Shanley's call came in almost instantly.
The man leaned against the sofa, his phone on speaker. He had Juniper wrapped in his arms and was smiling lazily. "Coach Melvin, let's hear it. How did you manage to scare away the girl you just confessed to?"
"You seem really happy about this, you old fox."
Hearing the sheer amusement in the man's voice made Melvin grind his teeth in annoyance.
"I am, indeed, quite happy," Shanley smirked, the laughter in his eyes deepening as he sighed contentedly. "Because my girlfriend just told me a joke, and it was pretty funny."
Melvin rolled his eyes. He felt like his already battered heart had just been stabbed a few more times.
Ahhhhh. He wanted to fight this cunning old fox.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Juniper pinched Shanley's waist before speaking up. "What do you mean scared away? Is she okay?"
"I'm fine."
Melvin sighed emotionally. Blood truly was thicker than water; his sister knew to check on him first.
There was a second of silence on the line before Juniper's exasperated voice came through. "I was asking if Janet is okay?"
Melvin was practically on the verge of tears as he whined pitifully, "Juniper!!!"
"What exactly did you say to her?" Juniper couldn't be bothered with his howling. "Do I need to go check on her?"
"I just said some things that I personally thought were quite touching," Melvin replied as he recalled the moment. "She barely said a few words, then got out of the car and ran."
"What about the gift?" Juniper pressed.
"She took it."
"Oh."
Juniper breathed a sigh of relief, leaning back into Shanley's embrace as she casually remarked, "She's probably just thinking about whether to accept you or not."
Melvin's heart tightened. He asked cautiously, "Do you think Janet will say yes?"
"How would I know?" Juniper teased on purpose. "A lot happened today. Just give Janet some time to think it over. If she doesn't like you, you can just find someone else."
Melvin's morale plummeted. He slouched dejectedly in the driver's seat.
After a while, he couldn't help but pull out his phone and text Janet: [Janet, have you thought about it? Do you want to be my girlfriend?]



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