I stepped backward. I knew I should leave, but something kept me rooted there. I couldn’t see either of their faces, but the girl was getting louder, groaning in a high-pitched voice.
“Keep it down,” he hissed at her, thrusting even faster. He turned slightly, his muscled arms readjusting and showing off a black tattoo. It was large, possibly showing a boat, though I couldn’t completely see, starting at his shoulder and craning halfway down his bicep. It flexed as he moved.
I was stunned. I’d never seen people have sex in real life.
It wasn’t until the girl screamed, “Oh, that’s so good!” that I recognized her voice.
The man shifted, revealing the face of the woman, her eyes closed and mouth open.
The girl was Alex. And the guy wasnotWill.
I couldn’t see who he was, and I didn’t care. I turned quickly, tripping on a fallen trunk and landing on the ground as Alex’s eyes fluttered open and found mine.
We made direct eye contact as her head hit against the tree behind her and the man let out one final groan of pleasure.
I ran from Alex and the mystery man at the tree.
I didn’t know what else to do. I had been drinking, so I didn’t even know if I was going in the right direction, toward the party or away from it, but I didn’t care. I just needed to get far away from what I had just seen.
Alex was a cheater. She was cheating on my brother.
It filled me with many emotions at once. Disappointment. Anger. Disgust. Rage. Sadness.
A tree branch caught on my sleeve, and I hung over it, feeling really nauseous. All I could think about was Will. My poor brother. He loved Alex so much. She was all he talked about, all he thought about.
How was I going to tell him? I didn’t want to have to be the person to do it, and I knew I shouldn’t have to be. It should be Alex.
I put my hands on my face, panicking. How could I confront her? Would I tell her that she had to tell him or I would? The woods felt like they were spinning, and I couldn’t tell if it was from the alcohol or what I had just seen.
“Rosie!”
Alex was close by. I stumbled forward. I didn’t want to face her. I didn’t want to talk to her at all.
“Come on, Rosie. Stop running,” Alex said, her voice even closer now. Too close. She pushed her way between the trees and appeared in front of me.
She was wearing her skirt and bra, her tank top balled up in her hands. She looked shockingly cavalier as she caught her breath.
“Why would you do that?” I asked, tears in my eyes.
Alex sighed. “Look, I don’t know what you think you saw back there, but—”
“I saw you having sex with some random guy!”
She stopped, calculating what to say next.
“Look it was literally just random sex, all right?” she said finally. “It wasn’t a big deal.”
“How is that not a big deal? What about Will?” I hissed.
Alex looked annoyed. “What about him?” she asked, putting her hands on her hips. “I love your brother. I really do, but I’m eighteen. It’s not crazy to think I might occasionally want to have sex with someone else.”
I blinked, thinking of that guy Nick from the mall. Had she slept with him too?
“It doesn’t mean I don’t love him,” Alex continued. “And he doesn’thaveto know.” She gave me a weird smile as she stepped closer. “You don’t have to say anything. We can keep this between us. We can keep going on with everything exactly how it was. We’ll graduate, and Will and I can stay happy. It’ll make us closer. Likesisters.”
She offered this like it was a gift. A perfect solution. But her voice had taken on a slightly desperate quality. She had to be insane if she thought I’d go along with it.
“I have to tell him,” I told her firmly, disgusted. “He’s my brother.”
