Leave it Unread

Chapter 6

"I don't think that's a good idea." 

Ben looks back at me and rolls his eyes, an unspoken promise of teasing between us through the simple movement of annoyance as he holds his hand out. For a second, I think he...

"I solemnly swear to totally act like I don't know you in the library. When someone asks for an autograph, I'll simply say you're obsessed with me. Let's shake on it." His eyes are dancing in amusement as holds his hand out further, towering over me as I laugh lightly. I take his warm hand in mine and shake it softly, looking up at him as a flash of something unreadable paints his face.

"Come on, let's go." He nudges me as we walk towards the library, my phone buzzing repeatedly in my bag. I groan again as Ben turns around quickly, looking annoyed at my constant aggravation.

"Listen, if you don't want to hang with me, I get it." He spits out, shaking his head at me before he puts his hands in his pockets.

"What? No, Ben, my phone is popping off, it's..." I want to tell him he's talking to my best friend, but I want a moment, just a moment where it's me at the center, not Kathleen. It's selfish, the way I think I can take up space without catering to her every need. Then again, I'm conditioned to think like that. "My friend, she... She's having a crisis. I just want to silence it for a minute." I dig in my bag to take out my phone, powering it off as Ben huffs.

"For a second, I thought you were playing hard to get, Barrymore." He laughs at himself as the calmness returns to his face.

"What?" I croak, my phone falling from my hands and, again, before it can land, Ben leans out his hand quickly to grab it.

"Chill, Noelle, before you end up needing a new phone." He throws it in my bag for me before leading us to the library where, of course, a group of students greet him with a warm welcome the minute we walk in.

"Coffee is my treat. Do you like coffee? Or do you like tea? Since you were drinking tea earlier." He's mumbling at the end of his comment, digging for his phone as we pause in the middle of the library. People are starting to stare, whether at Ben or at me or at the both of us together. He nods at them before they scatter.

"Sorry, I guess we're both wanted people. My phone is a never ending list of messages to respond to." He rolls his eyes as he powers off his phone, smiling as he leads us to the coffee cart inside the library. "So, you're Noelle from California and you're a writer. I'm Ben from Des Moines and I'm a poet."

"How many brain cells did it take to come up with that, Brees?" He roars out a laugh, a mental note that it is my favorite laugh from him, the one where he places his hand on his chest and squeezes his eyes, a nearly over-exaggerated sight if it weren't for his genuineness. We get to the coffee cart and he places his order, a small iced caramel macchiato before he turns to me. The coffee cart cashier looks at me and smiles. 

"Oh, uh, I'll have what he's having."

"Nonsense, get something you like, Barrymore." He winks at the coffee cart cashier which sends her into a dizzy, her cheeks flushed as he turns back to me. "Do you like what I'm having?"

"Totally. B&B special. You know, Barrymore and Brees?" 

He smiles widely at this and turns to the cashier, handing her a ten dollar bill before moving us to the side to wait for our order. 

"Noelle, you're funny. Like genuinely funny, so why do you think you're some monstrosity?" 

"Do you have six years to hear me out?" I laugh as I look down at my shoes, noticing the small scruffs on the sides. 

"Okay, start from the beginning. What makes you think you're not worthy of a companion?" I look up and see his eyes fixed on me, like they never left the moment he saw me on orientation day.