Page 69 of 16 Forever

“Bruh!” Robbie says. “This is my backyard, man! My parents might find that.”

“Oh, shoot,” Bodhi says. “I just thought it would be cool to throw it.”

“It wasn’t!”

“Kinda was,” Amir says, taking a final swig of the bottle I’d passed him and chucking it in the same direction as Bodhi’s.

“BRUH!” Robbie says.

“Don’t worry,” Amir says, giggling, “mine didn’t make a sound.”

“Didn’t throw it hard enough,” Bodhi says. He pulls out hisphone and checks a text, then smiles goofily. I snap a pic.

“Must be Lizzy,” Amir says, looking to Robbie.

“So what if it is,” Bodhi says without looking up.

“Are you guys official yet?” Robbie asks.

“We’re not concerned with labels,” Bodhi says.

“So no,” Amir says.

“Yo, actually, Carter.” Bodhi finally lifts his eyes, aiming them toward me. “Lizzy says Tatiana has a crush on you. Would you ever be down to hang out with us? Like a double date?”

“Uh. Maybe.”

“You know you made out with Tatiana at that party, right?”

“Yes,” I say. “This is, like, the eighth time you’ve told me that. I still don’t remember it, but...”

“Well, let me know if you’d be down,” Bodhi says. “Tatiana is mad cute.”

“Yeah. I will.” Tatiana Robinsonissuper cute. And I know I should be excited to hang out with her.

But, try as I might, I still haven’t been able to fully steer my brain away from Maggie. I have stretches when she’s completely out of my thoughts, but then I have other stretches, like right now, when I’m fixated on that moment after her concert when I grabbed her hand. My fingers on her skin, my heart whooshing around like an extreme weather event.

There was something there. I know Maggie felt it too. And I get why she doesn’t want to associate with me, I really do. Like, why would you want to relive a relationship knowing it’s just going to end in more pain?

But then I think maybe youshouldrelive it. Because maybe the good outweighs the pain. And maybe a genuine connection isprofound, no matter what the freaky circumstances surrounding it are.

“You’re serious?” Amir is asking Robbie when I stop fuguing out about Maggie.

“Yeah I’m serious!” Robbie says. “Go pick it up! You too, Bodhi! Get your damn bottle shards.”

“All right, fine!” Bodhi says, stepping deeper into the woods.

I stay back and photograph the three of them arguing as they venture through the crisscross of trunks and branches, the sun ahead of them in its last moments before setting. It’s sort of gorgeous.

As a reward for taking this artful photo, I pull out my phone and go to Chord Ramirez’s Instagram profile.

Since Maggie is private, Chord’s story and grid provide my best opportunity for getting a pulse on her love life. Much to my chagrin, it immediately delivers. There’s a selfie on the grid from yesterday of Maggie kissing Chord on one of his well-defined cheeks as he smiles at the camera, gray winter sky behind them.

The caption:Lucky guy

Ugh. Someone fetch me my puke bowl.

I immediately post a comment: