Sushi On Me

Tuli

After catching up on some much-needed sleep, Megan and I decided to hit the shops.

I’d showered, dressed, and was lounging in the living room for what felt like forever, waiting for Megan to finish getting ready.

She finally emerged from her room, still locked in a kiss with Daniel. It was clear they were planning to pick up where they left off later.

I couldn’t help but pull a face, but inside I was thinking, ~Lucky them~.

I was dealing with some intense cravings, which I suspected were linked to my five-week dry spell.

“Ready to hit the road?” Megan asked, pulling her hair up into a bun.

“I’ve been ready for the past hour,” I retorted, “while you were primping.”

Daniel gave us both a hug, then shrugged on his jacket. “Catch you tomorrow. Have fun, you two,” he said, heading out the door.

Megan turned to me, a sheepish grin on her face. “Sorry for the wait. Sushi on me?”

I smirked. “Hell yeah.”

Our mission was to find an outfit for my twenty-first birthday bash.

I wasn’t planning anything extravagant; I just wanted to invite Nicolette over for a movie night and a few drinks.

But Daniel had given Megan the green light to throw a party at his place.

~So much for a chill birthday.~

I was sifting through some funky graphic tees when Megan held up a black camisole with crisscross straps over the chest.

“I’m not wearing that.”

“Come on, live a little. We can pair it with a cute skirt. ~Please~?”

~I hate it when she pulls the begging card.~

“Let’s at least check out some other options. I want a variety to choose from.”

“Fine, but mark my words. You’ll end up choosing what I picked.”

~That’s usually how our shopping trips go.~

~It’s not that she doesn’t let me choose; it’s just that I always end up liking her picks better.~

We continued our shopping spree, and I picked out a few more outfits. But after trying them all on, I had to admit that Megan’s choice was the best.

We didn’t find a skirt, but we did score a pair of sleek black skinny jeans.

A little while later, we hit the food court. It might sound odd to get sushi from a mall food court, but this place actually served decent sushi.

We perched at the bar, watching the chefs at work.

“Have you spoken to Jayce yet?” Megan asked, sipping her tea.

“Not yet,” I admitted. “I don’t even know what to say.”

“That’s easy. You say, ‘Thanks for the flowers and candy. How romantic!’”

I rolled my eyes. “If I was that clueless, that’s what I’d say.”

She shot me a look. I quickly raised my hands in defense.

“I’m not calling you clueless! I just meant that I think he’s trying to persuade me to date him. And I’m still trying to figure out how he knew I love yellow roses and sweet and sour gummy snakes. It can’t be a coincidence. I want to ask him about it.”

“Tuli, you’re overthinking this.”

She leaned back as a plate of sushi was set in front of her. She picked up her chopsticks and expertly nabbed a piece of sushi, dipping it into the soy sauce.

“Clearly, he’s trying to win you over. He confessed his love for you. But he’s not going to just sit around waiting.”

She popped the sauce-soaked sushi into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully. I picked up my own chopsticks and started toying with my food instead of eating it.

I remembered how Adam used to scold me for playing with my food. ~But he’s not here now.~

“But how did he know about my favorite flower and candy?”

“Maybe he did some online digging,” Megan suggested. “If Big Tech really knows everything about us, then it’s out there for people to find.”

“I guess that’s possible,” I grumbled, recalling the MySpace account I’d forgotten to delete ages ago. I couldn’t remember if I’d listed those things in my bio.

Just then, my phone pinged. I pulled it out to see his name in bold letters.

“Speak of the devil,” I said, showing Megan the screen. I opened the message.

Jayce

I see u ;)

Tuli

You*

Tuli

And what do you mean?

Jayce

Hey don’t correct me! And I mean I’m in the food court. I see you eating sushi with your friend. What kind of sushi did you get?

“He’s here,” I told Megan.

“Ooh. Do I finally get to meet the professor you’re sleeping with?”

If anyone had been close enough to hear that, I would have either smacked her or died of embarrassment.

I scanned the crowd but couldn’t spot him. I was about to text him back, joking about his teleportation skills, when a voice sounded right behind us.

“You do get to officially meet me.”

I saw his hand extended towards Megan, and I turned to see a bright smile on his face. Megan shook his hand.

“How’s the sushi here, ladies? I’ve never tried it.”

“Not too shabby,” Megan replied. “I’m Megan. Nice to finally meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too, Megan. I know a place downtown that serves sushi. I bet it’s better than this.”

Megan scoffed. “Please. I know the place you’re talking about, and it doesn’t hold a candle to this one.”

Jayce’s eyes twinkled with mischief. “Is that a challenge?”

“Have you had lunch?” I managed to ask, finally finding my voice.

“Hold your horses.”

“Stick around for lunch, and you’ll get what Megan’s saying.”

“Hmm, what if I don’t feel like it?”

“Then you’re losing out,” I shot back.

To drive my point home, I picked up a piece of sushi, popped it into my mouth, and hummed to show how much I was enjoying it.

“So, Jayce.” Megan’s eyes were twinkling too. “Fancy joining us?”

He looked from one of us to the other. For a split second, my heart clenched with worry.

“I’d be delighted to.”