“Thank god,” she said as they entered the restaurant Olivia had chosen for lunch. It resembled the set of one of those Chinese palace dramas Farrah’s mom loved watching. Each dining room featured a different theme. The one they ended up in had glowing fish suspended from the ceiling alongside traditional red paper lanterns. Farrah couldn’t figure out the theme. Under the East China Sea? Chinese Little Mermaid? The fish were a little tacky, but hey, this was Disney. They could do whatever the hell they wanted.
Since it was a quick-service restaurant, Farrah volunteered to look after the bags while her friends ordered at the counter. It gave her more time to sit.
To Farrah’s chagrin, Blake also stayed behind.
“Well, well. You and me, alone again.” Dimples creased his cheeks. “What are the odds?”
“We literally came here together, Blake.”
He pouted. “Your indifference to my charms is starting to bruise my ego. Come on, throw a guy a bone.”
Farrah’s lips twitched. “Your ego could use some bruising, and your charms have no effect on me. Sorry.”
That wasn’t totally true, but he didn’t need to know that.
“Why? Do you have a boyfriend?”
“No.”
“Are you in love with someone else?”
Farrah hesitated.
Blake’s eyes widened. “You are.”
“I’m not!”
“Who is it? I won’t tell.”
She didn’t know what it was. The heat? The hunger? The exhaustion? Whatever it was, it caused Farrah to lose her usual control over her reactions. Her eyes flicked toward Leo, who was paying for his food while the rest of the group mulled over their choices.
Farrah caught herself and averted her gaze.
Too late.
Blake’s jaw dropped. “Holy shit. You’re in love with Leo.”
“I am not in love with him.” Farrah fought to keep her expression neutral even as panic raced through her.
“You are.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“I’m—oh, forget it,” she fumed. “You’re insufferable.”
Farrah had thought he might not be so bad after their conversation in the library last week. Clearly, that was a mistake brought on by copious amounts of delicious food and a dash of late-night exhaustion.
Blake Ryan was the worst.
“I saw the way you looked at him just now. Contrary to what some people think—" The way he said “some” indicated he was talking about Farrah. “—I’m not stupid. You want to bang him.”
She glared at him. “Do you have to be so crude?”
“Tell me I’m wrong.”
“I’m not talking about this with you.”
“You already are.” Blake’s dimples flashed again. “I can give you pointers from a guy’s perspective. People would pay for my advice. It’s that good.”
“No, thanks. Leo is taken, remember? He’s with someone named, oh, Courtney?”
“Ah, that is a complication.”
“It’s not a complication, it’s a dealbreaker.”
“So you are in love with him.”
Farrah realized too late Blake was baiting her into a trap. The smugness on his face indicated he knew she knew what he was up to.
“Fine,” she said. “I may have a tiny crush on him, but I’m not in love with him. And I’ll never do anything about it.”
“Girl code. I respect that.” Blake nodded.
Farrah thought that was the end of it until Blake leaned closer, his eyes swirling with curiosity and something else she couldn’t identify. “So, what’s the draw? Is it the nice-sensitive-guy facade?”
“It’s not a facade. I know it’s difficult for you to understand but nice, sensitive guys exist.”
“They’re one in a billion. Most guys use the whole sensitivity schtick to get into a girl’s pants. Trust me. I’m a guy, and I know how the male species operates.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake.”
“Exactly!”
“This conversation is over.” Farrah scrolled through her phone, not because she was looking for anything but because she didn’t want to talk about Leo anymore.
Blake was wrong. He may be a player, but not every guy in the world was like him.
“It doesn’t matter. Like you said, he’s with Courtney, so I guess you’re doomed to pine after someone you can’t have unless…”
Don’t look up. Don’t look up.
Farrah looked up.
Dammit. She needed better self-control. “Unless what?”
Blake leaned back and laced his fingers behind his head. “You get the hots for someone else.”
He wasn’t the first person to suggest that solution. Olivia had been trying to get Farrah to hook up with another guy in FEA for weeks, but when Farrah had a crush, she had tunnel vision. Most of the time, anyway.
She chose not to think about the way her stomach fluttered every time Blake smiled—a real smile, not the smirk he was giving her now.
“Don’t tell me you’re offering yourself up for the position.”
He looked offended. “I’m not, but there’s no need to sound so disgusted. I have feelings.”
Farrah arched a skeptical brow.
Blake kept the pretense up for about ten more seconds before he broke into a wide smile.
There it was again—that stupid stomach flutter. She should get that checked out.
“Kidding. I don’t have feelings.”
Farrah couldn’t help but laugh. Blake’s grin widened.
He was so cocky she hadn’t thought him capable of self-deprecation, but it was nice to see he didn’t take himself too seriously.
The group returned with the food. Farrah had told Olivia to order for her, and her faith in her friend was well-placed. The Shanghainese pork belly rice was fantastic. They also bought a bunch of dishes to share, including crab meat spring rolls, shao mai (Chinese dumplings), chicken teriyaki skewers, and a quarter roasted duck. Dessert comprised of an assortment of mooncakes, in a nod to the Mid-Autumn Festival.
The festival was a time for moon worship (in the olden days) and family reunions (in modern days), but honestly, it was all about the mooncakes.
Farrah savored the taste of her Disney-themed green tea mooncake. Yum.
To Farrah’s relief, Blake didn’t bring up Leo again for the rest of the day, probably because Olivia and Courtney had them running around like crazy people so they could fit everything in before the park closed.
Despite her exhaustion, Farrah had a blast. It had been ages since she visited Disneyland. She was a child swept up in the magic again, especially at night when the park lit up like a sea of fallen stars.
Even Kris warmed to the experience. By the time they left, she’d spent hundreds of dollars on overpriced souvenirs. Farrah didn’t know why Kris bought so much stuff. It wasn’t like she’d ever be caught dead wearing Minnie Mouse earrings.
Whatever. Farrah was too tired to read much into it.
She collapsed into her seat on the metro. They had a long way to go before they reached SFSU, but Farrah didn’t mind. It gave her feet more time to recuperate.
“Today was a good day.” Olivia yawned and rested her head on Farrah’s shoulder. On Farrah’s other side, Courtney and Kris were already fast asleep.