Then she expertly steers the conversation back to my problems. I catch her up about the camping trip and then start talking about Drew and all the time we’ve been spending together.

“I think he’s finally running out of creative date ideas, so that’s good,” I say.

“That’s good?”

The truth is, I’d rather just curl up on the couch with him and watch shitty movies than hike up to dragon lairs and swing from vines in the Amazon. I just don’t have the stamina for all these outdoor activities anyway, and sometimes it feels like our whole relationship is built around the things we do more than the people we are.

“You and Devin seem pretty close,” Becca says.

I laugh. “No, not really. We’re less close and more constantly forced to be around each other because we work together.”

“Well, you still talk about him like you think he’s pretty cool.”

“Devin uses e/em pronouns,” I say, probably a little too defensively, since e still hasn’t really decided which pronouns e prefers anyway. And I don’t know if I’d say I think e’s cool exactly because e’s a total nerd who’s passionate about recycling and art and campfire songs, but I do feel kind of protective of em, even though I’d never tell em that.

Becca’s giving me this look, and I can’t say I missed it all that much. It’s that look that says, I’m reading really deeply into your psyche right now into things you probably don’t even know about yourself. I raise a hand to shield myself from her gaze and say, “E’s just really sweet, you know? And it’s so weird because I know if I was in eir position, I’d be punching people’s faces in and sawing off half the US, but Devin’s just . . . I don’t know. It’s hard to think e’s ever hated anyone.”

Becca laughs, but I don’t know what the hell she’s laughing about because I really didn’t say anything funny. When I lower my hand and ask her what’s got her in a fit of giggles, she just starts laughing again. And honestly, it’s kind of nice to hear her laughing again, but it’s pretty infuriating that she’s laughing at me.

I groan, but really, I’m glad to have her back. There’s still this kind of tension between us, but we also feel closer than we have since I left.

I make her promise to keep in touch before finally hanging up, my whole body exhausted. I know Becca told me not to say anything, but I leave a quick post response anyway, basically just saying that the Diary would never post stolen stories. Then I knock out before I can even set my phone to charge.

Wednesday, June 27

Juleslovesny posted:

Um, so I guess the Meet Cute Diary is featuring stolen posts now?? How did this happen? Does anyone know of any alternative blogs because I’m tired of all the drama with this one. First we’re told it’s fake and now it’s stealing stories? Yeah, I’m out. The blog’s not worth the hassle.