Free Fat Cat by Robin Brande

not because it's vegetarian--Cave Girl has no problem with that--but it's just totally bland and either over-or undercooked, depending on what you order and whether there's a full moon that night. Kidding. Sort of.
    Jordan always gets two veggie burgers with extra onions and pickles so he can hide the taste and pretend they're real hamburgers, and I always order the sweet potato fries. So far that's the only semi-decent thing I've found on the menu.
    But it doesn't matter. We're not there for the food. We're there because Jordan and I both love Amanda to death.
    And so does the crowd. Ever since she started showing up there last year, Amanda has actually developed a following. People come up to her afterward and want to talk about her poems. I overheard an English professor asking her if she'd decided on a college yet--and trying to persuade her to stay here and join his program.
    As usual Amanda takes the whole thing in stride--I don't think she even notices that none of the other poets get even a fraction of the attention she does.
    "It's not a competition," she told Jordan when he tried to point that out one night.
    "The hell it isn't," Jordan said. "Then why do you keep winning?"
    "There aren't any prizes," Amanda said. "We're all just fellow artists. We all have something to say."
    "You just say it better," Jordan answered, kissing her on the cheek.
    Love him. For her.
    Although I have to admit it's times like that when I almost wish I weren't there. I love the two of them together, but sometimes it hurts just a little too much to always be the third wheel.
    Tonight Amanda was the last one to go after eight other poets. When the emcee finally called her name, Jordan leaned over and whispered, "Kick some a." Amanda rolled her eyes and then glided up to the mike. And proceeded to once again charm everyone in the place.
    As applause rang through the cafe, Jordan looked toward the door and gave someone a nod. I turned to see who it was.
    Matt.
    "What's he doing here?" I asked Jordan.
    Jordan kept clapping. "I don't know, I told him to stop by."
    Amanda returned to the table, still glowing from the crowd's reaction. Jordan gave her a hug.
    By then Matt had crossed the room. Amanda looked up and her smile quickly faded.
    "Hey," Jordan said.
    "Hey." Matt stood there, his hands in his pockets. "That was great," he told Amanda.
    "Thanks," she said, picking up her glass and taking a sip.
    Jordan borrowed a chair from the nearest table and swung it into the space beside me. "Have a seat."
    Matt hesitated.
    "I have to go to the restroom," I blurted out, standing. Amanda got up, too. I felt stupid, retreating like that, but I didn't know what else to do.
    "What's he doing here?" I asked Amanda as we wove through the tables. Strangers nodded and smiled at her. I don't think she noticed.
    "I have no idea."
    "Jordan didn't tell you?"
    "No," Amanda said as we pushed through the bathroom door. "I know they had a swim meet today--they must have talked about it then."
    "I wish he'd told you," I said.
    "Me too." Amanda ducked into a stall while I stayed at the sinks, surveying myself in the mirror. My skin looked a little better than it did when I first started the project two and a half weeks ago, but that might have been just because of the weak lighting. My hair was its usual wild mess. And even though my jeans were just the slightest bit looser, it's not like I was a beauty queen. I hadn't planned on seeing anyone I cared about tonight.
    I mean, other than Amanda and Jordan. And not that I really care about Matt. Anymore.
    Amanda came out and washed her hands. "So what are you going to do?"
    "I don't know. Ignore him."
    "You can't," Amanda said. "Not with Jordan sitting there. You have to act like nothing's wrong--otherwise he's going to ask a lot of questions."
    "I hate him. I mean, not Jordan--"
    "I know that," Amanda said. "Just pretend."
    We returned to the table, and Amanda sat by Jordan. I took my seat beside Matt. But I wasn't