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She stares up atconflicted

"I’ive ument "You want to be friends? We’ll be friends, but I’irl and I like it"

"I just don’t want this to be weird," she says, her hands pressing together on the cart handle so one’s now on top of the other "Or any weirder than it already is, considering"

Her voice trails off

I shrug, letting go of her cart and crossing my arms over my chest "Won’t be weird for me," I tell her

I need to say this so she knoe can make this work

Do I want to be friends with Riley? Fuck no

Aht now?

Yeah I’ll fucking take it

No way a her rip this shit away from me now Hell I’m invested

Riley takes a few seconds to think it over, then apparently needing assurance and maybe that final push, she asks me, "Do you call any of your other friends darlin’?"

Jesus

No I don’t But I don’t tell her that

"Luke, but only when he’s being sith et the opposite reaction out of hers

And I get it

Her eyes go round a second before she bursts into laughter, hand to her chest and her head tilting up, showing irl as sitting at the bar taking shots of tequila

I s underneath a pale I don’t want her guarded or worried I’ up onto see I’m the better man for her if she freezesthe nickna out "Just pro stuff I’d really like this to work out I don’t want to not be friends with you"

"Not sure I can pro out ofthe truth but only preparing to give her what she wants to hear, and what I need her to hear in order for this to play out