Page 5 of Trick or Treat Nurse at My Feet
"Really." Sylas squeezes my shoulders. "And unlike Sir Ghosting McFuck-face, they'd probably text you back before the next Taylor Swift album drops."
Taking a deep breath, something shif in my chest. "You're right. I know you're right."
"I'm always right. It's my cross to bear." Sylas flops back on my bed dramatically. "Now, can we please clean this disaster zone you call a bedroom? If that Shame-fucked Gollum does ghost you for good, at least you'll have a tidy space to have your breakdown in."
We're halfway through reorganizing my closet, Sylas insisting that "colour coordination is next to godliness", when my phone buzzes on the nightstand. My heart does that stupid little flip when I see the name on the screen.
"Speak of the Micro-peen devil," Sylas mutters, eyeing my phone like it's contaminated.
I hesitate, thumb hovering over the screen.
"You don't have to answer, you know," Sylas says, suddenly serious. "You can just... not."
The thought is both terrifying and exhilarating.
I stare at the phone, trying to imagine a world where I don't jump every time Ryan calls. A world where my weekends aren't spent checking my notifications, where Tuesday nights don't feel empty when he cancels at the last minute.What would fill all that space? Who would I even be without this constant cycle of hope and disappointment?
But the alternative, Ryan moving on, finding someone else, forgetting about me entirely, sends a cold wave through my chest that makes my finger tap "accept" before I can think twice.
"Hey," I say, trying to sound casual like my pulse isn't racing.
"Barrett," Ryan's low and warm voice comes through. He only uses my last name when he's in a good mood. “What are you doing tonight?"
My eyes flick to Sylas, who's making elaborate gagging motions. "I'm hanging out with Sylas and going to some Halloween parties. Why?"
"Ditch him. I've got a better offer."
Sylas, who can clearly hear Ryan's voice, mouths "fuck you" at my phone.
"What kind of offer?" I ask, trying not to sound too eager while looking at Sylas with pleading eyes, praying he understands.
"There's this Halloween thing on campus tonight. The carnival at Thompson Field." Ryan's voice drops a little lower. "I thought we could go. Together."
Freezing, my free hand tightening around a shirt I was folding. "Together? Like... together together?"
Sylas's head snaps up, his painted-on eyebrows disappearing into his hairline.
"Yeah," Ryan says. "I mean, it's Halloween. It'll be fun."
"In public? You want to go somewhere public with me?" I want to clarify because I'm surely misunderstanding something.
Ryan laughs, and the sound slides down my spine likehoney. "Yes, with you. Unless you'd rather hang out with Sylas?"
"No!" I say it too quickly. "That sounds... that sounds great."
"Cool. Meet me by the west entrance at eight?"
"I'll be there," I promise, mentally cataloging what I could wear.
"Later," he says, and the call ends before I can say goodbye.
I stare at my phone for a moment, then look up at Sylas, who's watching me with an unreadable expression.
"He wants to go to the Halloween carnival," I say, my voice breathless, even to my ears. "Together. In public."
Sylas's skepticism is palpable. "Well, butter my ass and call me a biscuit."
"I know what you're thinking?—"
