Time And I

Nine

With Darcy needing to head to work, I hitched a ride with her to Devon's. Buddy told me to text him if anything happened. Brody did as well, but that was just the type of person he was. After promising, Darcy pushed me out the door with a giggle.

"Is he always that way with you?"

"Always. You know what kind of guy Brody is. He's a-"

"No, not him," she said, violently waving her hand in a shooing motion. "Buddy."

I snorted. "Bitch, you know what kind of guy he is. He's that way with you, too. He's just more uptight since it's Devon."

"He needs to relax. You wouldn't go over to Devon's house if you didn't feel safe or uncomfortable around him."

I placed my hand on her shoulder, and she cocked her eyebrow. "Thank you."

"Let go of me," she laughed, swatting off my hand. "Are you sure his concern doesn't stem from a different place?"

"No. I don't think so." I glanced at her. "Wait, what way are you talking about?"

"Jealousy."

"No way," I scoffed. "Buddy is not the jealous type."

"Okay," she sang.

"Why? What could he possibly be jealous of?" I snorted.

"You're spending time with someone else. Could be why he's giving you those weird looks you're seeing."

"Doubt it."

When Darcy pulled up in front of Devon's house, her jaw dropped and she glared at me.

"What? Not expecting it to look so normal?"

"You two are practically neighbors," she spat. "Why did you have me drive you when you could have easily walked?"

"Because then Buddy would have walked with me and invited himself over when he wasn't invited. He'd most likely bring up something stupid Devon did in the past and make everyone uncomfortable, and since he's my friend, Devon would give me the cold shoulder," I explained. "I just want to get to know him without judgement."

Darcy was silent, most likely agreeing with me.

"Do you know if he plans to come back to school?"

"So far, no idea. I can see it going either way."

"Do you want for him to come back to school?"

"I want for him to get an education. Lord knows he's going to need one with this shitty job market."

"I hope you can convince him to come back," she stated, her voice soft.

"Me too."

I exited her car, waving goodbye before walking to the front door. Remembering the last time I was over, I said, "Ding dong," loudly and waited ten seconds before Rena threw open the door.

She bounced on her heels as she smiled at me. I instantly felt welcomed, smiling along with her. "Hi, Mel!" she greeted with more enthusiasm than I'd ever seen her have. She shook her head, still smiling, and jumped up to hug me. I laughed as I caught her and hugged her back. "Devon is not here yet. He's still at work for the next hour."

"Oh," I said and glanced behind me. "Should I come back later than?"

"No. You're more than welcome to stay here," she giggled, opening the door wider and stepping aside. "Can I get you something to drink?"