Page 10 of We Shouldn't Be Together
They all sit in front of the TV, playing Shadow Quest. None of them jumps up to hug me, and I’m so relieved.
“How many stitches this time?” Parker asks, stabbing at the controller’s buttons.
I swipe my sleeve up and lift my elbow into view. “Only four. It’s not a big deal.”
Jamie winces. “It was deep, though.”
“Yeah, we could see the bone,” Tyler adds, reclining in my usual armchair.
I bop the back of his head. “You could not.”
Tyler ducks in reaction. “We could so. There was that white part before all the blood spurted out.”
“That’s not bone,” Lewis says, glued to the TV as he tries to take out Parker’s character. “It’s cartilage or something.”
I flop onto the couch between Jamie and Lewis. “Since when are you a medical expert?”
Lewis shrugs, unwilling to take his eyes off the screen. “I’m not. I just know we didn’t see your bone.”
“Will Milo know?” Tyler asks, leaning forward on the armchair like he’s about to spring up and ask him.
I wave him off. “Man, I really couldn’t care less. I’m beat.”
Jamie smirks. “You’re just laying the groundwork for an excuse for when I kick your butt at this game.”
“Excuse me.” I jerk away from her. “I was just in the emergency room.”
“Foronly fourstitches,“ she mocks.
My groan turns into a chuckle until I’m grinning at her. “Oh, it is so on.”
Jamie grimaces. “Dude, do you think you can change your T-shirt? I don’t want to look at your blood.”
I smirk. “I forgot about it.” I get up off the couch, and when I pass Tyler, I punch his arm. “Get out of my seat by the time I’m back.”
“Umm, ouch,” Tyler grumbles as I move into my bedroom.
Upstairs, beyond the living area, are my bedroom and Milo’s bedroom, separated by a bathroom. It makes having friends over super easy because Mom and Dad’s bedroom, plus the guest bedroom, are downstairs beyond the main living areas. They might be tough sometimes, but generally, my parents are super chill. Luckily, they love having all my friends over, acting like they’re all extended family.
My bedroom is dark, thanks to the drawn curtains. Light streaks into the room from the living room, creating shadowy projections on the posters on my walls. I flick on my stereo and let a metal album stream at high volume. Carefully slipping on a clean T-shirt, I move back into the living room, and my armchair is now vacant. I flop down and snap my fingers at Lewis. “Fork over the controller.”
He tosses it at me, and I wince when I catch it. The instinct to catch something being hurled at me made me forget to be careful about my stitches.
“Sorry, man,” Lewis hisses, gritting his teeth.
I bite down, grunt, and then shake my head. “I’m good.”
“Maybe next time you won’t try to backflip off your skateboard,” Tyler says, sniggering.
“Is that what happened?” Milo asks, stepping onto the landing, carrying his cat.
I throw a hand up in his direction. “Don’t even worry about it.”
“There’s wrecking it,” Lewis says, smirking, “and then there's Kai’s massacre-level wrecking it.”
Jamie swoops in, punching Lewis on the arm.
“Ouch,“ Lewis hisses, leaning far away from her. “What was that for?”
