Page 53 of New Growth
A moment passed. Then, I just nodded. “Okay.”
He smiled. “Good.”
But I still felt uneasy. My fingers twisted together as I muttered, “I’m sorry. I was being insensitive.”
“You’re fine. Really.” He smiled again, but I could only pout. “Still upset?”
“Only slightly.”
His lips twitched. “Would you let it go if I promised to only get sugar-free lattes from now on?”
I scoffed. “You have a surprisingly good sense of humor for someone pushing forty.”
“Well, as a comic book artist, I try to keep my childlike wonder.” He smirked. “Unlike you. You’re wound tight.”
I blinked at him. “I’m wound tight?”
“Only slightly,” he teased.
I shot him a look, and he grinned brightly, eyes crinkling at the corners.
“Wow,” I said sarcastically. “The perfect combo. A man-child and an uptight bitch.”
He chuckled. “I’m almost positive you’re not a bitch.”
“You don’t know me very well.”
He just looked at me, warm and steady. Then, he nodded toward the room ahead.
“Come on. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”
He led me through the room, stopping every few feet to introduce me to someone new.
Everyone was welcoming, but there was a lot to take in. The conversations, the art, the energy—it was overwhelming. By the time we circled back to the main discussion table, my head was spinning.
Elliot pulled out a chair for me. “So, what do you think?”
I sat down, ready to reach for my flask but deciding against it. “It’s… a lot.”
He laughed, settling in beside me. “Yeah, it can be. But they’re good people.”
I glanced around at the group, who were now deep in conversation.
“How’d you even find out about this place?”
“A friend of mine is one of the organizers, so I pop in sometimes. It’s nice to see new projects from time to time. Inspires creativity.”
“I guess.”
As I spoke, I felt the lightest touch on my hair. My body tensed immediately, my breath hitching when I saw his hands near my head.
“Relax,” he said, holding up his fingers to reveal a tiny piece of lint. “Just a little fuzz.”
I exhaled slowly, forcing myself to relax. “Oh. Thanks.”
He watched my reaction. “I’m not gonna hurt you, you know.”
No, I didn’t know.People always said that, but in reality, I had no way of knowing. I wish I could just ignorantly trust his word. I wish I could trust anything. But most of all, right now, I wished we had met before all the bad things happened to me. Maybe I would’ve given him a proper chance.
