Liquid Feels - Book 3 - DP Series - Complete

3. Babies

I've got my butt stuck in the air and my torso shoved under my bed as I blindly search for my shoes. It's not like my dorm room is really that large, and yet, I'm losing things all the time. I push boxes and sweaters out of my way as I shine my cell phone further into the corners of the tight space. I hear the door open and close, but nobody says anything in greeting.

Giving up, I pull myself out from under my bed and huff in frustration as I sit back on my heels.

"Shoes?" I hear Emma say from behind me.

I glance up at her, not surprised to find her watching me in mild amusement. I just mumble out a confirmation, my eyes still searching the room.

"There," she says, pointing towards the bathroom.

I stand to follow her finger and spot my lost shoe sitting on the bathroom counter. Right. Okay, that makes sense. With a smile in Emma's direction, I saunter into the bathroom and slip my boot on.

"Where're you headed?" she asks, as she watches me sling my satchel over my shoulder.

"Rehearsal," I tell her, making my way to the door.

Emma and I have bonded over the past week. She's not nearly as needy or cringy as I'd originally guessed. Well, to be honest, she's still a little cringy at times, but who isn't. I've come to find that she's really strong in a weird sort of way. She's bold while lacking confidence, which I can't quite wrap my head around. Whatever she went through as a kid must have messed her up in a big way, but I can see she's trying to work her way through it.

"You doing okay?" I find myself asking. There's something different about her today—something lighter. She always looks like she's got a boulder sitting on her shoulders, but I sense a change.

"Yeah, actually," she answers, and she almost sounds surprised by her own response.

"You and Trevor making progress?"

She jabbers about the boy non-stop, and I can honestly understand his reluctance to trust her; and—maybe my judgment is off—but I know she can be trusted. It's a tricky situation. As her friend, I'm supposed to side with her—which I do—by threatening the boy any chance I get. I'm sure he knows they're all empty threats. Well... mostly. They're empty threats because I don't actually think he intends to destroy her, but, if I happen to be wrong about the guy, I won't hesitate to rip his Adam's apple from his throat and feed it to my weird neighbor's guinea pig.

"Yeah," she says with a smile. "We're doing surprisingly well. I think we're on our way to friendship."

I laugh at the fact that she's so excited to be almost friends. As if that's some great accomplishment. But, in her circumstance, I suppose it is.

"Good. Keep it up," I say as I offer a two-fingered salute and leave the room.

I'm beyond excited for rehearsal. It's going to be our first meeting and I'm a buzzing ball of anticipation as I make the quick jaunt to the auditorium. Most of the movie will be made here with the help of a green screen, but I've been briefed on the possibility of using other locations at a later date. I had to hold my tongue from telling Seth that I'd go anywhere with him. He might not catch the underlying truth in that statement, but I'd hate to be wrong and freak the guy out with my overly confident impulses.

So, I've chosen to keep my mouth shut about my feelings. It's so unlike me. I mean, I haven't liked that many guys in my life, but when I do, I'm usually not quiet about it. Maybe that's what makes Seth so different. I've never felt this way about another guy in my life. I've never feared the possibility of it not working out. So, instead of pursuing him like a squirrel would an acorn, I decide to leave the ball in his court.