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Delaney’s expression brightened considerably. “Very true. He’s really cute and fun. What’s his deal?” she asked as we moved up in the bathroom line.
“Um, I don’t really know. I don’t know him that well,” I said, not sure how to explain that the only thing I did know about Will was that he was in the Russian mob and had nearly gotten killed last spring.
“He’s really hot. Do you think he’d want to go out on a date with me?” Laney asked, her expression so hopeful it made me sick.
“Uh, look, Lane, he’s kind of…well, see, his job…” I hedged, not sure if I was even allowed to tell her he was in the mob. Would I get in trouble? Was it like Fight Club?
Her brow puckered. “What about his job?”
“He’s—”
“Emmy!” I heard a voice ring out and turned to see Kevin walking up to us.
“Oh, hi, Kevin,” I said, simultaneously relieved and annoyed with his interruption. I didn’t want to have to tell Delaney about Will, but knew I’d eventually have to tell her something to make her understand that he’s not exactly a great prospect for a relationship.
“I was hoping to see you here,” Kevin said, shooting me a broad, excited smile. It was rapidly becoming apparent that Kevin was Jason Sizemore from high school orchestra all over again.
“Yeah, we’ve been here for a while. This is my roommate, Delaney,” I said, gesturing to my right. “Delaney, this is Kevin. We’re in orchestra together.”
“Oh, hey, nice to meet you,” she said brightly. Delaney was the friendliest person I’d ever met.
“Hey,” he replied to Laney, then turned back to me. “I’m glad to see you’re not here with your boyfriend.”
My eyebrows jumped in surprise. Damn, Kevin was a lot bolder than Jason. “What? Why?”
“I have to say, I get a lot of red flags with that guy. The way he acts...He seems really jealous and controlling. I’m kind of worried about you.”
I felt Delaney stiffen next to me as I pondered how to respond. “Actually, I am here with Ivan, but he was kind enough to let me go to the bathroom all by myself,” I replied tartly, ignoring the twinge at my own hypocrisy.
Sure, he let us go to the bathroom by ourselves—barely.
Kevin grimaced. “Oh, well, I’m sorry to sound like an asshole, but there’s just something about that guy that concerns me. He’s so territorial. It’s like he doesn’t want anyone else around you. It’s kind of messed up. You know, there’s a lot of evidence about jealous guys and violence. I worry about what he might do to you.”
“What?” Delaney and I said in unison. I knew it was literally Ivan’s job to be protective of me, but Delaney really liked Ivan and saw all his overprotectiveness as romantic and sexy, so I was sure she wasn’t receiving this feedback any better than I was. I’d also only known Kevin for a few weeks, so this was definitely way out of line.
Kevin took a step back in light of our reaction and put his hands up in a surrender gesture. “Hey, sorry, I’m not trying to be a dick, I’m just saying he seems over the top. I’ve seen guys like that in high school and their girlfriends always regretted dating them. If you ever want to break up with him, I hope you know you can come to me for help. He seems like he’d be a real handful to break up with.”
I stared at Kevin, uncertain what role he thought he’d play if I “broke up” with Ivan. Ivan could snap Kevin over his knee. I opened my mouth to reply, but Delaney beat me to it.
“Kevin, I don’t know you, but you have this all wrong. I’ve seen Ivan be so sweet, so loving, so attentive to Emmy. So, if he comes off as overbearing it’s only because he loves her so much. I’m sorry, but I think you’re reading this wrong,” she replied gently, somehow making Ivan seem like a superhero, but framing Kevin’s understanding of Ivan—which was actually correct—as a misinterpretation of Ivan’s devotion.
She was amazing.
Of course, it was a serious misinterpretation on her part, but I was happy for her intervention.
“Oh, okay, I guess I misunderstood,” Kevin said, clearly feeling uncomfortable about his harsh critique of Ivan’s behavior and our lack of receptiveness. Especially in the face of Delaney’s romanticized interpretation of Ivan’s actions.
“Yeah, I think you’re misreading things,” I said. We’d moved up in line and were the next ones to go. I heard my phone ping and saw a text from Ivan.
Ivan: You have four more minutes.
I snorted. God, Kevin would have a field day with this text.
“What is it?” Laney asked.
I looked up to find both her and Kevin waiting to see what had made me laugh. “Oh, nothing, Ivan sent me a funny text.”
Delaney broke out in a simpering smile. “See? He’s crazy about her,” she said to Kevin.