“Well, let’s see,” Nessa began, holding up her fingers. “One, you go out to eat with him.”
“Two,” Corinne continued, “you’ve slept with him. More than once.”
Nessa nodded. “Three, you guys constantly text and talk about your days. I’ve even heard you talk to him, gasp, on the phone.”
I glared at them both. “You are not helping.”
“Your room is pristine,” Corinne said, looking around the place. “You look great. You even washed your hair this morning, so it’s not like you’re going to cover him in dry shampoo.”
I sighed. “Oh, come on.”
“What’s he coming over for?” Nessa asked, walking towards me.
“I don’t know for sure. But he said he’s bringing coffee. And I think I might’ve asked him over. Or to go out for coffee, at least. I don’t know. My test sucked.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Do you think you didn’t do well?” Corinne asked.
“No, I think I did fine. I was just stressed, and it wasn’t what I expected. But whatever. I have more important things to worry about, like the fact that Dillon’s on his way here.”
“Okay, he’s on his way over. With coffee. Even though it’s evening, but okay,” Corinne said.
I sighed. “I like coffee. And Dillon didn’t even have to ask me what I wanted.”
“Ooh,” both girls said.
I laughed.
“Right? I mean, he could totally be wrong, but at least he’s trying. And I think I accidentally made it a quiz for him, and that’s not right. I’ll have to make it up to him later.”
“Yeah, you will,” Corinne said.
I flipped her off again. “Okay, am I dressed?”
They looked down at me and nodded. Nessa tapped her lips. “Tight jeans, cute boots, double tank tops under a sweater with one shoulder showing. Your hair is done. You have some makeup on but not too much. That way, it doesn’t look like you added more for him. Maybe a little bit of lip balm or gloss and call it a day.”
I blinked at Nessa. “That was quick. And spot-on.”
She smiled. “You look great. Now, come on, plump up those lips, and make sure you put a sock on the door.”
I cringed. “None of you guys share a room with me. Why do I need a sock on the door?”
“Please do not put a sock on the door. Play music or something. Or always play music so that way I don’t know what you guys are doing in there,” Corinne added.
“Wait, did someone say put a sock on the door?” Natalie asked as she walked in. “Oh, by the way, this is Mackenzie.” She gestured to the girl at her side. “We’re doing a group project together. What’s going on?”
“Oh, hi,” I said, wanting to die from sheer mortification. “Hi, Mackenzie. Nice to, uh, meet you.”
Mackenzie, a girl with gorgeous hair and eyes, tilted her head and smiled. “Wait, you’re going out with Dillon, aren’t you?”
I blinked, then recognition hit. “I think so. Oh! You’re Sanders’ girlfriend, right?”
Mackenzie grinned. “I am. This is nice. I didn’t realize you were roommates with Natalie. Small world. Or, I guess, small campus.” She grinned again. “And if you’re talking about socks on the door, I guess Dillon’s on his way over?”
“I’m not putting a sock on the door,” I said with a laugh.
“I’m just saying,” Nessa began, and I groaned.
“Stop it. Go act natural. Or away from here.”
“Is this his first time here?” Mackenzie asked, and my roommates all nodded.
“This is his first time here. And he’s bringing coffee. Apparently, he already knows her order,” Nessa stage-whispered.
Mackenzie’s eyes brightened. “Oh, that’s so sweet. Dillon seems like a great guy. I know the guys just moved in with one another, so I don’t know them all that well, but he’s always very respectful. And I’ve never seen him with more than one person at a time, if you know what I mean.” She paused, blushing. “I’m sorry. Was that too much information? I was just saying that he would never cheat, and he’s a great guy. And even though he’s super handsome, and I know that other girls and guys have all commented on it, he totally only has eyes for you. And I’m going to shut up now because I was trying to be helpful and warm and all that, and I feel like I’m just digging a hole. Does anyone have an extra shovel? I could use it.” She put her hands over her face, and I just laughed.
“I think that was actually kind of helpful. I know Dillon’s hot,” I said.
Corinne laughed. “Hell, yeah, he is.”
“Anyway, I’m still trying to get over the fact that I think I’m dating him. I wasn’t really ready to use that term, yet here we are. But the fact that you just said that about the whole not-cheating thing and everything means maybe I need to have a conversation about who we are to one another. But that’s something for another day. You did make me feel better, though, even though I’m still nervous. Now I’m just going to pretend that everything’s not tumbling around in my head, and I don’t want to throw up.”
The doorbell rang, and my phone buzzed.
“He’s here!” Corinne said, clapping her hands. “I’ll go get him.”
“No, it has to be her,” Natalie said, pulling Corinne back.
“But doesn’t she need to make an entrance?” Nessa asked.
“Not necessarily. If it’s a date in which he’s just coming over, maybe it needs to be her so he doesn’t realize we’re all here waiting and watching in the wings,” Mackenzie explained.
“I really think I’m going to throw up,” I said. “Also, please don’t wait and watch in the wings.”
“Don’t leave him waiting,” Mackenzie said and pulled at my hand. “It will be fine. I’ll go study with Natalie in her room. If you need a buffer, we can come out and have a conversation. But he doesn’t even have to know we know he’s here.”
“You sound like you know what you’re doing.”
“Sanders and I’ve been dating since the cradle. And he always has tons of either school friends or work or family friends that date a lot. That means I’ve always had to watch the girls with the guys figuring out what they’re supposed to do. I’ve taken some notes.”
“We need to talk sometime,” I said.
“You’ll take her help but not mine?” Nessa asked.
“I always take your help. I think that’s how I’m in this situation.”
“No, that was my help,” Corinne added helpfully.
“He texted again,” Natalie sing-songed. I groaned, grabbed my lip gloss, and ran towards the door. Somehow, I had my phone in my hand, redid my lip gloss, and made it to the door while stuffing everything back into my pockets and was only breathing a little heavily. I looked behind me and saw that the girls were gone as if they hadn’t been there at all.
I opened the door and smiled, trying not to look like I was out of breath. “Hey there.”
“Are you okay? You look flushed.”