Page 33 of Game Changer (Hidden Attractions #2)

Ethan

“How am I not supposed to feel offended? Mark found out you were dating Maya before me. Are you kidding?”

Cameron called about two minutes ago and has been ripping me a new asshole ever since, not letting me get a word in edgewise. Mark mentioned something over text to him, and since I hadn’t told Mark to keep it quiet, he didn’t realize he was supposed to keep the news to himself.

If this is anyone’s fault, it’s mine.

Cameron’s animosity radiates through the phone as I flop onto my bed, and finally, he takes a breath. I use the moment of silence to say, “Maya wanted to keep it between us at first. I would have told you if I could.”

“And yet Mark found out before me. Interesting.”

“Only because she made things official in front of him! Everything is still new. I don’t even think Maddie knows.

” And I don’t want to jinx it . Things didn’t exactly work out for us the last time, and I don’t want to be embarrassed if things end up crashing and burning to the ground before we even get the chance to start again.

He scoffs. “Oh, she definitely doesn’t. I would know by now if she did.”

“Because you both just tell each other everything?”

“Um, yeah. That’s kind of how relationships work, asshole.”

The door opens and Leo strides in with a bundle of food in his hands. I swear, I don’t know where he puts it all. He’s always at the cafeteria, which is ironic, considering he thinks the food is trash.

“Whatever,” Cameron continues. “All I’m saying is your best friend should have known first.”

My brows fly to my forehead. “Are you really lecturing me on keeping my relationship a secret?” He’s the one who hid the fact he was dating my sister, allowing it to happen right beneath my nose. “I forgave you a long time ago for that, so you should extend the same olive branch to me.”

Leo leans over my bed, not allowing me a lick of privacy. “Hey, man. Good to see you.”

“Oh. Hey, Leo. Did you know about Ethan and Maya, or am I the last to find out?”

“For fuck’s sake, Cameron. He’s my roommate . Of course, he knows!”

“This is some bullshit,” Cameron mutters. “I’m missing everything in Pennsylvania.”

“Since when do you care about my love life? What do you need to come here for? So we can paint each other’s nails and gossip all night? You’re making it a bigger deal than it needs to be.”

Leo chuckles. “Trust me, man, it’s better you’re finding out now. You wouldn’t want to be here. I’m barely surviving their lovefest as it is.”

“Only because you want one,” I shoot back.

“Hardly. You know what I do want?” His grin grows wider when he notices the impatience on my face. “A full night of sleep. It hasn’t happened since you and Maya started fucking like animals.”

Cameron throws his head back and laughs. “All right, maybe I’ll stay in Pennsylvania a little longer.”

“Good choice,” Leo says. “Seriously. If you combined a howler monkey and a rocket launch, you’d get Ethan when he—”

“Hey, just a quick thought here, but can you both go fuck yourselves?” The two of them together are insufferable.

A part of me wishes I’d never introduced them, but I also appreciate that they care so much about my relationship.

It means they care about me , and it’s rare to find friends with good intentions nowadays.

Cameron stops laughing and takes a few deep breaths to calm down. “Bullshit aside, I’m happy you’re happy, man. You’ve wanted her for a long-ass time, and it’s good to see you like this.”

“You don’t think it’s too premature of me to celebrate, right? After what happened previously?”

He shrugs. “Any relationship is a risk, but after what I witnessed on Halloween, I’d say she’s just as obsessed with you as you are with her. You should enjoy it, Ethan. You deserve this.”

Maybe he’s right. Maybe I deserve this, but as much as I thought I let my reservations go, there’s still a lingering worry that she’ll ghost me again, leaving me high and dry.

It’s like I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Something has to go wrong because what we have between us is too perfect. Too right.

I’m growing used to our yoga sessions and forming a domesticated routine with her.

We spend our mornings in the gym, then study in the library for a few hours or go to the common area to binge a new reality series she’s obsessed with.

Our conversations are never dull. There hasn’t been a moment when I’ve wondered if I’m with the right person because, in my bones, I know she’s the one for me.

I’ve always known it. There may have been times I didn’t want to admit it and times I tried to deny it, but at the end of the day?

She’s the center of my fucking universe, and I’ll always be stuck in her orbit.

“In that case, things are good, then. Really good.”

Leo snorts with a mouthful of burger. “You can say that again.”

“Oh, shit. I gotta go. Maddie’s calling,” Cameron says.

“And you can’t tell my sister to wait a damn minute?”

He gives me a look as if to say, What kind of idiot do you take me for? “Part of making a long-distance relationship work is comparing schedules to find available times to talk. Hate to break it to you, but your sister is more important. Bye.”

My mouth is hanging open when the call disconnects, and Leo doesn’t help by throwing a french fry at my head. “That look really isn’t becoming on you. Close your mouth.”

I blow a breath up at the ceiling. “Fuck me,” I mutter to myself.

“Couldn’t even if I wanted to. Maya doesn’t give me an opportunity.”

“Oh my god. If you’re going to be annoying, at least give me some of your fries.

” I want to be upset, but truthfully, I fight a smile the entire time.

This is exactly what I wanted my college experience to be like.

I found the girl I’m meant to be with, made more friendships along the way, and on top of it all, I’m accomplishing what I set out to do.

I wanted to find myself, and isn’t that what I’m doing?

The realization sends a sensation of warmth shooting through my chest.

“Thought you’d never ask,” Leo says, reaching across the tiny space between us with a carton of fries. “I know you’re hungry from all the calories you’re burning now.”

This time, rather than roll my eyes, I tip my head back and release a full-blown belly laugh. For the first time, I’m loving my life, and I refuse to let anxiety get the best of me anymore. I’m going to enjoy myself to the fullest and focus on the present, not the future or my past.

I’m happy , and it’s about time I start living like it.