Page 49 of The Art of Drowning

“I’m fine.” I was boiling, actually. But I knew she was trying to get me alone as if cornering me would get her what she wanted. Oh how I wished that Sam hadn’t tried to play matchmaker.

“Come outside with me. I don’t want to go by myself.”

I didn’t want her to go by herself either, not when most of the people here were half-cut.

I nodded and tried to ignore the way her face lit up before she turned and led me through the crowd of people, over the sticky floors and out the back door. The deck had a few people huddled around one of the patio heaters, but Tiffany veered off to the other side of the deck, away from them. The air outside was cold, but not intolerable, and it actually was refreshing compared to the stale, overheated air inside the house.

I leaned forward, resting my forearms on the railing of the deck. Tiffany, again, stood next to me. Too close for comfort.

“You don’t like me much, do you?” she asked.

I let out a sigh and tried to figure out how best to answer that question. After a brief deliberation, I went with a version of the truth.

“I’m kind of hung up on somebody else right now. So, like, it wouldn’t be fair to lead you on, or whatever.”

“Ugh.” She copied my position, resting her arms on the railing of the deck. “I told Jessica that this was a bad idea. I mean, if you were interested in me, you’ve had plenty of chances to say so. It’s not like we don’t go to the same school or anything.”

“Sorry.”

“Not your fault. I tried to tell her. Having a best friend sucks sometimes.”

“Facts.” I bumped my cup against Tiffany’s even though I had no intention of taking a drink.

“Can we at least pretend that… never mind. If you’re hung up on someone you wouldn’t want to send them mixed messages.”

I didn’t know what to tell her, so I said nothing. Outside was nicer than inside had been, and even though it was getting colder, I still didn’t want to go back inside. There were too many people. Too much noise. It would’ve been tolerable if Callum was there. Then I wouldn’t have minded the noise and the annoying drunk teenagers.

Tiffany and I both jumped at the sound of a crash coming from inside the house. People screamed in anger, not fear or panic. The back door flung open and someone came flying through, spilling out onto the deck.

More people followed after him and suddenly there was a fight in the back yard between two people I was sure I’d never seen before.

“I think that’s our cue to leave.” I wound my arm around Tiffany’s shoulders and steered her back into the house. I found Sam and Jessica tangled up together on one of the recliners, trading lazy kisses, too drunk to care about where they were and who was watching.

“You get your best friend, and I’ll get mine,” I told her, abandoning my drink. With a little help, Tiffany managed to peel Jessica off of Sam, and we coaxed them out to Sam’s car. We dumped them in the back seat, and I had to fish Sam’s keys out of his pocket, which he thought was hilarious and was of zero help whatsoever.

“Am I dropping Jessica off at her house or yours?”

“Hers. Her parents are away for the weekend.”

The drive wasn’t quiet. It was actually pretty annoying with Sam and Jessica in the back seat acting like drunk idiots. They giggled and made out, and at one point I was pretty sure things were going further than that, and that’s when Tiffany whirled around.

“Jessica! Can you fucking not?”

Jessica gasped, then devolved into another giggle fit, but at least the almost-sex noises stopped.

By the time I pulled into Jessica’s driveway, she was mostly unconscious, and I left Sam passed out in the back seat to help Tiffany get Jessica inside.

“For a tiny person, she sure weighs a fucking ton,” I grumbled as I half carried, half dragged Jessica to her room. I dropped her unceremoniously onto her bed and took a deep breath.

“Thanks for helping me. I’d never have gotten her inside by myself.”

“Make sure she has a bucket nearby. And good luck.”

Tiffany smiled at me. “You too.”

“One drunk down. One to go.”

Sam was still out cold when I returned to the car, and only mildly coherent when I made him wake up enough to help me drag his ass upstairs. Unlike Jessica’s parents, Sam’s were home and they noticed me bringing him inside. His mom came to his room with a bottle of pain killers, a couple bottles of water, and a bucket.