Page 25 of Stay Toxic

“In a college dorm? Cheap beer.”

“What he means to say is, he only drinks hundred-dollar-a-glass kinda scotch when given the opportunity, but he will swallow down whatever piss the rest of us are sharing to pretend to be human,” Ari translates, smiling up at him fondly.

I can’t bear the intimate looks they share; they make me feel so damn awful for lusting for him. They’ve clearly been together for ages. I wouldn’t be surprised if they announced their engagement soon, given how close they are. And here I am, with butterflies and unsteady heart rates. I disgust myself.

I force myself to pay attention to the stupid movie, even when Sebastian flops down next to me.

On my bed.

Why is he on my bed? There’s plenty of room elsewhere.Anywhereelse. Ari’s screen’s on the opposite wall, so we’re all huddled together on my side of the room, but the others have opted for sitting on the rug.

But instead of sitting close to his girlfriend, Sebastian is right next to me. And no one seems to mind.

“How’s the wine?”

Frankly, I forgot it was in my hand. I take a sip and close my eyes.

Delicious. Of course, it’s fucking delicious.

“Good,” I croak. “Great, in fact. You’ll have to tell me where you got it.”

“My father’s vineyard.”

I can’t help it. I snort. “I should have expected that. Do you also have horses and a boat?”

“I object! A boat?” he chuckles. “It’s a yacht, darling. And let’s not pretend you weren’t also raised with a silver spoon.”

He’s not wrong there, although I’ve never flaunted my wealth the way he does. I can’t. I can barely touch any of it.

I check my phone again, just to have something to do, and I’m glad to see I missed a message.

Dear Little Miss On The Prairie,

Aren’t you an adult? Fuck your mother.

Stay Innocent

“And who makes you smile like that, huh, pervert?” Sebastian asks. “You have a boyfriend we don’t know about?”

I roll my eyes. “Hardly. It’s just my not-so-awful pen pal. He wrote‘Fuck your mother,’ and let’s just say, those words will never fail to make me smile.”

Sebastian laughs. “Ah yes! The mummy issues we never talked about. Tell me?”

I stare at my feet, awkwardly.

Ari and her brothers seem focused on the movie, so I can’t use the social setting as an excuse.

“You can tell me to butt out if you don’t want to talk about it. But you can if you feel like it.”

I’m surprised at his understanding. “I appreciate that. How about you? Any mummy issues? Daddy issues?”

“Oh no, my family life is ridiculously awesome. My parents are disgustingly in love, and they spoiled my brother and me. I have cousins—half of them are psychos, but we’re all protective of one another. We’re about the same age, and all at Rothford right now, anywhere from sophomore year to graduates like me. So I am loved and adored and cared for from all sides.”

“No drama?” I poke, finding the notion incredibly preposterous. “No skeletons in the closet at all?”

“None whatsoever.” He hesitates. “Except maybe actual skeletons in my cousins’ closets. As I said, they’re psychos. But nice to me, so that doesn’t count. There’s a pool party at the Shark House tomorrow, actually. You should come. Most of them will be there; it’ll be entertaining, if nothing else. We all tend to posture and measure dick sizes.”

I shake my head, snickering. “As much as I’d hate to miss that, I’ll have to pass.”