“Not your fault,” she mouthed. I swear, sometimes that girl had mind powers beyond her realm. It almost made me not angry with her for not sharing that we’d be burning the golden turd at our house. At the end of the speech, everyone clapped, and it was followed by the national anthem.
This game of football was actually much more intriguing than I’d originally thought. We’d learned about it because it was said to be “America’s most popular sport” but I’d never really gotten the point until now. The energy of the crowd alone was enough to affect anyone.
In the last play before half time, Cameron was thrown the ball. “RUN, CAMERON!” I yelled. This would make it a tie game.
“I thought you weren’t into being here. Clearly, I was wrong,” Myah said, and I couldn’t help but laugh along with her. I didn’t know what came over me, but this was actually fun to watch. It sort of reminded me of the Reaping back home, except instead of trying to take the other’s soul, you tried to get this pig skin. And you got a whole team to do it. A team Reaping event would have been fun.
***
“Ready to go?” Myah asked after they announced the sophomore class had won best float. No shocker there, considering it looked like a Mona Lisa next to our metallic turd.
“The game’s not over yet, and we’re tied after that touchdown Cameron scored,” I spit out, and she gave me a disgusted look. “Who cares? We have to go make the jungle juice, and pick up beer.”
“What?”
“Jungle juice and beer. Did you think this was going to be a dry party?”
“You’re not old enough,” I said as I followed Lacie and Myah down the bleachers.
“So what?”
“And since when do you drink?”
“Since tonight. I’ve tried it before, but you can’t have a party without it. I got a recipe online for the jungle juice, and my crazy aunt said she’ll get everything for us. She’s on her way to pick us up now. Then, she’ll take us to the store to get whatever we want.”
“I don’t think I like… wait, I thought we were going to burn that thing. If we leave now, how will it get to the house?” I asked, hoping this would be our reason to stay. I wanted to see how it ended.
“The guys will bring it after the game’s over.”
“But…”
“It’ll be fine. Let’s go,” Lacie said.
When we got to the car, Myah jumped in. I waited until she shut her door to turn to Lacie.
“I’m not going to get drunk, so before you decide to lecture me, I thought I’d let you know that. This is normal for a party, so don’t freak out. Remember, just one more day and then we’re boring, and I’ll never get to see any of these people again.” She started to tear up. I hadn’t thought about that aspect of it. After our next location was secure, we’d leave immediately. No goodbyes.
Chapter Nineteen
Party Down
“Have fun tonight ladies!” Myah’s aunt giggled as she dropped us off. Like Myah had said, she bought us everything we wanted. She only made us pay for the fruit, but the cost was listening to her “in my day” stories, days she seemed to still be stuck in if she was buying for minors, but I didn’t want to upset Lacie, so I held my tongue.
“Lacie and I will go make the jungle juice. Cendall, can you move the keg?”
“Don’t look at me like that. I saw you during weightlifting in gym class.” I smirked.
I waited until they were in the house to port the keg to the back yard. To my surprise, most of it was already set up. Trevor was there putting out more tables and chairs.
“A party? Seriously?”
“So you’re done avoiding me?” he asked.
“I wasn’t avoiding you, I just.”
“Wanted to keep your distance in case I changed my mind.”
“Maybe.”
“And yes, she asked a while ago. The rules we agreed on said that she could go to school and home. This is still technically our home, and all the wards are still up, so the party is on.”
“Whatever, you know they’re drinking right?” I asked
“Oh no, seniors drinking their senior year? I’ve never heard of that before,” he mocked, as Myah approached.
“Have a cup of this. It’ll help you relax,” Myah said as she handed me a cup of juice.
“Relax?”
“Yes, you look like my dad when he first caught me kissing a boy. The football team is on their way with the float.”
I looked down at the glass which had fruit floating at the top of it. This must have been what they made inside. I’d never drank before, but then, I’d never been to a party either. To my surprise, it tasted just like strawberry Kool-Aid. It couldn’t be that strong then.
One by one students, started piling in the back yard, and before I knew it, there had to be at least a hundred people there, but still no float.
“Finally,” Myah called from beside me, and I watched the football team emerge from the side of the house with our giant turd float. “Here, hold this. I’m going to go get some gasoline,” she said as she handed me another full glass of jungle juice. I’d already drank the first one she gave me; she could get another one. I took a sip as the guys brought the float to the center of the yard where a small blaze danced in a makeshift fire pit. They maneuvered the metallic mass over the small fire and then let the thing slam down on top of it. The fire went out immediately, and everyone started laughing. Then, one by one, students started coming up the thing and beating it with whatever was in their hands. Some used sticks while others just punched it.
“Is this suppose to be like a grown up piñata?” I asked Lacie as she came up next to me with a large stick in her hand. “Sort of, I don’t know, but come on. It’ll be fun.”
“I don’t have anything to hit it with.”
“Really?” She said as she pointed to my boots. Ah yes, there was that. I pulled it out and let it elongate. We approached the turd, and Lacie struck first. She hit one of the arms hard enough that it bent backwards, and crowd hollered in approval. If they liked that, they’d really love this. I jumped in the air and slashed at the head of float. It popped off in one, clean swipe, and everyone started to cheer. Myah then jumped on top of the thing and started pouring gasoline on it. She leapt to the ground, yelled for everyone to back us, and tossed a match as she quickly ran away from the mass.
Whoosh!
In seconds, the mound erupted into an inferno.
“Where did you find that thing?” Cameron asked as his eyes went wide in awe when I walked over to him.
“Oh, it was in the shed.”
“It looks like something from a horror movie that slices and dices people.” Only a few so far.
“Nope, Lacie’s dad must use it for something.”
“Can I touch it?”
“It’s pretty sharp. I’m going to go put it away.”
“Maybe her dad’s really a hit man instead of a plastic surgeon,” Cameron laughed, and I chuckled along. I ran to the shed and placed it back in my boot. When I returned, the float was sitting in ashes, and Cameron was alone at the fire pit.
“Where did everyone go?” I asked
“Inside to play flip cup. Have you kissed someone before?”
“Yes.” Where was this heading?
“How many people?”
“Three.”
“What was it like?”
“I don’t really think about it much.” I was only reminded of every time I saw Trevor’s face.
“I’ve kissed a girl once. It was terrible though. She laughed at me afterwards.”
“I’m sorry she laughed at you. I’m sure it wasn’t that bad. She just wasn’t the one you were supposed to be kissing.” Please don’t let this lead to where I think it’s leading. Last time I’d had a discussion with a boy about kissing, before I knew it, I had made out with three boys in a twenty-four hour time frame.
“Yeah, I think it’s just females in general I’m not supposed to be kissing,” he said and
put his hand over his mouth like it just slipped out.
“I meant…I meant…Listen, I had some shots on the way over here,” he started stuttering.
“It’s okay. Don’t freak out.” Thank god. I really wasn’t ready for a make out with a friend déjà vu.
“Do you want to go play survivor flip cup with everyone?” he asked, and I nodded my head. I had no idea what the game was, but if it was competitive, I was down.
We walked inside to the kitchen table where a ton of people were lined up on each side. I watched for a minute but quickly grabbed onto the concept. Drink what’s inside the cup, then flip it to land on the side you drink from. Once you successfully finished your drink and flipped the cup, the person next to you went and so on until your entire team finished, hopefully faster than the opposing team. Slowest one from the losing team gets voted off each time until there is only one person on each team.
“We want in,” Cameron shouted, and we went on the same side.
***
I looked up at the clock as the game finally started to dwindle down. Our game was now down to two people on each side, with Cameron and me being the last on our side. While Lacie and Myah were on the other. I felt myself begin to sway and found my hand reaching for the table for balance. Winning had been fun, but it came at the cost of me being at least ten cups deep in jungle juice. I, however, refused to lose.
“Okay last game, and then we’ve got to call it a night. Some of us have dancing to do tomorrow!” Lacie called.
“Oh because I know that’s on the top of your priority list,” Cameron laughed. “One, two, three…” Cameron called, and he and Myah tapped their cups, threw the drink back, and began to flip. Cameron got it on the second try, and I threw my drink back. I placed the cup on the table, and with one flip, the game was over. We cheered in victory, and Cameron went to give me a high five but missed and fell to the floor. In the process, as he slipped in a puddle of spilled juice, he slurred out, “I think it’s sleepy time.” He laughed, and I had to agree as I had to put my hand on the wall to steady myself as I helped him up.
Lacie showed Myah to the door while invisible Guardians helped keep her upright as she made her way to the door and up the stairs. Their thoughts were expressed in the constant shaking of their heads. Trevor had already attempted to stop the game earlier. I had to run to the restroom for a quick bathroom break, and he tried to get me to stop the game, but I refused.
“This was your doing. You said she could still have it, so we’re both going to enjoy it. There are like thirty Guardians here anyways, so bug off.”
I put Cameron’s arm around my shoulder and dragged him to the spare room on the first floor. Guess being the reigning champs had gotten to him. I closed one eye, trying to get my vision from splitting as I attempted to guide him to the bed.
“Thank you for not telling my secret,” he said when I flopped him onto the bed.
“You’ll find I’m very good at keeping them.” I winked.
“Because you have so many,” he said as he closed his eyes and passed out.
Chapter Twenty
SOB
When I came out of the room, no one but the Guardians remained. Too bad they weren’t invisible to me as I didn’t really care for the expressions they’d been giving me all night, especially now.
“Stay away from my future, you drunk hussy,” Catherine said as she stepped in front of me before I could make my way up the stairs. She went to slap me in the face, but I grabbed her wrist midway.
“You touch me, and I will put you on the ground in front of all your little friends.”
“You wouldn’t, and if you did, we’d take you down.”
“You really want to challenge me? Have you not seen what I can do? Do you seriously think you and your little minions over there could take me?” They might have been able to, considering I was feeling a little off, but I wouldn’t let them know that.
“I’m not afraid of you,” she said almost at whisper. Not afraid…okay. Use your man voice then.
“You should be. Now, get out of my way,” I said as I dropped her wrist and walked past her and up the first stair. I felt a tingle in my gut, letting me know someone was attempting to rush me. I flipped Catherine over my shoulder and threw her into the piano in the main room. Wasn’t so bad, huh? Trevor, never trust someone who tries to attack when their enemy’s back is turned. Giving up on the stairs, I ported to my room and let out a scream in frustration. That was it. I would just have to have Trevor set things straight with this stupid bitch if she didn’t believe me. Her eyes of jealously on me all the time were really getting annoying. He was all hers, and I don’t know how much clearer I could be on that. I ported into his room. He stood up from his bed, when he saw me.
“There you are, the SOB of the evening.”
“What is wrong with you?” he asked as he walked up to me.
“Nothing is wrong with me. What is wrong with you?” I said as I poked him in the chest with my finger.
“How much have you had to drink, Cendall?”
“Only four,” ten… “…glasses.”
“Glasses of what?”
“Jungle juice I think they called it. Really yummy, and it wasn’t strong.”
“Jungle juice is nothing but liquors combined in a bin, it’s nothing but strong alcohol made to taste like juice.”
“Meh… whatever. I’m fine. Stop trying to lecture me on my day off. I came in here to tell you…” I went to poke him again, but my feet got tangled in something, and I ended up crashing into him instead. We fell to the ground hard, in a tangled web of limbs, and I landed on top of him with a thud. I looked up at him, and he gave me that dark, playful look he gave sometimes. “I came in here to yell at you... don’t you make that face.”
“What face?” he laughed, and the look went from light and playful to dark, dangerous and just fucking sexy.
“That face. When you do that face, I can’t think…and…” I took a deep breath which was a big mistake, as I got a full blast of freshly chopped cedar after a rainstorm. I went on my tip toes so that I stood even with him. This was the face I saw before we kissed that first time when he called my bluff. My mind rushed to remember how his mouth felt on mine. What harm could one more taste do? “That one,” I said, slowly inching my face higher, brushing my lips against his.
“Cendall, what are you do—”
“Shhhhhh,” I said and went for it. The kiss started off slow, but quickly intensified. Trevor flipped me over, and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he lifted us up off the ground, never letting our mouths separate. He took us to the bed and set us down. As soon as we were on the bed, I flipped us around again, and I straddled him. I pulled away from the kiss, and his puzzled eyes looked up at me. He was about to speak when I put my finger to his mouth. I then grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it up over his head. He smiled. I did the same with my shirt and watched his eyes widen as his chest rose up and fell like he’d just taken a deep breath. My fingertips grazed over his abs and found their way to the scar that was in the middle of his chest, a scar I was all too familiar with. It was from the day he was almost taken away from me, when Mobrolantis had come for Lacie. Mobrolantis, who was out there likely plotting our deaths, could be searching for us at this very moment.
I stumbled off of him and pulled my shirt back over my head.
“Cendall,” he called out, and I couldn’t control my body as it turned at his command.
“You had something to tell me,” he said as he, too, pulled his shirt back over his head. I watched as it slid over his shoulders and down his torso, like the curtains closing after a Broadway play. This show, whatever it had been, was over. No more to see here folks.
“Oh, yeah. Tell your little girlfriend I’m not into you. She’s all worried I’m trying to take away her future from her,” I said, finally remembering why I’d came to his room in the first place.
“I’ll let her know,” he said as he rolled his
eyes.
Chapter Twenty-One
Dates?
“Ready?” she asked as she walked through our connected closet in her dark blue gown. Her hair rested on her shoulders in large, blonde curls. As she wanted, the dark blue gown made her eyes really pop, and the light red lipstick made her appear older, in a good way. “Cendall, you don’t even have your dress on yet. You only have thirty minutes until our dates arrive. You’ve been in here all day. What have you been doing?” Avoiding Trevor. After what I did last night, I had yet to find the courage to face him. I also hadn’t come up with a good excuse to explain it away.
“Our dates? You mean yours? Remember, I’m flying solo,” I said as I made my hand dive down like I imagined an airplane to do. She smiled like she knew something I didn’t.
“Oh yeah, that must have slipped my mind.”
“What is that look for?” I asked.
“Nothing,” she said, and her smile faded. “I just wanted to talk to you about something before we leave.”
“Spit it out.”
“If something does go down, just promise me you won’t die. You’ve been a great friend, Cendall, and you’ve saved me so many times. I don’t think I could handle it if you were killed because of me.”
“Where did this come from?”
“I don’t know. I don’t have a bad feeling about tonight or anything. I just wanted to let you know. I know at times you get annoyed because, even after bad things, I still carry on instead of being locked up in this house. I’m not afraid of death, Cendall, which is why I force myself to live. If my life ends tomorrow, tonight, or hell in the next five minutes, I’ll know I lived it to the fullest. I didn’t cower to them, you know? It’s the only thing that keeps me going sometimes. But after the week we’ve had, I just can’t let me be the cause of your death. So promise me, if it comes down to it, you’ll save yourself.”
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