Page 25 of Well, Actually
“Yup. We had freshmen stats together, I believe,” she says,taking my hand for a quick shake. “With Dr. Shornen? I went by Liam back then.”
“Oh my god, hi!” I say, slapping a palm to my forehead as the class and the woman in front of me resurface in my memory. We’d also known each other from the campus Pride organization, and she’d shared her early stages of transitioning at the meeting toward the end of my senior year.
“My name is Lilith,” she says, some of her iciness thawing as she smiles at me. “After the first she-demon.”
“And I’m Steve. After my grandpa Steve,” the gentle giant adds, raising his arm in a way that I could either take for a hug or opt to shake his hand. There’s something so damn jovial about him that I shock myself and take the quick embrace. I’m a sucker for a himbo and this man exudes that energy in the best way.
I feel Cooper’s eyes on me, and I blush at the moment of softness, backing away from Steve and tucking my hair behind my ears as I roughly clear my throat.
“I didn’t realize you two were friends in college,” I say, gesturing between Lilith and Cooper.
“We weren’t,” Lilith says sharply, waving her hands. I cackle that the suggestion seems so genuinely horrifying to her. “We didn’t get to know each other until a couple of years ago. I got hooked up with an interview on Rylie’s podcast. I founded and run an advocacy group and shelter for queer youth in the city. It’s called Euphoric Identity.”
My jaw drops as the final pieces of her familiarity click into place. “Wait, wait, wait, you’reLilith Flores? Holy shit, you’ve done some amazing work. I’m a huge fan of yours.” I read a profile on Lilith inNew Yorkmagazine about a yearago, the article covering five of the most influential and inspiring young activists in the city. Over the past five years she’s created a network of resources and programming that’s transformed the landscape for queer young people to feel safe and loved. She’s also responsible for a huge grassroots effort advocating for Black and brown kids in the community.
Lilith’s lips curl in satisfaction, but she waves me off.
“No, seriously.” I know I’m tiptoeing into level-five fangirl status, but I can’t help it. I’ve had an altruism-crush on this woman since I learned about her accomplishments. “I can’t even tell you how much I admire all that you do. I’d love to talk to you about your work. I’ve had this fantasy of interviewing you for like, ever.”
“You mean on the hot dog thing?” she asks, her nose scrunching in dismay. She quickly wipes the expression, but I’m already flooded with embarrassment.
“Oh. Um. No. I mean, yeah. I do that… hot dog thing. But I, uh, I have a…” I gesture vaguely, the termblogsounding so damn juvenile and dinky that my skin itches. But throwing out the termplatformwould make me sound like a self-important asshole and a huge exaggeration of my reach outside of phallic-shaped foods.
“She writes these really great think pieces on Babble. They’re amazing, Lil. You’d love them.”
It takes me a moment to realize that the endorsement came from Cooper. I spin around, frowning at him. His gray eyes meet mine with a docile stare.
“You… you’ve read my stuff?” I ask, voice tight and cracking in earnestness, my face erupting in heat.
“Course,” he says, lifting one shoulder, then letting it drop.His smile is gentle and lopsided, and I can’t pull my eyes from the curve of it.
I blink a few more times, my lips parting. I feel oddly jarred by his confession. Which is silly. So what if he’s read them? Or he could be lying. Or if he’s not lying and actually has read them, it was for some weird form of research to find my soft spots and use them against me in this bizarre game he’s playing.
He leans toward me like he’s going to tell me a secret. “Don’t swoon on me, Kitten,” he whispers, shooting me a cheeky wink. The spell is broken, and I let out a deep breath, fixing my mouth back into a frown.
“I just didn’t know you could read,” I reply sweetly. “Lea Michele is shaking.”
Lilith’s snort fills me with an absurd amount of satisfaction, and she and I share a look.
“I like her,” Lilith announces.
“Me too!” Steve chirps. “Don’t fuck this up,” he adds in a cheery tone, smacking Cooper on the back.
“Only his career on the line as he pays for past sins.” I shrug. “No pressure.”
“Okay, so this went about as obnoxiously as I expected,” Cooper mumbles. “So, uh, bye. Thanks.” He makes a shooing motion with his hands, and Lilith rolls her eyes, traipsing down the hallway toward the kitchen. After one more beatific smile, Steve follows her.
“Sorry about that.” Cooper rubs his jaw as he grimaces after them. “I asked them to make themselves scarce when you got here so it wouldn’t be so… energetic, but they don’t really believe in boundaries.”
“I could talk to them for hours,” I say, waving away his concern.
“But you’re stuck with me.”
“I suppose so,” I reply bleakly. His gaze flicks back down the hall, a flare of emotion crossing his features before he smooths them and smiles. If I didn’t know better, I’d call that look… jealousy.
“Come on. We’ll record in my studio.” He leads me up the stairs, pointing out the rooms as we pass. “Steve’s room. Our bathroom. Lilith’s room—she gets her own bathroom and I’m not jealous at all and living in a chronic state of horror over Steve’s bathroom habits—”
“She puts up with living with you, the girl deserves a monument, not just a private place to shower.”
