Page 35 of The Slug Crystal
I contemplate walking out of the coffee shop and down the road for some privacy, so I can call Alina and ask for her advice. The second I half commit to the plan, my order is ready.
“Emma!” Dottie yells, placing a tray on the countertop.
I sigh in relief as I jump to my feet and walk to the counter, scooping up the tray and carefully balancing it as I walk to the table. I pass out the coffees and keep the Danish for myself.
I clear my throat and peel a chunk of Danish into tinypieces. “He likes fruit,” I say, mostly to myself. “Alex. He used to make fun of me for putting strawberries in my cereal, but he always picked at them, eating them when he thought I wasn’t looking.”
Ben grunts. “Why didn’t he just get his own?”
I furrow my brow, then shrug.
Jake doesn’t say anything, reaching his arm awkwardly behind him to grab his coffee without looking at us.
I poke a bit of berry into the terrarium and watch the snail ooze toward it. I want to pretend this could be a happy ending, that he would be content to be a gastropod for the rest of his weird little life, but I know better. No one is ever really happy in a box.
The coffee is hot and bitter, and the Danish is better than I expected. I eat it in tiny bites, as though slowing the process will delay whatever comes next. Ben’s phone dings, and he’s on it in a flash, thumbs flying. Jake sighs audibly, like he’s been annoyed by our very presence.
After a long minute, I can’t take it anymore. “Jake,” I say, “can we?—”
He stands up before I can finish, nodding toward the door. “Yeah.”
We step outside, the cold, misty rain hitting like a slap. For a second, neither of us speaks. Jake rubs his hands together, then shoves them in his jacket pockets.
“I’m sorry,” I blurt.
Jake releases a sharp, short laugh. “You don’t have to apologize.”
“Yes, I do. I do. I’m an asshole, and you deserve better.”
He shakes his head, teeth gritted. “You’re not an asshole, Emma. You’re just… you. You always do impulsive things. I like that about you, even though it sometimes hurts me in the process.”
I want to argue, but he’s right. It’s exactly what I do. It’sexactly what I did last night. And the night I ordered the slug crystal.
Jake steps closer, his eyes red-rimmed but steady. “You don’t have to choose me. I just needed you to know how I felt. I don’t regret telling you.”
I reach out, fingers trembling, and touch his wrist. He doesn’t pull away. “I do love you,” I whisper. “I just… I don’t know if I’m in love with you. And I don’t want to do anything to mess up our friendship.”
Jake smiles, a fragile, hopeless expression that tears at my heart. “I don’t want that either.” He squeezes my hand, then lets it go. “It’s okay, Em. We’ll figure it out.”
I want to say more, but the door bangs open and Ben sticks his head out, his expression too excited for a rainy Tuesday morning. “Sorry to interrupt,” he announces. “But I’ve got a solution.”
Jake and I look at each other, then at Ben, who is practically vibrating with barely-contained glee. “A solution for what?” I ask hesitantly.
“My cousin’s a pilot,” Ben says. “He owes me a favor, and he’s got a jet with international clearance. He’s flying out of New York tonight. He can get us to Italy by tomorrow if we pack light. The other side of his family, the side I’m not related to, has a ton of connections that could probably help us.”
I blink. “Is this a joke? Please just go away if it is. No one thinks you’re funny.”
Ben grins wider and says, “I never joke about family. Or free airfare. Private jet. No questions, no TSA, just pack a bag and bring the snail. We could be in Venice by tomorrow.”
Jake looks at me, waiting for my reaction. It takes me a second to catch up, and another to believe it.
I want to say no. I want to say it’s insane. I want to say that I have a job, rent, obligations, people, and things to get back to. But I look at them, Jake with his raw honesty, Benwith his shit-eating grin, Alex in his tiny terrarium, and I know there’s no way I can turn this opportunity down.
I nod slowly. “I owe it to Alex to try. Let’s do it.”
Ben claps his hands. “Beautiful. I’ll text him back.”
Jake turns to me, lips twitching with something almost like a smile. “Guess we’re going to Italy.”
