My Type of Socializing | ✓

Chapter 22

It was a Saturday evening, and Assad was running around trying to set things up. He and Adam had walked to the convenience store to grab some things for his friends. Chips, alcohol, some dips. Assad was also currently checking up on the kebabs he was making with the oven.

"Does this look ready?" he asked, stepping aside so that Adam could have a good look at the meat.

"Yeah," Adam said, despite knowing very little about cooking or using an oven.

"Great." Assad got up before stretching his back. He looked down at his watch before turning off the oven. "They should be here in a few minutes, Rodney said they're a block away in the car."

Adam nodded, forcing himself to smile. Sure, he had said he would like to meet Assad's friends, and sure, Assad had given him a full week to change his mind, but it didn't negate the fact that he was nervous, and his selective muteness was acting up when the men weren't even here.

They're just college kids. Adam said to himself in his mind. Just college kids. His self-affirmations didn't work. College kids were also rowdy and could be mean.

Assad was rambling to Adam about something they'd forgotten to buy when there was a knock on the door. They both turned towards it, and before Assad could say anything a quirky voice yelled from the other end.

"Open up Assad!"

"Reece!" The dark-skinned man said, grinning before heading to the door. He unlocked it, opening it to reveal three men that were anywhere from their late teens to early twenties. The man, Reece, looked the most like Assad. He was equally tall, with dark skin and a big smile. The other two that strolled in were shorter. One identified himself to Adam as Rodney, and Adam noted that the man with green hair who had made a line to the chips and dip was called Milo when Assad scolded him.

"Adam?" Reece asked, looking over at the older man when Assad moved to talk to someone else.

Adam nodded his head.

Reece chuckled. "So, I guess you not being a big talker is true?"

Adam felt his face warm up as the man reached out to tap his shoulder.

"Just take care of Assad for us," he said before walking past Adam to grab a can of beer from the counter.

Throughout the evening, Adam didn't understand most of what was being said. The college kids spoke too fast about situations and things he didn't know about, but he didn't feel left out. Assad day next to him and had a hand over his shoulders. Sometimes he would directly ask Adam a question, and the others would jump in too, using the opportunity to ask about the man. They were impressed when they heard who he worked for, and even more impressed when Assad told them what comic he drew.

"No way!" Milo sounded way more excited than he should have been. "Your Art is awesome, dude." He said with a hipster drawl as he dusted the lays dust off his studded skinny jeans.

An hour soon became two, then three. The trio called things off when they'd been loitering about the apartment for five hours. Assad got up, helping them pack some leftover kebabs in tinfoil before escorting them out of the apartment building.

While Assad was gone Adam sat still on the living room sofa, licking the part of his teeth where beef had gotten stock as he picked at the lint of his pants.

He thought about Assad's friends and smiled a bit to himself. He hadn't said much and had kept his eyes low, but he had gotten a general idea of what they were like. They were overly friendly, and a bit rowdy—just like Assad when Adam had met him. Adam had done the bare minimum when interacting with them, but he was hopeful that he would do better next time—if there was a next time.