Page 28 of Defend Me

“There have been a lot of questions aimed at me. I think I’m gonna need a lawyer present before we proceed.”

“Sounds like something you’d say if you were guilty.”

“What would I even be guilty of?”

“Being afraid of commitment, obviously.”

Brooks scoffed. “Uninterested is vastly different from afraid.”

Still smirking, Oliver leaned over to whisper something in Dean’s ear. Me and Brooks looked at each other as if one of us knew what he said. Whatever it was, neither of them was letting on. Dean was completely expressionless and Oliver just looked like he had for most of the night.

“This is a really weird fucking group,” I blurted.

Brooks laid back and stared at the ceiling. “Fuck, I know you’re high all the time, but I love you like this.”

I shrugged. “Sativa. It deletes my filter.”

“Noted. Buy Tilian a whole stockpile so I get him to open up to me.”

Lying beside him, I knocked my shoulder against his playfully. “I’ll open up regardless. The longer I’m around someone, the easier it is.”

“Second note to self: harass Tilian at all hours, every day.”

All I could do at this point was shake my head. There was no getting rid of the smile anytime soon. I was just rolling with the punches.

Chapter 9

“There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good humor.”

Brooks

With My Skittish Supple Lipped Pal

“Have you ever eaten rocky mountain oysters?”

Tilian choked on his pizza. I tried to conceal my smile behind my own slice. It was cool to see him opening up a little more. He was still incredibly introverted, but when I showed up at his dorm today with food, he’d only hesitated for, like, thirty seconds before he invited me in.

I was going to hang out with Kai and Sen, but they were stressed about the move. If they’d asked, I would have told them it was a bad idea to have a housewarming party on the day they got their keys. They should’ve waited until next weekend. They hadn’t asked, though, so that was none of my business. I imagined the Kermit tea sipping meme and chuckled to myself.

“I haven’t,” he replied when he wasn’t in imminent danger of aspirating his food. “And I never would.”

“Picky eater?”

“Yeah, but I don’t think refusing to eat cow balls falls under ‘picky.’”

“I’d say it’s subjective.”

“Haveyoueaten them?”

I leveled him with a look that I knew was indecipherable. “I’ll never tell.”

“You’re kind of a dick.”

His bluntness made me laugh. “Am I?”

“Totally. You’re super mysterious and I’m pretty sure you know exactly what you’re doing.”

“Hm. I assume you’re referring to that time when I got your dick hard, then walked away.”

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