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Neil sips his mango honeydew green tea drink. He’s hooked on them, and he’s the last to admit it. Allison had first given one to him when he came over to watch a movie, but now she’s his regular supplier. Something about a classmate being a “brand ambassador”. Of course, Allison doesn’t like them, but something about the mango-y-but-not-actually-mango taste makes Neil only want more. They’re not sweet enough for Andrew, and everyone else says they taste like shit. Neil finds himself standing up to pee every 20 minutes.
He tells himself it’s the price he has to pay for bliss. His tea doesn’t feel like bliss now, working his way through the lengthiest goddamn homework problem he’s ever been assigned. Sometimes Neil doesn’t know why he even bothers.
Pausing to take another sip of his drink, he looks around the library at the clusters of students chattering away about projects and losing their shit over essays. It’s admittedly calming, knowing he’s not so alone.
He spots a girl sitting at a busier table, looking at him while talking to her friend. Neil doesn’t feel unsafe, he almost never does nowadays, but he can’t tell if she’s talking about him or just looking in his direction. Unfazed by what is probably far too prolonged eye contact, Neil stares back, wondering when she’ll look away.
Surprisingly, she doesn’t. She stands, pushing her chair out, her blue floral dress sweeping at her calves. She walks toward him, smiling, her face framed by shiny blonde hair.
“Hey,” she says, leaning over the table a little. “I’m Taylor. What are you working on?”
Neil looks down with her at his paper filled with nearly incomprehensible scribble. He can only read it if he tries hard enough. “Math problem.”
“Ooh, you like math? I’m majoring in bioengineering,” she says, meeting his eye. Her face has an air of mischief. From such close proximity, eye contact is a little jarring.
“I’m majoring in math,” Neil says, unsure of what he’s supposed to say.
Taylor seems happy with this answer. She smiles at him, more cheerful than her usual upbeat expression. She’s about to say something else when she notices the bottle on his desk. “Is that MyTea? I love those! What’s your favorite flavor?”
“Uh, this one,” Neil replies, turning the bottle in his hand. “Mango honeydew green tea.”
“Those are good! My favorite is the strawberry mint, have you tried it?” Her eyes go round like she’s waited her whole life to ask him.
“No,” he says. “It sounds good, though.”
“I’m addicted to it,” she tells him. “Listen, Neil,” she says, glancing at his name on the math paper. “My friends and I thought you seemed really cool. Do you want to come over to the party we’re throwing on Friday?”
Neil tilts his head slightly. “Uh, no thanks. I usually have plans on Fridays.” It’s not a lie, but he’s still unsure of what’s being asked of him. It sounds like she’s asking him out or something of the sort, but she did mention her friends. Neil reasons it’s something else. He always finds it a little too arrogant to assume everyone who talks to him is hitting on him.
Taylor takes a small breath and seems to steady herself. “Okay then. Would you like to go out for coffee with me sometime next week, then?”
Neil’s almost sure she’s asking him out. “Like on a date?” he asks. It couldn’t hurt to clarify.
She huffs out a smile. “Yes, on a date.”
Neil feels an embarrassed blush creep around his neck. “Oh, no thank you,” he tells her.
She smiles at him again. “No worries! Good luck with your math. If you get stuck, I can try to help.” Her voice is kind, but not in any way he knows.
She turns to walk back to her table. Neil pipes up. “Wait,” he calls. She swivels back around to face him. “Uh, if you want to go to that new juice bar next week, it might be fun.” He grimaces a little at his delivery. “As friends,” he tacks on.
Her eyes light up again. “Sure! Sounds like fun!” She scribbles her number on a post-it note next to him. “Text me and we can work out a time. It was nice meeting you, Neil!” She waves and walks off, a little more bouncy this time.
Neil watches her sit back down with her friends. Allison always said he needed to get around more and meet new people. It would probably be awkward, but Neil had lived through worse.
Just as he looks away from her table, Andrew pulls out the chair on his other side, dropping languidly down next to him. “Who was that?” he asks, raising an eyebrow minutely.
“A friend, I guess,” Neil replies. It doesn’t sound as terrible as he thought it would.
Andrew just shrugs and steals his drink, taking a sip.
He makes a face when he tastes it, even though he’s tried it at least a few times before. “That’s godawful,” he tells him. “I don’t know how anyone can even tolerate that for more than 8 minutes.”
“I wonder,” Neil says. He laughs, just a little.