“Cedar! You coming?” she asked as I heard Wade and someone else in the background.
“Yup, I just need my toes to dry.”
“Also, I’m not supposed to tell you, but Shane is totally crushing on you.”
He was? Was that awkward? “Well, my mom just called, and she told me not to sleep with the drummer,” I told Bea with a light laugh.
“Oh hell no, you can’t sleep with Sticks!” She sounded horrified. “He’s into weird shit.”
I was actually intrigued, but it wasn’t worth asking. “How do you know?” I asked instead.
“Because he tells me!”
I started to laugh.
“Mia, it isn’t funny. He tells me all the weird stuff he does, and it traumatizes me!” Bea wailed.
“Oh gosh,” I giggled again. “You’re telling me tonight!”
“No! We’ll see you there?” Bea asked me. “We’re heading out at eight.”
“Absolutely, see you there.”
I finished my pedicure. My new shiny black polish looked good. With practiced strokes, I did my fingernails.
Checking the clock, I knew I had lots of time to get ready. As I placed my hands under the nail lamp, I thought about what I would wear and what I could order for dinner. Wanting something healthy but knowing I intended to drink and try to have fun, I ordered pizza. I would eat salad all week to make up for it.
A few hours later, I was outside the house in Cedar, the music blasting, and I was shivering.
In black skinny jeans, with a black, off-the-shoulder crop top that showed a lot of cleavage and a lot of tummy, I was very conscious of my two slices of pizza when my stomach churned as I made my way up the stairs to the house. My hair was loose around my shoulders, giving me some warmth in the cool night air.
When I got inside, I spotted Wade immediately and made my way over to them. Bea crowed over my outfit.
“You look like a slutty Sandy!” she declared, referencingGrease, her favorite movie ever.
“Wow, I don’t even know if you’re complimenting me,” I laughed as I hugged Wade.
“We’re doing tequila shots,” Wade told me.
“Already?” I asked and felt slightly nervous, remembering the last time me and tequila had a night. I didn’t want a repeat of that, and the conversation I had with Quinn came back to me. We’d both decided to stay away from the drinks we knew made us act badly.
“Yeah, stay here for shots, then we’re going to bounce to the football house.”
My stomach plummeted. “Really?”
“You serious?” Wade laughed. “They won, they’re in the conference game, that party is going to be lit.”
“And Ava will be there,” Bea said, oblivious to the fact that I didn’t want to see any of them.
“Yeah, she will.”
“You don’t want to go?” Bea asked me curiously. “Has something happened?”
“What? No.” I gave her my best smile. To heck with what I’d agreed. I needed that tequila if I was going to see any ofthemlater. “Where’s those shots?”
Far too many shots later, which I had tried to dilute with three large glasses of water, I was very much aware that I was on my way to being drunk, but I was still in control, and that’s what mattered. Shane had given me his coat as the four of us had staggered to the football house.
Wade and I were singing, and Bea was laughing at both of us. At the foot of the path that led up to the football house, I slowed down. The music was playing loudly, and the party was in full swing.
