----
“Hello?” I grumbled after picking up my phone without even looking to see who called. My voice was scratchy and raw, fresh from a good five hours of sleep. I tried to sit up in bed but an arm tightened around my waist, pulling me back down to the bed.
“Good morning!” Piper chirped, sounding like an over excited bird this early in the morning.
“Piper?” I asked, confused and disoriented. My voice did not get any better.
I looked down at Tristan who was still cuddled against me, his face so sweet and soft with sleep. His jawline had some overnight growth on it that I desperately wanted to run the palm of my hand against. He was so peaceful, so comfortable that I found myself just staring at him.
“What happened to you last night? Are you and Seth Ok?” She demanded, her voice losing the Disney-princess-sweetness she had woken me up with.
“Yeah, we’re fine,” I answered and hoped my morning voice disguised the fearful hitch. “Those guys were just friends of Seth’s grandpa.”
“Oh. Because they were seriously scary. Seth’s grandpa isn’t in the mob or anything is he? Maybe like a former hitman?” Piper laughed.
I forced myself to laugh too. “Yeah right, that’s why Seth transferred here. He and his grandpa were put in witness protection.” I tried to joke.
“Well you never know. Seth is so mysterious; he’s got to be hiding something!” Piper exclaimed dramatically.
“Pi, it’s not the mob. Trust me. My parents have known his grandpa their entire lives. Do Micah and Celina honestly look like they would know anyone with mob ties?” I tried for reason, knowing everything I said was technically not a lie, but not really the truth either.
“You never know,” she countered. “They don’t seem like they would run around with criminals…. But then again they don’t really seem like the kind of people to hang out with hillbillies either, so maybe you’re whole life is a lie. Maybe you’re in witness protection too and you just don’t know it!”
“That sounds about right,” I groaned. I finally sat up and smiled when Tristan shifted to curl his body around mine. “Is this why you called? You were worried my parents got the shake down?”
“Shake down? I don’t think you used that correctly,” Piper laughed loudly in the phone.
“It’s all part of my witness protection act. First I misuse the mob terminology to throw you off track, next I turn all CI on you and the DA is suddenly knocking at your door with a warrant,” I laughed.
“No more TNT dramas for you!” Piper demanded in between gasps for air as she laughed at me. “I’m taking away all basic cable privileges!”
“So Tristan’s a total douche,” Piper declared after our laughter had died down. I looked down at his sleeping form next to me and highly doubted that.
“What now?” I sighed. I couldn’t stop myself from brushing my fingers against his jawline, feeling the rough hair against the pads of my fingers. He let out a quiet sigh and pulled me tighter against his chest.
“He totally ruined the night after we left you guys last night. Bree was so excited to go on a date with him, but as soon as you and Seth left he just moped around and wouldn’t even talk to her. We dropped him off as soon as the movie was over, but then Bree was in a bad mood so then I felt bad…. She asked me to stay the night with her, and I couldn’t say no, especially after how Tristan treated her, so then my night with Lincoln was ruined.” Piper huffed angrily and I wanted to feel bad, or at least feel kind of bad for Bree, but I couldn’t help the happy little dance my heart did knowing that Tristan moped around after I left…. even if it was because he knew I was in mortal danger and for no other reason.
“He is just the most aggravating person ever!” Piper continued and for a minute I had no idea who she was talking about so I just listened. “It’s just like, we don’t want to sit here and arrange our lives around the fact that he won’t go after what he wants. You know? Maybe he doesn’t want to ruin the friendship, or I don’t know what the hell is wrong with him, maybe he’s just afraid, but you don’t deserve to be strung along. And Bree especially doesn’t deserve it.”
It took me a minute to get my head around what Piper was saying, and that she was defending Bree more than she was defending me until I realized what she was saying. But when then light bulb clicked I knew I had to control the damage.
“Piper, Tristan doesn’t like me,” I said adamantly and then regretted it immediately when he stirred next to me.
“Please don’t play this game with me, I had to listen to Bree talk about herself for eight hours straight. I’m not kidding, the girl talks in her sleep and she dreams about herself! I can’t take anymore self-denial this morning….” Piper whined, and I couldn’t help but laugh and feel a sick sense of relief that Piper still liked me better than Bree.
There was something wrong with me.
“Pi, I’m not in denial. Tristan and I have only ever been friends…. that’s all we can be otherwise the world just might explode,” I sighed and hated how sad I sounded. I looked down and Tristan was looking up at me, some emotion so volatile in his eyes that I couldn’t even distinguish it. “You know this better than anyone.”
Only she didn’t know it better than Tristan and I or that the world might actually explode.
“And I’ve always been fine with the whole destined to just be friends thing. That is until Tristan started ruining my dates with his big ol’ pining heart. I can’t take it anymore. Can’t you just make out with him so you both realize it would be like kissing your sibling and we can all go back to normal again?” Piper argued.
I looked down at Tristan who had smiled a little at Piper’s comment. She was talking so loud he could hear everything she was saying. He had slid his hands under his head and looked up at me with an eager expression, waggling his eyebrows. My eyes flickered down to his lips and I nearly forgot how to breathe.
“That is not going to happen, Pi,” but even I didn’t believe my overly breathy voice.