Mismatched

Ch. 14

"Please say something," I said, but was just met with a blank, perplexed stare.

"I'm processing."

"Process faster," I snapped, my impatience growing with every passing second. Lesley just stared at the wall, her face contorted in disbelief. I was hoping she would be helpful, but her reaction made everything seem far worse.

"Riley's match is Jack McKee?"

"Yes, like I've told you ten times," I repeated, completely exasperated. If she made me repeat it again, I was going to explode.

"I'm sorry, I just..." Lesley trailed off, dropping her face into her hands as she continued to stare into the distance, lost in thought.

"Nate, you know how amazing I think you are, but you can't compete with Jack McKee," Lesley finally said, her voice soft with concern, as if she was worried she might hurt me.

I rolled my eyes with a laugh. "I know that." I scoffed. "That's why I didn't submit his profile."

"You did what?" Lesley's eyes widened in shock.

"It's in the same limbo as Riley's. It's missing an answer to one question, which is apparently breaking the whole system as it stands. However, unlike Riley, Jack is calm and rational, so when I told him that it wouldn't be fixed until Judy was back in two weeks, he was cool with that," I explained.

Lesley fell back into the sofa, dramatic and defeated.

"My brain hurts," she whined, looking as if she was doing complex mathematical equations in her head. "You're hiding Riley's match from him because you know you don't stand a chance, and then you're going to ruin your reputation with Aunt Judy when she has to fix this?"

"I'm not that insane. I'll fix it before Judy gets back, so she will never know."

"And how are you going to explain to Riley that he was suddenly matched with someone else? Not to mention the fact that Jack knows who you are. God, this is all getting so complicated."

I didn't say anything, and judging by the way Lesley's eyes widened, my lack of answer seemed to be enough for her to piece it together.

"Oh, you're hoping that by then Riley will already be so head over heels for you that he won't want to go out with Jack?" Lesley questioned, raising her eyebrows at me.

Now it was my turn to do the distant stare, my face getting hot. I wasn't one for feelings, and this conversation was way outside of my comfort zone.

"But the original issue still stands. Riley doesn't know who you really are, and that's bound to explode eventually. Plus, Judy's whole system will be messed up by Riley deciding not to choose Jack, because then what happens to Jack?" Lesley continued, her words rapid and hitting me like bullets.

"Why does Jack have to be my problem?" I shot back.

It wasn't my fault he couldn't find anyone. Trust me, I sympathized. I knew what it was like to have a bad reputation in a small town. But he chose here. He left and came back. And he had money, which meant he had freedom.

"Because you created this whole problem, Nate!" Lesley exclaimed with a frustrated laugh.

"You know I want you to be happy, and I'm sorry that I was pushing you towards Riley, but I think it's gone too far now, Nate. You were right when you said it before, that there are very real people on the receiving end of this getting hurt," Lesley said, her voice soft and sincere.

I shifted uncomfortably. I didn't like how serious she was making this conversation.

"You're only saying that because you had the hots for Jack McKee," I said, in a joking tone to lighten the mood.