I enjoy seeing him like this—happy, free in a way I can never quite find myself to be. That realization alone is enough for me to retreat into my shell, and as Blake’s winning streak continues, I excuse myself to cleanse my nostrils of the scent of cheap beer.
The bass from the music booms through the house like an earthquake, and the darkness paired with the crowds makesit hard to see where I’m going. I push through the bodies, following the soft breeze that sometimes rears its head, signaling an open door or window nearby. It’s only a matter of finding it.
“Alexis!”
I turn to find Levi lounging on a worn-out leather chair, my sister sitting on the ground at his feet. They are in what I assume to be a former den, the books on the bookshelves replaced by team photos and trophies. There is an untouched game of chess at the coffee table and a guy I don’t recognize scribbles on a large sheet of paper while others guess letters and take shots when they’re correct.
So, hangman with booze. The creativity of college students knows no bounds.
“Hey, guys. Having fun?”
“Oh yeah, I’m having an absoluteblast. If you’re here to take me home, don’t bother. Levi has already taken it upon himself to make sure I don’t have a drop of alcohol.” My sister rolls her eyes in annoyance, though I can see the anxiety in her eyes.
“Well, yeah. You can’t exactly go into your driving test drunk, can you? Not twice, anyway.” I give her a pointed look, but my sister just shrugs.
“I thought it might make a difference.”
“And it did. You didn’t just fail, you were banned from the place,” Levi smirks. Alissa glares at him without a word. She’s been failing her driving tests for years, and even if she somehow passes the next one, I won’t be a passenger in her car without a gun to my head.
“Really, why are you here, though?” Alissa looks me up and down, no doubt spotting the dress I stole from her closet. We’re practically the same person, anyway, so what’s a little theft between sisters?
I open my mouth but before I can say a word a familiar voice bellows through the room, drowning out even the loudest music. “There’s my better half!”
Blake’s arms snake around my waist and he burrows his face in the crook of my neck. Am I dreaming, or are those kisses he’s pressing to my throat?
If I’m dreaming, never wake me up.
From the ground, Alissa is shaking her head with a knowing grin, but Levi doesn’t share her laughter. He looks almost angry as he takes us in, and that’s enough for me to tug at Blake’s sleeve to get him to stop.
The smell of beer on his breath almost takes me out, but it’s what’s behind him that makes my stomach tighten with dread. I grab Blake’s arm, pulling it tighter around me like a shield so Hudson can’t see me, can’t hurt me.
Blake vowed to protect me, but he did so sober. I have no idea what drunk Blake thinks or what he would do, or how much of this is even real. I have to trust that he will keep his word.
“Hey babe,” I say. “Winning streak over?”
A big, goofy grin spreads across Blake’s cheeks as he shouts a little too loudly, “Never. With you in my arms, I’m a winner every damn day.”
Even while drunk, Blake knows just what to say, even if the words are corny as hell. I know I shouldn’t, but I laugh so hard at the sheer ridiculousness of it that tears crowd my eyes and I gasp for air.
“C’mere,” Blake mumbles. His body engulfs me like a weighted blanket and then I’m lifted into the air, his hands firm on my ribcage as he spins us in place. My laughter is audible even over the loudest song of the night and I wonder what is happening to me, why my smiles and laughs appear so easily when it comes to him.
In my peripheral vision I see Hudson shaking his head, his face unreadable. But it’s the camera crew behind him, their lenses pointed straight at us, that makes my heart hammer in my throat.
Guess we’re doing this.
I cup Blake’s face in my hands, still spinning as I bring my lips down to his skin. My lips barely brush his before traveling up to kiss his forehead—fine, I chickened out on kissing him. But couples kiss in other places, right?
Blake stops our spinning at once. His bright blue eyes are filled with wonder as he looks at me. He lowers me gently, inch by inch until my feet touch the ground, and as his fingers brush my cheek I can only hope he’s about to show me what a real kiss looks like. I lean forward, my heart leaping from my chest as he?—
Dashes away. And he dared to jest about the thought of kissing him giving me a rash.
Before I can stop him he has disappeared into the crowd, emerging moments later on the original hardwood stairs. I don’t waste a second before going after him.
The door closes just as I reach the pitch-dark landing and I push through the couples searching for a discreet place to have some fun, knocking on the door moments later.
“Go away.” Blake’s voice sounds strangled; not surprising, since he made the rather stupid decision to start spinning with that much to drink. No wonder it’s all coming back up again. “You don’t want to see this.”
I roll my eyes.Like I’ve never seen anyone throw up before.Hell, once you’ve had someone else’s vomit cover you, the whole thing loses its gross factor.
