Why You Shouldn't Lend A Bad Boy Your Clothes

by Philline Harms

  A tall blonde girl in high-waist jeans and a bra skipped towards us, shocking red lips curled into a wide grin. “Hey there!” she said cheerfully. “Come on in!”

  I hugged her back awkwardly as she threw her arms around me. There was so much naked skin that I didn’t know where to place my hands without seeming like I was trying to grope her.

  “I’m Amy. You’re Hunter’s new boyfriend, right?”

  “Uh, yeah…” I mumbled. It felt weird telling her that, knowing that she had been with him.

  But she seemed completely comfortable and said, “I’m so happy for you guys! I was already wondering when Hunter would finally—”

  “Amy, let go of him,” an amused voice suddenly muttered from right next to me. “You’re making him uncomfortable.”

  Standing next to us was a short girl wearing nerd glasses, a red and black plaid skirt, a black top, and a leather jacket. Long dark hair spilled out from underneath her beanie, creating a stark contrast to her pale skin and red lips.

  “Oh. Sorry,” Amy said and took a step back, slipping an arm around the girl’s waist instead, which was a little difficult for her to do so as the girl was easily four inches taller than her, despite wearing flat shoes. “This is Claire, my girlfriend and the reason for this party.”

  “Oh, it’s your birthday?” Nate asked.

  Claire shook her head, laughing. “No. But I just came home yesterday from a month-long visit to my family in China, and Amy used it as an excuse to throw a party.”

  Amy just shrugged before saying, “Don’t just stand around here, guys. Get yourself something to drink! Hunter isn’t here yet, but I think I saw Alexis and the two other guys…”

  “Have fun!” Claire called after us as we walked off.

  I shouted back a short thanks, already losing sight of her in the crowd. However, I did spot Emily waving at us from one of the couches and immediately dragged Nate over there.

  “Hey, Jules!” Emily chirped, standing up from her spot on the couch to hug me. She lost her balance in the process, nearly dragging me down with her until I tightly wrapped my arms around her to keep her from falling.

  “Hey, Em,” I said, gently pushing her back onto the couch. “Jesus, how much did you drink already?”

  Emily made a vague gesture, giggling quietly. “Don’t worry. Only a few shots with my new friend here.” She slung an arm around the guy sitting next to her, a senior with slicked blond hair. He only lifted a hand at me in greeting. “Jules, this is Bryan. Bryan, this is Jules.”

  “Uh, hi,” I said slowly and eyed the two of them. “How do you guys know each other?”

  “We don’t,” Bryan said, smirking and wrapping a possessive arm around Emily. His voice sounded like sandpaper, low and hoarse. “But she looks like a total babe, so I just had to chat her up.”

  Next to me, someone snorted. I turned around to see Liam, slouched in an armchair and openly glaring at the Bryan guy. Emily didn’t seem to notice. Her wide eyes were glued to Bryan’s face. He grinned down at her and pulled her in for a sloppy kiss.

  I quickly looked away and turned around to talk to Nate, but he was already sitting on the couch between Adam and Alexis, talking animatedly about something. Alexis listened carefully with a soft smile on her face, sipping from a paper cup.

  Sighing quietly, I turned around to go and see if there was anything non-alcoholic to drink. I felt anxiety fluttering in the pit of my stomach as I made my way through the room, pushing past drunk teenagers and snogging couples.

  By the time I reached the table with the drinks, I was hot and irritated, which I always was in big crowds. I glanced over my shoulder just in time to see Hunter coming inside and dared to wave timidly at him. He didn’t seem to notice or even look for me. Instead, he started straight up the stairs.

  I frowned but chose to ignore the twinge of disappointment and turned back to the matter at hand. Seeing as there was nothing non-alcoholic other than water, I grabbed two bottles and made my way back to the group.

  “Drink that,” I said over the loud music and tossed one of the bottles at Emily.

  She made no move at all to catch it, so it just dropped into her lap. Bryan narrowed his eyes at me as he reached for it and handed it to her. I didn’t miss the way his hand lingered on her thigh just a little too long.

  “But that’s water. That’s no fun.” Emily complained, pouting at me.

  “I think you’ve had enough fun already,” I said.

  Bryan sat up straighter, raising a challenging brow at me. “And who are you to decide when she’s had enough? Are you her babysitter, or what?”

  “I’m her best friend,” I answered. “I think more than ten years of knowing her is enough for me to notice when she’s had too much to drink.”

  I turned around in surprise as Liam suddenly crouched down next to me and took the bottle of water from Emily’s hands. When he had twisted the lid off, he handed it back to her and quietly encouraged her to drink it.

  To my astonishment, Emily actually did this time, albeit reluctantly. She really seemed to be determined to have a hangover tomorrow. Once she had emptied the bottle under Liam’s watchful eyes, I left them behind and started up the stairs to the second floor. The steps squeaked faintly under my weight until I reached the top.

  There were quite a few doors, most of them shut. Unsure what to do next, I looked around nervously. I felt like an intruder, sneaking around here all alone while everyone else was partying downstairs.

  After a few seconds of standing at the top of the stairs, stalling, I moved to the first door. It was ajar, so it swung open as soon as I touched it. Behind it was an empty bathroom that I left immediately. The next open door led into a bedroom where a couple was currently engaged in a game of tonsil tennis. I bolted out of there before they even had the chance to notice me.

  Slightly discouraged, I strolled down the corridor, trying two more doors. Both of them were locked, so the only room left was the one at the end of the hall. After taking a deep breath, I tentatively twisted the doorknob. The room obviously was Amy’s. The white walls were barely visible under hundreds of photos of her and Claire, her with other cheerleader friends, and what had to be her family.

  The only source of light was the bedside lamp next to the huge four-poster bed. It was one of these really luxurious ones, the kind with curtains around it. Behind those half-closed white curtains, I could see the outlines of two people sitting closely together.

  I was about to walk right out of the door and maybe look for Hunter downstairs when I could suddenly hear a bit of their conversation.

  “Just stop thinking about him for a second,” a female voice said. “Jules isn’t here. He’ll never know.”

  I froze and turned back around, but the curtains were still closed and shielding them from view. My heart felt like it was dropping from a ten-story building when I suddenly heard Hunter’s voice. All he said were two words, but they were enough to make my stomach lurch.

  “He can’t.”

  My brain was in a haze, every thought slow like syrup, but Victoria’s next words managed to cut through the fog. “How do you think he would react? I’m sure he would be so sad…”

  “He can’t find out.” Hunter repeated, firm and urgent. “Now stop talking and…just kiss me.”

  For a heartbeat, time was frozen as the words sunk in. Then the room started to tilt.

  Desperately trying to find my balance, I clung onto the doorframe for support while I watched Victoria bend forward. Hunter’s upper body came into view when she pushed him onto his back, no longer concealed by the half-drawn curtains around the bed.

  I could see his face, tousled hair, his arms resting motionless on the blanket next to him, no move to push her away as she leaned down and kissed him. Hunter’s eyes fell shut, and I could see his hands clawing onto the sheets beneath him as if to stop himself from reaching out to pull her even closer. Victoria grinned against his lips. Only now, I could see that her blouse
was unbuttoned, revealing a red bra.

  A strangled noise clawed its way up my throat and escaped before I could stop it.

  Hunter’s head lolled to the side, and then I could finally see his eyes, green and wide and so devastatingly beautiful even when they were filled with guilt.

  “Fuck…Jules, it’s not—” He began, sounding breathless.

  My feet were moving before I could hear the rest. Somehow, I made it to the door, stumbled down the stairs, almost falling down the last few steps before I caught myself on the banister.

  I didn’t try to find my friends. Instead, I let the crowd swallow me and spit me out next to the fridge with the drinks.

  A few guys were standing around it, laughing about something when I asked quietly, “Hey, what’s the strongest drink in there?”

  One of them, a jock from the basketball team, looked at me with a wide grin. “You wanna get hammered tonight, bro?”

  I nodded, forcing a grin on my face. “Hell, yeah. I don’t wanna remember any of this tomorrow.”

  Another guy slapped me on the back approvingly, slurring something about me being a real man, while the jock searched through the fridge for a moment before he re-emerged and said, “Nothing in there really hits. I have something better for you.” With that, he picked up a glass bottle filled with a clear liquid from a nearby table and handed it to me. “Have fun, dude.”

  I turned around without thanking him, clutching the bottle like it was a lifeline while I staggered towards the front door. Nate had driven me here, but I couldn’t bear to go back and search for him.

  Instead, I walked down the side of the road and then the next one, knowing it would take at least an hour to get home. At some point, it started to rain, and soon my clothes were soaked with water, weighing me down until I gave in and collapsed on the side of the road.

  My teeth were chattering, and my fingers started to feel numb, but all of it was a welcomed distraction. I tilted my head back, feeling the raindrops pouring over my face and trickling down my back.

  It was hard to open the bottle with my shaking hands, but eventually, I managed to get the lid off and took a sip.

  The alcohol burnt in my throat, but it warmed me from the inside out, so I didn’t care.

  One thing it couldn’t do was drown out the echo of Hunter’s words in my ears or banish the look in his eyes when he spotted me. Fragments of memories whirled around my head: soft lips pressing against mine under the night sky, a thumb grazing over my wrist reassuringly, and his heartbeat beneath my cheek.

  ***

  “You feel so much better than stupid car races and fights and getting drunk at house parties.”

  “You say that now.”

  “And I’ll still say it in a few weeks and months and years.”

  ***

  I believed him. I had known what he was like, and I still believed him. Now I was paying the price.

  It was at the point of that realization that a strange sense of numbness took over until I didn’t know if the feeling in my chest was anger or sadness, if the wetness on my face was rain or tears, and if I was shaking because of the cold or from the sobs that kept wrecking my frame. I knew that I would have to get up at some point and that I had to go home, but I couldn’t move. I just sat there, feeling like I had taken a step back from the actual events and was just a bystander, devoid of any emotions and simply letting the rain and the headlights of the passing cars wash over me.

  Chapter 30

  Hunter

  I had a headache even before I arrived at the party. The throbbing pain started a few hours ago, or more precisely when I got a call from Victoria. Her instructions had been short and clear.

  “Come to the party at Amy’s. I’ll be waiting for you in her room. I think you can guess what will happen if you don’t follow my orders.”

  Of course, I knew what the consequences would be. She’d tell Jules’s parents that we had been together, regardless of whether it was true or not. The thought of that and what would happen to Jules was enough to make me leave the house at exactly nine in the evening, even though there were about thirty things I would rather do.

  The air outside was mild, and the sun was still peeking through some houses at the end of the road, casting long shadows onto the pavement. The nights were still harsh and cold, but spring was finally in full swing, chasing the winter and its grim cold away during the day.

  Despite the friendly weather, I was feeling bitter and downcast. I knew what Victoria wanted, and I knew that I would give it to her if it could protect Jules.

  The drive to Amy’s house was shorter than I liked, and I stepped onto the porch all too soon. The noise that engulfed me the second I stepped through the door was almost deafening, loud enough to drown out my thoughts for at least a moment. People from my year and the ones below started coming up to me as soon as the door fell shut behind me, their voices blurring together and creating an insignificant buzz.

  From the times I’d been here before, I knew exactly where Amy’s room was, but I wasted some time standing around in the corridor for a minute. Finally, taking a deep breath, I opened the door.

  The room was dimly lit by a single lamp next to the invitingly large bed. Of course, the fact that it was Victoria who was sprawled on the sheets made it a lot less appealing.

  “Hunter,” she said with a wide smile, propping herself up on one elbow. I didn’t miss the way she pushed her chest out and batted her eyelashes at me, but it had absolutely no effect on me. “I’m so glad you came.”

  “I can’t say the pleasure is all mine.” I snorted as I crossed the room.

  Victoria only shrugged, seemingly unfazed, and got onto her knees on the bed. Her lips twisted into a smirk while she started to unbutton her blouse.

  “Oh, don’t worry, gorgeous. I’m going to give you some pleasure soon enough.”

  “You could just leave me alone. I’m sure that’d feel even better,” I said, keeping my eyes fixed on her face even as the last button came undone.

  Victoria pulled me onto the bed by hooking a finger into the collar of my shirt, making me sit next to her on the mattress. “Oh, Hunter. You really can’t seem to see what’s best for you…” She bent forward and reached for me, pulling me closer. “Spoiler alert. It’s not Jules.”

  I reached for her hand and forcefully pried it off me, earning a quiet hiss and a glare in return. Staring back at her, I said, “What do you want, Victoria?”

  “I want you,” she said, inching a little closer until her knees were pressing against mine. In a firmer voice, she added, “And I’m going to have you. Or you’re going to watch me ruin your precious Julian’s life once and for all and know that it’s nobody’s fault but yours.”

  For a few seconds, all I could do was blink at her. “You can’t be serious.”

  “Oh?” Her pink lips curled into a sardonic smile. Reaching into the pocket of her jeans, she produced her phone and angled it so I could watch as she selected Jules’s family’s landline number. “Do you want to bet?”

  “Stop it,” I growled, eyes fixed on the screen as her thumb hovered right above the call button.

  Panic started to creep into me, but I was determined to force it down. She wouldn’t go through with this. She couldn’t.

  “You don’t know what you’re doing or what the consequences are—”

  “I do,” she said with a defiant jerk of her chin. “He’ll be sent to Church Camp. And?”

  It took all my willpower to keep my hands resting on my knees instead of reaching out to strangle her. “Do you really think it’s all just singing Amazing Grace and reading fucking psalms by the campfire? We’re talking about Jules’s parents here. They’re going to make sure that he’ll go to a camp where they’ll try everything in their power to convince him that he…that something he can’t fucking change is wrong,” I said, trying my hardest to stop my voice from trembling, only for it to break on the last word. “You can’t possibly want that for him.”
>
  Victoria shrugged casually, contradicting the tight set of her jaw. “I couldn’t care less about what happens to him. It’s his parents’ decision to make, not mine. I’m not the one sending him there. I’m just the one calling his father to tell him you’ve been snogging. The rest has nothing to do with me.”

  “It has everything to do with you.” I snapped, my voice getting louder with every word. “If it weren’t for you, his parents would have never found out about us, and everything would be okay.”

  “And if it weren’t for you, I would have never sent the video to his parents,” she hissed. A flush was spreading across her cheeks, her eyes ablaze with pure, unfiltered hatred as they bored into mine. “This is your fucking fault, Hunter. All of it.”

  The words felt like a punch to the face. I wanted to leave, wanted to get up and walk out, and forget them, but I knew that I couldn’t—not without consequences.

  “If you hadn’t dropped me like I was nothing to you, none of this would be happening,” she continued.

  I exhaled slowly, suddenly feeling weary and exhausted and really guilty. “Victoria, I didn’t…I didn’t think.”

  She only laughed, a pained, bitter sound. “Exactly. After weeks together, after everything I told you after I laid myself bare to you, you didn’t think for only a second that any of it meant anything, did you? You still thought it was nothing but a hook-up, no strings attached. Right?”

  I didn’t have anything to reply, nothing to justify any of it as the memories returned, of her in my bed, looking at me, and speaking the words, quiet and tender. So I just nodded.

  Victoria looked up at the ceiling. In the dim light, I could see tears glistening in her eyes, threatening to spill while she tried to blink them away.

  “I loved you, Hunter. I loved you, and I told you so, and you still thought it was a game just because feelings were never part of your rules.” She fell quiet and wiped a hand over her eyes. When she finally looked at me again, the tears were gone. “And then you left me like none of it meant anything and you expected me to be fine with it. You broke me, and you didn’t even realize. So don’t you think for a second that I’m not going to do the same to your little boy toy if it means that I have a chance at getting you back.”