Page 114 of Hunt Me

Nico stares. Waits. ‘I’m what?’

Fayid huffs, then gestures to all of Nico—a slow up and down from his toes to his face.

‘Camboy? Hooker? Whore?’ Nico mouths each word, spelling them to emphasize.

Fayid’s cheeks darken, and he quickly stands up. ‘Sorry. This was a mistake.’

He leaves before I can stop him, not that I would. Not now. We definitely have an audience, and while I’m used to that, this isn’t how I prefer to be noticed in public. Especially when I’m not in drag.

I look over to Nico, who’s now hiding his trembling hands under the table. I want to tell him Fayid really is a nice guy, and whatever he was trying to say, it wasn’t offensive, but Nico’s upset, and it seems unfair for me to invalidate that.

I have to talk with Fayid and make him fix this because he’s never been like this before. Ever. He can be awkward at the bestof times, but he hasn’t shit the bed in conversation like this in…well. Ever.

Not that I’ve seen.

The last time he ever stumbled over his words was with his current girlfriend. That left him a whole mess. But he’s straight, so clearly he’s not into Nico that way.

Something twitches in my awareness, but before I can dig deeper, Nico stands. ‘I’m sorry. Can we go? I changed my mind.’

At this point, the brunch is ruined anyway, so I nod and hop up, following as he makes a very short beeline through the crowd and out the front door.

I can see his breath heaving in his chest as he storms toward the college, and it takes me a moment to catch up with him. My body’s still struggling after being attacked, and I’m slightly winded by the time I can grab his arm.

‘Slow,’ I beg.

He pulls both hands through his hair, then takes a deep breath. ‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to lose it. I just…’ His hands hover, fingers twitching slightly. ‘I don’t know why it’s getting to me so much right now.’

I frown. ‘Fayid?’

‘Not just him. The fans. Strangers who think they know me. Who think they’re entitled to my time and communication. I get so many hateful messages from people because they think just because they pay money, they’ve bought a piece of me.’

My heart twists.

‘And then people like Fayid think I don’t deserve to be seen in public spaces. It’s fine for me to exist for pay on the internet, but god forbid I want to enjoy a brunch…!’

I quickly take Nico by the shoulders and squeeze. When he takes a calming breath, I let him go. ‘Fayid is being a jackass, but he does that when he’s nervous. I don’t know why he’s like that with you right now, but I promise he’s a good man.’

Nico bites the inside of his cheek. ‘You’re biased.’

‘Yes. But Archie also likes him, and you know he’s an amazing judge of character.’

Nico’s shoulders sag. ‘Yeah?’

I nod. ‘I promise. I can talk to him and find out?—’

‘No,’ his hand interrupts, snapping sharply between us. ‘No. It’s fine. It’s not like Fayid and I are going to become friends. I’ll try harder not to take it personally.’

I want to tell him he doesn’t need to shoulder that burden, but I have a feeling he will, no matter what I say. ‘Want to run up to my office with me? I have a couple drinks in my mini fridge and a drawer full of chocolate.’

His eyes brighten. ‘Yeah?’

‘Yes. And it’s summer before the first session, so there won’t be anyone around. It’ll be nice and quiet. Peaceful.’

Nico breathes out a sigh of relief. ‘Thanks. Sorry for being too much.’

I tug on his arm. ‘You are not too much.’

Part of me wants to hug him, but I have a feeling he needs space right now, so instead, I keep close, hoping that while I’m not his best friend, maybe I can be seen as an extension and offer him part of the peace that Archie can.