Page 40 of Advanced Chemistry

If I hadn’t already ruined the mood tonight, seeing Anton slowly back away from me with his hands up did the trick.

Chase pulled the darts from the board and handed them over.

But instead of taking them, I bailed out of Remix altogether. What the fuck was wrong with me?

14

CHASE

Admittedly, I wasn’t the sharpest when it came to understanding people. Molecular equations were a cinch. Human emotions were headscratchers.

I had expected tonight to go differently. Anton, Sebastian, and I would enjoy laughs, good conversation, and drinks. They were good guys. I found myself surprisingly comfortable with them.

But instead, I felt like one of those idiot children with neglectful parents who fell into the lion pit at zoos.

A warm gust of air hit me when I stepped out of Remix. I hadn’t realized just how cold it was inside, the air conditioner likely set high to anticipate a swell of sweaty bodies later tonight.

The exterior of Remix was remarkably unassuming. Save for a small rainbow flag hanging outside the door and a beer sign in the window, the cars on the highway could rightfully assume the place was abandoned.

I found Sebastian around the corner, back against the wall, squatting a few inches off the ground. He looked remarkably sullen considering it was a friendly game with no money on the table. The stakes could not have been lower.

“Hi. I told Anton I forfeited, so you won.” I tentatively approached.

“I think I forfeited first, technically.” Sebastian leaned his head back and exhaled a lengthy sigh. The outdoor lights silhouetted him and showed off his cut jawline, something I shouldn’t be focusing on at the moment, but my brain had other ideas. “What are you doing out here?"

“I wanted to apologize. Our social interactions seemed off tonight. I didn’t mean for things to get antagonistic and competitive.”

“Things weren’t competitive. It was a friendly game.”

“Sometimes I have trouble understanding sarcasm. Your comment definitely falls into sarcasm, but it sounds like you’re being serious?”

As my friends would say, Sebastian had a bug up his ass from the second he walked into Remix. From the second he saw me. I wasn’t always the best at reading the room, but the vibes going on tonight would throw off even astute social observers.

“Fine, things got a little competitive.” Sebastian cracked a hairline grin, giving me the tiniest peek of his white teeth. He had a really nice smile. It was a shame he was kind of uptight and didn’t smile more because he was absolutely beautiful when he did. “I can be a competitive person. It’s the athlete in me.”

“I can be, too, though I don’t have an athletic bone in my body.”

“I saw that.” His forehead crinkled in confusion. It was another shame that he was always so self-possessed, because confusion was another attractive look on him. “You were shit-talking me.”

“Just a little.”

“It seemed off brand for you.”

“I prefer buying off-brand products at the supermarket, so I take that as a compliment. Many of them are made in the same facility as name-brand products, but sold at a lower price point. It’s one of the best kept secrets of consumerism.”

Even I could tell I was veering too off-topic. But it let another sly grin escape Sebastian’s lips. Maybe I should take back my previous statement. He was beautiful when he smiled, but possibly more beautiful when he was brooding, his lips pouting into a perfectly kissable shape.

I sat down next to him, kicking aside the stray cigarette butts on the gravel. I didn’t like staring down at him. I wanted us to be eye level.

“How did a nerdy science teacher get so competitive?” he asked. “Too many science fairs?”

“No. Actually, can I share something with you?”

“Go for it.”

“I think it stems from my dad walking out.”

Sebastian jerked his head to face me, light cracking through his brick exterior. I remembered seeing his mom on back to school nights, the annual event where parents would visit their kids’ teachers. For most kids, both of their parents showed up, but not Sebastian’s. It was only his mother. And I’d gotten the sense that it wasn’t because his dad worked late. I could tell.

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