Meghann Crane
Austin drove me home after I helped him clean up. I was beyond angry with Luca and Will. They’d had no right doing what they’d done.
They spent the day trying to get me to answer their calls and texts, and I just ignored them.
I put my phone on do not disturb so I wouldn’t even get the notifications, because I wasn’t ready to deal with them.
Most of my morning was spent doing homework since tomorrow was Monday. I’d ignored it all weekend to spend time with Austin.
Until my idea of ignoring Luca and Will backfired when Will barged into my bedroom.
“Why won’t you return any of our calls?”
“I’m mad at you guys. You embarrassed me and treated me like a child in front of a guy I like, and barging into my room to force me to talk to you isn’t helping.”
“We don’t want you to get hurt. We know Austin better than you. He’ll sleep with you and leave you. He does that to all the females he brings over.”
“Does he usually take them out on dates?”
“No.”
“Well, that proves I’m different. Austin took me out to lunch yesterday, and we discussed going out for dinner soon.”
“He had you half naked, Henley. How is that different?”
“I wanted it. Austin asked if he could kiss me, and when we went further, I didn’t stop him. I wanted him to continue. I’m eighteen. I’m not stupid.
“I held on to my virginity this long, so I think I know what I’m doing. You owe Austin an apology.”
“I know,” he mumbled with his head hanging down. “I’ve already talked to him, and he understood. He said if his sister were younger instead of older, he would have done the same.”
“So, problem solved? I hope so, because I’m going to continue to see Austin until one of us decides this isn’t going the way we want it to.”
“I have just one condition. Don’t have sex in the house while I’m there,” Will said with a disgusted look on his face.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Why? You had sex here all the time, and I heard everything.” I’d never seen my brother get embarrassed until now, and I was enjoying it.
“Are you embarrassed?”
“Shut up. It’s awkward talking about this with you. I still think of you as the little girl who followed me and Luca around, and I don’t want guys taking advantage of you.”
“I know, but you’ll have to get over it. I’ll be in college next year, and I’ll probably be going to Collinsville with you and Luca. You can’t spend your free time chasing guys away from me.”
“Does Mom and Dad know about Austin yet?” Will asked.
“No, and I probably won’t tell them for a while. I want to see where this is going.”
There was a pause in the conversation before Will spoke again.
“What are you doing the week that Mom and Dad are taking their anniversary cruise?” he asked me.
“I’ll be staying here; I may invite Connor over a few times, and I may hang out with Austin.”
“I thought Luca and I could come and stay the week with you and hang out like we used to and binge-watch TV and movies. It’s the same week as your fall break, right?”
“It is, and I’d be up for that. Can I invite Austin over to join us one time?”
“Fine,” Will said with a sigh.
I was trying to make it known that I was still going to see Austin.
However, I knew it was going to be awkward having Luca around after everything, and I knew at some point there would be more drama because there always was.
“Well, I’m going to get going. I was just angry that you were ignoring us. Do me a favor and text Luca back. He’s freaking out because you won’t talk to him. He thinks you’ll ignore him forever,” Will said.
“He’s such a dramatic person, but I have every right to ignore him,” I said with a little chuckle. I didn’t want to text Luca; I didn’t want him to have an in.
I had one week to prepare myself before my parents left, one week to get ready for a week in the same house as Luca.
***
“How was the after-party? Did you spend most of your night talking to that cute boy?” Connor asked.
There was so much that had happened, and I hadn’t told Connor any of it. If I told him now, he’d freak out and be loud about it.
“If I tell you, do you promise to not be loud or dramatic about it?”
“I promise.”
“Okay, so in no particular order. I may be dating someone, Luca kissed me, and my brother beat up the guy that I might be dating when we were in the middle of something very inappropriate.”
“What? Start with the kiss from Luca.”
“Well, the kiss will sum all of it up, so it’s a good starting point. You know that guy that I was talking to?”
“Of course; he was cute,” Connor stated.
I explained everything to Connor. The kiss from Luca, the make-out session with Austin, my brother beating Austin up, and having to spend a week with Luca and Will next week.
“I can punch him in the dick if you want me to. He deserves it. It’ll never be a mistake to kiss you,” he reassured me.
“This is why I keep you around. You know exactly what to say,” I joked. “But in all seriousness, I’m not sure how to handle Luca.”
“Well, I think you need to find out why he kissed you and why he said it was a mistake.” Connor made his suggestions seem easy, but I knew it wasn’t a simple conversation.
“Ugh, but that involves me talking to him,” I said while rolling my eyes.
“You’ll have to get over that. You’ll need to talk to Luca to get past this. If you don’t, it’s going to put your brother in a weird place. A place between his sister and his best friend. Don’t do that to him.
“It’s also not fair to the new guy. If you keep dating him, and you’re still hung up on Luca, it makes you a jerk.”
I knew Connor was right. I had to resolve this for Will, for Austin, and for my mental health.