Catch My Fall | ✔

15. Jealous Outburst

Trying to stay level headed and keep my expectations low proved to be difficult the next morning. Andre Walker wanted to talk to me, possibly ask me out on a date, and every single piece of my clothing was unacceptable.

Nia sat on my floor, returning everything I'd tried on and threw down back to their rightful hangers. After trying and failing to dress myself, I called her for backup.

I would've called Indy over, too, but while I told my sister basically everything, telling her how stressed I was getting over a text seemed silly. She was always cool, calm, and collected whenever I watched her getting ready before she hung out with some guy.

I needed the company of someone who knew what it was like to be anxious about meeting a guy. Although Nia wasn't exactly giving that energy.

"As much fun as it is playing dress up," she said, draping a pair of jeans over a hanger. "Is this really necessary? Yesterday you made it sound like you were done with Andre."

An image of him and that girl from yesterday popped into my head, but it was quickly replaced with the moment at the drive-thru. The way he winked at me after dodging Indy's questions about his plans for the movie on Valentine's day.

I was always so quick to write someone off. That needed to change.

"I know," I told her as I put a cream-colored sweater on. Nia immediately shook her head "no" when I turned around for her opinion. "But I think he might ask me to go to the movie with him."

Nia caught the sweater I just pulled off in mid-air, finding a hanger for it. "Do you want to go with him?"

"Why not?" I said, going back to my closet. "It's not like guys are lining up to ask me."

"So, you're only going with him because he might ask?"

I faced her, slipping on a short-sleeved gingham print button-up that I tied in the front. "Why all the questions? Didn't you predict that he'd ask me out?"

"You look like you should be milking cows," she said. Then she frowned, pushing her braids from her face. "And the prediction was before I realized--" she paused, running her hands through her hair again and focusing on re-hanging my clothes.

"Realized what, Nia?"

"Nothing," she said quickly, standing as she went to put my clothes away.

"Shania?" I prodded.

She continued to ignore me until every item of clothing I pulled from my closet was back inside. Finally, she turned to me.

"I thought Andre was a good match for you," she started, twirling one of her braids around her finger. "Then I realized...Jerome is in love with you."

That last part flew out of her mouth so fast I was sure I'd heard her wrong. "Huh?"

She sighed, repeating herself slowly. "Jerome is in love with you."

That's what I thought she said. The memory of our first snow day replayed in my mind.

"He's not."

Nia watched silently as I changed my shirt once again. That time to a simple tank with an embroidered butterfly on the chest.

"He is," she insisted. "You don't see the way he looks at you. Or the way he doesn't look at you whenever you're talking about Andre. It's like it physically hurts him to see you so happy about another guy."

For a split second, I allowed myself to believe that. He left the party when it was my turn to play Seven Minutes in Heaven. He got uncharacteristically quiet whenever Andre was the topic. Then I remembered seventh grade and shook the thought away.