Right Place, Wrong Time

25. Home Sweet Home

Hopes of having Lauren come to visit dashed, Joey thought the remaining month until he got to see her again would last for eternity. Instead, it flew by, and suddenly he was packing his suitcase again, saying goodbye to his parents, and on his way back to school — he had to correct himself from saying back home.

Still feeling drained from travel and settling into his new house, Joey almost skipped the party Darren was hosting before classes started. But the thought of seeing Lauren there was an irresistible lure, and he found himself plunged into conversations about how everyone's summer was, a drink in his hand. As fun as it was to catch up with friends he hadn't talked to in a while, he wasn't too proud to admit Lauren was the person he most looked forward to seeing, and it wasn't long before his eyes were drawn to her like a beacon. She spotted him too, and waved him over. She had been talking to Darren, but he made some excuse about hosting duties when Joey reached them, and left them alone together.

"Hey, you," he said, hesitating only a fraction of a second before going in for a hug, which thankfully she returned enthusiastically. He'd forgotten how good it felt to hug her, and he held on for longer than he should.

"I like this shirt," she said, when they finally let go, running her fingers over the sleeve. "Is it new?"

"Yeah, a birthday present," he said, resolving to beg his mom to get him half a dozen more.

"You look good," she smiled, without a trace of discomfort. He hoped he wouldn't ruin it by blushing.

"Thanks. I would have worn it to my welcome back party, but I guess I missed that."

She smacked her hand to her forehead. "Oh, shit, I forgot to send you the invitation. We had a great time without you."

"God, I missed you," he laughed. It seemed the space had been good for them, after all, and now they could be real friends. Even if he still sometimes felt a pang in his chest at the fact that his feelings for her — which he wasn't sure would ever go away — weren't reciprocated, it was an easy price to pay for getting to be her friend. "You look good too, by the way."

"Thank you for lying straight to my face."

"I'm not!" She may have been wearing just a t-shirt and jeans that she probably didn't feel were worthy of compliments, but she did look good, naturally. He didn't think she was capable of not looking good. Besides, it wasn't just the outfit. She looked happy, especially compared to the last time he'd seen her on that FaceTime call, and it made him happy to see it.

He couldn't say any of this though, for risk of making things awkward again, so he had to let her pat his arm with a, "Thanks, JoJo."

"Lauren!"

Both of them turned their heads at the sound of her name being called. A group of her friends were dancing together and beckoning her to join them. She held up a finger and turned back to Joey.

"You want to dance?"

"No, I shouldn't," he said. Julia was among the group of girls, and he suspected that she would want to have a capital T talk with him after what happened at the end of last year, a talk he intended to put off for as long as possible. "Go dance with them. I'll catch you a bit later."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, yeah. I still need to finish making the rounds."

They went their separate ways, though Joey knew he was being a bad conversation partner to everyone else he talked to. He couldn't stop his eyes drifting over to where Lauren danced. The way she moved was mesmerising, even just swaying to the music. He watched her toss her hair, hairline shimmering with sweat, then laugh at something Jaime had said. He worked himself into the conversation of a group standing closer to where they danced with the sole purpose of wanting to hear her laugh as well as see it.