The Girl Next Door

21. The Deal That Changed Everything

ALEX'S POV

As we all stood up from the table, the boys were still bickering about the bill, but the usual playful back-and-forth wasn't quite the same this time. They were genuinely confused, and I couldn't blame them. We were used to splitting everything between us, but now... Astrid had taken care of it without saying a word.

"Seriously, Astrid?" Matt asked, his voice a mixture of surprise and amusement. "You didn't have to do that."

I couldn't help but glance over at her, noticing the way she seemed so calm, almost unaffected. It was impressive, really. I knew she had her reasons, but I was surprised that she was so comfortable with just doing it.

"You know you didn't have to pay for all of us, right?" Geoff added, his tone teasing but there was an underlying sincerity in his words.

Astrid shrugged, her smile casual, but there was something about the way she said, "It's fine. I wanted to," that made me respect her even more.

It hit me then—she didn't just do it for attention or to make a statement. It was just something she wanted to do.

Blaine raised an eyebrow, clearly impressed. "You sure know how to make an entrance, don't you?"

Astrid laughed lightly, her eyes sparkling. "You guys were fighting over it, so I figured I'd make it easier."

I couldn't help but smile at that. She was different. In all the right ways.

"Thanks, Astrid," I said, genuinely grateful. "You didn't have to, but I appreciate it."

Her response was simple, but it meant a lot. "I wanted to. No big deal."

The others seemed to settle down after that, but I caught Blaine and Matt exchanging glances, obviously still trying to wrap their heads around it. It wasn't every day someone picked up the tab without blinking an eye.

As we walked out of the restaurant and into the night air, I found myself thinking about how easy it was to be around Astrid. It wasn't like the chaos I'd expected, or like I had to constantly keep up with her. She just... fit. And that felt right.

"I'll make sure to get the next one," I said to her as we walked to the car, hoping I wasn't being too obvious with my intentions.

She shot me a teasing smile. "You better."

I couldn't help but laugh at that, knowing full well I'd gladly take her out again—maybe even pay for it next time, if I could ever get her to let me.

*****

After dinner.

I clicked to start the video call, leaning back on my chair. The boys popped up on the screen one by one—Geoff with a smug grin, Blaine looking unusually invested, and Matt already mid-eye-roll, probably gearing up for some kind of speech.

Before I could even say hello, Geoff launched in.

Geoff: "Alright, lover boy, what's the verdict? Dinner was... eventful, wasn't it?"

Alex: smirking "It was dinner, Geoff. Food. Talking. Nothing groundbreaking."

Geoff: "Oh, come on. Don't play coy with us. The way Astrid kept looking at you? We all saw it."

Matt: "Yeah, dude. She was practically beaming every time you spoke. That's not casual dinner energy."

Alex: sighing but unable to stop the smile creeping in "You're all delusional. We're friends. It's not like that."

Blaine: surprisingly chiming in "You don't hug your 'friends' like that when you say goodbye, though."

The silence on my end was deafening. Blaine never chimed in unless he was really sure of himself, which only made the teasing worse.