Page 45 of Drawn Together
Lennon gives Sloane a wink. “Tell her I will get right on it.”
Translating my sister’s exaggerative thank you, I hang up the phone with a promise to call her later when she promises not to force me into downloading dating apps.
“So, is said ex the mom lover?”
My snort is loud. “He didn’t love my mom, just thought she was pretty when we were like twelve.”
“Mmm, sure. Is it him?”
“The one and only.”
“You’ve dated since then, right?”
“Not exactly.” And by not exactly, I should just say no. Not even a smidge.
“Why not?”
“Hard to get out there.” Hard to not scare people away.
“Well, you’re in the perfect spot to make friends.”
“It’s proven more difficult than you’d think.”
Lennon grabs a throw blanket and curls it around her legs to sit down next to me. “Yeah, uh about that—the making friends and all. I wanted to apologize.”
“Apologize?”
“I’m really sorry I was such a bad roommate for so long.”
“What?” I sit up and bring my legs up to the cushion with me, tucking them under my butt. “No, you were never a bad roommate. I just rarely saw you until recently, which I think is actually most people’s preferred roommate.”
“Maybe.” She gives a timid grin. “But, that’s not your preference, is it?”
“I don’t think I would even know my preference. I have only ever had one roommate in college, and trust me, the bar was set extremely low.”
“I kind of lost myself right before you got here. I think I’m still lost, actually. But, it’s been easier the last few weeks. Lighter.”
“Well,” I beam at her, “I’m glad we’re friends now.”
“Me too.”
She goes off to her room and before she reaches the knob a thought crosses my mind. Lennon had to be friends with that Ryan guy too, right? If Stephan and Fletcher were like brothers to him and they’ve all been friends forever…and he died only a month before I moved in…
“Hey, Lennon?”
“Yeah?” She turns on a heel.
“Were you…close with Ryan?”
Her whole body freezes up at his name.
“You don’t have to tell me, I just thought about the timing of me moving in and—”
“My brother.” She shakes her head. “Ryan was my brother.”
My breath hitches in my throat. The thought of losing Sloane—the thought of losing anyone that I cared so near and dear for—is unfathomable. To go through that kind of grief with so much life left to go through without them. I don’t think I could do it.
“I’m so—” I cough and realize my eyes are watering at just the thought, and how pathetic it is that Lennon is giving me sympathetic eyes, like I was the one grieving. She lost him only six months ago. No wonder she was always gone. No wonder she lost herself. I don’t think I could ever be the same.
