"I've kept you waiting so long. Tell me what you need, and I'll make it up to you."
Marcus felt a sting of embarrassment at his own eagerness and quickly tried to steer the conversation elsewhere.
"Perfect! I don't have classes today, and I was hoping to find someone to have lunch with, maybe do a little shopping, just talk," Anya said, her face lighting up with a genuine smile.
"…."
He was taken aback. She wanted him to… hang out? All afternoon?
"Just lay it on me. Don't hold back. I might not be much help with the big stuff, but I'm great for small errands and heavy lifting," he said, trying to sound casual.
He wasn't an idiot. As far as he knew, the guy lucky enough to get a solo invitation from Anya for lunch and shopping didn't exist. No, that wasn't right; he existed, he just hadn't shown up yet.
Marcus had tried to orchestrate this very scenario before, but that infuriating Chloe always seemed to appear and torpedo his plans. He'd never once succeeded.
