The Flynn Effect

49 | go slow

Jo

WHEN I SAID tomorrow, I meant I'd brace up the next day, call Flynn and maybe suggest we meet up for coffee. Then I'd chin up, have a decent conversation with him, tell him I didn't mean any of those things I said that night and whatever happens from there would happen. And that's what I thought would happen.

Instead, I'm standing in his kitchen covered in flour with a wooden spoon in a firm grip in my hand because I'm convinced my friends are out to get me.

Now you may wonder: How ever did we get here?

Simple answer: Ellie.

I woke up this morning with my game face on and then when I grabbed my phone, Ellie had sent me a text with a bunch of pouty emojis attached to it. 'She's having a sleepover with a bunch of friends and wants me to be there. Her parents are having a date night so the house will be free for all.' Now, I never say no to Ellie which is why I heartily told her yes and packed a bunch of stuff in my bag after work. Meeting up with Flynn and talking about us would have to wait and besides, it's also his house so seeing him wouldn't be a problem. It's a Saturday after all and Talia let us off early today. What I wasn't expecting was those bunch of friends to be my bunch of friends.

In other words, Cass, Amanda, Carter and Khalid were already there by the time I got the description of Flynn's house. Cass, Amanda and Khalid already know about Ellie's condition because Flynn stopped hiding it after our encounter with Mrs Lendermann at the hospital. I'd spent a good five minutes admiring the structure of Flynn's house and well, practicing self-control since I'd be in the same space with him for the whole night. So imagine my surprise when I knock, walk in and the first thing that greets me is a slap of cake batter on my face.

Food fight, I tsked. Very mature.

And yet, here I am covered in flour from head to toe because apparently I'm not good at this game. I chuck the spoon into the bowl and whip out a scoop but just before I can aim at the object—Cass's shiny forehead—I feel something cold and slimy trickling down my head.

I turn around and find the culprit covering her laughter with her hand and backing up against the fridge. Her eyes are slightly teary. She's been laughing so much and it makes me happy. Her enthusiasm makes me laugh and when I do, she bursts out laughing and dodges a chuck of batter from Khalid.

"That's it," I say, dropping the spoon on the counter and plucking out the wet strands of hair from my face. A drop rolls down my nose and finds solace in my mouth. Whatever liquid Ellie dumped on my head, is sweet enough to make me lick my lips again. "I give up."

Cass and Khalid are doubling over in laughter while Amanda lies on the floor with her arms and legs stretched out dramatically. Everyone has some layer of flour on their bodies but it's definitely not as much as mine. Carter walks down the stairs looking very refreshed after having left us with Flynn a few minutes ago to get the batter out of his amazing hair.

He and Flynn had been grabbing blankets from the rooms and bounding the stairs by the time I walked in and both of them had joined the messy shenanigan after they'd set up the fort in the living room.

I look up, expecting to see Flynn behind him but he's alone which means he's still up there for some reason. That's good. It'd be embarrassing to let him see me like this.

"Damn," Carter laughs, trying to step over the mess in the kitchen. "They got you good. You didn't even get one shot?"

I eye his amazing hair which he's currently showing off since he's clean and spotless unlike the rest of us. He tries to help Amanda to her feet and Cass wordlessly walks over to me and hands me a bowl of pancake mix before walking back to Khalid who gives me a thumbs up.