The Favor, Part 1

-A week later-

Frowning, I pinch the small, white card jutting out from the door frame of my apartment and bring it closer to my face, as if it'll make a difference to the neat writing scrawled across its textured center.

-

Sorry. Call me.

- Seth

-

And his number is sprawled neatly along the bottom. I rub my lips together, unsure if I should throw the card or keep it. A week has passed since the disastrous dinner with Seth at Salsas. I haven't gone to the gym to avoid him, and Dad has been blowing up my phone with his concern. He tells me Seth has been distant and more aggressive at training than usual. He tries to bait me into confessing I've got something to do with it, but I play dumb. The weekend is coming up. I'm sure Seth can find another female to occupy his time. Come Monday, he will have forgotten all about me.

Despite myself, I save Seth's number in my phone and slip it into my back pocket. It warms the fabric of my jeans and weighs me down, like a loaded gun.

Sighing, I unlo