Chapter 18

Brandon

T hree days.

It had been three days in hell of only being able to kiss Andrew. We could use condoms, but I hated them. I didn’t like how they felt because I couldn’t feel my partners. They slowed things down, but in the end, the wait would be worth it.

Dad came to the back of the store with another box of books and dropped them next to me. I sighed before ripping off the tape and looking inside.

“Everything okay, son?”

My dad was normally pretty quiet, so if he was asking me how I was doing, he could tell something was off with me. I was showing my irritation more than I’d realized.

“It’s fine.” It wasn’t, but of course, my dad wouldn’t buy my answer.

Dad grabbed another unopened box and sat on it. “Did something happen with Andrew?”

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. They couldn’t possibly know that we were giving a relationship a try, right? Or that we were at least entertaining the idea of sex. Goddamn sex. It was exactly what had me on edge. I’d been so ready for it, only for fate to be cruel and dangle what I couldn’t have in front of my face a little longer.

“Nothing’s wrong with Andrew.” Dad’s eyebrows raised, and I took a calming breath. “Nothing is going on with Andrew. Everything is fine. Why would you think something was happening?”

When Dad leaned forward and rested his elbows on his thighs, I knew I was in for a talk. “Because that boy has been in here almost every day and you’ve been calling out more to spend time with him. You know that your mother and I wouldn’t have any problem with you two starting a relationship. We like him a lot more than some others you’ve... dated.”

I sat on the floor and looked up at him, much like a small child would. My parents had never been fans of anyone I’d dated, and I’d always wondered if it was because they’d always hoped that I’d end up with Andrew. This was sort of confirming my suspicions.

“If anything was happening...” I pinched my eyes closed, mostly because I hated lying to my parents. “You’d be the first to know.”

When I opened my eyes again, I couldn’t tell if he believed me or not. Crossing his arms over his chest, he nodded and stood, leaving me to continue doing inventory in the back. It was a never-ending job, but the monotony of it was comforting. It was consistent and distracting, and I liked the predictability of it all.

My stomach growled, and I pulled out my phone to look at the time. It was one in the afternoon and I hadn’t eaten lunch yet. Andrew worked today so he wouldn’t be by the store. When I walked to the front of the store, it was empty, but soft music played on the radio. Dad had his arms wrapped around Mom and they swayed to the gentle beat. A warmth spread over me watching them. I only hoped that one day I could have a love like theirs.

Mom saw me and let go of Dad. She blushed and cleared her throat, straightening out her skirt. “What can I do for you, Brandon?”

I gave her a smile. They had nothing to be embarrassed about. I was happy that my parents were still so much in love. It seemed so rare anymore that parents stayed together for as long as mine had. Andrew’s parents went through a divorce, and I recalled the time it happened while we were in high school. His dad had moved out of state and Andrew was really upset about it for the longest time, thinking that he’d done something wrong to drive him away. Sometimes people were better apart than they were together. The distance did them some good and, after a few years, they were back to being friendly. Andrew’s dad had even come to his graduation from both high school and college.

“I’m going to go grab some lunch. Can I bring you two back anything? ”

Mom shook her head. “We’re good, honey. Go enjoy some lunch. And I think we can handle the rest of the afternoon if you want to take off.”

Had Dad talked to her and told her that something was bothering me? I didn’t want to question it too much and said goodbye before heading out onto the street. It was cold today, and I pulled my jacket around me more tightly. My glasses fogged up for a moment, which always drove me nuts. I’d tried contacts once, but I hated the idea of shoving something into my eyes on a regular basis.

The bus stop was just a block over. I could easily go there, hop on, and get to Andrew’s store in the next thirty minutes, but then my stomach growled again. As much as I wanted to see my friend, feeding myself was more important.

My feet stopped as the realization of my thought process hit me. Andrew wasn’t just my friend anymore, which brought me back to my earlier dilemma. We had to wait four more fucking days—not that I only wanted to be with him for the sex. Andrew was my everything.

I kicked at a rock on the sidewalk as I stepped into a convenience store to grab something quick. If I was going to prove that this was something more, I needed to pay him a visit.

W ho was she?

The girl threw her head back in a laugh as Andrew said something else. He could have other friends, but something slimy settled in my gut. Maybe it was the cheap sandwich I’d gotten at the convenience store. Whatever it was, it didn’t feel great to see him having so much fun with someone I didn’t know. We’d shared all our friends since we were kids.

Like some sort of magic, Andrew’s eyes met mine over the line of people waiting in line at the pharmacy. Everyone around us seemed to vanish, and I forgot for the briefest of moments that I was feeling irrationally jealous of someone I didn’t even know, someone he worked with.

A smile spread across his face, and little fireworks exploded in my stomach. Either that sandwich was a huge mistake or he really had a way of making me feel all sorts of things with just a look. He always had. I regretted not giving him a chance sooner.

Andrew leaned in close and whispered something to the girl. She looked over and grinned. Her wave made me feel uneasy, like she knew what was going on. Andrew wouldn’t have told her, would he? We said we wouldn’t tell anyone .

When he left the pharmacy, the person in front of me let out a groan. “Are you kidding me? How much longer is this going to take?”

I wanted to snap at him. Andrew worked really hard whenever he was here, and people needed to learn how to be more patient. The man scoffed when Andrew approached me and grabbed my hand, pulling me to the side.

“What are you doing here?”

I wanted to throw my arms around him, throw caution to the wind, and kiss him. Public be damned.

“Can’t I surprise you?”

Andrew’s smile grew, and my stomach did that flip thing again. He looked around us before pulling me to a more secluded spot. Once he was sure we were out of sight, his lips were on mine and my toes curled. Would I ever grow tired of kissing him? His spicy cologne overwhelmed me. I held onto his shirt in tight fists, reluctant to release my grip, but he was here for work and when he pulled away, I chased his lips before I got ahold of myself.

Torture.

“You’re always welcome to surprise me. It’s just hard to keep it a secret.”

I laughed before I pulled him into a hug, burying my nose in his neck. He smelled so damn good, and I wanted to soak him in just a little longer.

“Andrew?” The girl came around the corner and I jumped back so fast that I crashed into the wall.

There was a flash of hurt in Andrew’s eyes. I needed to stop doing that. We’d only been hugging. Eventually, he was going to get sick of my shit and I didn’t have an answer why I wanted this to stay between us. I’d waited so long to be his, and now I was afraid of jinxing it.

As I rubbed at the back of my head and righted my glasses since jumping had knocked them askew, Andrew stared at me for a second. He finally turned to the girl. “What can I do for you, Rebecca?”

She blushed and fidgeted, looking back and forth between us. “Todd is sort of pissed that you walked off...”

Andrew rolled his eyes. He’d mentioned Todd a few times, and I knew enough that he didn’t like the guy, which made me not like the guy.

“I’ll be back in a minute. Cover for me?”

Rebecca gave us a shy grin and nodded. She had to know something was going on and I didn’t like the feeling of it. It made my skin crawl and made everything feel slightly less special.

Once she disappeared around the corner again, Andrew leaned in to give me a quick kiss, but I turned my head away, giving him my cheek. He frowned and stood, looking at me with disappointment in his dark eyes. I hated how I’d just reacted to him, clinging to that worry he’d told her our secret.

“Brandon?”

“I’ll see you later, okay?”

I ran off before he could grill me.