other a little.”
Dre stared at me deadpan. “Won’t be hard for me.”
“It’s only going to be Tamal and his girlfriend, Astrid, and Mindy.”
“Your girlfriend?”
“Actually, I bet you and Mindy will have a lot in common.” I leaned my head against Dre’s. “You’re not mad?”
“Why would I be mad?”
I struggled with