An unattractive snort escapes me as I read over Austin's text.

His text comes through within seconds and I laugh when it flashes across my cracked phone screen.

"Are you even listening to me?" Savannah asks.

I turn my phone over and place it on the kitchen table. "Nope," I admit.

She huffs. "I was trying to tell you that I joined drama club yesterday. We meet in the afternoons so I'll be getting home really late."

"Drama club? Sav, you hate musical theatre," I laugh.

"Musical theatre is for pussies! Join the dance team," Mom chimes from her sprawled out position on the couch.

Beside her, Dina laughs so hard she chokes and ends up coughing violently, puffs of cigarette smoke escaping her lips and wafting into the air.

I roll my eyes and look over at Savannah. "What made you want to join drama club anyway?"

She shifts uneasily in her seat and avoids my stare. "I just wanted to try something new. You're always working and I'm always home alone, and I don't want my friends to see where we live."

Guilt slams into me. "I'm sorry. I wish I wasn't working all the time, but we need the money. Maybe I should leave RJ's and start working at Vice full time? I can-"

"No! No, it's fine. You're right, we need the money. I'll get over it," she exclaims.

"Are you sure? Because I can-"

"No," she says firmly, "and plus, you really like RJ's. You've been there forever. I won't let you quit."

I sigh and lean back in my chair. "Okay," I say begrudgingly.

I peer over at my mom and Dina, the both of them sprawled across the furniture with glazed eyes as they stare blankly at a Wheel of Fortune re-run.

"Ya know, it'd be really helpful if you could get off your ass and stop spending all of our money on booze," I say pointedly.

Mom snorts and points her lit cigarette at me, the smoke clouding her sunken face. "I gave birth to you heathens. I can walk in and out of this house and do as I damn well please."

This time, Savannah snorts. "That doesn't mean shit! Just because you give birth to someone doesn't mean you're a parent. Much less a decent one."

"Maeve are you gonna let her talk to you like that? If she was my kid, I'd have her face under the kitchen faucet with dishwashing liquid down her throat," Dina grunts.

"Hey, wasn't David arrested last month for armed robbery?" Savannah questions snidely, referring to Dina's oldest son.

"Hell yeah!" she yells, "That dumb ass boy. He can't do nothin' right."

"I actually can't believe we're related to the two of you," I muse.

Savannah shakes her head glumly. "Seven billion people in the world, and this is the family we were born into? It's bullshit."

I laugh and stand, stretching my arms above my head. "Since I don't go back to work until tomorrow and being in the same vicinity as those two gives me a raging migraine, why don't we go get ice cream? On me."

"I'll get your purse," she says excitedly, scraping her chair backwards and bolting down the hallway.

I laugh again, and a small grin tugs at my lips when I realize because holy shit, I've been laughing and smiling a lot lately.

It feels good.

I slip on a pair of flip-flops and walk outside, leaning against the railing of the front porch while I absently check my phone.

"Texting the boyfriend?" Savannah asks, closing the front door and shoving my purse into my arms. I roll my eyes and follow her down the front steps.

"He's not my boyfriend," I remind her.

Sav glances over her shoulder with a smirk. "Does he know that?"

"We're friends," I state firmly.

"For now," she remarks.

I reach out and pinch her shoulder, laughing as she yelps and slaps my hand away. "You and Sidney are infuriating."

"Can you blame us? He's like, obsessed with you," she says, scrunching her nose.

"No he isn't!" I gape, "He's given me no reason to think he's interested in me."

"You do realize how bitter you sounded when you said that right?" she teases.

I huff and stomp past her, ignoring her taunts and teasing as I swing open the door to the quaint ice cream shop. The place is packed, and after waiting in line, we place our orders, pay, and snag a seat at a table in the back.

"No, but seriously," Savannah says, licking her hand when ice cream dribbles from her cone, "He likes you. He was asking me a ton of questions about you at the hospital."

I hand her a napkin and narrow my eyes at her. "Really? Like what?"

She smirks, knowing she has my attention. "Just random stuff, like how much you work, what you do in your free time, that kind of thing."

I sit quietly, mindlessly stirring my ice cream as I digest her words. "Do you think-"

"That he likes you?" she cuts me off, "Obviously. Why wouldn't he?"

I could name a lot of reasons, I think bitterly to myself, but I don't answer.

"You should ask him out," Savannah says softly.

I jerk my head up and stare at her in astonishment. "What?"

"It's 2019," she shrugs, "If you like him, just ask him out. The worst he could do is say no."

Maybe so, but the thought of him saying no plays on repeat in my mind. The thought of putting myself out there, being so straightforward, is terrifying. But God, if I actually asked him, and he did say no, how would that affect our newly-accrued friendship? Work?

Suddenly feeling anxious, I push away my cup of slowly melting ice cream and look at Savannah with wide eyes. "I can't."

"Yes you can," she insists.

I shake my head adamantly. "No, I really can't. Just the thought of it makes me want to hurl. No way."

Sav takes a bite of waffle cone and smirks. "I'll do it for you. Give me your phone."

"Absolutely not," I state.

"You're a chicken."

"Yeah, kinda," I say, exasperated.

"Just do it," she insists.

"No! What if-"

A loud chime interrupts me, and both Savannah and I zero in on my purse, where my phone is stashed inside. A beat of silence passes, and within minutes the both of us each hold a strap of my purse, initiating an impromptu game of tug-of-war.

"Savannah," I snap, "Give. Me. The. Purse."

A mischievous glint sparkles in her eye, and with a smirk and one sharp tug, my purse is snatched from my grasp.

"Forget drama club. Maybe you should try out for a sport's team instead," I grumble, crossing my arms.

Savannah snatches my phone from my purse, unlocks it, and squeals. "Holy shit! He sent you a dick pic!"

"What?!" I gasp, tripping over my feet as I push my chair backwards and stand.

"Kidding!" she smirks, "But he did send a pic... of his desk?"

She frowns, tilting her head in disappointment. "He sent you a picture of his desk, saying something about paperwork or some shit. God, you guys are boring."

"Sorry to disappoint," I say sarcastically, reaching forward and snatching my phone from her hands.

My heart flutters as I read over his text, a picture of his desk piled high with papers and bank statements attached.

"Oh, you got it bad," Sav teases, poking my cheek.

I sigh and toss my phone back in my purse. "I know," I say glumly.

I toss my cup of uneaten ice cream in the trash can behind us, and after Sav tosses her used napkins, we exit the shop and start the short walk home.

After a few minutes of silence, I clear my throat and say, "So, hypothetically speaking. If I were to ask Austin out, how should I do it? Without hurling on his shoes."

Savannah squeals excitedly. "Hell yes! Let's get your man."

——

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