Page 186 of Fame & Chaos

“You’re sitting on twenty.”

I blink slowly before looking back down at my cards. “Oh yeah.” A hiccup escapes me. “Still. Hit me.”

Laughing, Aston tosses another card down.

Ten of clubs.

“Aww, crap!” I throw my cards onto the table dramatically before dropping my forehead onto my folded arms with a groan. “I think maybe we’ve had enough Blackjack for tonight,” Aston says between laughs.

“Yeah,” I mumble into my arms. “Only because you’re winning.”

Aston chuckles and pats my back while I close my eyes for a second and immediately picture Indi’s face.

“God, she’s beautiful.” The thought slips out before I can stop it. “How did I ever score someone like her anyway?”

Aston and Chad both look over at me.

“She’s stunning, and I’m just some long-haired bad boy. Girls like Indi don’t usually go for guys like me.”

“Yeah,” Chad says thoughtfully from the Xbox. “How did you pull that off?”

I lift my head slowly, blinking at him.

Wait.

Did I say all that out loud?

“What would you know?” I scoff drunkenly. “Mr. I’m-In-Love-With-Ella-But-Will-Never-Tell-Her.”

I point at him proudly. “Ha! That rhymed.”

Chad rolls his eyes. “Shut up, dude. You’re hammered.”

“Yep.” I nod seriously. “Very drunk.”

My forehead hits my arms again.

“I think we call it a night,” Aston says.

That makes me look up immediately. “You love Annie,” I announce loudly.

Aston smirks. “Pretty sure that’s public knowledge.”

“But you haven’t told her.” I squint at him accusingly. “Not properly.”

He leans back in his chair with a sigh. “Just hasn’t felt like the right time.”

I wave my hand dramatically through the air. “Nah, man, you gotta tell her. Tell her before it’s too late.”

My chest tightens painfully. “Girls leave,” I mutter thickly. “They always leave eventually.” The room falls quiet for a second. “You’re lucky, though,” I continue, staring vaguely at Aston. “I can tell Annie loves you back. Even if you two are weird and don’t say it.”

Aston studies me carefully before sitting back down beside me. “I want to tell her. I just… don’t wanna scare her off.”

I scoff loudly. “Women scare easy, dude. One second they’re there, next second they fly away like little birds.” I start flapping my hands around drunkenly. “Flying, flying, flying…”

Chad snorts while Aston bites back laughter.

“And then BAM!” I slap the table hard enough to make the cards jump. “They shit on you from high above and leave you standing there covered in emotional bird crap.”