Someone New

Chapter Three

A couple of days have passed since Misha sent the text that tugged at my heart. It's Thanksgiving, and this year I'll be celebrating it with Cassidy and Bro. We decided that since our parents would all be absent for a variety of reasons, we would have more of a "friends-giving," and spend the day eating and drinking - essentially, throwing another party.

I'm at Cassidy's house, and we're curled up on the couch with wine glasses, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV. Brogan made a smart-ass comment about us drinking so early in the morning, but I caught him nursing a beer as he wrestled with a turkey in the kitchen. As the day progresses, incredible smells filter in from the kitchen and fill the house, and we empty glass after glass. By lunchtime, Cass and I are drunk.

"Brogan, baby, you're the best cook in this whole entire world," Cassidy coos at her boyfriend.

I stifle a laugh, and nearly fall off the bar stool I'm sitting on at the kitchen counter. "Whoa, who made these chairs so tall?" I giggle, using a very unsteady Cass to regain my balance.

"That would be the manufacturer," comes a reply from behind me, and I sit up straight. I'm suddenly feeling slightly more sober, since the deep voice comes from none other than Misha Morozov. I haven't spoken about his text to Cassidy yet, and I'm sure he's confused about why I haven't messaged him back in two whole days.

I slowly turn around to face the tall boy standing near the doorway, slipping off his coat. Why hadn't I even heard him come in?

"Judging by the number of empty wine bottles, you were probably just a little distracted," he says dryly, looking at me. I feel my face burn with embarrassment. Did I seriously say that out loud? I must be more intoxicated than I thought.

"Right. Um, good to see you," I stutter, but he has already passed me, entering the kitchen to help Brogan, who is straining to remove the turkey from the oven. I look at Cassidy, and her eyes are wide in surprise. I shake my head and nod toward the boys. She grabs an unopened bottle of wine from the counter as she dismounts her stool, and we retreat toward the living room to discuss Misha's unexpected presence.

"So. Misha is here," I venture, urging her to fill in the blanks.

"Right. So, he's lonely and doesn't have anybody else to hang with on Thanksgiving and Brogan seems to like hanging out with him so I just suggested maybe he could come over early for lunch instead of just showing up at the party and I thought you would like it since you guys had a good time the other night so why do you look so upset right now?"

I can't help but laugh at my over-eager friend. "Geez, take a breath before you pass out next time. You were turning a little blue there for a second." She shrugs at me and fills our wine glasses. Taking this as my cue to explain, I sigh. "So, Misha is actually pretty great. He's really funny; we texted all evening on Tuesday. Everything was going great, to be honest."

"So, what's the problem?" Cass counters.

"Well, the last text he sent implied that he was interested in me... almost like 'relationship' interested," I added, seeing Cass's confused expression.

She opens her mouth, then closes it again. We both take a long sip of our drinks, and she opens her mouth to speak again. "So, you think maybe he wants your one night stand to become an every night stand?" I nod, and she continues, "Lexi, you've gotta let this thing with Kody go. Just because he was a crazy, messed up jackass doesn't mean every guy is going to be awful. You should really give Misha a chance, he seems like a sweet guy."

I refill my glass, enjoying the fuzzy sensation the liquid provides as it seeps into my system. "Honestly Cass, I'm just tired of how exhausting men can be. I don't know how you do it, living in the same house as yours."