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“I guess,” I admitted sheepishly.
“Besides, I drove this time and parked far away from any cars.”
I shook my head, trying to keep a straight face. Lizzie didn’t give me too much grief about the night I wrecked my car, but she had her moments.
She had on a dress with a corset and looked somewhat Snow White-ish, but the skirt only fell to the top of her knee. Instead of princess slippers, she wore red Chucks. Lizzie looked adorably theatrical, as usual.
I looked like I was ready to go to bed. Which I was when I got home after the football game earlier and slipped on my black leggings and aPowerpuff Girlsshirt with Buttercup on it that read,Don’t call me princess. I topped it off with my authentic Hello Kitty black sweatshirt I’d bought when Mom and I stayed a few nights in Tokyo this past summer when we were traveling back from Nepal.
Tonight, I’d only wanted to have ice cream and go to bed, but Lizzie guilted me into coming to this stupid Falcons after-game party. I was already dressed in comfy clothes, and she dragged me out before I had a chance to say no.
We walked up to the front of the house, and the music was blaring. The people here looked like they could all audition on a reality hook-up TV show for beautiful people. “This better be worth it,” I grumbled. “Remind me why we’re here?” This was so not Lizzie’s scene either.
“One of the football players invited me. I forget his position, but he’s a big guy. Anyway, he’s a theater arts major and plays a side character in our production. His name is Jake something...”
“Jake Williams,” I said, because I knew everyone’s name on the team. “He’s an offensive lineman.”So, this was why we were here.
“Yeah. Him.” She clasped my shoulder, not interested in the position he played, and led me through the open door of the modern home. “Put your game face on, honey. We’re going to have fun tonight.”
We passed through where there was a crowd of people settled inside, dancing and living it up. Everyone had red cups in hand. It was loud and crazy in here. Lizzie was looking at her phone, sending off a text. After a few seconds, her head shot up. “He’s coming to meet us.”
Oh, joy. I wondered if Axel was here, since I’d already noticed a lot of the players lingering around. I saw Tank hanging out in a corner, and he smiled widely, pointing at me. I waved at him across the room.
Soon, Jake was bowling through the crowd, with his eyes set on my friend. “Hey.” He was huge, pushing over three hundred pounds, and that alone would make him intimidating. But with his blond hair that curled around his temples and big blue eyes, almost doll-like, he looked almost sweet. He was always polite and soft-spoken on the field around me.
“Hi, Jake.” Lizzie had on her perfect smile.
“Lizzie.” He mirrored the same smile. Then his eyes cut to me. “Hey, Natalie.”
I nodded in acknowledgment.
He led us to the kitchen and quickly handed us red Solo cups of who knew what.
“You’ll like it,” was all he said and winked at Lizzie.
“Yeah,” my friend said, smiling brightly. We hung out around the kitchen and had a few drinks. Lizzie and Jake were huddled together, talking about their class. After a while, we followed Jake through a hallway and down a staircase to another room. People were packed in here like sardines, and music blared as people gyrated, nut to butt, around us. Like catching a wave, Lizzie and I started bouncing around to the music. I closed my eyes and let myself get lost in the beat.
Suddenly, a loud roar pierced the room, and I glanced in the direction of a ginormous flat-screen casting a video game. I realized who was the center of attention—of course, it would be him. Axel stood with his arms spread wide and head thrown back, soaking in the adulation of the group around him cheering. Not a surprise.
Somehow, I ended up pressed into a crowd, standing behind him. Axel peered down at the dark-haired guy beside him, who was slumped on the sofa. “Game over. Never bring a knife to a gunfight, Trey,” he said with a cocky grin, holding out his hand.
Trey reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet, but Axel shook his head. “This was a free lesson. Next time, don’t try to play a player, son.”
“Are you serious, man? You won. Let me at least give you back your money.”
He shook his head. “Nah.” Then I saw the brunette Barbie, Jeanette, press up against him. My fingers dug into the plastic of my cup. Axel kept his focus on Trey. “Just stay the fuck away from Natalie. You got it? She’s different. She’s not fuckable material.” The next thing I knew, Axel stepped off, with Jeanette clinging to him as they passed through the crowd to the bar set up in the back of the room.
What the hell?My body tensed as people oohed around me. I ducked my head as humiliation set in. Not to mention, anger. I was usually invisible, but most of the team knew who I was. With shaky hands, I pulled my hoodie over my head, hoping to sink into the landscape of the crowd. After a few seconds, I realized everyone had moved on to bigger and better things as music pumped through the room, and bodies bounced around.
Where was Lizzie? I glanced around, hoping to find her nearby, but she and Jake were nowhere to be seen. Oh, my god, did my friend leave me here to hook up with Jake? I started moving through the throng of people, still reeling over what Axel said.
“Drink up!” Axel’s voice carried across the room, and I saw him and his other teammates, Trey Lomas included, taking shots and slamming their glasses down on the bar counter in the corner of the room. Jeanette was still clinging to him like a koala. Axel poured another round as more people started gathering around. My eyes narrowed, and I wanted to inflict bodily harm on both him and her. He scanned the crowd, and his eyes landed on me. He threw back his drink while he insolently stared at me.
It seemed the world gravitated to him, and why wouldn’t it? He was already a certified star, and his professional career hadn’t even begun. He had over 300,000 followers on social media and was already fielding endorsements. Sadly, I’d checked. It was okay for him to throw out stupid comments like that while he continued to live his fab, privileged life. I hated him at this moment.
Pushing through the crowd, I ran up the stairs, just wanting to get out of there. I didn’t stop until I made it out the front door. Swiping at my face, I scurried across the driveway in between a few of the parked cars. Why did he have to be a jerk? Why did I come here?
I leaned against a car and took a few calming breaths. Eventually, I pulled out my cell and scrolled through my pictures until I came across one of my dad blowing out the candles on his birthday cake. That was the last picture I had of him before he died.
