Call It One-Sided

by Daniela Reyes

  Elena had spent the better part of almost three years disliking Marco over something he didn’t even remember. Her guess was, he’d played seven minutes in heaven to the point where one incident didn’t stand out over the rest. She sighed again and walked out from behind the counter to help Will with the last few books. They worked in silence, a forced silence.

  Elena picked up the last book, checking the author name and then finding a spot on the top shelf for it. She went on her tiptoes and stretched her arms out as far as they’d go.

  “Need a hand?”

  Elena turned to find Will close to her, but not close enough to make her freeze up. She got ready to hand him the book, knowing he’d reach the top of the shelf easily, but instead he leaned in and grabbed her around the knees, lifting her up about a foot in the air.

  “Will, what are you doing?”

  He laughed as he held her up, firmly putting her right at eye level with the bookshelf she needed. “Giving you a hand, well, more like a foot, up in the world. Now hurry, I might have overestimated my upper body strength.”

  Elena felt him shake. She rushed to push the book into the top shelf, but by the time she slid the book in between the others, Will’s grip was loosening.

  “Will,” she said. “Put me down, or we’ll-”

  They fell. Well, Will fell first and took Elena down with him. It wasn’t a hard fall, mostly because she landed on top of him and he took the hit against the carpet.

  “Ah,” he said, laughing. “That was a terrible idea, wasn’t it?”

  Elena sat up, leaning on her elbows. She turned slightly, to face Will. He had his arms around her waist, firmly, like he’d meant to catch her. Her heart beat faster. Elena waited for Will to say something else, but he laughed instead. Only when he stopped did he catch her glance.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  Elena nodded, but stayed silent. She watched Will, scanned his features as he lay there. She wondered what he would do if she leaned down and kissed him. Would he do what Cecilia did when Marco had kissed her? Cecilia. Will was dating Cecilia.

  “I’m fine,” she said. She started to get up, but Will’s hands remained around her waist. He watched her intently.

  “Are you sure?” he asked. “There’s nothing you want to tell me? Because I’ll listen no matter what it is. You know that.”

  Elena shook her head. They both stood again, neither one saying anything. She picked up the empty box of books and walked to the counter. Will followed her. She wished he hadn’t, because right now, her heart was on the verge of beating out of her chest and her thoughts weren’t aligning with what she knew was right.

  She wanted to kiss Will, more now than ever. She wanted to tell him to stop dating Cecilia, even if she was the best person in the world.

  “Elena,” Will said. “Something’s going on.”

  I’m in love with you. She wanted to say that, so it would echo from every corner of Bee’s.

  Instead she told him something she’d figured she’d have to tell him eventually.

  “The new building owner is selling Bee’s early next year. He wants to remodel it into an apartment building and we’ll have two months after our lease is up to get out.”

  “Wait, when did you find this out?”

  “Monday,” Elena said.

  “You guys live upstairs,” Will said. “You’d have to find a new place for Bee’s and somewhere to live. Can you guys do that? Would that impact your dad, his progress?”

  Elena breathed out, mostly because she’d cried the tears she had on Monday night.

  “I don’t know,” Elena said. “He said he won’t let it happen, and that worries me.”

  Will eyes widened. He was looking behind her, where the spiral staircase to the apartment was. Elena turned, following his gaze. Her dad stood there, silent and pale. He had a bowl of chips in his hand.

  “I came here to see if you guys wanted some snacks,” he said. “Also, I heard a loud sound.”

  “Dad-” Elena began.

  Elena thought back to the night they’d find out her mom had died. It’d been one call, but her dad had been different ever since. She couldn’t do that again, spend the next years rebuilding.

  “We’re not leaving. Don’t worry, I’ll handle this,” her dad said. “Trust me.” Then he turned and left.

  Elena watched him disappear up the steps. She wanted to run after him to clear things up, but she knew that wouldn’t help.

  “I can check in on him,” Will said.

  “It’s fine,” Elena said. “Talking to him about it will only make it worse. For now, just leave him.”

  “What about dinner?”

  Elena motioned for Will to stay. “I don’t think he’ll be up for it. Let me check in on him, and then we can go out to eat something.”

  “We shouldn’t leave him alone.”

  “Will, leaving him alone to think it through is the best thing we can do.”

  Elena thought about the weeks, months, after her mom’s death. When Mia’s mom had shown up to check in on them, Elena always told her that her dad was out, until Ms. Ortega stopped believing her. Eventually, she’d shown up and asked Elena where her dad was and Elena had broken down.

  She wished she could get Ms. Ortega now, ask her to come over and talk to her dad, but that wouldn’t be right. She and Mia weren’t friends. And as much as Will was here, willing to help, her feelings for him were starting to overwhelm her.

  Elena made sure Will wasn’t following her. The kitchen was empty, the table set, and the pizza ready to go. She knocked on her dad’s door.

  “Dad?” she asked. “Are you okay?”

  No answer. Elena pushed the door open. Her dad was on his computer typing something up, likely the second novel he never seemed to finish.

  He turned, slowly. “Hey,” he said. “Are you guys ready for dinner?” He shut his laptop.

  “I was thinking we could go out-”

  “No, pizza’s ready, tell Will to come up.”

  “Are you sure?”

  He nodded. “I won’t let them close Bee’s. I’ll talk to the building owner. We can sell more books, figure things out.”

  “That won’t work,” Elena said. “They’re set on selling it.”

  Her dad gave a forced smile, like all the ones he gave her when she asked if he was okay before she left for school. “I didn’t raise you to give up so easily, Elena. This is our home and our family’s business. Your mother designed the bookstore from the ground up. We’re not leaving just because-”

  Elena didn’t like this. She preferred the quiet version of her dad. This version, he looked like he was trying to believe his own lies, like the could really fix this.

  She breathed in. Now was the time to tell him, to let him see the impossibility of it all, because if she didn’t, it would get worse.

  “We owe back rent, Dad, Bee’s isn’t doing well. And we don’t have an accountant anymore.”

  “I’ve been handling things around Bee’s,” her dad said.

  “Even if Mr. Shaw let us keep our building, the rent would go up. It’d be cheaper to get an apartment out of the historic district and downsize Bee’s.”

  Elena watched her dad’s features harden.

  “Bee’s is all we have left of your mom. You don’t get to make the choice of whether we give up on it or not.”

  She stepped back this time. “How can you say that, Dad?

  “Because it’s the truth, and I’m the adult, Elena. I make these decisions. We’ll pay the rent and-”

  “With what money?” Elena asked. “Our November sales are down. I know about it, okay? I saw our books, I’ve seen the late payment notices.”

  The words came out with intended harshness. Elena didn’t realize there were tears streaming down her cheeks until she tasted salty water.

  “You knew? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because you’d break down again. You’d lose all the progress you’ve made since Mom died.
You say you’re going to handle this, but it doesn’t make sense. There is no handling it. We have to move. I know you don’t see it that way, but if we want to keep things together, we have to go.”

  “Elena-”

  Elena sucked in a breath. “I lost one parent, Dad. I don’t need to feel that I’m going to lose another.”

  Now she was crying. The tears blurred her vision. Elena stepped back toward the door. Those were the words she’d never thought she’d have to say. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire.

  “What happened after your mom died, it was a one-time thing. I went to therapy, I did the healing and the whole self-analysis thing. I’m better. And I will handle this.”

  “No,” Elena said. “Please, let’s leave it alone. We can keep Bee’s open somewhere else. It doesn’t have to be this dramatic.”

  Her dad was walking to the door. He brushed past her and out into the living room. Elena followed him.

  “Where are you going?” she asked. “Dad!”

  He turned, grabbing his coat as he did. “I’m not giving up. Bee’s is staying open.”

  Elena shook her head. “If you do this, it won’t end well. And I can’t be here when you break down from that.”

  Her dad’s face tensed. “I’ll solve it,” he said. “But if it’s too much for you, then-”

  “Then what?”

  That was when Marco stepped into the room, Will right behind him

  “Mr. Castro,” Marco said. “I know it’s not my place, but I wouldn’t say what you were going to. Elena’s trying to help. She’s right, too. Whoever bought this building won’t change their mind.”

  Elena’s eyes flashed to Marco. How had he even gotten in here? He had a shift and no reason to stop by. And now he was seeing her cry. Will was too and Elena could feel him watching her.

  “It’s not your place,” Andres said. Then he turned back to Elena. “I’ll take care of this, but if you can’t see me trying to keep your mother’s bookstore alive, then go. Come back when it’s solved.”

  The words burned into Elena’s mind. Go. Just like that. She knew she was sobbing now, because she didn’t hear when her dad left, only saw the door shut.

  She could only feel how warm her cheeks were. And there was a hand, not her own, wiping tears away. Will.

  She looked up to find a pair of concerned caramel eyes looking at her. Marco.

  “It’s okay,” he said. “Breathe. Deep breaths.”

  He wiped her cheeks. Will stood quietly beside Elena, until she calmed down enough to hear him.

  “I’ll watch the store until your dad comes back,” Will said. “Why don’t you go with Marco for now? And then you can spend the night at my place, until your dad calms down.”

  Marco gave a Will a side glance and then brushed Elena’s cheek again.

  “Come on,” he said. “Let’ go grab dinner.”

  Elena turned to Will. “I’ll be back,” she said. “Thank you-”

  “Just go,” Will said, with an accepting nod. “There’s no need to thank me.” He took a step forward like he might reach out to hug her, but then he didn’t. He looked at Marco. “You know where I live?”

  “I’ll find it,” Marco said.

  “How did you know we were here?” Elena asked.

  He shrugged. “I’ll tell you over dinner.”

  Chapter 16

  Marco sat across from Elena, his eyes on his half-eaten plate of pasta.

  Elena ate in silence too, lifting her gaze away from her plate every time a waiter passed by. She’d stopped crying a while ago, but her cheeks were still puffy, eyes glossy. It reminded him of the mortifying fact he’d wiped the tears away from her cheeks, not once either, three times. He’d reached out to touch her three times.

  Marco wondered if it went against their contract, despite it not being official. In fact, he hadn’t even printed it. The draft was still saved to his notes app.

  “How’s the ravioli?” he asked.

  Elena looked up, distracted. “It’s great,” she said. “Delicious.” She’d barely eaten two. Not that Marco had been counting. He wanted to ask her if her dad was really going to go off to try and contact whoever had bought the building. Marco hadn’t heard the whole conversation, he’d only been able to get past Will when he’d heard Elena crying.

  “I never answered your question,” Marco said.

  “What question?” Elena asked.

  “Why I was at Bee’s.”

  “Oh,” Elena said, her voice worn. “Why were you?”

  “I was bringing over the non-disclosure agreement for you to read.” Marco said the words almost in a whisper, in case some of the diners around them were being nosy. They were at Glensford Country Club’s members’ only restaurant after all.

  Elena set her fork down. “Oh.”

  He waved his hand away. “We can figure it out later.”

  “Sooner would be better,” Elena said. She picked up her fork and bit into a ravioli. “ But maybe not tonight.”

  “Some other day, then,” Marco said. “By the way, is your dad okay? He seems determined on making the impossible happen.”

  Elena shook her head. “He’s never been the same, since after my mom died. I just can’t stick around and watch him break down this time. Can we talk about something else?”

  The silence returned. Marco took a few bites of his lasagna.

  “There’s an event next Friday, a tango showcase thing,” Marco said. “Lucas gave me his ticket and an extra one. Cecilia and Will are going. I might’ve told him we were going too.”

  Elena looked at him, observed the half-eaten ravioli on her fork and then looked back up.

  “I guess we’ll have to go,” she said. “It’s part of our non-binding contract on your phone. Point number two: attend any events necessary to keep up the illusion of our fake relationship. This would count right?”

  Marco nodded faster than he wanted to. He didn’t know why he’d expected Elena to say no. Maybe it was because he felt strange paying her and then asking her to come to events with him. Up to now, they’d been the only ones involved in their fake relationship. Going to an event, especially on a double date, would make it real. Not real to them, but to others.

  “It does,” he said, trying to sound more sure of himself. Then he paused. “I’m going to ask, because I think it’s the polite thing to do. Are you okay?”

  “Better,” Elena said. “I’ll be better tomorrow too. I’ll talk things through with Will tonight. That’ll help a lot.” Marco nodded, even though he didn’t understand how Elena could spend the night at the house of the guy she was in love with, without telling him how she felt.

  A question popped in his head, and, without his permission, out of his mouth.

  “Do you sleep on his sofa bed or-”

  “It’s a studio apartment,” Elena said. “There’s one bed.” Marco must have made a face because then she shook her head. “He sleeps on the floor on a super tiny air mattress. I’ve tried to tell him I can sleep on it, but he never lets me.”

  What a gentleman.

  “Do you guys have sleepovers often?”

  “Less so now,” Elena said. “Will started dating Mia at some point. I never slept over during that time. It was too much. When they broke up-”

  “Who’s Mia?”

  Elena looked into the distance. “She used to be my best friend. I’ve mentioned her before.”

  Marco scooted his chair in closer. “Your best friend dated your other best friend who you’re in love with? And you did nothing about it? I mean, did she know you liked him?”

  “No,” Elena said. “I never told her.”

  “Wow,” Marco said. “And now you guys go to the same school and ignore each other?”

  “She goes to San Mateo Prep,” Elena said. “She’s a grade ahead of us.”

  Marco thought about it. “Mia Ortega?” he asked. He only said the name because it was the first Mia he’d thought of. She’d been at Vovô’s dinner,
probably as a part of the scholarship invitees from the school. That’s how he knew of her, well and the fact she had the highest grades in everything. Mia the Machine, that’s what he’d heard her being called. He’d never talked to her, though.

  “Yeah,” Elena said. “That’s her.” She pointed to the plate. “I think I might just get a to go box. I have a shift at Melo’s tomorrow super early, so I should get to Will’s. Text me the time and place for the tango exhibition thing and the dress code.”

  “Sure,” Marco said. He held his hand up to motion a waitress over. She brought them the bill and then took Elena’s plate to box it up.

  “I can pay,” Marco said. Then he clarified. “People are watching. And besides, if we were really dating, I’d pay.”

  Elena looked ready to argue, but then she scanned the receipt. “I’ll pay next time we get coffee, at Melo’s. I can use the employee discount.” Then she slid Marco the receipt, her face softening. “Thank you. I needed this. And obviously thank you for the food.”

  “No problem,” Marco said. He realized he’d have to check his account when he got home.

  “Oh, by the way,” Elena said. “I got a reply from a collector who might have a Preston Blanchard book, the one you requested.”

  “Really?”

  “He’s letting me go search his collection tomorrow.”

  The waitress came by to pick up the receipt.

  Marco sat up straighter. “Do you need an extra set of eyes to help find the book?”

  Why was he volunteering for something? Because it went with their plan. It could be more proof that they were a couple. He could have the PR lady call someone to take photos of him and Elena going to the collector’s house. Discreet photos, that could be released to some gossip site.

  “Uh, I guess. I mean, there’s no guarantee he has it, but you can join me.”

  “It’s a date,” Marco said. When the waitress left, he added, “A fake date.”

  Elena smiled, a full smile this time. Marco smiled back.