One
Sierra
“Oh my God! What thehellwas that?” My tongue was burning and numb at the same time. I wanted to scrape it off with my fingers to get rid of whatever that shit was. “Fucking gross!”
The bar was packed wall to wall, a blur of bodies and flashing neon signs advertising drink specials no one actually wanted. Bass-heavy music thumped through the floorboards, causing every table to vibrate and making every conversation feel like a shout.
Giggles rang out around me, though I wasn’t the only one struggling with the choice of drink. Somewhere nearby, a girl shrieked with laughter, and the sound of pool balls cracking together echoed from the back of the bar.
The bartenders moved like they were in a race, slinging shots and dodging outstretched hands with practiced ease.
I was far from a novice when it came to drinking. Three years of college and being part of a sorority had taken care of that. I could handle my liquor, but whatever this had been was unholy.
“Oh, come on, Sierra, have you lost your edge?” Aria teased with a roll of her light blue eyes, swinging her perfectly slick, long, chocolate brown ponytail over her shoulder. She resembled a doll — perfect if her insides weren’t so rotten.
My lips curled into a sharp smile. Aria loved to spit venom.
She was the epitome of what everyone expected a sorority girl to be. It infuriated me that she was a legacy, which meant we hadn’t been able to reject her.
I had joined my sorority because it wasn’t a stereotypical organization, but I guess there were bad seeds everywhere.
That didn’t mean I was going to roll over and take it. Aria kept trying me, but I was the wrong fucking person for that. Tonight was undoubtedly the wrong time to mess with me.
“Don’t worry, Aria. If my edge ever dulled, you’d be the first to stop sweating.” I smirked.
Her smile turned caustic.Come on, I fucking dare you. Bite back, push me further.If she tried me too much tonight, Harley Quinn would have nothing on me. I watched her with a steely gaze.
With a sniff, she averted her eyes, and I turned to my left to one of my closest friends, Jasmine.
“Seriously, what was that?”
“No idea.” She shuddered. “Yuck. Whatever it was, I don’t ever want to smell it again.”
“Well, I hope it at least packs a decent punch. I didn’t knock this stuff back for nothing. After the afternoon I had, I would almost welcome a little blackout, arms wide fucking open.”
She pursed her lips and wrinkled her nose slightly. “I’m so sorry—”
“Save it.” I slashed my hand through the air. “You know how much I hate pity, Jas. What’s done is done. I’ll get over it…preferably under someone else.”
”You sure about that? I mean, you and David, you’ve been together for quite a while.” Jas’ eyebrows knitted together.
“Yup. We were. Doesn’t change what happened, though. He can get fucked all the way. I’m not the kind of person to ignore or even forgive something like that.”
Near the dartboard, someone let out a cheer, and a bartender yelled over the din for someone to close out their tab or lose their card.
I touched the slightly sticky bar as little as possible, my fingertips skimming across the lacquered wood that had seen too many spilled drinks and drunk confessions.
A few feet away, a group of frat guys tried to start a chant but slurred half the words. Meanwhile, two girls took selfies with bright flashes that lit up the dim room like strobe lights.
I scanned the room for… something. Maybe someone. I wasn’t even sure.
A distraction. An excuse to not think about him for one damn second longer. The room buzzed with that Friday night kind of electricity, like anything could happen, even if most of it would be regretted by morning.
“OMG, there they are!”
Even over all the chatter and music, I could hear Aria’s voice drifting over to me, so I turned my head.
Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as she ran her fingers through her ponytail, adjusted the neckline of her top to perfection. Then she strutted across the room with a “Hey, boys!” to the hockey guys.
