“Yes! Did we win?” Sara asks from her perch on my lap.

One of Sean’s teammates had just managed to sink a basket in the last few seconds of the game, but we still lost by a wide margin.

“Sorry. Not this time, Sprout.”

Sara frowns. “But this is the last time.”

It was the final game of the regular season, and I’m pretty sure this means they won’t be in the playoffs. It isn’t surprising. According to Sean, most of the decent players graduated last year.

“Do you need a ride home?” Mrs. Murphy asks.

“No, thanks. I’ll wait for Sean.”

Sara gives me a big hug and a kiss on the cheek before taking her mom’s hand and skipping toward the front entrance.

It doesn’t take long for him to come out of the locker room. “You win some, you lose some,” he says as we walk toward his car.

“So, you’re not sorry to end your high school basketball career like this?”

He raises an eyebrow at that. “My basketball career?”

Basketball has never been his thing. He’s only in it to stay in shape for track.

“Still, are you going to miss it?” I ask.

Sean shrugs. “A little bit. I’ll miss the team, but it’s not like I won’t see them around.”

Once we’re in the car and well on our way, Sean says (out of the clear blue sky), “Would it be okay if Sophie stayed at your place for a few days over spring break?”

“What the actual fuck!”

I don’t swear all that often. It doesn’t sound natural when I do. Also, I was a little too loud; my voice bounces around inside the tiny car.

I try asking again without the vulgarity and use my inside voice: “I mean, what the hell, Sean? Wait. I’m telling you right now, this is not a conversation I am going to have with you in the car. Your house or mine.” I very rarely dig in like this, but when I do, I mean business.

We drive to his house in silence.

When we get there, I follow Sean up the steps to his room. I pointedly sit at his desk and not on the bed so he can’t sit beside me. This is an interrogation, not a friendly chat.

“You may proceed,” I say.

“Honestly, Tea, I was hoping you weren’t going to make a whole big thing out of this,” he says with an apologetic look on his face.

“Think again. Spill.”

Sean sighs and lies back on his bed with his hands behind his head. “I know you didn’t originally want to meet Sophie last week, but then you did. And you two seemed to get along pretty well, right?”

“Yes. I like her just fine, but that doesn’t mean I’m looking for a roommate.”

“I know. And I’m sorry. I should have gone about asking in a different way. Things sort of happened. Sophie talked with her parents about our spring break plans after she got home on Sunday. And something came up.”

I knew that he had plans to visit her, and they had okayed the whole thing with the parents, but I deliberately did not know anything about the details.

“It turns out that I can’t stay in Pipestone like planned, because the people who usually put me up have last-minute company. So, we thought we’d see if Sophie’s parents would let her come visit me instead.”

I nod my head. That makes sense. But I don’t understand why I need to be involved. “I get that they aren’t comfortable with her staying in the same house as you. But she has relatives here, no? Not in Delton, but somewhere close by?”

“Yeah. Her aunt and uncle. And she can stay there most of the time. They live in Roseville.”

That’s a good forty minutes away from our little suburb in good traffic.

“She only needs a place for a few nights. You’ll hardly notice,” he says.

I snort. I would definitely notice.

Sean ignores my outburst. “We were talking about various things that might work, and Sophie suggested that maybe she could stay with one of my friends. And you’re my closest friend. And conveniently female.”

I make a gagging sound. “Oh, please. Why can’t the two of you lie to your parents and get a hotel room like any other self-respecting teenage couple. You know—tell them she is staying with me and go do your own thing.”

I’m not quite so pissed off anymore. I sit down on the bed so we are side by side. In spite of my irritation at having the whole Sophie thing sprung on me, I have some sympathy for Sean.

I hate going even a few days without seeing him, and we aren’t dating. Presumably long-distance would be easier for us. I mean, we don’t have a physical relationship, and I still don’t want to think about it—being apart from Sean.

Sean has a serious face on now, which worries me.

“I hate this, Tea. I hate that she lives so far away. I hate that we can’t see each other without disrupting everyone’s schedules. I hate that I’m even asking you this—that I have to get you involved at all.”

I put my hand on his. “Look, you know you can ask me for anything. But about the hotel room… If it’s the cost, I’m happy to chip in.” I waggle my eyebrows and do my best lascivious grin.

“Yeah, well. I know you don’t want to hear about my love life.”

I put my hands over my ears and say, “La la la la!” But I’m only kidding, so I unplug my ears and look at him expectantly. “Okay, and?”

“The thing is, the hotel? You and I could stay in a hotel room. No problem. You wouldn’t have to lie to your mom, anyway, and you wouldn’t think I was putting pressure on you to...” He trails off.

I roll my eyes. “Okay, so we’re talking about sex now. Talk things through with Sophie ahead of time. Agree on whatever you’re both comfortable with. It doesn’t matter what you have or have not done in the past. She can’t think that because you are staying in the same room, you expect her to have sex with you.”

“I don’t know. I don’t know what she would think. We haven’t been together for that long. I mean we haven’t been in the same space all that often. A couple times a month. I hope she knows I wouldn’t take advantage of the situation.” He bites his lip. “I also hope that I wouldn’t take advantage of the situation. It’s hard to tell if you’ve never been in a position to be tempted.”

Well now I already know more about their sex lives than I want to. “I know you. You would never.” I am very clear about this. Sean is the last person who would ever pressure a girl to do anything she was not completely enthusiastic about. He would be far more likely to move too slow. It’s a nice guy thing. And Sean is, above all else, a nice guy.

“All right, here’s the deal.” I look him straight in the eyes. “If I do this, you owe me an unspecified favor that I will collect at some point in the future. And it will be a massive ask.”

Sean squeezes me so tight I’m afraid I might break a rib. I am almost embarrassed at how happy he is with me.

I hold up a finger—not that one. “But, I’m merely an Airbnb. I’ll expect you to pick her up in the mornings and return her at night. Preferably late. I plan to have a very busy and fulfilling social life during spring break. So, don’t think for a moment I will be entertaining her. And”—I hold up my hand to stop him before he can interrupt me—“you owe me.”

The last hurdle is asking my mom. The conversation is short and sweet, as I anticipated. It goes like this:

“Hey, Mom, can Sean’s girlfriend stay here for a couple of nights over spring break?”

“I don’t know. Will it cause you any psychological trauma or emotional angst?” she asks without looking up from her reading.

“I don’t think so. I’m looking at it as a gift to Sean. Anyway, she’s pretty cool, and Sean likes spending time with her. If she stays here, he can do that. Otherwise, his spring break plans are a complete wash.”

My mom looks up. “What about your plans?”

“Ah, yes, if you remember, I have not made any plans. I plan to stay here and do nothing for an entire week. This will barely put a dent in my itinerary. She’ll only be here to sleep at night. You’ll hardly notice her. And neither will I.”

My mom nods. “You’ll have to clean out the guest room.”

I call Sean to break the news. Apparently, he relays the information in no time because I get a text on my phone almost immediately.

Gorgeous: Thanks for letting me stay with you. I hate to put you in this position.

Me: Nah, I blame Sean. Kidding. It’s fine.

Gorgeous: I will stay out of your hair as much as possible. And thanks. You are amazing.

Me: *blush*