Page 64 of Quarantine Crush
I growl. Is this little shit seriously giving me crap right now?
“Relax, Knox, you just need a way to win her back.”
“Right. But how?”
“Well, I can give you some ideas, but in the end, it’s gotta come from you. You know what she likes. What sort of stuff she’s into that would mean a lot to her. But it sounds like you should go big because, not for nothing, that girl has been chasing you for years. And you’ve ignored every attempt she’s made. You’ve got a lot of rejection to make up for. And don’t even get me started on that invasion of privacy when you read her book.”
“Your pep talks suck, dude.”
He laughs. “Okay, listen. You need to do something dramatic. Like a promposal or something. Girls love that kind of shit.”
“What the hell is a promposal?”
“Look it up. There’s some good ones on FlipFlop. Oh, on second thought, maybe don’t. That shoot your shot challenge was brutal. ”
“Okay, first, what does a flip flop have to do with this? And second, shoot whose shot?”
“Knox, I swear to God you’re such a boomer sometimes.” He sighs like he’s gathering his patience, and I roll my eyes. Christian’s always been the dramatic one. “FlipFlop is an app.”
“Oh, right, I forgot about it.”
“Even Dad knows about it. I saw him and Joe doing the stunt man challenge the other day in the backyard. That shit was hilarious. Anyway, the shoot your shot is a challenge that’s trending on the app where you record yourself kissing your bestie to see if they kiss you back. It’s a way to put yourself out there and challenge yourself to get the balls to do it. Especially since everyone can see the person’s reaction.”
I’m silenced by his explanation.
My mind replays that first night in Emy’s kitchen over and over again.
And now I feel even sicker than I did before.
“Knox? You there?”
“I’m here.” My voice is strained. My guts are being torn to shreds as I realize what a monumental asshole I’ve been. No wonder she’s done with me.
“You sound like you’re on the toilet. You’re not pooping on the phone with me, are you? I know we’re blood and all, but there are such things as boundaries, man. That’s weird.”
“No, I’m not– Ugh.” I run a hand through my hair. “I fucked up.”
“Yeah. I’m aware. It’s why we’re having this conversation.” He pauses and then asks, “Are you drunk?”
“Emy did the shoot your shot challenge on me,” I say quietly. “The first night I was here. And I rejected her. On video.”
“Bro, you don’t have to tell me. I saw it.”
“You saw it?” I nearly yell.
“Yeah, why do you think I offered to step up the other night? Take your place? You screwed up, man. That video was painful.”
“Show me.”
“What?”
“Where do I see the video?”
“It’s gone, man. She deleted it.”
“How many people saw it?”
“The viewer count said a couple hundred, I think. I don’t remember for sure.”
