“Can we go, please?” I ask Jade. She groans and pushes herself off my lap to stumble over me toward Cale. “Jade.” I take her arm as she’s balancing between two rocks while whispering into Cale’s ear, but she doesn’t budge. I want to leave, but I’m obviously not leaving her herelikethis.
With the slightest tug on her arm, she flies backward, into me. God, Jade. In a fit of giggles, she looks up with her big goofy doe-like eyes and smiles. “I loveeee youuuu,” she mouths, poking one of mydimples.
“I really want to call it a night,” I tell her while struggling to stand us up. “Comeon.”
After keeping her steady for a second, I help her down the few rocks, somehow making it onto the few inches of exposed sand without tripping. “It was nice to meet most of you tonight,” I tell them, eyeballing Liam, who I’d rather not meetagain.
“Goodnight, boyyyys,” Jade slurs through aholler.
“Thank God,” I hear Liam mutter. “The last thing we need right now is twoJades.”
“Dude,” Cale hushes him. “Give her a break, will you? We don’t evenknowher.”
As much as I’d like to turn around and let him know I hear him, it’s most likely what he’s expecting or wanting. I’ll be the bigger person and ... ugh. I guess men are assholes in everystate.
The walk back to my car feels much longer than it did when we walked to the beach. It could be because we’re on a slight incline and I’ve been dragging a hundred-and-ten pounds of Jade half of the way, or it could just be my exhaustion kicking in. “I’m sorry, Jules,” Jade says as we reachthecar.
“You have a lot of explaining to do.” My tone sounds motherly, but how could she not have told me about Chip? We tell each other everything, and we’ve spoken almost daily sincesheleft.
“I’m not with both of them,” she snorts. I don’t know who both of them are, considering there were three, but I let her air herself out. “Don’t worry, Jared and Cale are cousins, or no, brothers, something, but Cale only kind of likes me, and I don’t really have a thing for him. I’ve just been bored and had no one else to hang out with, but now my bestie is here.” She ends her lack of explanation in a high-pitched baby-babble as she runs her fingers through my hair. WhataboutLiam?
I lift the passenger door handle and shove myself into the opening with Jade so I can drop her into the seat. “That is not what I was telling you to explain,” I groan with exasperation while I wrestle with herdeadweightbody.
“Fiiiiinne,” she slurs. “Liam isn’t always an ass. It just seems like he acts that way to certain women. It’s—ummmmm—he’s weird. I don’t know,youknow?”
“Nope, not that either,” I tell her, though it’s good to know it’s not just me—but my type, rather. I wasn’t aware I could be categorized so easily without saying more than a few words, but clearly, it’s possible. “Want to try again or should I spell it outforyou?”
“I want to go hommeee,” she whines, graduating from baby babble to the sounds of a small child begging for ice cream. With that in mind, I think it’s best to extract this information from her when she’s sober. Semi-drunk Jade swings one of two ways—happy and giggly, or angered and emotional, and seeing as she’s fully loaded, I think I’d like to keep things civil for tonight. I’m too tired to deal with an angry,drunkJade.
“I cheated on him.” I glance over at her wide-eyed, pressing my foot firmly on the brake because Jade was madly in love with Chip. She had their future children’s names picked out and wall colors for a house they hadn’t bought yet. He was all she spoke about foryears.
“Why?” Is all I can managetoask.
Her eyes are closed, and her head is resting heavily against the back of the seat. “Jade?” What a perfect curtain call for her. Her eyes are closed again, and I think she’s playing me this time. “Come on. I don’t know which apartment isyours.”
“122 Forester Avenue, Apartment B23,” she mutters before her breaths elongate into a comatose, inebriated state ofunconsciousness.
The foghorn ringtoneon my phone startled the hell out of me at six this morning, but I knew I’d need time to fish out my clothes and everything I didn’t unpack last night. I was too busy dragging my little life-size, adult version of Rainbow Brite up two flights of stairs into her studio apartment with one pull-outcouch-bed.
Although Jade told me she had plenty of space for me after I booked a room at the hotel, I wasn’t planning to stay with her, but getting her settled stole the rest of my energy, and I justcrashedhere.
The edge of her pull-out bed, where the metal frame meets the thin mattress, is where I slept like a pencil allnight.
It’s seven-thirty now, she’s asleep, and I need to go on a hunt for food. I’m debating whether to wake her, but she’s not a morning person, and I’m assuming she’s going to have quite the hangover on topofit.
She’s sprawled across the pull out, her arms twisted in different directions, and her legs spread eagle. Her coppery hair is everywhere, her makeup is strategically covering her face in spots makeup shouldn’t be, and she’s wearing her sequined black tank top and torn skinny jeans from last night because I only managed to get her shoes off seeing as those skinny jeans are painted onto her skin. That would have been a sight towatch.
I walk into the small galley kitchen, five feet from the edge of the bed, in search for a notepad and a pen, but the closest I find is a receipt and a crayon. Why does she have crayons instead of pens? Never mind, that’s just Jade. I quickly scribble heranote:
Off to my first day. Hope you’re feeling better, girly.I’ll call you tonightafterwork!
XOXO,
Jules
Steppingout into the cool June air, I’m welcomed with the same scent of saltwater and sand. It’s like I suddenly can’t remember what Indiana smells like. Is there even a smell to remember? I mean, there are cows ... lots of those, so there’s that “pretty” scent, but there’s nothing like this. It’s as if my lungs can take in more air here, making me feel lighter on my feet. It feelssogood.
I drive slowly down the main road in search of a place to grab food, but there doesn’t appear to be any type of chain food stores or fast food restaurants. However, there is a bakery with a parking spot right outfront.
