Read THIEF: Part 3 for Free Online Page A

“What?”
                  “You asked what made me decide not to go.Not ‘what happened,’ or ‘why not,’ or whatever.”He gives my leg a light squeeze, so subtle I almost miss it.“It’s nice, that’s all.To meet one person who doesn’t act like passing on grad school was the end of the world for me.”
                  “Well,” I say, taking a breath, “I didn’t go to college at all, so I can’t judge.And I wouldn’t want to judge, anyway.I think it’s kind of stupid the way some people act like school’s the be-all, end-all.Or that that’s the only place you can get an education.”I debate telling Alex that I’m also a high-school dropout, no diploma to my name except a GED, but decide against it.Silas was accepting of it, but then again, Silas wasn’t exactly a saint—and he definitely wasn’t the driven, globetrotting type, like Alex.
                  Alex gives me that look again, like I’ve pleasantly surprised him.“That’s how I feel, too.”
                  “Yeah?”
                  “Yeah.When I studied abroad in Australia, I realized how much of the world there is to learn from.And I realized I’d rather spend my twenties doing that—traveling—and studying on my own.Not following some rigid syllabus or worrying about thesis papers and tuition.”He moves his hand, draping his arm across my shoulder hesitantly, like a question.I sink against him for an answer.
                  “Where’s your next trip?” I ask, after a moment.“Can’t imagine why you’d want to stay here all fall and winter.”
                  Again, Alex’s movement is so subtle, I barely notice—the way his fingers graze my other shoulder, or how he shifts back, just a little, so that I sink a tiny bit further into his arm.“You never know,” he answers.
                 
     
    “Nice place.”Alex nods a thank you at the coffee I hand him, then follows me to the couch.He looks around the townhouse again.“Do you, uh…have roommates?”
                  I can’t tell if he’s asking out of curiosity—it is a pretty nice townhouse, and I don’t imagine most people my age could afford it without a roommate—or if he just wants to make sure we won’t be interrupted.If anything even happens worth interrupting, that is.As far as I can tell, he really did want to come in for coffee, and we really are about to watch a documentary on Australia, nothing more.
                  “Just me,” I shrug, opening Netflix on the television.I hand the remote to Alex and watch him type the title into the search bar.He squints at the screen, typing slowly.“You okay?” I ask.
                  He glances at me, blushing.“I, uh…I’ve got crappy vision, to be honest.”He reaches into his coat pocket, thrown over the arm of the sofa, and pulls out a case.“See?” he says, putting on a pair of glasses.They’re Ray-Ban style, the frames made of thick black plastic.I can tell the lenses are strong, but not enough to warp his eyes.“I didn’t want you to see the nerdy me on our first date.”
                  I laugh, adjusting the glasses on his ears.“I think you look nice,” I tell him.“Distinguished.They complement your cheek bones.”I blush as I say it, but Alex smiles.
                  “Really?I’ve always hated glasses, but I hate contacts even more.The thought of touching my eye freaks me out.”
                  “Like this?”I poke the white of my eye with my pinky, laughing as Alex shudders.
                  “Don’t do that!It’s seriously the grossest thing ever.”He laughs too, then grabs my hands and holds them still.We pause for a moment, my hands trapped inside his, our faces just an inch or so apart.I think of the last time I saw my reflection like this—inside Silas’s sunglasses, the day he left for