“Okay.NowI’m going upstairs,” I say as I laugh nervously when Declan and Darian don’t deny it. I grab a protein bar from the cabinet, and then practically run back to my room.
I call Shauna and as soon as she answers I dump everything on her from moving in with the twins to how weird things just got. Instead of saying something, she laughs.
“What is so funny?” I ask with a sigh.
“Baby... they want to fuck you. They like you. They enjoy your company. How many different ways do I need to explain it for you to understand that they are interested in you but all summer you avoided letting them talk to you about it,” she says.
“What? No one tried to tell me anything,” I say, as I lie across my bed on my belly.
“Mia. How many times did they ask you this summer to come have dinner with them and hang out?” she asks.
“Uh... like once a week,” I say.
“And your innocent little ass just kept saying “No, it’s okay. You don’t have to.” because you thought your Mom and Charlie put them up to it, even though they told you they didn’t.”
“I... thought they just felt obligated to get to know me,” I say.
“Oh? So, they just happened to have the exact protein bar you eat? The kind that isn’t sold in stores and takes weeks to ship?” she asks. “Those two have been planning this all summer.”
“Charlie was the one who wanted me to move here,” I say.
“No... he just didn’t want you in the dorms and said he didn't think you living alone was a good idea,” she says.
“Well...”
“Stop trying to find reasons, Mia. Just face it. They are interested and you have missed every single hint they have dropped,” she says. “For God’s sake. They just laid claim to you in front of all of their friends.”
“How the fuck would that even work?” I ask.
“What? Fucking two men?” she asks. “Easy. You ride one while the other hits it from the back.”
“That’s not what I meant you perv,” I laugh. “I just meant I don’t know how to handle two people being interested in me. No one is ever interested in me.”
“That’s not true, Mia. People have been interested in you since you were thirteen. You were and are so self-conscious that you don’t see past yourself,” she says. “Anyway, are you interested in them?”
“I... don’t know,” I say.
“What do you mean, you don’t know? You either are or you aren’t,” she laughs. I have her on speakerphone, so I don't have to hold my phone, but the volume is turned down since she is so loud when she gets excited over something.
“I don’t know, because I guess admitting it means I have to face the emotions behind that,” I say.
“I mean obviously you think they are attractive, yeah?”
“Fuck. That is such an innocent way to describe what I feel,” I say, and she laughs. “It’s nearly painful how attractive the two of them are. They are identical twins, obviously, but they look so different to me. That might but be a product of my own obsession though.”
“I’ll be honest... I absolutely cannot tell which is which. I just pick a name and go with it. They never correct me, but I don’t think they would. They never correct anyone.”
“I have nothing to say that isn’t going to sound creepy,” I laugh.
“No. Say it. How can you tell them apart?” she asks.
“Well... Declan has a scar on his left hand and Darian... well, he just has a different set of facial expressions all together,” I say. “It’s subtle, but still different.”
“What if you’ve had them backward this whole time?” she asks, laughing.
“Poor Charlie can’t tell them apart sometimes,” I say. “They will intentionally dress the same just to fuck with him.”
“Charlie is sweet. I like him,” Shauna says.