“If you wear the nail polish all tonight, your punishments are lifted,” I stated.
“As in I don’t have to do anything else embarrassing?” He raised an eyebrow like he didn’t believe me.
“Yes. No more humiliating things.” I nodded. This was embarrassing enough. Having everyone see his hands would be all the payback I needed.
“Okay, fine. I will keep it on.” I held back a grin.
“Thank you.” I moved behind him and wrapped my arms around his shoulders. I leaned down and kissed his cheek.
“Ew, my eyes!” Luke exclaimed. I rolled my eyes but didn’t pull away from Gage.
“Then go away if you don’t want to see it.” I stuck my tongue out at him. “Last I looked, I wasn’t keeping you hostage in here.” Luke had no reply to that, but even though he made the remark about me kissing Gage, he didn’t leave. When no one said anything, I took the incentive to talk.
“Since Dylan, Anna, and Amy will be here soon, we should probably go to the store and get everything we need.”
“Isn’t the store going to be pretty empty because it is New Year’s Eve?” Ethan asked.
“Well if someone,” I turned and looked at Luke, “had gone to the store like they were supposed to two days ago…”
“What? I got busy.” We all scoffed at that. He was just too lazy to go.
“Let’s go now so we can get whatever is left. Who’s coming?”
“I can’t. Macey should be here any second,” Luke said.
“I have to go pick up Amy,” Ethan said at the same time. Of course, the two of them were now so “busy” they couldn’t go.
“Fine. Gage and I will go.” I moved to finish getting ready. Behind me I could hear Luke and Ethan talking to Gage.
“Good luck, dude.”
“Should have come up with an excuse.”
“I can hear you!” I glanced at them over my shoulder and narrowed my eyes at them. They were making it sound like I was a bad person to shop with.
“We know.” I glared at Luke.
Grabbing my phone, I opened up my notes and turned back to face them. “What do you want?”
“Mountain Dew. Get some chips or something salty because after all the sweet, you need it,” Luke rattled off.
“I’ll have Sprite. You know what to get.” Ethan waved me off. I honestly didn’t even need to ask them because we all knew each other’s tastes. Although my brother did change up his soda flavor every year. I already knew what to get Macey and Amy.
“Okie dokie.”
“I’ll see you guys in a bit. I have to go get Amy,” Ethan said, standing up. Giving the guys a nod and me a smile, he left the room.
A minute later Luke left, leaving Gage and I alone. I silently watched him as he looked down at his phone. He looked so handsome, and just staring at him made my heart ache. I would never get used to the fact that he is mine.
“Going to keep staring at me, drooling, or should we get going?” Gage said suddenly, almost making me jump. I took a deep breath, calming my heart. Why was I getting embarrassed for staring at my boyfriend?
“I wasn’t drooling!” was all I could come up with.
He stood up and came toward me. He had a teasing smirk on his face that did things to me that I would never admit to. My feet were planted firmly on the ground as he stopped inches away from me. My chest barely grazed his, and my breath hitched in my throat. Him being so close to me, to where I could feel his breath on my face, was slowly driving me insane.
“You can drool over me all you want, baby.” Lately Gage had been very…touchy. Not that I minded! It was actually nice to see him being so playful, and to me it showed he wanted me. That alone made my knees weak.
I tilted my head up and gazed up at him. His brown eyes were darker, and his face was inching its way closer to mine. He hadn’t even touched me yet and I felt like I was on fire. His gaze was so intense that I felt it all the way to my core.
My eyes were locked on his as his nose barely touched mine. I gulped trying to gain some composure, but when his lips grazed mine, my composure slipped away. It felt like I hadn’t touched his lips in years, so with one little touch my body was on fire.
I could not stop myself as my hands gripped his t-shirt and pulled him closer to me. My lips pressed against his softly despite the need to kiss him roughly. Gage’s hands came and grabbed my sides, his fingers digging into me. I pressed my body against his, wanting to mold into him.
Our lips were the opposite of our other movements. We were slow, soft, teasing. My hands were gripping his shirt so tightly I knew that when I pulled away, my hands would leave indents. Gage’s hands were the same way; he would probably leave marks on my hips.
When we finally had to pull away for air, I was breathing heavily and pressed my forehead against his. Thankfully, he was breathing just as heavy as I was, letting me know I wasn’t the only one affected.
“Fuck. The things I want to do to you.” He breathed out, his eyes closed. Something inside of me clenched. “We better get going.” All I could do was nod. I had no voice at the moment and I didn’t trust myself to say anything. If I did, I would probably beg him to do what he pleased with me.
He pecked my lips one more time before he detangled himself from me. He bit his lower lip as he looked at me. It took every ounce of control not to jump him right then and there.
“I’ll be right back,” was all he said before he quickly walked past me and into my bathroom. Once the door was shut, I let out a loud breath. My chest moved up and down rapidly as I tried to get some self-control back. Damn, the things that boy did to me!
It took a good two to three minutes before I could move and get some shoes on. Gage was still in the bathroom, which actually helped. It helped me get my emotions in check. I grabbed everything I needed: my phone, purse that held my wallet, and my keys.
Oddly it wasn’t that cold out today, so I didn’t have to wear a huge jacket that made me look like an abominable snowman. Even though it was already three in the afternoon, I was still dressed in my sweats. We were going to be in all night, so why should I even bother getting ready? I was definitely not going to be all dressed up to just sit around and play games with my friends.
I sat down in my desk chair for a few minutes before Gage finally emerged from the bathroom. I wasn’t stupid and knew why he was in there. So when he came out, I couldn’t help but blush.
“Ready to go?” I asked. I looked him over and bit my bottom lip. He looked really good. His simple black jeans and blue t-shirt looked great on him. I love that he didn’t change how he dressed. He can dress up and he looks great that way too, but seeing him dress like his normal self was just who he was. That was what I loved about him.
“All good.” The way he said it, I couldn’t stop from laughing. He meant that in multiple ways I think.
***
“We are not getting those.”
“Why not!” I whined, holding the bag of sour watermelon gummies.
“Because we already have every other candy in the cart,” Gage tried to reason with me. He was now seeing why Ethan and Luke told him “good luck” when shopping with me. When it came to sweets, I liked to get a bunch. Plus it was New Year’s Eve. Sue me.
“But not this kind!” I shook the bag in my hands. He was right, though. We had almost every single kind of treat from the treat aisle, but this one was the best one! Gage stared at me like I’d lost my mind.
“If you want that one, then you have to trade it for two others,” he said.
“What?”
“For that one candy, you have to put two others away,” Gage explained, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at me. I looked at him like he was crazy. How could you put two away?
“But—”
“No. If you want that one, then that is the deal. If not, put it back.” I glanced at the package in my hands. The watermelon ones were the best ones. Heaving a sigh, I reached into our cart and pulled out two other cand
ies. I said a silent goodbye to the Sour Patch Kids and the gummy bears. It was a sacrifice I was willing to make.
“Okay, that is the last thing then.”
“Are you sure? I feel like we are forgetting something.” I opened my phone and went through my small list and saw we did have everything we needed.
“We have the entire store in our cart. I don’t think we need anything else.” I could tell Gage was getting slightly irritated, so I decided to lift his mood. I pushed him to the side so I could push the cart. I placed my feet on the metal underneath and stood up, my hands holding the front.
“Push me.” For a second it was obvious he thought I was kidding, but when he saw the wide smile on my face, he grinned.
Gage got behind me and placed his hands right next to mine on the cart handle. His chest pressed against my back and I leaned back into him. When he started to push the cart I held on tighter, but I knew he wouldn’t let me fall. His hard chest was a reminder that he had me caged in.
As we went down the aisle, my smile got wider. I urged him to go faster, which he did. Before I knew it, we were both flying down the aisles. I was laughing loudly, and behind me I could hear Gage’s laughter rumbling.
Right as we slowed down at the fifth aisle, someone yelled behind us. Both of us looked backwards to see an older guy coming toward us. I could see his face was red and his bald head was shining with sweat. I wrinkled my nose when he came to a stop by us.
“You are not allowed to do that in this store!” he yelled. He wasn’t even scary. He had a huge pot belly and his mustache looked like it had food in it.
“There is no one here,” Gage said.
“This is my store, and I will not allow some good-for-nothing kids destroy it.” His words made me clench my jaw. I jumped down from the cart.
“Your store is empty. I would say you have only made a few bucks today and it is already four o’clock. As you can see we have a full cart, which we plan on paying for. If you would like to make some money from us ‘good-for-nothing kids,’ then I suggest you go back to your office and finish whatever boring thing you were doing before,” I said, looking right at him.
I hated when older people tried to bully younger kids. It was like they felt entitled when they weren’t. Just because they have “lived” they think everyone should respect them and bow down to their needs.
The man looked back and forth between us and when he noticed neither of us were backing down, he grunted.
“Continue with your shopping then,” he said through gritted teeth.
“We will.” I said before grabbing our cart and walking away, Gage trailing after me.
As we walked away, I felt my hands trembling. Never in a million years would I have done that before. I would have just apologized, turned bright red, and gotten the hell out of here. The old me would have never had someone push her down the aisles, screaming at the top of her lungs.
“That is my girl. Such a badass,” Gage said, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and pulling me into his side. I couldn’t help but smile up at him. Gage brought out this new side to me and I had to say…I liked this new me.
***
“Twister!”
“No, Monopoly!”
“X-Box!”
“Food!”
I sat back in the couch placing my hand over my mouth to hide my laughter. All eight of us were sitting in the living room trying to choose the first game to play. Gage and I had come back from the store two hours ago only to find everyone already here and waiting for us.
We had spent the last two hours eating snacks and talking before we decided to start our night. It was already seven. I wanted to bring up what we should eat, but I knew that argument would last a good hour, just like with this one.
My parents left about thirty minutes ago to go with Macey’s parents to some party. It wasn’t until three years ago that we forced them to go and leave Luke, Macey, Ethan, and me home alone. They weren’t sure what we would do by ourselves, but after seeing that we wouldn’t destroy the house, they let us have our own New Year’s. It was good for them to get out anyway. We were old enough now to be alone.
Luke, Macey, Ethan, and Dylan kept arguing over what game to play, while the rest of us just sat back watching. I almost got up to get some popcorn. It was pretty entertaining. I was lying in the crook of Gage’s side and I had no plans of moving either. Amy and Anna watched their boyfriends with small smiles.
When Dylan and Anna, Dylan’s girlfriend, showed up, she was really quiet and shy. I think she felt like she was imposing by being here, but after a bit she loosened up. She was actually really funny and great to talk to. Being around us all made her finally relax, and she fit really well into our group. I had to say that she fit with Dylan perfectly.
“I want food!” Dylan said loudly. I tuned back in to the conversation at this point. I agreed with him. I was getting hungry for something other than snacks.
“Do you want to eat, or do you want to play a game?” Macey demanded.
I spoke up: “How about one of us orders food while the others decide on a game? That way we kill two birds with one stone.”
The four of them stopped talking and looked at me. It sounded like a great plan to me. Eventually everyone agreed that was smart. Not wanting another argument to break out over what we should get, I already had something in mind.
“Okay. We are getting pizza and Chinese. Is that okay with everyone?”
Everyone said yes simultaneously and I let out a sigh of relief, glad no one cared. I reluctantly moved out of Gage’s embrace and stood up. I straightened my clothing before grabbing my phone and going to another room. As I dialed the nearest pizza delivery place, everyone shouted what they wanted.
Five minutes later I headed from the kitchen back to the living room. It was semi-quiet now, letting me know they’d finally decided on a game to play. The food was set to be here soon. I just hoped the Chinese food wouldn’t get here at the same time as the pizza. Talk about awkward.
Apparently everyone agreed on Twister first, since it would only take a few minutes, while Monopoly would probably take the rest of the night. Because the mat wasn’t big enough for everyone, we split into teams—boy vs. girls. We thought it would be more fun if there were four people on the mat at the same time. It would make it harder, and that way we could play more rounds. Whoever fell first was out, and the other three would continue. When one person is left, that team would get a point. If everyone on that team fell, then they would get no points. Not as complicated as it sounded.
“Girls first!” Luke declared as he grabbed the spinner. All four of us girls—Amy, Macey, Anna, and me—got up and headed to each side of the mat. We decided it would be fair if two people stood at each end so we could all reach the colors.
“Okay, Amy first.” Luke spun the little arrow and we all waited for the color. According to the rules, each person was given a turn instead of everyone going at once. All my life I thought it was the opposite.
We all took turns and before we knew it, all of our bodies were somehow wrapped around one another. Macey’s face was right next to mine, my butt was definitely pressed against Anna, and Amy was somehow underneath all of us. With every turn I thought one of us would fall, but somehow no one did.
I was trying so hard not to laugh because I knew the moment I did, I would be a goner. The boys somehow picked up on it and were now trying everything in their power to get us to fall over. I had a suspicion they were making up moves because after they said one, they would giggle like a bunch of schoolgirls.
Eventually one had to fall, and it ended up being Anna. It seemed that after she fell, the rest of us went downhill. Macey fell next, and it ended up being me and Amy together. I knew she would win since she was the most flexible out of all of us, but somehow I was holding my own. I would probably be sore tomorrow.
Amy and I went a few more turns until Gage called out, “Left hand blue,” and I was done. I had to somehow extend my ar
m across my body and Amy’s to reach the color. My legs were already getting shaky and when I went to move, I toppled over. I lay on the mat for a second, breathing kind of heavily. I finally got up while Amy untangled herself. It was now the guys’ turn.
By time I got to the couch the guys were standing up, getting ready for their turn. I looked over at Luke and Dylan and saw them doing “stretches.” And by stretches, I mean trying to touch their toes and just waving their arms around. I passed by Gage to take a seat, and he purposely brushed by me.
“Your ass looks good in those sweats,” was all he whispered to me before he walked to the mat. My cheeks went red instantly. I knew I felt someone’s eyes on me when I was bent over. At least it’d only been Gage.
I forced the blush away and took a seat next to Anna. All four of us girls shared a look as the guys got ready. Now this was going to be fun. It was going to be interesting seeing four big, muscular guys trying to fit on a small mat. None were flexible either, so my bet was they wouldn’t make it more than three rounds each.
Ten minutes later I saw I was right. All four guys fell down on top of one another, groaning and swearing. I stared at them, grinning. They were doomed the second they stepped foot on the mat. Their bulky frames didn’t fit well, and none had the flexibility to move their arms and legs around one another. In just a matter of minutes they were tangled up.
I wasn’t sure who it happened to first, but one got tripped up and ended up taking the rest with him. I was pretty sure it was Luke, though; he always sucked at this game.
We were about to do another round when the doorbell rang. Luke and Ethan got up to grab it while I straightened out the mat so we could play again soon. A minute later they walked in carrying three large pizzas and two bags filled with Chinese food. Because there were so many of us and the guys ate a lot, I ordered more than we could probably stomach. But when it nears midnight, you always get a craving for something to eat.
Grabbing what we all wanted, we sat around the living room eating and talking. I never felt more relaxed and at home than I did right then. Everyone was laughing, telling old stories, just being themselves. This was already one of the best New Year’s Eve parties we had ever hosted.
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