Rumor Mill

Chapter 7 - Maybe Tonight

[Tay's POV]

I felt like I was going to be sick. Why wouldn't she tell me something like that? Jess was my best friend. I felt so betrayed. I couldn't tell if it were more so because of the level of our friendship, or because of the feelings that I still had for her. I could feel Jenna and Lynn's eyes on me. I downed the rest of my drink. 

"I'll get you something else." Lynn thought it best to give Jenna and me some privacy, so she got up to join Alexa. 

"Are you okay?" asked Jenna, her hand gently rubbing my back.

"I just, I don't get her. You know? How could she do that?"

"Tay, why are you so upset? She has a girlfriend. I'm sure she was going to tell you."

I looked at her. "That isn't what hurts. It hurts because..." She waited for me to finish my thought, but I couldn't. What was I going to say? That I still liked her? That she said she'd wait up for me? That I was her girl? "It hurts because she never even mentioned having feelings for, well, anyone."

Jenna's face took a deep shade of worry. "You have feelings for her, don't you?"

"What? No, I told you that we're just friends."

"Taylor, it's okay. I know that you guys had a thing for each other. I understand that. I know it hurts. It's okay to talk about it to me. I'm not going to get upset. I just want you to be okay."

I stared at her in disbelief. "Really?"

"Of course." Lynn returned with another red cup. My nose crinkled at the smell of vodka and orange juice. Regardless, I took a large sip. 

"How are things?" Alexa asked as she put her arm around Lynn.

"I don't know." I said that because I really didn't know. "Should I go talk to her?"

That might not be such a good idea right now, love." Jenna replied. "Why don't we go and have some fun? Try to take your mind off of all this shit."

I smiled a little. "What do we do?"

"Let's dance!" Alexa shouted. 

Jenna took my hand and pulled me closer to the stereo. The four of us began to dance. I wasn't too much of a dancer, but I tried. Jenna's energy was contagious and it made me feel like it was okay to just stop caring. There was something about her that kept me from worrying about what other people thought of me. Who cares what they think? A shiver traveled down my spine as Jenna's hands found their way to my hips. 

"Ladies, please!" Jordan shouted from the couch. "You all need rooms!"

"Fuck you, Eckes!" Lynn shouted through a giggle. She and Alexa were getting awfully... affectionate.

Brian and Alex over and started dancing in the middle of all of us, too. I could feel one of Jenna's hands slithering down to my ass. It was hard to take a sip of my drink with her hand there, but I managed. She flashed me a devilish grin when I jumped after she squeezed me. More of the guys joined in. We were all swinging our arms and swaying. There were some more embarrassing moves going on- Jordan was not the best dancer, but he was entertaining -but I was having fun.

"Hey!" Jenna shouted. "I need to pee!"

"I'll show you where the bathroom is!" With that, I finished my second drink and took her hand. I dragged her out of the living room, down a hallway, and to the bathroom. "I'll wait here for you!" She nodded before going in. I had only been standing there for what felt like a minute before I saw Jess coming toward me.

"Hey." was all she said.

Not wanting to be a complete asshole, I replied. "Hey you."

"I'm sorry."

"You should be."

She glared at me. "Why should I be sorry, Taylor?"

"You showed up with a girl! You didn't even say anything to me, Jess. We're supposed to be friends."

"I just didn't think you'd care considering you are constantly with Jenna now."

"Jess, come on. Don't be that way. Besides, I don't know why you are so upset. You were the one that said no to me. You were the one that couldn't make up her mind about me. Well, I found someone that wants to be with me and isn't afraid of the consequences that might come with it. You had your chance." I thought it would feel good, finally putting Jess in her place. I thought that once I finally did it, she'd stop me mid-conversation with a kiss as explosive and magical as the first time. I thought that, maybe, it would be some unforgettable gesture and she'd sweep me off of my feet and we'd live happily ever after. That isn't what happened, however. I almost felt her heart break. I hoped that she could feel mine, too.

"Taylor..." she said quietly. I couldn't tell if her eyes shone with alcohol or tears. "Don't you fucking dare try to tell me how I feel about you. You have no idea how I feel."

"How do you feel, then?" I asked.

Before Jess could give me an answer, the bathroom door opened and Jenna came out. She froze at the sight of Jess.

"Oh, um... were you waiting on the bathroom, Jess?" she asked, not feeling the emotional tension in the air. Jess didn't say anything. She turned and left. I saw her go into the backyard from the kitchen's sliding glass door. "Are you okay?"

I took a deep breath. "Yes, I'm fine."

Jenna smiled and pulled me into a warm embrace. "Good," she whispered. She pulled away enough to kiss me. "Now, let's get back over there and have the night of our lives, love."

The night was a blur. The only things that I could truly recall were Jack stripping to his boxers and dancing to Spice Girls on the coffee table, some of the guys diving into Brian's pool, and a talk that I had with Alexa while we watched everyone either jump into the pool or get pulled by others. We were sitting in chairs off to the side; it was almost midnight.

"So, do you think everyone will remember stuff like this when we all graduate and have our own lives and lose touch?" Alexa was leaning back in her lounge chair, sipping a beer.

"Hey, don't talk like that."

"Get real, Tay. We can't all keep in touch after school ends. It doesn't happen."

I frowned at the thought. My friends meant everything to me. Surely we all meant this much to each other. "I know we'll all at least try."

"Either way, do you think you'll remember this stuff?"

"Of course! I always thought it was cheesy when people say 'High school will be the best years of your life! It's all downhill from there!,' but tonight... It feels like one of those nights."

"What do you mean?"

I sat up and looked at her. "I mean, look: I've gone through most of high school as 'Tay who?' No one knows me, except for my friends. And when people do notice me, it's to pick on me. High school fucking sucks... but tonight, it all feels right. This is what I am going to remember. The bullying, too, but mostly this."

"I feel you," she replied with a smile. "Maybe tonight is special. Maybe we'll start everything over. Yesterday, we were weird kids. We were freaks and geeks and 'fucking dykes.' Tomorrow, we are cool kids that don't give a fuck."

"I will drink to that!" We clinked our glasses together.

We didn't realize it at that moment, but things would be different after that. Not in a good way at first, no, but different indeed.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hello again, beautiful people ~ I have interesting plans for this story. Stay tuned to find out more! I'm going out of town with my best friend this weekend, so I probably won't update again until Monday. Until then, be excellent to each other and thanks for the love!