She must already be drunk. It’s one in the morning, so I guess she’s probably been drinking for a while now. It took me longer than usual to tell Kai to come pick me up. I was pacing back and forth for hours, trying to decide about sneaking out.
“You two look sooo cute,” she says, looking between Kai and me.
The two of us dressed up as Mickey and Minnie for this party. I wore this costume for the first time a couple of years ago. It’s not the sluttiest costume out there, but I’m sure Kai doesn’t mind.
“What are you?” I ask, eyeing her turquoise top that looks like a bra paired with a long skirt with a slit down her left leg.
“A gypsy.” She twirls.
Kai hands me a Corona. I take a long chug and choke back the carbonation. This should ease my tension.
Three beers and a couple of hours later, my tension has subsided. Paige has been dragging me on and off the dance floor all night. By dance floor, I mean the living room. She’s going to be the one that has a hangover this time. I told myself after mythird drink that I was done for the night. All I wanted was a little buzz to ease my guilt.
“Are you having fun?”
I wrap my arms around Kai’s neck. “Yes. Anything I do with you is fun.”
He slides his hands down my hips and pulls me closer to him. “Good. You looked worried when I picked you up.”
I raise up on the balls of my feet and kiss him on the lips, tasting the salt and lime from his corona. I bite my bottom lip and shy away from his gaze.
He tilts my face up toward him. “Don’t be shy around me,” he says with a slight smile. “It’s hot when you initiate.”
“What do you mean?”
“When you initiate stuff, that’s when I know you want it. Knowing you want it is hot because that means you want me,” he whispers in my ear. A shiver runs down my neck.
I turn around and catch Allison in the corner with a smug look on her face as she watches Kai wrap his arms around me. As I lean my head back, Kai tilts his down and kisses me. Allison rolls her eyes and flips her hair while turning her back on us.
I chuckle.
“What’s so funny?”
“Do you know that girl over there?” I tilt my chin her way.
“Not really. Why?”
“I think she wants you. No. Iknowshe wants you.”
He tightens his hands around my waist and rests his head on my shoulder. “Good thing I only have eyes for you.”
She’s gone when I look back over.
Suddenly, I’m getting crushed into Kai by a hurdle of people storming their way inside. “What the hell?” I yell over the uproar of chaos.
Kai steps in front of me, holding my hand. We make ourway through the living room, where there is a gigantic window facing the street in front of the house. My hand tenses around Kai’s. The knot in the pit of my stomach I had earlier returns as I stare at the red and blue lights flashing. Without a word, Kai grips my hand harder while we try to get around everyone else going downstairs. I don’t ask where we are headed. I push my way through the people. All I think about is not getting caught. My adrenaline is running higher, trying to get out back.
We get out the back door into the backyard and run across the yard to the fence. Kai helps me over the fence as I land on my feet, ready to run. Someone places a hand on my shoulder. Red and blue lights flash all around me, stopping me in my tracks. As soon as Kai’s feet hit the ground, he starts running and crashes right into me, stopping to stare at the sight before him. Our adrenaline was too high to even think to check the back. Everyone else was running the same way we went, so we went for it. So many people are sitting on the curb of the street. Some are on their phones, and I assume they are calling their parents.
Bile forces its way up my throat. Before I can step aside, my puke goes flying toward the officer.
“I gaveyou your phone back, and in less than twenty-four hours, you sneak out. What the fuck is going on with you, Blakely? I did not raise you like this!” my mom yells.
Did I manifest these cops coming because of how worried I was all night?
“Answer me!” she shouts as she tightens her hands around the steering wheel.
“I don’t know.” My voice cracks as I start to cry.
