My eyebrow shoots up, surprised that out of anyone, she’d be the one suggesting this. “Are you sure?” A foot hits me under the table, and I know that it was Mom’s. Holding in my grunt, I clear my throat. “I appreciate that, Ma, thank you.” Mom must’ve been convincing her all week to do something like this. Looking over at her, I see her blue eyes dancing with mischief.
We share a smile, and our moment is interrupted by Ma. “You’ve been with my daughter for a little while now, Levi.” My eyes widen slightly.Crap,so close.
Levi clears his throat. “Yes, three months now.”
“Ma,” I warn, wanting her to be nice.
She puts a hand up, shushing me, and my dad halts his conversation with Jake and Emma, noticing the sudden shift. Ma looks around at us. “For the love of God! I was only going to ask that he keep an extra eye out because she’s exhausted, but too stubborn to go home and rest instead of celebrate, which I completely understand,” she quickly recovers.
Collectively, we let out a breath. Ma looks offended, and she opens her mouth to say something else before Mom interrupts. “Okay, why don’t you kids get going?”
Everyone at the table thanks my dad for the meal, and begins to gather their things as I say my farewells until Sunday, when I’ll see them again.
My dad kisses me on the cheek. “Bella!” he says, and squeezes my cheeks. I laugh and smack his hands away. We’re walking out of the pizza place when Dad starts yelling something. “Have fun and dance a lot and drink a lot and make out with lots of people—ow, Evelyn!” My dad’s ear is yanked back by Ma when I turn. I debate on going back to the table, but Mom shakes her head, silently telling me to run away while I still can.
“Yeah, listen to your mom,” Levi whispers with a chuckle.
Leaving my dad in the hands of Ma, I follow the group out the door.
It’s for the best.
“Taki Taki”by DJ Snake plays overhead at King’s Wolf as Luna, Kami, and Jenny dance on two different tabletops.
Em is fighting Kami, claiming she’s not drunk enough to dance the way Kamila is. Kamila is indeed tipsy, but needs no drinks to dance. Levi and I joke about the way that Cameron admires her, while also glaring at any man he finds getting within an inch of the table.
Meanwhile, on the other side, Brad stands mesmerized by the girl he has a massive crush on. He joined us tonight, and surprisingly, he and Levi got along well. Levi must’ve noticed how head over heels Brad is for Luna, and ended up buying the guy a pity beer because she’s been making him work for it for months now. The girl is having fun making him beg, but I can see that she likes him too. As soon as the thought hits me, Lunamoves her hips downward until she’s on all fours and crawls to Brad, singing the lyrics to the chorus, giving him a performance that’s worth multiple twenty-dollar bills.
“This is the best night ever!” Jake yells from Levi’s side.
I shove Jake for staring directly at Jenny, who’s also doing a wild dance of her own.
“No,” I say firmly, and point a finger at him. “Anyone but her.” The last thing I need is for any drama to happen between my friends due to a one-night stand.
Jake rolls his eyes. “Unfair.”
Levi whispers something into Jake’s ear, which causes him to glance at Jenn, then me, and he smiles empathetically. “Fine, I’ll be a saint for the rest of the night. With her at least,” he clarifies.
“Thank you.” I tip my head back and give Levi a peck for whatever he said to his best friend that saved me from sounding like too much of a nag.
He shoots me a wink and takes a sip of his beer. I managed to convince him to get a third one, and he has just begun to feel some sort of buzz. Levi is twenty-one years old and needs to have fun. I don’t want to stop him from doing something every college student does. He looks happy and relaxed, which in turn makes me feel the same way.
“S&M” by Rihanna begins to play, and I feel a hand tug at my arm. Shooting my head at the person who currently has me in their hold, I’m surprised that instead of Jenn’s dark brown eyes, I’m met with amber ones.
Kami grins from ear to ear. “Come on, it’s your turn.”
My face reddens instantly. “I can’t dance like that,” I state, pointing to Luna, who’s standing straight again and swaying her entire body as if no one else is in the room.
Kami’s lips press together into a flat line. “You stood up onstage for eight performances, singing and acting in front of over two hundred people every night, and now you’re telling meyou can’t dance on a table in front of half of that number of strangers?” She lifts a brow.
Well, when she puts it like that.
“Screw it, why not?”
“Yes!” I hear Jenn yell. “Fucking finally.”
Jenn is so far gone and hasn’t yet noticed how much I’ve changed in the last couple of months. She barely tried to convince me to dance with her earlier, probably assuming I could never be swayed. She looks shocked and excited, making me laugh. Jenn is getting to know new sides of me that only Levi and this group have been able to bring out.
Swiveling my head to Levi, who’s looking straight at me, I see him smirk.Good luck, he mouths.
