Page 6 of Dirty Martini
“I think you’re just getting into your own head.” Fishing out some milk from the fridge, I settle on having an early breakfast.
Most guys Elton’s age aren’t looking for love, but that’s exactly what my best friend wants. He’s a straight-up ten—hot as hell, kind as hell, and loyal as hell—and he can get practically anyone to fall for him, but it’s always temporary. Lots of late-night talks throughout the years let me know that he wants something more meaningful than a quick hookup, and he’s getting tired of people not seeming to want the same from him.
“Maybe,” he mumbles under his breath, green eyes far away as he focuses too intently on my Lucky Charms. “How was work?”
I shrug as I take my bowl over to the couch beside him. “People came and I helped them get drunk.”
“When do you work again?” he asks, reaching over to steal a marshmallow from my bowl. “I want us to do something fun together before I leave.”
“Don’t remind me,” I groan.
With Elton’s college graduation out of the way, he’s already preparing for his summer abroad in Spain. It’s some fancy internship program his father recommended him for that’ll havehim in Valencia for the entire summer. I’m super proud of him for his accomplishments. Graduating college, landing the internship with his own merit, pursuing a graduate degree—he’s worked harder than he ever has before and is getting rewarded for his efforts.
But that doesn’t mean I can lie and say I won’t miss the shit out of him. Britt was right when she said that Elton and I are a touch co-dependent.A touch might be an understatement. He calls it the bromance for the ages, which I think is dumb, but if it makes him happy, whatever.
Despite being ecstatic for him, sometimes I’m hit with a pang of jealousy. He’s living the life I’ve dreamed of. I’ve always loved learning, more than Elton and anybody else I know, and to not be able to do it…it hurts. Every time I see him doing homework or getting ready for class or cramming for a quiz, bitterness sours my stomach. That was supposed to be our life—mylife—and the fact that I’m not living it with him crushes me.
Even worse, it’s the knowledge that he could have been doing all of this at his dream school but, instead, chose to stay with me. His loyalty led him to tell Dartmouth to fuck off so he could be close to me. He gave up that school, football, and his carefully planned life. For that, I’ll always be forever grateful.
Still, that nagging feeling that wishes I could turn back time rises. But I can’t do anything about it. This is my life, this is what it’s come to, this is… This isit. I just need to accept that. But even four years later, it’s a hard pill to swallow.
“You good?” Elton asks, waving his hand in front of my face, snapping to get my attention.
I nod. “Yeah, I just…” Even though there’s nothing I don’t share with Elton, there’s no point in bringing up the unfortunate past. “I’m just going to miss you.”
“Aw,” he coos, leaning to smack a kiss on my cheek. “You’re so fucking cute.”
“Fuck off. I’ll miss you a little less now,” I scoff and wipe his kiss from my cheek. “So, is there anything you need to get done before you leave? You know I’m down to help.”
He nods and picks another marshmallow from my bowl. “I’ll probably need help packing and buying a few last-minute things. But…that’s not really the most important thing on my list.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Oh?”
“Apparently, Everest is coming to UM. He’s starting summer classes.”
I swallow harshly, trying to keep the most neutral face possible, even though everything in me stiffens. My blood runs both hot and cold, blazing fury scorching my veins while my nerves turn to ice. The name is a trigger—a strong as fuck trigger—and every semblance of bitterness and resentment sparks within me.
Everest fucking Hill.
I try to push the feelings away, not because they’re unwarranted, but because I always end up punching something whenever he’s brought up. Everest ceased to be my problem four years ago. But I keep that locked up tight, forcing a neutral face as I nod. “Nice.”
“I just found out,” he continues. “The fucker rarely talks to me, so I had to hear it from Mom and Dad.”
Even thoughIdon’t bring up Everest, Elton never shuts up about him. It’sEverest thisandEverestthat. Andwhy won’t he talk to me,orwhat do you think Everest is doing right now? Don’t get me wrong, I’m selfishly grateful Everest has been basically absent from Elton’s life for the last four years, but it gets annoying and a bit infuriating to see my best friend so…sad.
That sadness is written in Elton’s dark green eyes before it quickly fades. He’s not usually the sweep-it-under-the-rug type. He usually deals with things head on, but with Everest it’s different.
“They also dropped some incredible news,” he says, his voice getting progressively more excited as he speaks.
“Yeah?”
“He’s going to be moving in with us!”
I choke on my cereal. Actually choke. I can feel it lodged in my throat as I struggle to breathe, beating at my chest a couple of times until it unlatches and passes through. I look at Elton with shock, trying to make sure it’s not anger he sees. “What?”
“Yeah. Isn’t that great?” Smiling wide, he rubs his hands together. “The two Hill brothers are finally back together again.”
“When does he move in?”
