**
I felt dutiful, now having a mission: the quest of getting Mike and Nadine together. I watched Nadine and Jake play Wii and my insides froze like a glacier each time she stroked his back in encouragement. I reminded myself, again and again, she’d liked him first. That he was only being his cool, kind self when she playfully hung on him, tossing her head back and forth like a brainless Barbie doll. He kept flashing his radiant smile at me, warming my stone-cold insides like electric, white heat. As the scene played out, I tried to calm my growing disdain at what I was witnessing. The next time we made eye contact, it was as if he read my mind, and he distanced himself.
Mike came through the front door.
He smiled broadly, nodding his head at me. “Hey, Aly.” I’d hoped he was over making snide, distasteful remarks about me behind my back.
“Hey, Mike,” I greeted casually, walking into the kitchen.
“Hey, Bro,” I heard Jake acknowledge.
I stood with the fridge door open, deciding whether to have a soda or water when Mike appeared in my peripheral vision and I became blinded by the blood rushing to my head. Why did he have to come in here, and why did he make me so nervous?
“Hey, any beer in there?” he asked, practically breathing down my neck.
“Uh, yeah…” I barely choked out my answer before he grabbed one from over my shoulder. I wanted to say something like I don’t think that’s a good idea, but I didn’t want to sound like a baby. I was in disbelief. I’d never been around anyone who blatantly drank alcohol, underage, in my face. My sister and brother would come home in what appeared to be an intoxicated stupor from time to time, but I’d never witnessed its progression.
Regardless of it being a bad idea, it was rebellion at its finest, and I wanted to be a part of it. I grabbed a soda, popped its top and stepped back, leaning against the counter. What must it be like? Getting drunk? I recalled the horrid taste test from the other night. I wondered what the big deal was. My mother’s words, “Acquired Taste,” echoed in my head. No, thank you, nothing about acquiring that taste appealed to me.
I watched Mike thoughtfully as he swigged his beer, staring back at me. It seemed as if time had frozen. I admired his spikey blond hair and his build. Mike had a tough guy demeanor. He was standoffish in an appealing way that made you want to crack his code. If only the words that came out of his mouth weren’t so douchey all the time. There should be no reason Nadine wouldn’t want to date him.
“So, I hear you and your friend wanna play the guitar?” he asked, finally breaking the awkward silence. He took a long swig of his beer.
“Yeah, it just kinda came up, you know,” I said nervously. Our eyes remained tied. I couldn’t stand it anymore and looked away as I continued rambling. “Jake offered. I hope you don’t mind. Nadine jumped on board after she’d heard about it.”
“What? Naw man, it’s cool, you and her…what’s her name? Natalie?”
“Nadine.”
“Yeah, Nadine, you guys wanna learn to play, we’ll teach you,” he said, tipping his head back and pouring the last bit of beer down his throat. He brushed past me too close and gave me a sly smile that woke my sleeping butterflies. He opened the fridge and grabbed another beer, holding it out toward me. “You want one?”
“No tha…” I was interrupted.
“What the fuck dude, don’t be offering her beer,” Jake snapped. I nearly jumped out of my skin. “Don’t fucking offer her anything anymore…got it?” Jake glared over his shoulder at Mike as he led me away by the elbow.
We walked past Nadine briskly. Jake practically knocked her out of the way. She frowned at me and mouthed what the hell? I shrugged my shoulders.
“I’ll take one.” I heard Nadine laugh, uneasily. Their conversation grew inaudible as we walked all the way into Jake’s room.
He let my arm go and walked in a small circle in front of me, round and round.
“What, what’s wrong? I wasn’t going to take it.”
He sighed deeply and walked up to me, grabbing my face and kissing me hard on the lips. My head spun. His lips grew softer as he kissed me lightly a few more times.
I was breathless. I wanted more.
7
Jake
I’d never felt completely at ease chilling with a girl, as I did with Aly. I’d always felt like I had to be on with other girls. I never gave it any thought until now. I’d come to the conclusion it was some sort of a weird alter-ego that took over, but with Aly, it simply wasn’t there.
Aly pretty much knew most things about me, other than the band stuff. She knew I’d lost my father and how screwed up I was about it for a long time. Remembering how she sat quietly off to the side as her mother and brother, Kyle, consoled my mother and me in those early days after the burial. Not that guys don’t cry, but I hadn’t shed one tear since then.
I wasn’t an emotional person, until now.
So, I took her face in my hands and kissed her. For a quick second she stiffened, but I didn’t let go. I felt her cool hands and arms wrap around my neck. I kissed her softly while I searched for what I should say.
I was lost.
“I’m sorry,” I paused for a long moment. I was agitated and fighting my feelings. “I just…I saw Mike…him looking at you the way he looks at girls he’s interested in, and then offering you beer. That’s his MO, you know, get girls drunk to make it easier. I have to tell him about us, or he’ll keep hitting on you.”
“Jake, don’t be sorry…and you know, that was totally innocent back there.” Aly laughed in earnest.
“No, no it wasn’t. I know him. There’s nothing innocent about him, trust me.”
I was adamant about Mike. He was one of those guys that her sister warned her of. Was I blowing it outta proportion? Was I just being overprotective? I sighed, frustrated, and began pacing again.
“These people don’t know my sister, do they? Jake, you can’t say anything. If my sister finds out I’m coming over here for anything other than guitar lessons…”
Her eyes pleaded with me.
I walked to the door and looked back at her. “Trust me, this’ll work itself out. None of them know Allison or Kyle, at least enough to say anything, and to tell you the truth, none of them give a shit. But I have to say something to him or he’ll keep at you. Everything’s a game to Mike.”
I turned and called out Nadine’s name.
“Why are you calling her in here?” she asked anxiously.
“Because, I need to talk to Mike without her in my face. I can’t have him offering you guys beer, or anything else for that matter. If my mom were to come home, she’d shit herself, and my whole gig here would be ruined.”
“Jake? Where are you?” Nadine shouted.
“Back here, in my room, come in here,” I called.
Nadine skipped down the hall, stopping all puffed up and doe-eyed, in front of me. “What’s going on? Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, just have to take care of something. Stay here.”
My adrenaline rushed through me as I approached Mike.
“Hey, man, you know I can’t have you offering Aly beer, so just cool it. Don’t do it again, got it? I’m responsible for her, and I don’t need her going home with beer breath and her dad coming over here ripping my head off…”
“Damn, dude, relax, it wasn’t any different than me offering Rachel a beer.”
“She’s not Rachel, alright?” I snapped, exasperated that he didn’t get it.
“Alright, step off already. What’s going on with you and her, anyway? You’ve been checked out all day, and bam, she’s here again and you’re all fucking lame.” He chuckled, knowingly, throwing his hands up. “I got it, you like her.”
“Of course I like her… I care about her. I’ve known her my whole life. I already explained that…”
“No, but you dig her, like wanna get in there.” Mike laughed, convinced by his assumption. “Aw man, you should’ve just said something.”
&
nbsp; He continued to laugh obnoxiously, and I wanted to punch him.
“It’s not like that…”
“Yeah right, I got you, buddy,” he retorted.
“Look, just halt on the booze offering…or anything else for that matter with Aly, I could give a shit about anybody else.”
I stormed off, thinking maybe having Mike there was a bad idea. Walking back in my room, Nadine stared at me all steely-eyed, her lips curled upward.
“What?” I smirked. I felt like she could see right through me. Aly was right, she had a sixth sense.
“Oh, nothing,” she sang out, retreating to Aly’s side.
Aly’s face began to glow. Nadine must have looked at her strangely or transferred some crazy, telepathic chick vibe. Why else would she be blushing? I got hot under the collar, too. This was ridiculous.
I cleared my throat.
“Alright, let’s get this started. Nadine, why don’t you go and begin with Mike?”
“Mmhmm,” She hummed, tilting her head, looking us both up and down and spun out the door. “I got ya.”
Nadine vanished and reluctantly looked back at Aly.
“She knows,” she said to me, obviously distressed.
“Yeah, I got the impression she suspects something. We’re not doing anything wrong, Aly. Who gives a shit what she thinks?”
I was agitated by all the girl-dancing-around-eggshells bullshit.
“I do, for all the reasons I stated earlier. I’m sorry. I can tell you’re irritated.”
Now I felt bad.
“I’m not,” I said, regretting my shortness.
“Yeah, you are. I can tell by your mannerisms and the look on your face.”
“My mannerisms?” I smiled curiously and Aly shifted. I loved watching her squirm.
“You grab the back of your neck when you’re frustrated. It’s something you’ve always done. You used to do it all the time when you and Kyle would fight or whatever.” She giggled, embarrassed by her assessment, but she continued. “It’s cute. It’s just one of those things you do that makes you, well…you.”
If she didn’t already have me, she did now. I wanted to know what else she knew about me. She had no idea that her little explanation had such an impact on me.
Back in the living room, Mike immediately acted up when we appeared. “Yeah, buddy,” Mike said. He grabbed his guitar, strumming it as we walked back in joining them. He nodded deviously, looking at Aly. Nadine was more than astute with her stare. “We’re gonna get the rhythm started up in here.”
Aly yanked me into the kitchen, mortified by Mike’s melodic assertions. “See, I told you, did you see the way she looked at us? She eavesdropped on your convo with Mike,” she whispered. “And what’s up with Mike and his little stupid song?”
“Aly, it is what it is, seriously.”
We faced each other from across the counter. I could see the wheels turning in her head. I wanted to take all her angst away. I leaned down onto the counter, holding my palms out to her, wiggling my fingers at her to come closer.
“I told you it would work out,” I said, reassuring her.
The sweetness of her filled me, and I couldn’t hold back from kissing her again. Suddenly, the moment shattered when abrupt coughing interrupted us. Aly jumped, standing straight, and gasped. It was Rachel. I seriously wanted to punch someone. I barely moved. My elbows remained stuck to the counter. I looked at Rachel, then back to Aly, rolling my eyes. I really didn’t give a shit if Rachel noticed. I stood slowly, beyond irritated that she was there. She certainly had a knack for showing up unannounced. I could see Aly gulp, frightened by Rachel’s presence.
Rachel spoke first, barely suppressing her disgust at seeing the two of us together.
“Well, um, did I interrupt something important?” Rachel said with forced cheer. I could see the fire in her eyes as she seared Aly up and down with her heat vision. She smiled tightly, lifting her eyebrows, waiting for an answer.
An awkward moment passed.
“Yes, as a matter of fact you did. Did you ever hear of knocking, or better yet, calling?” I responded harshly. I looked back at Aly and laughed softly, trying to smooth out the wrinkled mood. Rachel’s mouth fell open and she tried to compose herself. “Nah, just kidding. Relax. Aly and I were just talking about…well, it doesn’t really matter what we were talking about, now, does it?”
I couldn’t give one shit about what Rachel thought. I knew all too well how she treated other girls when she felt they were trespassing on her territory.
“Are you alone?” I looked past her to see if anyone else was around.
“No, I’m here with Dump and Sienna,” she said too quickly, peeved. “I see you have a little party going on.” Rachel nodded her head toward Mike and Nadine.
I sighed loudly. Again, words escaped me, so I sauntered to the fridge and grabbed a soda. I wasn’t even thirsty, but I didn’t know what else to do. I stood close to Aly, so close our arms grazed each other’s, a statement of solidarity. I’d wanted her to know I meant what I’d said.
“Rachel, this is Aly. Aly, Rachel.”
“Hi,” Aly waved her hand innocently and squeezed out a weak smile.
“The pleasure’s all mine, I’m sure,” Rachel responded dryly. There was a standoff. Sticky silence filled the room and I remained anchored at Aly’s side. I couldn’t take it anymore, but I didn’t know what to do.
“I wonder how Nadine’s lessons are going,” Aly said, walking past Rachel.
I could practically see the heat of Rachel’s stare searing the side of Aly’s skull as she passed. Aly was a whole head taller than Rachel and physically opposite in every way. I looked at the clock—already 7pm.
Aly would be leaving soon.
8
Alyssa
As I moved into the living room where Nadine and Mike were still playing with the Wii, I ran my fingers through my hair to shield myself from Rachel’s laser vision. Mike and Nadine appeared to be enjoying each other, especially Nadine, who was wearing a mile-wide smile. She didn’t realize that Rachel had arrived unannounced.
I looked out of place with my cuffed denim shorts and white V-neck tee shirt. My unkempt hair looked wild compared to the other girls’ stylish blunt cuts. Sienna wore fishnet stockings under her ripped jean shorts and laced-up boots. Her jet-black hair was so perfect that it looked like a wig. She wore her signature red lipstick and cat-like black eyeliner. I had a full-on girl crush for her.
Nadine threw her hands in the air, fussing about losing to Mike. She proceeded to grab her adult beverage and looked around. Finally, to my relief, she walked over to me.
“Looks like the band’s all here, along with her,” Nadine said quietly, taking a mouthful of beer. She leaned against the sofa. “Holy shit. Uh oh, Blondie’s staring us down. Watch out.”
“Give that to me,” I said, grabbing the beer bottle out of her hand, taking a long swig. I pressed the bottle to my lips; rubbing its smooth surface against them as my thoughts swirled uncontrollably. The taste was disgusting. I gagged. “Gross. How can you drink this stuff?”
“Right on, Aly, it’ll help you relax,” Nadine whispered, encouraging my bad behavior, as her eyes darted around the room. “Why is Rachel here anyway?”
“I know, right? Maybe we should leave?”
“Hell, no!” she hissed, her face animated with defiance. “That’s just what she wants, to vibe us out the door. Sorry, it ain’t happening.”
Jake startled me by gently taking the beer out of my hand. His body pressed up against my back. I felt his breath brush my ear. “I don’t think this is a good idea,” he whispered. “Just what I need is for my mom to walk in and find you holding this.” I could have melted into a puddle at his feet. He squeezed my hand and walked away. Nadine looked bemused.
I shrugged. Words escaped me as I stood there, pretending to be innocent.
“Rachel just followed Jake into the kitchen. She was watching us.” Nadine sniffed. “What a crazy
bitch. You better be careful.”
“What are you talking about?” I said, uncomfortable.
“Oh, come on, Aly—it’s obvious he’s totally into you,” she said, not sounding too put off.
It was now or never. I was standing at confession’s ledge and I’d decided to jump.
“I have to talk to you. Let’s go to my house—better yet, let’s go to Nicole’s, so we can fill her in on the drama.” I just prayed my sister wouldn’t find out about Jake. Nadine said goodbye to Mike and he jumped up from his seat.
“You’re leaving? Why?” He stared directly at me. Why me? “You’re coming to the party tonight, right?”
“Where’s it at? Can I text you? We need to take care of something,” Nadine took out her phone with its glitter pink case, punching in Mike’s number.
I could hear Jake and Rachel arguing. We passed by the kitchen as we headed toward the front door, and Jake called out my name.
“Aly, wait!” Jake shouted. I could hear Rachel calling to him—“Jake, come on”—but he was quickly at my side. “Let me get rid of everyone and I’ll text you.”
The touch of his hand on my elbow made me stop in my tracks. I was unconvinced he would text anytime soon.
“Isn’t there some party tonight?” I reminded him, standoffish.
“Yeah, Mike said there was a party and invited us,” Nadine asked, hope filling her eyes.
“Uh, yeah, there is. Let me get rid of Rachel and figure things out.”
An outburst of laughter and ruckus came from back inside the house and Jake hung his head in frustration. My insecurities flared, thinking the laughter was about me.
“She’s like a bad rash, you know,” I said, slumping.
“Good luck with that,” Nadine laughed.
“We’ll be around,” I sighed.
Stupid Rachel, she’s going to be a pain in my butt, I thought to myself. Just as that thought rolled into my mind, she strolled into view. If looks could kill, I’d be lying on the floor hemorrhaging.
I glanced nervously at Nadine and she returned Rachel’s evil glare. She tugged at my shirt and we turned simultaneously and walked out the front door. Jake followed us out onto the porch and watched us walk down the street.
Nadine was too quiet, and it spurred me to say something. “Nadine, I’m sorry.” I hopped in front of her, stopping us abruptly.
“For what?” she said, looking confused.
“You know what, Jake being the way he was with me.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Nadine said, waving me off. She didn’t sound mad, so I just left it alone. She’d probably let me have it once I told her about what was really going on.
We burst through Nicole’s front door, finding her hunched at the computer. Grant and the guys weren’t anywhere to be found, thank goodness. We blabbered in unison and she grabbed our hands, dragging us upstairs to her room. Her brother, Chris, stood in his bedroom doorway watching us, amused.
“What, did Zac Efron drive by and wave?” he laughed, teasing. “Lookin’ good Nadine. Nice shorts.” He smirked and walked down the stairs.
“OMG, did your brother just notice me?” Nadine looked at Nicole. She could barely contain herself. She blushed with a smile from ear to ear.
I shoved Nadine’s shoulder.
“Okay, we’ll get back to Chris,” I interrupted, holding my hand up in her face, glancing between the two of them. I began to explain myself. “I haven’t been completely honest. Nadine, I kinda knew that Jake liked me because he asked me to hang out and watch movies last night. He was kinda flirty with me.”
“You hooker!” she smiled wildly, shoving my shoulder. “You should have just told me!”
“Well, it wasn’t like that. I’d gone over there to talk about you, and we got to talking about his music and then he started teaching me to play the guitar and he was just really sweet, and really touchy feely with me…”
“Where did he touch you? Did you kiss him?” Nadine asked breathlessly, throwing her arms in the air, spinning around. “You’re effing kidding me! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” She paced around, looking bemused.
“Shut up, Nadine. Let her finish,” Nicole barked, sitting at the edge of her bed with her hand covering her gaping mouth.
I continued, in a roundabout way, with the story of last night. I didn’t mention our sleepover. I painfully contemplated whether or not to divulge the more intimate details.
“Okay, okay, let me,” Nadine interrupted, looking at Nicole with her hands together, as if in prayer. She turned to me. “Let me tell her the rest.”
Nadine weaved her web for Nicole exactly how I recalled it. It was as if she was never interested in Jake at all. She also threw in tidbit rumors about Rachel’s mean girl antics, and my heart sank deeper into my gut. “Rumor has it, she only went out with one guy to make Jake jealous and it didn’t work. I also heard she drugged a girl’s drink at a party.” Nadine’s eyes were wide. She nodded seriously at us, as if we didn’t believe her.
I sucked in a deep breath, closing my eyes.
“Aly, dude, are you okay?” Nicole asked, concerned. “You look pale.”
“Yeah, I’ll be okay, but I’m worried. What if she messes with me?”
“Try not to worry about it,” Nicole said. “Hopefully, Jake doesn’t mean that much to her.”
“Yeah, right, you should have seen her face.” Tense laughter escaped Nadine’s lips. “When Jake came up and took that beer out of Aly’s hand and whispered in her ear—and by the way, he practically licked her in the process—Rachel shit herself. You should’ve seen it, it was classic!”
“A beer? So when did you start drinking?” Nicole teased, surprised.
“I haven’t, it’s gross. I was just freaking out. I needed a distraction.” I stalled, thinking. “Let’s find Chris, I wanna know more about Rachel.”