Page 18 of Blue in the Deep Blue Sea

“Do you really want to know the truth?”

“I’m sorry to break it to you, but that’s how this game works.”

She nodded, locking her eyes with mine. The heat had begun to melt the blue eye shadow on her eyelids, loosening the rhinestones until they threatened to fall down her cheeks.

“You know what?” Annie interrupted, glancing between us. “Next spin.”

“No,” Gabriella said, her eyes glued to mine. “He asked a question.”

She tilted her head.

“I’m a bitch because every time you’re in the same room as me, you have to make yourself everyone else’s problem.”

“That doesn’t explain why you’re a bitch when I’m not around,” I scoffed under my breath.

“Stop,” Gianni snapped. “You two need to chill the fuck out.”

“I’ll just…” Annie reached for the bottle, smacking her lips together. “…spin the bottle.”

The bottle spun across the grass and, somehow, landed on Gabriella and me again. This time she was asking the question, and I was the one who had to answer.

Gianni let out a dramatic sigh. “Jesus Christ. The universe likes you two more than I do.”

“Truth or dare?” she asked.

“Dare,” I said with a smirk.

“I dare you to slap yourself.”

I laughed.

“Nah.” I leaned a little closer. “But I’m willing to slap you.”

“I’m out of here.” Annie pushed herself to her feet.

Gianni followed her, and together they walked toward the beach, leaving Gabriella and me sitting in the grass with the empty bottle between us.

The moment they were gone, my eyes drifted back to her. She caught me looking, smiled, and raised her hand, sticking her middle finger in the air.

“Oh, grow up,” I shouted at her.

“2Sei uno stronzo,” she shot back before getting to her feet and hurrying after Gianni and Annie.

I stayed behind, sitting at the edge of the cliff with the empty bottle hanging from my hand. The cliff stretched out over both the water and the beach below, letting the cool sea breeze brush against my face as if it were trying to sober me up.

I knew I’d regret half the shit I’d said tonight, but I had stopped caring a long time ago.

The three of them paused at the steps leading down to the beach. Gianni said something that made Gabriella head off after Annie. He turned around and started walking back toward me.

I watched her as she disappeared down the path. The easy way she walked beside Annie, the softness in her voice as they talked. Around the people she loved, she became someone else. She was warm, fiercely protective, willing to tear apart anyone who hurt them. But when she hated someone, she never hesitated to make them bleed. And she hated me.

I call it hate because I don’t know what else to call the way she looked at me. I saw it burning in her eyes, felt it tightening in her throat every time she spoke. I hurt her, I know that. But she hurt me too. Neither of us was willing to admit it, and hating each other was easier than facing everything underneath.

Gianni didn’t say a word. He simply sat beside me. I guessed he’d grabbed a bottle of whiskey from Annie’s car because he held it out to me.

I took a sip, staring down at the beach where the girls were walking.

“I’ve got an idea.” I laughed. “Let’s fish out those bottles with their dumb messages and pretend someone finally wrote back.”