by A. R. Perry
“So, DD…” Parker leaned into me, hand settling on my hip.
My molars almost cracked from the pressure I pushed into them in order to keep from landing a kick square in his balls.
“We’re gonna play a game of truth or dare downstairs. Want to join?”
“Not if my life depended on it. And get your hand off me.”
He smirked, unmoved by the malice in my voice, and pivoted away, taking a sip of his drink.
“Truth or dare?” Madison squealed at my side. “I haven’t played that since—”
“You had metal teeth and spoke with a lisp?” Parker cut her off.
I elbowed his side, but he only laughed, his lips hovering over the edge of the cup. Madison flipped him off and clutched my hand with a bit too much enthusiasm.
“Let’s play!”
“I’m good.” I took another sip of the drink. It wasn’t entirely bad, but I needed to break away from the group so I could dump it. I didn’t plan on getting drunk and I wholeheartedly planned on following through being DD for whoever needed it.
“Scared you’ll have to admit your feelings for me?” Parker grinned, biting the edge of the cup.
Why did girls fall for that?
“The lust for murder your very presence instills in me?”
“Can’t you just talk normal for once?”
“Oh I’m sorry…let me make it easier for you. Girl no like you. You big jerk.”
“Why are you flirting with him?” Madison attempted to whisper in my ear. The shots must have hit her faster than she expected because half the room heard her, judging by the glances and smirks.
“Yeah, 4.0, why are you flirting with me?” Parker’s cocky grin was back.
“I’m not!” I pushed Madison off me but she only giggled, catching herself on a barstool.
“Let’s play.” Madison took my hand and jerked me toward the living room. I had been in Hunter’s house several times mostly for parties—once for a study group—so I knew where she was taking me. Down to the man cave as it’s so absurdly named.
I gave in with a growl and allowed her to drag me out of the kitchen. As we passed a table in the hall I set my drink down. No way in hell would I have that handy. Knowing Parker or pretty much any other person at these types of events, they would just dare me to drink the whole thing and then we would be stuck till I sobered up.
Madison let go of me to use the banister for balance as we made our way downstairs. The music wasn’t as loud down on the lower level. Or as crowded. At least I could hear myself think again.
A group of kids huddled on the couch playing some fighting game on the giant flat screen TV. Two kids shrieked, playing a rather uncoordinated game of air hockey—seriously, who has an air hockey table in their house? The group that Madison made her way to sat in a small circle. Some on Lovesacs others on the floor.
My heart skipped an uneven a beat when I realized I really, really didn’t want to do this. I was nowhere near an open book. Madison had been my only close friend since middle school and there was no way I wanted to share anything personal with this group of kids. Which only left me with dare and I couldn’t even fathom what their drunk brains would come up with.
Madison plopped down on the ground, patting the carpet next to her. Parker and Aiden weren’t far behind as I sat cross-legged on the floor. I was happy I chose jeans. Madison looked uncomfortable as hell with her legs off to the side tucked under so that no one got a peek at her goods.
Parker sat across from me and raised an eyebrow that I read as a challenge right as the host of the party walked in carrying a clear bottle of what I could only assume was alcohol. He pushed a kid out of the Lovesac to my right and sat down.
“Alright, you all know the rules. If at any point you refuse a truth you take one shot. You refuse a dare and it’s two shots. And I’ve upped the ante. This is Everclear. It will knock you on your ass quicker than the punch upstairs.”
I gulped and narrowed a glare at Madison. “Did you know about this?”
She smirked and straightened her skirt feigning innocence.
Dead.
I was going to kill her.
Or relieve her of the best friend title.
Both.
Probably both.
“Okay, the last person to have sex gets to start.” Hunter looked around the circle of faces until the girl next to Parker cleared her throat.
“About ten minutes ago,” she offered, keeping her eyes downcast.
“Nice.” Parker sent her a wink, which caused her to laugh and shake her head.
It really wasn’t that funny. Something told me they hooked up at least once judging from the red color to her cheeks and the fit of giggles.
“Okay, since Parker likes to be the center of attention…” she said. “Truth or dare?”
“Dare, of course.”
“Give me your best striptease for two minutes.”
“Please, I thought you were more original than that, Em.” Parker jumped up and pointed at Hunter. “Give me a good song.”
Hunter quickly scrolled through his phone before a thumping beat blared out of his speakers. I buried my face in my clammy hands as Parker started gyrating to the song. Madison whooped from beside me then the rest of the group joined in. I peeked through my fingers long enough to see Parker shirtless and his abs rippling with whatever hip roll he was doing. That would be an image I could never wipe from my head. Even if mental bleach was a thing, I would be scarred.
“Yeah, baby!” Madison hollered.
Pure torture. Worse than I thought when Madison first demanded I come. It wasn’t as if I hated these people—except Parker—but they had never been my crowd. I was too introverted for this crap.
The music abruptly ended. “Time,” Hunter shouted.
I let out a premature breath as Parker sat back down. Topless. He fist-bumped Hunter then draped his shirt around his neck. My eyes jerked away, trying but failing not to notice his rather nice six-pack.
Nope. Bad thoughts.
I shook my head.
If that was the kind of dare I was in store for, there was no way in hell I planned on choosing that.
“So, Lily, truth or dare?”
I blinked a few times before I realized Parker was talking to me. “T-truth.” The words flew out before my brain caught up to who I was speaking to.
He smiled like that was the response he was looking for. I opened my mouth to change my answer, but it was too late. “What’s the hottest fantasy you have when you go to solo town?”
“What?” My voice came out in a high-pitched squeal. Not a sound I think I ever made before. Heat raced up from my neck to my cheeks no doubt turning them an unattractive shade of red.
“You heard me.”
“I don’t even know what that means.”
“Come on… Buffin’ the muffin. Flicking the bean. Playin’ the clitar.”
My mouth dropped open at his crude descriptions. Nope. No way was I answering that.
Hunter shook the bottle of alcohol in the air and Madison shot me a wide-eyed look. Yeah, I was trapped.
“Pretty much all you want here is masturbation material for yourself, am I right?”
“I do,” Hunter called with a grin that immediately prompted whistling from the other guys. “Out with it or take a shot.”
I let out a strangled groan. Parker was just trying to make me as uncomfortable as possible. Well, screw him. “No grand fantasy. Just me and the showerhead when the moment strikes.”
“Me too!” Em—the girl who got a lap dance leaned across divide with a raised hand to give me a high five. I obliged for the sake of moving on.
“That’s hot.” Hunter took a drink from his cup and motioned to me. “Your turn, Lil.”
“Fine, Hunter, truth or dare?”
“Duh. Dare.”
I looked around the room for some inspiration. Spying a table of chips over in the corner, I got up and jogged to it. I returned with a jar of salsa in my hand. “Eat
this whole thing.”
“Child’s play!” He snagged the jar from me, nearly spilling his drink all over my shoes in the process. Within an impressive two minutes and minimal gagging he finished off the jar.
Hunter burped, dragging the back of his hand across his mouth, and focused on Madison. “Truth or dare.”
“At the risk of giving y’all more masturbation material, dare.”
“Switch your clothes with Lily.”
My eyes went wide. “What? No!”
Madison pouted at my side. “Come on, Lil, I don’t wanna take a shot of that crap, I have work tomorrow and I would prefer not to have my head in a toilet.”
“Pick someone else then.”
“That’s not the dare.” Hunter jiggled the bottle again.
“Please.” Madison puppy-whimpered at my side.
It was a low play, and she knew it. I couldn’t say no to that stupid face.
“Fine!”
Hunter pointed behind us. “Bathroom’s behind you.”
I shot him a glare before stepping over to the bathroom with Madison on my heels. Once the door was closed, I turned my glare on her.
“Oh, come on, we’ll change before we leave. Your mom will never see you in this.”
“And if it ends up on social media?”
Madison opened the door and poked her head out. “No pictures!”
I heard the unmistakable sound of boos from the group as she closed the door. “I’m going to kill you.”
Three minutes later I stared at myself in the mirror, trying my hardest to pull the skirt down. Madison stood several inches shorter than me and the skirt was already pushing boundaries on her. On me, it looked downright vulgar.
After a series of banging on the door from one of the impatient players, she dragged me out and toward the group. Hunter whistled and Parker’s eyebrows shot up so fast they looked like they were about to fly off his head.
“I’m not sitting on the ground in this so you’re gonna need to give me that Lovesac.” I nudged Hunter with my foot and he fell out of the beanbag with his hands covering his chest.
“Never thought I’d see the day where you wore anything besides jeans, Lily.” Parker said, seeming to have recovered his senses. “I always thought you had tentacles growing under there.” He poked my ankle and I kick his hand away.
“Nope, just legs you’ll only ever see again in your dreams so soak it up.” I sat carefully in the beanbag, making sure that the skirt didn’t rise up any farther.
“My turn!” Madison called and smiled my direction.
“There are other people playing!” I pushed away Parker as he righted himself and tried to lay his head in my lap.
“Truth or dare, Lil,” she said it in her sweet singsong voice. One that either spelled mayhem or actual sweetness. It could go either way with her.
No way I was choosing truth again, so I figured I would go with dare. She wouldn’t screw me over.
“Dare.”
Her grin got bigger and instantly I knew she was leaning toward mayhem. “I dare you to date Parker for the summer.”
Lily Holladay was the bane of my existence. Not because I couldn’t stand her—no matter what she thought—but because I couldn’t get her out of my head. Dramatic? Definitely. But her stupid green eyes and freckled nose had made a home in the back of my mind since the day I decided girls were more than yucky. Unfortunately, soon after that, Lily decided that she hated my guts. Which led me to spend the better half of high school figuring out how I could turn those feelings around.
It wasn’t going well.
Needless to say, I counted my lucky stars when I caught her coming out of the house. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to the party, but the second I saw her in that damn green shirt that somehow made her eyes glow, my mood turned around.
I didn’t think the night could get any better, but then her best friend, freaking Madison Scott, dared me to date her for the entire summer.
And instantly I had the opening I had been searching for.
Lily’s eyes widened, and I thought for a second she was going to choke on her own surprise. I had to admit, even I was pretty shocked Madison went there. The girl had been shamelessly flirting with me all year and even though I flirted back, there was no chance I would screw up any opportunity with Lily by sleeping with her best friend. Maybe somewhere along the way she picked up on the fact that I had a thing for her friend instead.
In any event, I had never wanted to kiss her more than I did that specific moment.
“Madison, can I talk to you for a second?” Lily’s glare darkened as her friend simply shook her head.
“You’re up against two shots here, Lil. What’s your answer?” Hunter asked with a jiggle of the bottle.
Lily shifted her pleading gaze to me. All I could do was smile. No way in hell an opportunity like that was going to slip through my fingers. She must had read it on my face. After all, we had known each other a long time.
“I’ll take the shots,” Lily murmured.
My heart plunged to my knees taking all my breath with it. She hated me that much that she couldn’t even go along with a stupid dare for the summer?
Without thinking, I turned to her. “You’ve never been one to turn down a dare.” I dragged my thumb across my lower lip. She narrowed her eyes into slits, her own hand flying up to rest on her chin. Right on her scar.
“Lil, come on.” Madison tilted her head. “Two shots of that and you’ll end up in the hospital.”
Madison was right, which was precisely why Hunter had chosen it. He got entertainment either way. A forced truth or dare and if someone refused, he got to see them with borderline alcohol poisoning, which was enough ammo to torture them for the rest of high school.
“And a summer of dating him and I’ll end up in jail for manslaughter.” Lily stabbed an accusatory finger in my direction.
Geez, it wasn’t as if I was in on it. I was just as shocked as her. Ecstatic. But still shocked.
“You don’t have to do it,” I found myself saying. I don’t know where it came from, but if she actually planned to risk alcohol poisoning over a dare, then I needed to stop it.
Her pleading look turned back into a glare. “Oh why? So I can hear about this the rest of the year? You know what, fine, I’ll date you for the summer. On one condition—you do not get to date anyone else. If I have to suffer, then so do you and a summer of celibacy seems like the perfect trade.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine, Lil, whatever you say.”
Little did she know I hadn’t hooked up with anyone for a year. The last time made me physically ill, especially when I found out Lily saw.
Yeah. A story for another time.
She threw me one last dirty look before getting up and stomping up the stairs with the most dramatic flair I’d ever seen from her. I had a hard time keeping my eyes off her long legs. She should wear skirts more often.
“I guess the game is over,” Hunter called as he made his way upstairs. “Who wants to go swimming?”
The rest of the group jumped up and followed him. Madison lingered, beaming at me as if I owed her the world as I slipped my shirt on.
“What?”
“You’re welcome,” she replied as she got up, adjusting the green top that didn’t look nearly as mouthwatering on her. “I guessed you had a thing for her. I mean why else would you repeatedly turn me down?” She emphasized her point by sliding her hand down her side. “I’m giving you this opening, but if you hurt my girl all the deaths she has imagined for you over the years will pale in comparison.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I mock saluted her then slid my arm around her lower back. “Should we go find my girlfriend?”
Madison giggled as she walked away.
My summer was already starting out better than I planned.
We found Lily in the kitchen staring at the Jell-O shots as if she couldn’t decide if they would help her or not. The girl always had a calculating expression on
her face—running through the various repercussions to her actions. I don’t think she’s ever stopped to just have fun. Not since we were kids.
Madison smacked a shot glass out of her hand the second Lily reached for it. “Let’s go, Lil.
Lily’s mouth fell open in shock as the shot glass hit the ground and splattered the cabinets in red goop. Good thing no one was in its path. All it would have done was start a drunken argument if someone got dirty.
Lily opened her mouth to respond before her eyes locked on me hovering behind Madison. “What is he doing here?” she hissed. Only it came out as more of a yell and several people in the kitchen turned in our direction.
“Come on.” Madison gripped her upper arm and steered her toward the front door. “Let’s call an Uber. I’ve had several drinks and apparently you can’t hold even the tiniest bit of liquor.”
“I am not drunk! And why is he here?” Lily spun out of Madison’s grasp the second they stepped out onto the porch. “I seriously can’t believe you. I’m not the one who’s all hot and wet for him so why did you give me that ridiculous dare, huh?”
I knew Madison had the hots for me.
Madison gave a small shrug and tried to loop her arm through Lily’s. Lily shoved her away, face red from either repressed anger or alcohol. I wasn’t sure how much of that punch she drank or if we got to her before she inhaled a Jell-O shot.
Madison narrowed her eyes, and I was certain I was three seconds away from witnessing a catfight between two girls who have never fought a day in their friendship. I threw up my hands and stepped between them feeling like I was trying to reason with terrorists.
“Why don’t we go get some food, huh? Dick’s on me.”
“Fitting restaurant for someone like you,” Lily muttered under her breath.
“I love Dick’s!” Madison shouted then squealed when she noticed the group of kids hanging out on the porch twisted in her direction. “Burgers, you pervs!”
The kids laughed as they turned back to their conversation. Madison huffed and shoved her hair out of her face looking far more flushed than she did when we left the house. “What do you say, Lil? I think those shots had more kick than I was expecting and I could use some greasy food to soak up the alcohol. I’ll be grounded all summer if I go home drunk. Again.”