“You know how it is. You have to play and focus. He needed the win, and you should consider giving him his space your contribution to his victory and see it as a positive thing and not a negative one. You can tell him ‘you’re welcome’ tonight at the party.”
I laughed and looked down at the donut in front of me. “Is that jelly?” I pulled my donut apart to find it stuffed with strawberry jam. “Yuck. I asked for Bavarian cream.”
“Here, eat this.” She pushed her donuts in front of me. “I hate donuts. I only got them because I didn’t want you to eat alone. The glaze on this one is the best. I hate that coconut-dipped garbage.”
I made a face. “I love donuts, but I don’t know what I’m doing here. I guess I was hiding from him.”
“Well, I’m sure the game is over now, so if you want, we can go to my dorm and get glammed up before the party.” She wagged her brows and gave me a great big smile.
“You have met me, right?” I asked with a laugh. “Because I don’t do glammed up. I can barely paint my own nails, and I’ve only done that once.”
“You’re kidding me, right?” Abi looked at me as if I were some kind of alien with four heads.
“No, I’m not. Clara tried to do them a few times, but she always loses patience with me. I tried clear polish, but what’s the point?”
“Come on,” said Abi, getting to her feet. “We’re ditching this stupid donut hole and going to the dorm to make you even hotter than you already are. Seth is going to be knocked right out of his rugby shoes.”
“Cleats,” I corrected, only to earn a strange look. “We wear cleats.”
“Whatever.” Abi waved her hand and locked arms with me as she practically dragged me from the place.
When we got back to her dorm room, we went inside where she cranked up some music. “Don’t worry. Most everyone is at the game or out already. The ones that are here are so high they don’t mind.”
“Could you put it on something that doesn’t make me want to slit my wrists?” I asked, hating the sound of the music more than its volume.
“Fine, how’s this?” She put on another band.
“I like that.” It wasn’t much better but a welcome change from the emo-depresso junk she’d had it on. Abi wasn’t even the emo type, so I didn’t understand her tastes.
“It speaks to my soul,” she said as if trying to explain herself. “Now, sit. We’re doing your nails.”
“I can never wait for that shit to dry,” I said, my shoulders slumping to show my unease.
“Nonsense, this is super-fast drying, and you only need one coat. I use it all the time, and we’re going to try a little lipstick with it.”
“No way. I don’t wear lipstick.”
“Which is why you should try it. Come on. Trust me.”
“I’ve tried it. It wears off and gets on my teeth. It’s terrible.”
Abi gave me a strange look. “You have to trust me. Not all lipsticks are the same. If you use this, you won’t have it on your teeth. I promise.” She held up a color that was really pretty, but I had a feeling I was going to look like a clown by the time the night was over.
After I let her work her magic on my face, I was so impressed that I let her attempt to curl my hair, although there was a decent chance it wouldn’t actually hold.
But when she was done with me, I looked in the mirror and absolutely loved it. “I’ve never been able to get my hair to wave like this and hold. It’s like it’s not even my hair.”
“It’s all in the products. I have tried and true favorites that tackle every problem. And your hair looks amazing by the way.”
It had just the right amount of wave to it, and it didn’t look flat at all. “I don’t look much like myself, do I?”
“Of course, you do, but just spruced up a bit, and it’s not too much. I kept everything in a neutral palette for you, and check it out. That lipstick isn’t going anywhere.”
I touched my finger to my lips, and she was right. It didn’t budge. “I need you around.” I glanced around her room and wondered if I could get her to move in with me. But I second-guessed what I’d be getting into if she did. Her place wasn’t a mess, but she looked like she had a lot of things strewn about.
“You sure do!” she said with a giggle. “Now, let’s go. I’ll drive.”
Her driving was a joke, as we were only a couple of blocks from Omega House. We set out on the street, walking.
I hoped that I was put together enough to endure the night air. If only Seth would still want to be with me. I tried to keep my thoughts positive as I walked up to the door with Abi and was let inside.
The room was vibrating with music much louder than Abi’s and just as bad on a different end of the spectrum. It set the mood all right, but again, it just wasn’t my taste. I was more of a rock and roller.
The room was so full of people I had to stay close to Abi so we didn’t get separated. Across the room, near the keg, I saw a group of girls who were cheering on someone at the keg.
“Go, Go, Go, Go, Go, Go,” they chanted repeatedly. They all clapped as Seth got to his feet with a big grin on his face.
“Body shot!” one girl yelled as she pulled up her top.
Seth did the shot, and when he rose up, his eyes met mine. I felt my heart take a dive.
He left them and hurried across the room. “Hey, Avery.” He was already drunk and working the room. “I didn’t think you’d be here. You left the game early.” The girl, who I knew to be a cheerleader, came through the crowd making a beeline for Seth.
“Come on, sexy. You have more things to do with my body.” She laughed and looked over at me with a smirk.
“Yeah, Seth, you have so much more to do with her.” I grabbed a shot off of a passing tray and gulped it down.
“Hey, take it easy,” he said, shaking his head at me.
“I’m sure you’ll have fun without me.”
As I walked away, I heard Seth shout at me. “Avery! You left the game!”
“And you’ve clearly not quit playing.” I kept on going and found another tray of shots.
The boy holding it was a real cutie, but he was also not my type with sandy-blond hair and a surfer smile.
“Give me another,” I said, sticking a dollar in his pants.
He handed me the shot, and I wasted no time gulping it down too.
When I turned away from him, Abi walked up. “Don’t let her keep going at that pace,” she said, taking the dollar out of his waistband.
I stuffed the bill in my top as she passed it to me. “It’s fine. Seth likes to move fast. So can I.”
“You’re two shots in, and we’ve only been here five minutes. Pace yourself, Avery.” She turned back to the guy. “Baby steps for her, or I’m coming after you.”
I glanced across the room and found Seth was watching me as his girl of the hour fought for his attention. She was doing well at holding her own, but I wasn’t bothered. If she wanted him, she could have him.
Even though I was trying to be strong, I couldn’t stand to look at them together anymore, so I went into the kitchen, where I found a different guy making another tray of shots. “There you are, cutie. Just the man I was looking for.”