Sidequest for Love by L.H. Cosway

Sincerely, Callum.

Afric

My phone vibrated with a call from Michaela, and I picked it up right away.

“Hello, stranger! How are you? How was New York?” I asked, excited to hear from her.

“Hey, it’s so good to hear your voice,” she said. “New York was wonderful but exhausting. We got home last night, and I slept for thirteen hours.”

Nervous energy fluttered through me. If Michaela was home, that meant Neil was home, too. I figured he’d been sleeping after the flight as well because he hadn’t called or texted in over a day. It was the longest we’d gone without communicating since he’d left for the trip. The thought of seeing him gave me way too many feelings, the most prominent being anticipation.

“Oh, I love a long, delicious sleep after getting home from travelling. So, when can I see you?”

“Actually, I was hoping we could hang out today, but I have a favour to ask.”

“A favour?”

“It’s Isaac’s birthday, and Neil and I have been given the task of organising a small, impromptu surprise party. We’ve rented a private roof bar, but because it’s so last minute, we can’t get any staff except for a barman. Would you mind helping set everything up? Sarita and Mabel have already agreed to help, but I need one more person. Please say you’ll do it? There’ll be free drinks and snacks involved.”

“You had me at roof bar. What time do you need me there?”

“Can you make it by four? The party starts at six.”

“I can make it. But there’s something you should know before I arrive.”

“Oh?” she said, a note of curiosity in her voice.

“Drumroll, please … Neil and I have kind of become friends. Really good friends, actually.”

There was a pause on her end. I expected her to express surprise and shock, but instead, she exclaimed, “Oh, my God, I bloody knew it! I knew he was hiding something. Are you two ….”

“No, no, we’re just friends. We hit it off that time I covered for you at the private screening.”

“That’s so unexpected. I thought you both rubbed each other the wrong way.”

“We did, but then he realised how amazing I am, so here we are.”

“You are definitely amazing. I can’t wait to interrogate Neil about keeping secrets from me. Okay, I better go, but I’ll see you later. I’ll text you the address of the bar.”

“See you later.”

As soon as I hung up, butterflies filled my stomach. After all these weeks, I was going to see Neil in person. A memory from the other night surfaced. I’d been so eager to call him that I’d completely forgotten what I was wearing. I’d never revealed much skin in front of Neil before, and when he got a load of me in my tight, low-cut top, I swear he almost burst a blood vessel. It was clear he was embarrassed, and it was also clear he hadn’t disliked what he saw. The idea sent a fresh wave of butterflies through me.

You’re young and beautiful and funny and kind and brilliant, and you shouldn’t miss out on a lifetime of kisses.

No one had ever spoken to me like that. Dev, nor any of my previous boyfriends, had ever expressed such sentiments. I couldn’t believe that was what Neil thought about me. I never expected him, of all people, to think of me so favourably. The bit at the end about a “lifetime of kisses” had me unconsciously lifting my fingers to lips.

Would I still hate kissing as much as I did if Neil was the one kissing me?

I wasn’t so sure.

All I knew was I didn’t despise the idea the way I did when I thought about kissing anyone else.

I’d just showered, but I still needed to find something to wear. Day to day, I never gave much thought to dressing up fancy, mainly because I spent most of my time in my bedroom. Today was different, though. Some part of me yearned for Neil to look at me in the way he had over our last video call. I wanted to see the flushed cheeks paired with the flash of heat in his dark brown eyes.

For once, I regretted my wardrobe of comfortable yet stylish designer items. I didn’t own anything that would be considered “sexy.” But for the first time in a long time, I felt like wearing something that wasn’t three sizes too big.

Rifling through my wardrobe, I finally found a black skater dress that I hadn’t worn in forever. It was conservative since it had a high neckline and long sleeves down to the wrists, but it was also tight around the bosom before flaring out over the hips. I grabbed the dress, then found some purple tights and paired them with my red Converse. Next, I styled my hair into space buns, put on a little make-up as well as a pair of large gold hoop earrings, and I was ready to go.

I studied my reflection and smiled. Yes, this outfit would do nicely.

Sarita and Mabel were waiting in the living area when I emerged from my bedroom. They’d both agreed to help Michaela with the party, too. Sarita eyed me up and down.

“Okay, who are you, and what have you done with Afric?”

I put a hand on my hip. “I’m wearing a dress. What’s your problem?”

“No problem. I’m just wondering who you’ve dolled yourself up for,” she shot back. “Is Michael Sheen going to be at this party or something?”

“You leave Michael out of this. And no, he isn’t. I haven’t dolled myself up for anyone. It’s a party. I can hardly go in pyjamas.”