Working together, we righted the chairs and returned them to the table, then picked up all the crayons and pretend food and returned them to their proper places.
“Maybe we could hang out with Dylan and his friends together,” Jenna said as we gathered up all the coloring pages that were torn, crumpled, or colored on to throw away. “That way we’ll be there to help.”
“No pressure, I swear, but I wouldn’t mind hanging out with him and his friends again,” Nicky said, too nonchalantly.
“Oh yeah? Anyone in particular?”
Nicky shrugged.
“Which one?”
No answer.
“Tell us!”
“We’ll figure it out,” Jenna said.
“It’s not Cole,” I said. “With his curly blond hair and bright white smile, he looks like he belongs on a surfboard. Too fun and sunny for her.”
“Not Ethan,” Jenna said. “The sprinkling of gray and the grooves at the corners of his eyes totally work for him, but handsome and distinguished isn’t her style.”
“Brady?” I guessed. “He was hot.” Not as hot as Dylan, of course, but he did look like a model with his dark hair, chiseled chin, and blue eyes.
“He was nice,” Jenna added.
Nicky shook her head.
“That leaves Ryan or Liam,” I said. “The brooding, scowling one or the behemoth?”
They responded simultaneously with matching defensiveness in their tones.
“Nothing wrong with a little brooding,” Nicky said.
“He’s not a behemoth,” Jenna said.
Nicky and I swung our gazes to Jenna. “You too?”
“No, no, nothing like that,” she denied, a little too strongly. “That’s just not a kind thing to say.”
“Sure. Wouldn’t want to insult the guy who’s at least six and a half feet tall and built like a tank by calling him big,” Nicky said.
“You guys would look adorable,” I said. Jenna was five foot three and lean with dark blond hair and gorgeous blue-green eyes. With her cute, sunny look and the maxi skirts she loved to wear, she was reminiscent of a mermaid or a sparkly fairy. Liam had brown hair, brown eyes, bold eyebrows, and was tall with muscles everywhere. The polar opposite. Her tiny frame would be swallowed up when he wrapped his arms around her. I loved it. “I bet he’s a giant teddy bear.”
“It’s not like I even talked to him. He just seemed nice, and he’s obviously good looking.”
I turned to Nicky, taking the attention off Jenna, and Nicky went along with it. “Ryan? Really? I don’t think I saw him smile once all day.”
“He smiled at me.”
“Ah, I get it now.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Before I had to backpedal or get sucked into psychoanalyzing my friend in a way I really didn’t want to do, we heard the soft ping of a bell summoning Jenna to the desk. Thank goodness.
“I have to run now,” Nicky said.
“I should go, too,” I said, and we all quickly hugged and said goodbye.