“I forgot to lock it,” she lies.
“You did it for me.”
“You wish,” she scoffs.
“Come out with me.”
“Are you insane?
I shrug. “Probably a little bit. Sneak out with me.”
“We’re adults, Parker. I’m not sneaking out with you. Go home and I’ll make sure to lock my window.”
“Come on, Lil, be a teenager with me again. Just for tonight.”
She shakes her head. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Tulips needs me, clearly Ican’t leave her.”
“Tulips?” I sputter.
“Dammit…” she mumbles. “Anyway, I can’t leave her. Goodbye, don’t let the window hit you on the way out.”
I want to ask more about the dog’s name later and make a mental note of that.
“Come on, Lil. Take a trip to the past with me. As friends.”
“Arewe friends?” She raises a skeptical eyebrow.
“Of course we are. Just like before.”
She twists her mouth. “We kinda ruined that friendship before.”
“Then let’s get it back.”
She sighs, looking at the puppy, Tulips, and I can tell she’s considering it, but I’m holding my breath until I hear her say it.
“Fine.” She looks up at me, blue eyes wide and dead set on mine. “Don’t make me regret it.”
I sit on the ground, resting my back against the brick wall of her house as she gets dressed. She could easily slam the window shut and lock it on me, but I know she’s not going to. As much as she wants me to believe she doesn’t want to do this, I know she does.
She’s probably fighting with herself in there because it takes her awhile to come out, but I’ll let her do what she needs to do. Anything she needs.
Her head pops out of the window. “I’m coming out the front door.”
“No,sneakingis part of the fun.”
“And I said beforewe are adults. I’m not climbing through my window.”
“And I said before,we are being teenagers for the night.”I mock her tone and she rolls her eyes.
“If I break something, that’s on you.”
“Good thing I’m an EMT then.”
She mumbles something about that not being helpful as she climbs out onto the lawn to join me. Rolling onto her back, she huffs out a breath once she’s completely out. “Don’t make me regret this.”