Dating Makes Perfect by Pintip Dunn

Author:Pintip Dunn [Dunn, Pintip]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fake Dating Young Adult Romance, Young Adult Own Voices, Teen & Young Adult Dating & Sex Fiction, Coming of Age Fiction, Teen & Young Adult Girls & Women Fiction, Teen & Young Adult Asian Geography & Cultures Fiction eBooks, Teen & Young Adult Emotions & Feelings Fiction, Family pressure, Teen & Young Adult Contemporary Romance eBooks, own voices, Teen & Young Adult Romance eBooks, Young Adult love stories, YA Romance, Teen & Young Adult Social & Family Issue Fiction, Dating Makes Perfect, teen romance, Entangled Teen, Pintip Dunn, Netflix movies tie ins, Teen & Young Adult Family Fiction
ISBN: 9781682814970
Publisher: Entangled Publishing, LLC
Published: 2020-08-17T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Four

The doorbell rings on Monday morning, just as I’m arranging a couple of slices of toast on my plate. Mama had an early shift at the hospital, and she’s no longer trying to butter me up—which leaves me buttering my own breakfast.

“Can you get the door, Winnie?” Papa calls from upstairs. “I’m expecting a package.”

I stick a piece of toast in my mouth. Yum. I’ve prepared it the Thai way—buttered and sprinkled with sugar. Most of my American classmates think that’s weird, with the exception of Kavya, who doesn’t find anything weird. She’ll pop a fish eyeball (mm, both crunchy and tender) into her mouth without blinking—her own eyes or the fish’s. In comparison, my sweet-and-salty combo is much more innocuous. Waffles are served with butter and syrup. Biscuits pair with butter and honey. Why not sugar?

With the bread hanging from my lips, I open the door.

Ack. The toast falls from my mouth, and I hastily catch it, leaving my fingers both greasy and gritty. It’s not the mail after all, but the guy who has a habit of showing up where he’s least expected.

“Taran. What are you doing here?” I chuck the bread in a trash can and wipe my fingers on a tissue.

But I hardly need to be self-conscious. Taran looks like hell. His bloodshot eyes sit above ink-dark smudges, and his hair sticks out in every cardinal direction. Even his bark-brown skin appears wan—a feat I didn’t realize was possible. He looks like he’s been hungover for the last day and a half. And maybe he has.

“I’m sorry, Winnie,” he says without preamble. “I almost don’t remember my behavior on Saturday night. But long, terrible sequences came back to me yesterday, while my head was hanging over the toilet. I’m absolutely mortified.”

I cross my arms, more to stiffen my resolve than because of any anger. He deserves every bit of my annoyance, but I can’t help but soften at his obvious misery.

“Did you get in trouble?” I ask. The reason I never saw his parents Saturday night was because they weren’t present. Mama informed me that she ran into the Tongdees at a local restaurant. I don’t blame them for wanting a quiet meal, but their absence at a wild high school party seems awfully trusting.

Taran nods sheepishly. “By the time my parents got home, I was passed out on the bathroom floor. They didn’t even try to move me. My mom just threw a comforter over me, and I spent the night on the cold tile.” He shrugs. “It was the first time I ever drank. My dad said my hangover was probably punishment enough, but they grounded me anyway. Otherwise, I would’ve come over yesterday.”

“Seems reasonable enough,” I say, my voice as stiff as my spine.

“The punch doesn’t excuse how I treated you. I’m not saying that.”

I sigh. The alcohol’s definitely not an excuse, but I’m suddenly so tired of being mad. The amount of energy it took to maintain my animosity toward Mat was exhausting.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.