Page 76 of The Summer of Everything

“It’ll work out,” she says. “All of it.”

“How do you know?”

Leeann taps her index and middle finger to her temple, eyebrows waggling. “Batgirl always knows, young Robin.”

* * *

After two days of absence,Mrs. Rossi is back, which means Wes has a rare day off. To be honest, he doesn’t mind the whole seven-days-a-week thing at Once Upon a Page. Even on his days off, he’s known to spend at least three hours downstairs chilling behind the front counter, flipping through comic books. But today’s plan is sleeping in and bingeing anime shows on Netflix. It’s the adult thing to do, right?

Wes’s plans are ruined by nine a.m., though. There’s an incessant thumping at the loft door.

“Door, Wes!” shrieks Ella from down the hall.

Wes digs the heel of his left hand into his eye as the door swings open. It’s Leo. His teeth clench his phone; one hand grips a white paper bag from a local bagel shop and his keys; the other hand holds a coffee cup sloshing liquid on the hardwood floor.

He’s pissed. Perfect. Wes loves a furious Leo with his bowl of cereal in the morning.

“I called. And texted,” Leo grumbles after spitting his phone onto the green sofa.

Wes hums. He fell asleep watching YouTube on his phone last night. It’s dead and drowning in his sheets.

“My bad.”

“I went to the bookstore too.”

“Day off,” Wes says by way of explanation.

“Mrs. Rossi told me.” Leo fixes Savannah’s books on the coffee table before flopping onto the sofa. “I can’t believe she still dyes her hair pink.”

Wes can’t believe his life sucks this hard before ten a.m. Reluctantly, he sits next to Leo. He scrubs at his prickly jaw—he really needs to shave—as Leo unpacks two plain bagels and mini cream cheese tubs. Manners activated, Wes waits until Leooffershim a bagel. He doesn’t postpone stealing a cream cheese and a plastic knife, though. He’s starved.

“We’re going surfing,” Leo tells him after Wes is one-third into the bagel.

“What?” Wes asks, mouth full.

“Surfing. You and me. Eat up and get dressed.”

“Yeah, no.” Wes yawns, tugging a hand through his tangled curls. “That’s not happening.”

Apparently, Leo’s ignoring the words coming out of Wes’s mouth. He checks the time on his phone. His wallpaper is an engagement photo of him and Leeann. It’s sickeningly cute. They’re standing in front of a lit-up Ferris wheel at night. Wes can’t believe the heart eyes and smile on Leo’s face. It’s so… human.

“Ten minutes,” Leo announces, barreling through his own bagel. “We’re hitting Zuma.”

Zuma Beach is off the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu: a massive landscape of wide sands, clean water, and legendary surf. It’s just late enough in the morning that the real pros have already caught a few gnarly waves for the day. Plus, it’s the middle of the week, so it shouldn’t be too crowded.

“We’re not going surfing,” Wes says defiantly.

“We are.” Leo slurps his coffee. It’s saturated in cream, a pale brown hue. “Leeann says you want to talk.”

Shit. Wes did this to himself.

“I do,” he begins, but Leo interrupts him.

“Then we surf and talk.”

Wes tears into his bagel. Leo’s face is dead serious. He’s dressed in an old Pepperdine T-shirt, board shorts, and flip-flops. This is casual Leo, a side Wes rarely sees anymore. And he still looks more put together and attractive than Wes in his prom tux.

Come on universe, give me a break.

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