I nod a handful of times, convinced I look like a bobblehead as I fumble with a small pink box. Once the treats are situated, I ring up his order and give him the total.
“Mind if I add one more thing to my order?”
“And what’s that?”
“Your number.”
My mouth opens in surprise before closing just as quickly. I’ve never been in this situation before. “Umm….”
“Is that a no?” he teases, trying to hide his surprise with a quirked brow and a challenging tone.
“Umm….”
The bell on the front door dings my salvation, and I catch myself holding my breath like I’ve just gotten caught doing something I’m not supposed to. Eyes darting to the entrance, I freeze.
“Conner?” Levi asks, staring at the stranger across from me.
“Hey, man. What’s up?” The stranger lifts his chin at my best friend while I watch the interaction.
“What are you doing here?”
“I saw the box on your desk yesterday and figured it must be good, so I stopped by.” Conner looks back at me and smirks. “Best decision I’ve made in a long time.”
Tension builds in the tiny shop, not one of us saying a word. I don’t know what started it, or why it’s here in the first place, but when I finally make the connection, I want to scream.
“Wait,” I start. Both their heads snap in my direction. “You’re Conner?”
Conner nods. “Yeah. Conner Daniels. Nice to meet—”
“You’re Conner Daniels? As in Asshat Conner Daniels?” The second question is meant for Levi, and he hears me loud and clear.
“Charlie—” Levi starts, but Conner cuts him off.
“Asshat Conner Daniels? Am I missing something? Wait. This is Charlie?” he asks Levi, hooking his thumb over his shoulder to point right at me. “Charlie, as in your best friend Charlie, who never wants to hang out at our place?”
“That’s the one,” Levi quips. His long gait eats up the distance between himself and the rest of us.
“You never told me Charlie was a girl,” Conner accuses.
Throwing my head back toward the ceiling, I laugh dryly. “Of course you would say that. You’ve been making fun of my gender since I was in freaking elementary school.”
“Wait, what? What are you talking—”
“Don’t act like you don’t remember, Asshat Conner Daniels. I went home bawling my eyes out on the bus more times than I can count because you refused to let a girl play kickball at recess, insisting that my tennis shoes from Payless were trash, and I should work harder on growing my hair out––and some boobs––to help cover up the fact that I have a boy’s name. Any of this ringing a bell?”
The blood drains from his face while it seems all of mine has rushed to the surface, turning me into a giant red tomato.
“Shiiiiiiit,” he mumbles under his breath.
The reverberating sound of Levi’s hand slapping down on Conner’s shoulder is the only noise in the whole place, echoing louder than a cracking whip in the silent bakery.
“Let me walk you out.” Levi doesn’t give him a choice. He simply shoves Conner out the door with the pink box still in his hands.
Once he’s officially taken out the trash, Levi rounds the counter without asking for permission and pulls me into a hug behind the register.
“You’re a badass, Charlie. You were a badass in elementary school for putting up with his shit, and you’re a badass right now for standing up to him and telling him to go to hell.”
My emotions flood through me from all sides, but I try to force a thick swallow to keep them in check.