ᴛʜᴇ ʀɪᴠᴀʟꜱ ᴄᴏɴᴛʀᴀᴄᴛ

₀₀₇

𝘙𝘏𝘠𝘚 𝘔𝘖𝘖𝘙𝘌

I READ HER EMAIL. THEN I read it again. And a third time. Dear Moose. I look around my apartment and then at my roommate.

He's eating his cereal and scrolling on his phone with a half drunk look on his face. I have the urge to slap it off, but obviously I don't. He was out all night yesterday, strolled in around the same time I had finally opened Wren's email.

It had been sitting in my inbox for three hours before I opened it. So I didn't respond.

Now i'm looking at it again, just to make sure it says what I think it does. It does.

Maxon chuckles to himself.

"What's so funny?" I sip my coffee.

He looks up at me, almost like he forgot I was in the room. Then he turns off his phone and lays it on the countertop.

"Meme."

Okay... That's not exactly the response I was expecting. He's usually very talkative and wanting to share every little detail with me. He's been doing so since freshman year of high school.

He's been acting weird-weirder then normal-ever since the night we went clubbing, the night at Breakers with Wren.

"Not that I care, but are you good?" I lean my hip on the counter.

"Yeah, just girl drama I guess." Maxon looks truly sad. I haven't seen him this sad since his grandfather died.

I nod and walk to the sink, placing down my cup. Then Maxon sighs, it's a little shaky, like he's about to cry. He's always been an emotional person, that's why I became friends with him in the first place. He reminds me of my sister.

I look back at him to see his bottom lip tucked in, his finger nervously tapping the counter. I scratch my neck, I have to get ready for work, but Maxon looks like he's going to breakdown any moment.

Fuck. "You wanna talk about it?" I keep my voice low, hoping he'll say no.

"It's just," He places his head in his hands, raking his fingers through his blonde hair. "I met this girl a while back. And i really liked her. Thought she really liked me. But then she ghosted me. I thought that was it. But I saw her again-recently and we just sorta...clicked?"

"And that's a bad thing, how?" God. How'd I get myself involved in his love life?

"She doesn't feel the same. She doesn't do 'relationships'. Yet...never mind." He gets up from the stool and places his bowl in the sink. Then gives me a small smile before retreating back into his room.

__________

When i walk into work the next morning, i'm not surprised to see Gloria picking food out of her teeth, though I am surprised to see Wren standing next to Fernando.

Her expression gives away nothing about the situation but when Fernando spots me, a smile etches its way onto his round face.

"Ah. Rhys, my boy." He slaps my shoulder-or attempts to anyways- and takes Wren's hand, walking us to the elevators.