In Your Corner | ✓

Twenty-One

"So, let me get this straight," Anandi points an accusing finger in MJ's direction, her thick eyebrows knitted together. "You walked home last night by yourself, despite the fact that both Nat and I have explicitly told you so many times to call us if that happens?"

MJ looks like she's being severely admonished, which, in fairness, she is. She's sitting on the couch, her arms wrapped around herself, her bottom lip wobbling.

Anandi and I are standing in front of the couch, glaring down at our friend.

"I didn't know you were awake," she mumbles, her cheeks red. "Didn't want to be a bother."

"Are you kidding me?" Anandi snaps, losing her patience more than usual. "We've told you so many times that you just phone us. We had a pact, all three of us, that whoever is stuck by themselves phones the rest of us."

I blow out a breath, closing my eyes. "Listen, MJ, we're not going to stand here and eviscerate you-"

"That's what it feels like," she snaps back sullenly. "I get it. I should have called. I'm sorry."

Suddenly losing all the fury she had in her body a second ago, Anandi sits down next to MJ and wraps her in her arms. "Why didn't you?" she asks gently, worried.

"It's just embarrassing," MJ mumbles into Anandi's neck. "It happens literally all the time and yet I just let it keep happening."

My heart softens at her quiet words and my mind flickers to Josh, who's also just seemingly constantly too embarrassed to ask for any help.

"MJ, honey," I murmur, sitting down on the other side of her and joining the hug. "We've never been mad at you before for calling in the middle of the night. That's never going to change, all right? Please, just call us next time, okay?"

She sniffles. "Okay. I'm sorry I'm so bad at this."

The way that Reece picks her up and drops her like this makes me so mad. They've been friends since they were born, so why does he think it's okay to treat her like a door mat? I hate seeing her like this after he pulls a stunt every time, but it's so difficult to explain to MJ that she needs to drop-kick him into next week.

Or at least tell him how he's making her feel, but either works, I guess.

"Don't say that," Anandi reprimands her sternly. "We love you, okay? That's all it is, really. It's not that we're really mad, we were just worried."

It's Friday evening now and MJ got persuaded into going to a frat party last night with Reece, only for him to pick up some girl and bail on her, like always.

Usually, she phones us to get her or something, but last night she didn't and actually walked home, because the wait for an Uber was pretty long. I was still awake when she got back at just before one o'clock, because Josh had phoned, unable to sleep.

When it came out this evening when we were talking about her night, Anandi was instantly livid at the thought of her coming home alone.

"Listen," I sigh, rubbing MJ's back as she leans into Anandi. "None of us have plans tonight, right? Let's just make some popcorn and watch a movie or something. We've not had a girl's night in a while and we could probably all do with it."

"Agreed," Anandi nods immediately, her concerned face brightening. "I'll get the popcorn. Do you want to choose the film, MJ?"

While MJ scrolls through Netflix and Anandi busies herself making popcorn from scratch, I grab a throw from each of our rooms so that we're all comfortable.

"I love your popcorn," MJ declares, taking the bowl that Anandi offers her once she's made her way back from the kitchen.

Movie nights are taken seriously in this apartment, so we each get a separate throw and a bowl of popcorn.