David

David unzipped his Nike duffel bag and set it beside his closet.

He hadn’t brought much back from break. Just a few thermals, socks, and gloves for the colder weather ahead. He folded everything before putting it away on his side of the room. 

His gray sheets were tucked neatly beneath a slate-blue comforter. A pigeon-blue backrest pillow sat against the wall at the head of his bed. His small closet was color-coded, his shoes lined up beside it, and his jeans hung neatly inside. 

On the shelf above his desk, books by Ellison, Baldwin, and Hurston stood in a neat row. A small picture frame sat beside the books and a tiny succulent. 

In the photograph, David’s older brother, Doni, knelt between eight-year-old David and Dorian, an arm around each of them. 

David stared at it for a moment before returning to his bag.

Three knocks sounded against the door in a familiar rhythm.

Match in the gas tank. Boom, boom.

“Guess who?” Dorian called from the hallway.

David smiled as he crossed the room and opened the door. “Well, hello, Mr. Swayze.”

“I know, I know. I went ghost yesterday.” Dorian exhaled, then stepped inside and spun David’s computer chair around before straddling it. “A lot of shit happened.”

David closed the door and sat on the edge of his bed. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, giving Dorian his undivided attention. “Wassup?”

Over the next half hour, Dorian recounted the vexing events, starting from the time he got home Friday night and ending with the altercation between him and Ryin Saturday morning. He told David everything he had seen on her phone, including the messages and calls with other guys. He made sure to go into detail about the communication between her and Tony.

David listened without interrupting.

“Tony Tony?” he finally asked. “Our Tony? Zoie’s Tony?”

Dorian nodded. “Yep. His snake ass.”

David leaned back, trying to take it in. “Damn.”

“I knew something had been off with Ryin, but I never thought it was this.” Dorian rubbed his jaw. “But Tony? That’s supposed to be my boy. This whole time, he’s been smiling in my face knowing he was messing with my girl.”

David shook his head, still struggling to believe it. Tony wasn’t just someone they knew. He was one of their closest friends.

“And then there’s Zoie,” Dorian continued. “She doesn’t deserve this shit either. He played both of us.”

David thought about Zoie, who had always been sweet to everyone around her.

“Should I tell her?” Dorian asked.

“You have to,” David said. “If it were you, you’d want to know.”

“I know.” Dorian looked down at the floor. “Keeping quiet feels worse.”

For a few seconds, neither of them spoke. The low hum of the mini fridge filled the room.

David leaned back on his hands. “So, did you speak to my future wife?”

Dorian laughed just as his phone buzzed. He pulled it from his pocket and looked at the screen.

“Speaking of Zaza . . .”

David sat up straighter. “What she say?”

“She wants all four of us to go out to eat tonight. She asked if you’d be down.”

“She asked about me?”

“Yeah, you.” Dorian glanced at him. “And Amara’s coming too. Apparently, she didn’t leave me on read on purpose. Zaza said she’s just shy.”

David tried not to look too pleased. Constanza had specifically asked if he would come. It was still a group dinner, but he was counting it.

“Tell her I’m down.”

***

Dinner was at a tavern just off campus with exposed brick walls, dark wood tables, and televisions mounted above the bar. The menu had everything from burgers and fries to pizza and subs.

David and Dorian arrived first and took a booth near the back.

Dorian slid into the inside seat while David sat near the edge, leaving the other side open for the girls. He adjusted the sleeves of his quarter-zip sweater and stared at the menu without reading any of it.

Every few seconds, he glanced toward the door.

“Yo.” Dorian bumped his shoulder. “You good?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“You keep looking at the door.”

“I’m looking around.”

“Right.”

David ignored the grin on Dorian’s face and checked the menu again.

The truth was, David had liked Constanza for a while. They mostly talked during the class they shared or when they happened to be studying in the library at the same time. Tonight would be the first time they hung out away from campus. 

She was funny, confident, and never seemed impressed by him. Most people noticed his grades, the way he dressed, or how carefully he spoke. Constanza teased him about all of it.

With her, he didn’t feel as though he had to get everything right.

The front door opened, and Amara walked in with Constanza close behind her.

David stood automatically.

He bowed his head, placing one hand behind his back while gesturing toward the booth with the other.

“Milady.”

Constanza rolled her eyes but smiled anyway. “You’re ridiculous.”

Amara sat across from Dorian, leaving Constanza to slide into the seat across from David.

He sat down again, trying not to look as pleased as he felt.

Once everyone ordered, the conversation came easily. Dorian made Amara laugh, Constanza added sarcastic comments whenever the opportunity presented itself, and David spent more time talking to her than anyone else at the table.

Constanza stole one of his fries.

David looked down at the basket. “Did you order those?”

“No.”

“Did you ask for one?”

“No.”

She reached for another.

David pulled the basket closer. “See, this is why I don’t trust you.”

Constanza smiled as she snatched the fry anyway. “You’ll be all right.”

Next to them, Amara laughed at something Dorian said and quickly looked down at her drink.

David noticed the smile Dorian tried to hide.

He looked at Constanza, who was already watching them too. The satisfied expression on her face made it clear that dinner was going exactly as she had planned.

But Dorian and Amara weren’t the only ones getting along.

Constanza laughed at David’s jokes, teased him whenever he said something she considered too polished, and continued stealing his fries even after her own food arrived.

When she laughed at one of his jokes, David held her gaze a little longer than usual.

Constanza looked down at her drink, still smiling.

David wondered if she had noticed he was flirting with her. Until tonight, he had kept it light enough to pass for joking. Now he wasn’t sure he wanted to hide behind that anymore.

***

Later, the four of them took the long way back through the quad. The air had grown colder, and streetlights lit the walkways ahead of them.

Amara and Dorian walked in front while David and Constanza fell behind.

David kept his hands in his pockets as he told Constanza about falling asleep during a lecture and dreaming that he was still in class.

She laughed and nudged him with her elbow.

He walked a few steps ahead, then turned around and continued walking backward.

“You know,” he said, smiling at her, “you laugh way too easily at my jokes. I’m starting to think you’ve got a crush.”

Constanza scoffed. “A crush? Please. Those were pity laughs.”

David turned around and fell into step beside her. “Pity? You laughed before I even finished the story.”

“I was laughing at you, not with you.”

“A laugh is a laugh. I’ll take it.”

Constanza smiled. “You would.”

David looked over at her. “It’s nice talking to you like this. You’ve got a good vibe, you know?”

“A good vibe?” she repeated with a smirk.

“Yeah. Smart, sarcastic, sassy when necessary . . . It’s cute.”

Constanza looked away.

For a second, David wondered if he had gone too far. He had been teasing her all night, but this was the first time he had made it clear that he meant something by it.

“Thanks,” she said. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

David smiled as they continued walking.

By the time they reached Constanza’s building, Amara and Dorian were long out of sight. Candlelight flickered behind the sheer pink curtains of her third-floor room.

Constanza looked up at the window. “My roommate’s in.”

She wrapped her arms around herself and turned back toward him. “Well . . . this is me.”

David rocked back on his heels. “I had fun tonight.”

“Me too.”

Constanza smiled at him, her arms still wrapped around herself. For a second, he thought she might step closer, but she remained where she was. 

“Goodnight, David.”

“Goodnight, Constanza.”

David watched her step inside before turning toward his own dorm.

He replayed their conversation as he walked. She had smiled when he called her cute, but then she had looked away. She told him he wasn’t so bad himself, but he couldn’t tell whether she had meant it as flirting or was only trying to be nice.

He had made his interest obvious.

But he had no idea what she thought about it.

***

By the time David returned to his dorm, Hakim was already asleep. His snores came from beneath a pile of blankets on the other side of the room.

David changed quietly and sat on his bed with the brightness lowered on his phone. Two missed calls from his father were waiting on the screen.

His expression tightened as soon as he saw his father’s name. He stared at the notification for a moment before clearing it. He would call him tomorrow. 

His thoughts returned to Constanza standing outside her building with her arms wrapped around herself. After a few minutes of debating with himself, he opened Snapchat and found her name.

David: Be honest. Did I make things weird at the end?

Her reply came a minute later.

Constanza: No lol.

David stared at the screen, waiting to see if she would type anything else.

Three dots appeared.

Disappeared.

Then returned.

Constanza: Sorry if I got a little quiet.

He read the message twice before answering.

David: You don’t have to apologize. I thought maybe I made you uncomfortable.

Constanza: You didn’t.

David: Good.

Another pause followed.

Constanza: I just didn’t know you thought I was cute.

David smiled to himself.

David: I thought I made that obvious.

Constanza: You joke too much. How was I supposed to know you were serious?

David: I was serious.

The three dots appeared again and stayed there for several seconds.

Constanza: Oh.

David stared at the single word.

David: Is that a bad oh?

Her response took a little longer this time.

Constanza: No. Just an oh. I don’t know what else to say right now. 

David: Fair enough.

David: I’ll leave you alone now, Zaza.

David grinned as he sent it. He knew Constanza hated the nickname and barely allowed Dorian to get away with using it.

Her reply came almost immediately.

Constanza: Boy, don’t call me that 🙄

David laughed quietly.

David: 😂

Constanza: Bye, David.

David set his phone beside him, but he didn’t lie down.

Constanza knew he liked her now. What she thought about it was another question entirely.