“Because we’re preparing for the game and the coach is doing nothing but scream behind me. And he’s right. I’m a disaster when I’m on my meds.”
His confession made me sad.
“Football isn’t everything, Will,” I said.
“Shut up,” I heard James say from the other side of the room.
“You know I’m right, that’s why my words upset you,” I replied, as James glared sharply at me.
“Oh my god, not even shoving a joint in her mouth shuts her up.”
“If you aren’t capable of shutting a girl up, it’s certainly not my fault.” That was really sexist, but I didn’t care. My only instinct was to answer him in kind.
“Practical demonstrations are free, Snow White. Do you want to try?”
I looked far away from James and his obscene provocations.
“You were saying, Will?”
“Nothing, it’s just, those meds suck. They make me tired and make me not want to do anything. I don’t want to go out, hang with friends, or even be with a girl. It’s frustrating at our age,” he admitted.
“Meaning?”
“Your girlfriend wants a drawing, Will,” retorted James, giggling.
I’m not his girlfriend.
“Having just stopped taking them is another story,” murmured Will, staring at my lips.
I realized I’d completely lost the plot. Why wasn’t William jealous anymore?
Was breaking up with him enough to make me less special in his eyes? Or maybe kissing Ari was so important that it canceled out whatever had happened between us? It was so hard to understand. Was it his illness or his character?
I felt a sense of guilt punch me in the gut for having such a cynical thought. The truth was that Will needed people to be there for him and not judge him.
And when Will put his head on my shoulder and let his lips slide along my bare collarbone, I wound up in the confused state that took over every time that I was alone with them. And I started quivering. I just wanted to look up. I passionately desired him.
Don’t do it, June, don’t do it.
And I did. I looked at James.
He was still standing up; his back against the wall and a hand was in his pocket. A diffused warmth burned my stomach.
When I turned to William, I noticed his knuckles were about to graze my cheekbone.
Does he really want to kiss me now?
I heard James’s heavy footsteps come closer.
He put a hand around William’s neck gently, forcing him to lift his head up, and brought the joint between Will’s parted lips.
William closed his eyes and let him do it. I was speechless. Such an intimate gesture between them sent me right to the moon. James leaned over me to do the same thing, and I allowed myself to inhale a mouthful of that poison. But this time his thumb hesitated a bit on my skin, massaging my cheek, like a soft caress. And if everything was all innocuous before, at that moment, I felt the warm effect rush through my veins as my limbs relaxed.
I stuck my head out to breathe in more, but James shook his head.
I held back a moan when I felt the heat of William’s mouth part when it came into contact with my neck. His tongue slid slowly along my skin. There was an explosion in my chest, and my eyes opened up again and violently filled with blue.
“Okay, princess, but this is the last one,” growled James huskily, before giving me another hit.
