Chapter Seven

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"My aunt and uncle can't get away from Boston this weekend because of some family thing going on there," I lie. "I just didn't want to go back for it."

"Your aunt and uncle?" He looks confused for a second, then he shifts his eyes away from me. Yup. He remembers now. "Do you miss your parents on your birthday?"

I take another sip of my drink while thinking about how to answer him. I have to be careful with this, since it's clear death isn't a subject he's comfortable with. Not that I can blame him, really. It's the same for most people. I release my straw from my lips.

"My parents are always here with me, celebrating my life from above." My voice is gentle, but his cheeks still flush.

"You had to miss them growing up, though, didn't you?" he asks after a moment.

"I loved them growing up, or at least my memory of them." I watch him swallow, even though he hasn't taken a sip from his glass. He looks away from me again, focusing on something I can't see on the sidewalk. Fail. We've veered straight into awkward.

I try to think of a way to change the subject, but he turns his head back to me and speaks before I can.

"If you're not doing anything for your birthday, I'll take you out."

Like on a date? I freeze as the thought pops into my mind. I don't date, or at least I haven't since I was Anna. It just doesn't make sense to let anyone get attached to me. It makes even less sense now, since I won't be here in a couple of months.

I'm about to answer him when I realize he's still talking. "You have to celebrate your birthday. You know that, right?" Looks like Riley is one of those persistent people. Super.

I set my elbow on the table, propping my head up with my hand. I'm not sure there's a way out of this one. If I'm here to help him with something, that probably means I have to spend time with him. It would just help if we didn't spend that time on something that sounds like a date.

"I'm over birthdays," I finally say. I'm not sure if this answers his question or not.

Apparently not. "You're too young to be over birthdays," he informs me. Great.

Our food shows up before I can come up with a good argument for that. Riley reaches for his sandwich but keeps looking at me. His eyes dare me to challenge him.

"Wisdom of the ancient one?" I finally offer. I catch him mid-bite, and he can only smirk until he swallows his mouthful of food.

"Are you always this sarcastic?"

"I usually save it for family." I give him my most innocent look.

"I'm flattered."

"You should be," I agree. I pick up my panini and take a bite.

If I add up the years of life I've had in The Before as both Anna and Cassidy, I'm more than justified in my feelings about birthdays. This isn't something I can explain to Riley, though.

"Think about where you want to go on Saturday," he says. I can tell he's not great at taking no for an answer. Well, we sure have that in common.

"Won't your girlfriend be jealous?" I ask. It's a joke, but there's an odd look creeping across Riley's face. It tells me that was a bad choice of words. Interesting.

He looks away from me and lifts his glass to his lips. After taking a drink, he sets it back down on the table.

"I'm not really a girlfriend kind of guy."

He gets really quiet, then. Even though most people are quiet when they eat, this feels more uncomfortable than when we were talking about death. Someone has to break the silence here, and clearly it's going to be me.

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