Page 77 of Brat Baby
Hmmm…
Picking up the mug, I take a tentative sip. It’s the same as the last tea he made me, but this one is sweetened, which makes me grin. He must have hated that.
Picking up the toast, I take a bite and am surprised when the crust is hard to bite through. But once I get the flavors in my mouth, the chewy crust is my last thought.
Fuck, this is amazing.
I pause and hold the toast out in front of me so I can take another look at it. How is something so normal looking so damn good?
Taking another bite, I pick up my phone and open it to a social media app, randomly scrolling, but nothing is catching my attention. I lock my phone with a huff and place it face down on the counter.
What the hell am I supposed to do with my day?
Swiveling on the stool, I turn and survey the apartment, my feet dangling as I take another bite of my breakfast. It doesn’t feel right to go exploring through their cabinets. The urge is there, but honestly, I want them to introduce me to everything they have hidden from view.
Preferably a hands-on introduction.
I could get further ahead in my classes, I guess. But that sounds like a waste of a day. Maybe I could ask Oakley if she wants to hang out?
Yes, that.
I reach behind me and grab my phone, but as I hold the phone up to my face to unlock it, I remember that Oakley mentioned a lunch date with a daddy today.
Fuck.
But also, how the hell do I have no other friends? Shouldn’t I have made more friends by now? That’s a thing, right? Go to college, make all these new besties, then keep them for life? Actually, I probably shouldn’t be using TV shows as my basis for what constitutes a college experience.
Maybe I could ask Will? We’ve messaged several times to organize a study group, the first of which is meeting next week,something about away games this week. He has a few friends who want to join us as well. The more the merrier, if you ask me.
So that leaves today’s itinerary with… zilch.
I may or may not tear off my next bite a little too aggressively, causing some of the cheese to fall onto the floor. Whoops. Eh, I’ll pick it up when I’m done.
Turning back to the counter, I drum my fingers on it, my gaze landing on the headphones. Xavier said that I need to thank Hudson. Did he mean that I should do that today? I’m reaching for my phone before the idea finishes forming.
Opening a private thread with Hudson, I quickly type out my message before I lose the courage.
Me:Thank you for my headphones. I love them.
Me:It turns out that I’m free today. Still want to take me shopping for my last few rewards?
Chapter 40
Emery
With my face tipped back, my eyes closed, and a sage green floral print sundress swishing around my thighs from the light breeze, I soak in the last of the summer sun while I wait for Hudson outside of the apartment building. The skin of my cheeks, shoulders, and arms is deliciously warm, which makes me wish I could live somewhere this sunny all year round.
Fall is only a couple of weeks away and then winter. I frown at that thought. I fucking hate winter. There is literally no other sensation that I hate more than being cold. And I’m always cold if there is no heat source outside of my own body heat.
Fuck, there are times when I’m lying in bed, two or three layers of clothes on and whatever blankets I have available, and I still can’t get fucking warm.
Maybe this year, I can spend a little of the money in my account to fix that? I could get a fancy duvet, with double bamboo duck feathers or whatever. Oh, ohhh, I could get an electric blanket. Holy shit, yes.
Actually, why wait? I should be able to order that shit online, right?
I straighten and start to search the internet on my phone when the quietest fucking car I have ever heard pulls up in front of me. The only reason I even notice it is because the gravel crunches beneath the tires.
Hudson’s black sports-car-looking Tesla has stopped in front of me, and I grin at the memory of picking out his car. They’d all been so sure I’d get it wrong.
