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I shrug as if it’s no big deal that I made an appearance. “I may be a loner, but I don’t lack all social skills. Besides, Jude said this party was your housewarming, so here I am, welcoming you to the house.”
Thea smiles again and I soak all of her in, from her rich brown eyes to the shoes she has wrapped around her perfect toes. “Well, I appreciate it. Maybe you might even push the boat out and join us for dinner one day this week?”
“Don’t push your luck.” I need to feel close to her again. It’s like my body craves her essence. I reach around her and take a bottle of water off the table. I’ve had enough to drink for the night. I want to keep my wits about me, especially if she’s drinking. I’ll happily spend the night protecting her if she needs it.
I’m about to suggest we go outside, but a guy steps up behind her. He puts his arm around her waist and pulls her toward him. “Hey babe, what’s taking you so long?”
Thea looks at me. I can’t maintain eye contact with her. My hand fists, and I find I want to pummel this fucker into the ground for touching what’s mine. No, she’s not mine. She never will be.
“Oh hey,” this guy says, “I’m Adam, and you are . . .?”
Thea steps forward slightly and says, “This is Kyler, my fourth roommate. Kyler’s also on the team with Jude and the others. Kyler, this is Adam, my boyfriend from back home.”
Boyfriend? Boyfriend! How could no one tell me this?
Because it’s none of your business.
My jaw clenches. It throbs. I nod in this kid’s direction. “Good to meet you. Excuse me, I’ve gotta go and make a call.” I turn and head toward the stairs, taking them two at a time until I’m at my door. I fumble the knob. Once I have it open, I slam it shut with such force the pictures on my dresser rattle. I shouldn’t let the fact Thea has a boyfriend bother me, but it does. Clearly, Jude doesn’t care, or he’d tell the little shit to take a hike, so why should I? I shouldn’t. I shouldn’t give a shit about her, about her boyfriend, or anything else going on with her. She’s a roommate and needs to be treated as such. And she’s an adult and can take care of herself. What I need to do is take care of myself. I open my dresser and move my socks until the bottle of vodka I use to numb the pain is in my hand. After the cap is off, the bottle is pressed to my lips and my head is tilted back. The burn is instant and welcoming. I swallow two, three, and four times before giving up and putting the cap back on. I put the bottle back and head downstairs with a completely different mindset.
As soon as I get downstairs, I spot Thea. We stare at each other for a long moment before I walk into the kitchen and head toward the liquor. I mix myself a drink, swallow it down, and refill.
“Hey, um, can you make me something to drink?” a young blonde asks. She looks too young to be at this party. I watch her out of the corner of my eye and mix her something with very little booze in it. She takes a sip. “Oh, this is delicious. Thank you.”
“Don’t take any drinks from anyone except for me, okay? My name’s Ky. Everyone knows me here. Find me when you want another.”
She smiles at me. “Thanks. I’m Cher.”
“Nice to meet you. Go mingle.” She nods and heads to the other room. I end up standing at the bar, mixing drinks for the next couple hours, telling each girl the same thing I told Cher. And with each girl, I flirt like crazy because every time I look up, I see Thea and her weaselly looking boyfriend, and each time she looks at me, I make sure to ignore her.
She means nothing to me.
Except, I have a feeling she’s going to mean everything.
seven
Thea
The next morning, I find myself creeping down the stairs to start making breakfast. Saturday is the only day the others can sleep in, so I also want to have a head start on clearing up the remnants from the night before. All in all, the party was good fun. I met more of the guys on the hockey team—some of which live a few doors down from us—and despite Kyler’s warning, they all seemed friendly enough. The irony is out of all of them, the only person currently giving me strange vibes is Kyler. One minute he’s relatively friendly, the next he’s as cold as ice. I can’t figure him out and quite honestly, it’s starting to feel a little exhausting trying to keep up with his mood swings. I asked Jude about it the other day, and while he said it wasn’t his story to tell, he did say Kyler has some personal stuff going on he has to deal with. I wonder if it’s family related, in which case I get it. Not everyone is lucky enough to come from a stable family background. Still, I know if I was in his position, I’d want to surround myself with as many friends as possible, if only as a method of escape from the drama I’m trying to hide.
To my surprise I find the kitchen is spotless. It’s obvious my roommates had the foresight to clean up before going to bed and I’m thankful. During the week we have an unwritten rule, I cook, and they clean, which works well for us, but I wouldn’t have thought it applied to last night given we had a huge party. I’m not complaining though, and I start making enough pancake batter to feed us all. Even if it’s only me and Adam at breakfast, I’m confident the others know how a frying pan works and can fend for themselves.
After breakfast, I take Adam on a quick tour of the campus. He’s already been to the hockey rink, having made a few visits with me last year to watch Jude play. I point out the dietetics block, the sports center, tennis courts, baseball field, and the dining hall and the outside of the dorms. Even though living on campus wasn’t an option for me, some of the accommodation onsite is pretty sweet, and there’s a block of townhouses nestled in their own little street toward the back of the campus. By comparison, the campus at Silver Lake is tiny and not for the first time, I thank my lucky stars I took the chance and changed my course. Adam doesn’t comment much on the grounds—in fact, he’s been pretty quiet all morning, which is unusual for him.
After the campus tour, we head to the Boardwalk to have some lunch. This is a popular area of Northport and it is bustling with tourists and residents here to spend a day at the beach. There are a few surf and souvenir shops. Best of all, there are a number of small independent restaurants and bars at one end, which makes a nice change from the usual chain restaurants you find in the town center. I decide to take Adam to Northport’s infamous crab shack, which is renowned for its clam chowder and crab buckets. Living in a small town like Silver Lake means not having the ability of eating at a place like this, so I’m hoping he’ll really enjoy the food.
We take a seat outside with a good view of the beach and place our order. On Millie’s recommendation, I opt for a sampler dish which has scampi, crab, and a range of dips, and Adam goes for the chowder. We order some sodas and fries and wait for our food to arrive.
“Did you have a good time last night?” I ask Adam.
“Yeah, I did. Millie’s quite the character,” he replies.
“Yes, she is. She has no filter, but I like the fact she says it like it is. You know where you stand with her, that’s for sure.”
“Your roommates seem like decent guys, especially Devon and Nolan, but Kyler on the other hand . . .” Adam trails off without finishing his sentence, but I can tell there’s something he wants to say and is holding back.
“Kyler on the other hand, what?” I prompt.
“I just don’t like the guy, Thea. There’s something about him. He sets me on edge.”
