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My eyes teared up as I looked up.

“What’s wrong?”

“I… I have never had something so expensive beside my arm, and I worked years to get that.”

“Yeah, my mother was generous with me. I know I didn’t have to work very hard or anything.”

“No, no. I mean yeah, she is generous. I just never got a gift like this before,” my fingers ran over the outside, “I’ve never gotten a gift before, not for Christmas, not for my birthday...”

Abel’s face softened when he realized what I was saying. “Well… happy belated birthday.”

I snorted, and he laughed with me before he showed me how to work the phone.

21

Sal

The next morning, Abel kissed me hard when he left. He held me all night, brought me dinner, and took care of me.

I enjoyed it all even though I knew he was leaving and I was going to be sad. I watched as he got in his fancy car and drove off.

Closing the door, I looked at Briar, who was taking me to work. He seemed to ignore our little moment together. “Notice anything different?”

His brow pulled as he glanced at me. “Hair brushed for once?”

“Rude,” I said, leaning on the island right beside them. “Maybe you’ll notice if I’m closer.”

He turned completely, which made me jolt. His eyes ran over my body, studying it before he said, “Turn around.”

I chuckled, and I listened.

“Ass is fatter,” he muttered.

I burst out laughing, looking at him. Briar was smiling at me. “Oh my god. It is my birthday. You just smiled.”

“We have to go,” he said, standing and smiling.

I grabbed his cheek and made him look at me. “I didn’t know you knew how to do that. You have nice teeth. I’ve never seen them before.”

“Annoying,” he said, looking down at me.

“You’re right. Beck would have noticed… But he left early.”

“Just text him on your fancy new phone,” he suggested.

“So, you did notice!” I pulled it from my front pocket. “Look!”

He took it before going into it.

“Try not to look at my nudes,” I teased, watching him.

“Too late,” he said, tilting his head like he was looking at them, but I hadn’t even taken any yet. “Now you have our numbers, at least Beck and I. Let’s go before we are late.”

Smiling, I took back the one the phone, seeing he had added two contacts. Abel’s was there with a heart next to his name. Now there was “ugly twin” and “really hot twin.” I texted the second. “Gotta text Beck.”

But then Briar’s phone dung with my incoming message. “You think I’m the ugly one?”

Laughing, I shook my head, grabbing our stuff as we moved out to the car. I changed their names and put hearts next to them. It made me happy to be able to text them and talk to them, though I knew a phone could be used for so much more. I just didn’t know it too much. I sat in the front seat of Briar’s car, and it brought back hot memories of Beck and me in his car.