Complicated by You by Kenya Wright Page A

the chorus of “Sinnerman” woke me up. It was my phone ringer designated to all of the most disruptive college students I tutored, which is why I ignored it, rolled over, and covered my head with my blanket. The phone rang again. I growled and jumped up. Fuzzy curls shielded my face from the light seeping through Cynthia’s blinds. Two humps lay on her bed. Jay was still there. I snatched up the phone as more lyrics flowed out. Chuck’s name glowed in purple on my phone’s screen. I’d tutored him last year. He made an appointment with me through email for a tutoring session this weekend. Knowing him, he was calling to cancel.
    I held the phone to my ear. “Hello?”
    “Evelyn? This is Chuck. Do you have any idea where Jason went after he left your room early this morning?”
    I yawned. “He didn’t leave. He’s still sleeping here.”
    “Wake his stupid ass up, please. He’s three hours late for Saturday morning practice. Coach has been brutal with us, making us run insane drills until one of us finds him.”
    “I’ll do it.”
    “You rock! By the way, I can’t make it to tomorrow’s tutoring session.”
    “Whatever.” I already knew what was coming next.
    “You think you could do my homework for me?”
    “How long is it?”
    “Five pages of math shit.”
    “What topic, Calculus?”
    “No way. I’m not that smart. Applied Math 1. I’ll give you twenty dollars.”
    “Fine with me. Email me the stuff. I can do it without your book.” I hung up, forced myself to get out of my bed, and tiptoed over to Cynthia’s bed. She rested on his bare chest while he slept on his back with his mouth half open and his arms spread out.
    Still sleeping with your mouth open, dickhead?
    I remembered back in the day how I would put things in his mouth while he slept like gobs of toothpaste, mud, or our best friend Piper’s dirty underwear. He would wake up coughing and spitting the crap out and then chase me around the house until he caught me. Next came the assault of tickling and anything else he could think of. When Mom found out I was putting things in his mouth while he slept, she ruined the pranks by saying that he could have choked on that stuff and died. It was the only thing that saved him from my and Piper’s future torture.
    “Jay.” I tapped his shoulder, trying not to wake up Cynthia. He didn’t move. I formed my fingers into a fist, drew it back, and punched him in the area under the ribs like he taught me long ago, after this bully had given me a black eye.
    “What the fuck, Evie?” He held his sides and hadn’t even opened his eyes, but still he knew it was me. “Why do you always have to punch me?”
    “You’re late for practice. Three hours late. Coach is killing the whole team over it.”
    Grumbling, he lifted Cynthia up and carefully placed her on the other side of the bed. “Damn. Then it was okay to punch me. How did you find out?”
    “Chuck called.”
    He got up into a sitting position, rubbing his face and sliding his legs to the side of the bed. “Why does Chuck have your number?”
    “Because we’re having hot sex on the side.” I turned around and got back into bed.
    Hard footsteps banged behind me. Within seconds, he wrapped his hand around my arm. How the hell did he get to my bed so quickly? The mattress shifted down as he put his knees on my bed and pulled me up to him. Lines of sunlight adorned his face and made those green eyes sparkle. “You’re joking, right?”
    “What?” I squinted and gestured to his hand. “Let go of me before I punch you in your balls next.”
    “Answer the question. Are you having sex with Chuck?”
    “Yes. I’m joking.” I checked Cynthia’s bed. She’d already rolled over and put her back to us.
    “Why does he have your number?” He quirked his eyebrows.
    “I tutor him. That’s why. You know that.”
    “You said you stopped last semester.”
    I yanked my arm away from him. “Go to practice before the whole team unites and