Page 94 of The Beta Test

She’s across the room sitting at her own desk, leaning towards the mirror while she heavily lines her eyes with black. She’s chosen to be Wednesday Addams for the Halloween party we’re going to in another dorm tonight.

We’ve been roommates at BU for a couple months now, and it’s been surprisingly easy. While we do frequently get into debates about nearly everything, she’s neat, tidy, and agreed to using a shared calendar so we can easily plan with each other.

Her phone buzzes with a text, and I can see her put down her eyeliner to pick up her phone in the reflection of my mirror. Her lips curve in amusement as she reads it and taps out a response. She’s been doing that a lot lately, and my curiosity has gotten the better of me. Although we do talk regularly, I’ve noticed she doesn’t volunteer private information as readily as I do with her. She’s probably sick of hearing about me and Jake, but she’s a good sport about it.

I grab my phone. Nothing from Jake since last night, which is strange—he knows Halloween is my favorite, and we'd spent the better part of three weeks debating costumes. Last year he showed up at my door, dressed and ready to trick-or-treat with Hunter and me, no questions asked. Today, radio silence. My leg bounces under the desk.

There may not be a text from Jake, but there is one from Jenna.

Jenna: Let me know when my package arrives!

Me: What package?

After answering, I set my phone aside again to continue arranging my curls. Analiese’s phone buzzes several more times, so whoever she’s texting is replying instantly.

“So… who are you texting?” I ask, trying to sound casual.

She turns sideways in her chair and starts tugging on knee-high black boots. “The guy I’ve been dating.”

“What!” I whip myself around in my chair and stare at her. “How long have you been dating?”

“About a month,” she says with a shrug. Her hands finish the first boot and tug on the second.

“How is it that we live together and talk daily, and you’ve never once mentioned you’re dating someone?”

“It’s not that big of a deal, Avery.”

“Of course it is. I tell you everything about Jake.”

She finishes tying her laces and then sits up to turn fully toward me. She cuts quite an intimidating image between her pale face makeup, black wig, and severe black dress. Analiese is also nearly six feet tall and has the most intense eyes I’ve ever seen. Whoever this guy is must not be easily intimidated!

“Exactly,” she says emphatically, but not in a mean way. “I know how worried you’ve been that this long distance between you and Jake will turn out like you and Braden. But it won’t.”

She lifts an eyebrow in challenge, but she rolls on before I can interject. “You and Jake call all the time, which I have fully supported by allowing you to book our room on our shared calendar for privacy. But I also didn’t want to stress you out with details about a guy that I’m seeing just for fun.”

It’s true—Analiese has been a steady support during my occasional freakouts over being long-distance with Jake. Even though Jake has never given me reason to doubt him like Braden did, it’s still hard not to worry.

“Do I know him?”

She glances down and starts picking at her nails—an Analiese idiosyncrasy I’ve learned means she’s uncomfortable. She must like this guy more than she’s letting on.

“Yeah, I guess so. He did go to our high school.”

She’s dating a guy at BU that went to our high school in California? The odds of that seem extremely low.

“That’s… random.”

“Not really. We started talking during that ridiculous beta test last year. Then it just kinda happened when we bumped into each other last month on campus.” She tosses her hand casually to try to play it off, but I’m not buying the act.

“You guys were matched on Connection Services?! But who is he?”

Her eyebrows slant. She clearly doesn’t want this made into a big deal, but there’s zero chance I’m letting this go. Maybe I can support her new relationship just like she’s done for me.

“We both know Connection Services was lame⁠—”

“Do we though?” I interject.

“—and it’s not like me and this guy are ‘soul mates’ like you and Jake.” She leans back in her chair and crosses her arms defensively. “He’s a hot hockey player, and he’s fun to hang out with. That’s all there is to it.”