Free Werewolves & Wisteria by A. L. Tyler

prerequisite for a class next semester that would set my whole program back a year if I missed it. I could get into your Japanese lit class, but it’s so late in the day, and I already leave so early…”
    “No,” I smiled reassuringly. “I hear you. Leave good enough alone. We can always ask Charlie to get you notes if you miss classes.”
    He sat back and regarded me, crossing his arms and looking cocky. “We could always ask Charlie to just give me my degree.”
    I grinned. “Yeah, but where’s the fun in that?”
    Our eyes met, and I waited for him to say or do something. I wanted him to make a move, and I knew I was just as capable, but I couldn’t. There was something nice in the tension between us. There was beauty in the possibilities, because before either of us did anything, there were infinite endings before us.
    I liked those quiet moments when we had challenged each other, and then we stood in a quiet standoff. We usually got interrupted, or else one of us broke it off and said we had somewhere to be.
    But this time there was no interruption, and neither of us had anywhere to go. We were in his apartment, but we were technically still in my apartment, and I wasn’t sure what the etiquette was on who was supposed to be polite and concede by talking first. Or what that person was supposed to say.
    “Do you like ice cream?”
    That hadn’t even been on my list of possible topics.
    “Who doesn’t?” I shrugged.
    We got some ice cream out of the freezer and went to sit on the couch. We worked through the assigned problem set for astronomy together, and then I went to do my women’s lit reading while he opened a math book.
    After finishing a strange story about yellow wallpaper, I looked up to see Vince working through his problem set with determination. I tried to keep my book propped up just right so that he wouldn’t see me studying his expressions, but he must have sensed that something was different.
    “What?” he asked without looking over.
    “Are you planning to kill yourself?” I asked.
    He took a deep breath, and then raised his eyebrows and shook his head as he marked another answer with his pencil. “Would I be doing math homework if I didn’t intend to turn it in?”
    “You didn’t answer the question.”
    “Yes, I did. You just didn’t like my response.”
    “No,” I said. “I didn’t. Are you thinking about it?”
    “Right now I’m thinking about math.”
    “Have you thought about it?”
    He paused and gave me a sincere look. “Yes, I have.”
    “And?”
    “And, I’ve thought about it,” he said with finality. “I haven’t made any plans, if that’s what you’re asking.”
    “Will you tell me if I need to hide the knives?”
    He raised an eyebrow. When he reached over and put a hand on my shoulder, I tried not to blush.
    “If the time comes, I would appreciate that.” He stared at me without blinking. “I’m not there yet.”
    I nodded. He nodded. We both went back to doing our homework.
    When we were done, it was late, but we decided to unwind with a little television. He turned on a reality show and went to take the ice cream bowls back to the kitchen. When he came back, he sat down on the couch next to me instead of sitting at the opposite end.
    He looked at me, and I could tell he was waiting for a reaction of some sort, but I tried to play it cool as I leaned back. He sat back, too, and we watched for a few minutes in silence.
    “Thanks for offering to hide the knives,” he said.
    I wasn’t sure what to say. “Sure. No problem.”
    We watched a little longer. I didn’t want to get his hopes up, but I felt like I needed to end the discussion on a high note.
    “Martha says she knows some people who might be able to help you,” I said.
    Vince looked over, skeptical.
    “You know,” I picked anxiously at a nail. “Just if you want it.”
    “Do you really trust her?” he asked. “Charlie doesn’t trust her, and it seems like you usually trust