Page 92 of Bazooka
I threw my head back, hitting the wall behind me—on purpose. For a moment, I wanted to ignore his comment, but then my mouth moved on its own.
“How is he?” I blurted out, cursing myself for asking that question.
“Crying his heart out,” Tye replied matter-of-factly.
I whined internally because I didn’t want to know, but now that I knew, it was fucking with me.
“How the hell did this thing with his father come about?” Carter said.
I told them everything. How his father approached me when I’d already decided to let Luz stay with me. About the death threats. All of it.
“You two are idiots,” Tye said when I finished talking. “This thing between you could have been settled with an honest conversation.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s not just that. He’s… well, you know Luz. He’s tenacious. I tried to keep him at arm’s length, but hejust wouldn’t stop. He was everywhere. Here. At my place of work. In my fucking shower. In my bed.”
The last part made my cheeks warm, so I lowered my gaze.
“You don’t strike me as a person who doesn’t know how to tell someone to back off,” Carter said.
“Yeah, but that’s just it,” I growled. “I told him that repeatedly, but he wouldn’t listen. I had no other choice but to make him leave.”
“Why?”
“Because he…” I shook my head in frustration before continuing. “Because he caught feelings for me.”
“Bazooka, Luz caught feelings for you on the day he met you,” Tye reminded me. “We all saw it. We were there, remember?”
“Yeah, but not like this,” I mumbled. “Also, he kept crossing the lines that I’d established. And he got me so confused that after a while, I couldn’t even remember why I established them.”
“You said he caught feelings,” Tye said, sitting down next to Carter. “What about you?”
I blinked in confusion.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“How do you feel about him?”
I shrugged. “He’s fine, I guess. Not as annoying as I first thought. An acceptable roomie. Good friend material, I suppose. He kinda… kinda gets under your skin after a while, like some fucking drug. That’s it. I have been drugged. There’s no other explanation.”
Carter and Tye exchanged looks.
“I think you two should talk, pal,” Carter said, looking solemn. “Clear the air. Luz deserves an explanation, and you deserve to be forgiven for keeping that secret from him. After that, you can both go your separate ways. Or, who knows? Maybe you will become friends. From what Luz told us you two were getting along pretty well.”
Tye cocked his eyebrows. “Maybe too well?”
I flipped him off, feeling hot in the face.
“I won’t pry and ask how that part played out between you two, but perhaps you should give it more thought,” Carter added. “I mean, if you haven’t hated it, maybe you liked it. And if you liked it, maybe there’s something there. I’m telling you this from my own experience.”
I rolled my eyes. “There’s nothing there.”
“All I’m saying is, you two have options,” Carter continued. “Friendship. Companionship. Partnership. Business deal. Casual fun. Something more. Something less. Or nothing at all. In any case, you need to figure it out, Bazooka. Just don’t string him along. You’ll hurt him if you do that. Be sure of your own feelings first. Again, from my own experience.”
I shook my head in frustration. My problem was that I knew exactly what I wanted. I didn’t hate the physical part. I fucking liked the physical part. Too much, probably, but that thing Luz had said, the L word, scared the crap out of me. It made me want to flee to New Mesa without looking back, which brought me to my point. I knew what I wanted, and it was me ready to leave in sixty seconds flat with a duffel bag on my shoulder.
Tye and Carter stood up and headed to the front door, while I remained where I was, feeling numb.
“Get some fresh air, Bazooka,” Tye said on his way out. “Take a shower and eat something healthy. Get a good night’s rest and start from there.
