“Basement. We were trying to sleep on the couch down there, but there wasn’t enough space. I kept sliding onto the floor. I bruised my elbow.” He holds it out for me to see.

“So you just left her?”

“It’s your birthday,” he says, like this is an explanation.

“You’re an asshole.”

“No way.” He slings a heavy arm over me. “I’m the best.”

“No, get off.” I roll away from him so that I’m practically falling off the other side of the bed. There’s a noise from the couch and Hannah turns away from us, snuggling deeper into the cushions.

“Shhhhhhhhh,” Andrew says loudly, slinging his arm back over me.

“No. You’ve got Cecilia all over you!”

“We showered, remember? I’m clean as a whistle.” He lets out a soft whistle, as if this somehow proves his point. I sigh but let him keep his arm on me, too tired to give any real protest. His phone buzzes and he lifts it back off the pillow, the light of the screen blinding us both when he clicks it on.

“Love poem from Cecilia?” I whisper. “‘O Dearest Andrew. O Captain my Captain. Why did you leave me all alone on the couch in the basement?’” I can’t see his face very well but can practically feel him rolling his eyes.

“She’ll be fine, Collins.”

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pair of tortoiseshell glasses with big thick frames, glasses I’ve always thought make him look sort of like someone’s grandpa. He always keeps them tucked away in his pocket, only putting them on when it’s extremely necessary, like he finds them embarrassing. I scoot closer so I can read the text with him. It’s not from Cecilia after all, but from Susie Palmer, Cecilia’s friend—the one who had like way too many shots and couldn’t drive.

Are you asleep? I’m alone in the guest room if you want to find me

“She realizes you just did her best friend, right?” I ask.

“I’m not gonna answer her.” He clicks the phone off so the screen goes black. My eyes take a second to adjust to the dark, and for a moment I can’t make out the shape of his face next to me on the bed. Then slowly his glasses come into focus.

“Really?”

“You sound surprised,” he says, voice soft. “I’m not that big of an asshole.”

“Or you just have a massive crush on Cecilia and you don’t want to mess it up,” I say, grinning. “I get it.”