He Says He's Just A Friend

Chapter 73 - Call It What You Want

- Emmett -

The overpowering bass buzzed in my eardrums as I made my way to the bathroom. After the game, Jackson invited us back to his house for a party. Quite a regular occurrence for him. According to Carrie, Jackson's mother spent nearly every weekend going on trips to the beaches in Gulf Shores and the casinos in Biloxi with her boyfriend, so Jackson had a party almost every week. He didn't have a palatial home like Brandon. It was just a normal house—smaller than mine—on a huge plot of land. His nearest neighbor lived a mile down the road, making it ideal for a raucous evening of teenage debauchery.

The front lawn looked like a parking lot by the time Clay and I arrived, cars parked bumper to bumper without concern of blocking anyone in. We'd stopped off for dinner after the game, partially to celebrate how well our first public appearance as a couple went—around people we actually knew.

"Hey!" Carrie yelled over the music. She'd changed out of her cheer uniform into a sexy emerald green mini-dress that accentuated her curves with cutouts on the hips. It was slightly over-the-top for a kegger. Definitely inappropriate with the chill outside. Her curls hung free, bouncing with every step as she trailed along beside me.

"Hey."

When someone exited the bathroom, I raced in before anyone else could. Carrie grabbed the door before I could close it and slipped in behind me.

I grimaced at her. "I gotta pee."

"Who's stopping you?" She gestured to the toilet, turning to the mirror to check her makeup.

I rolled my eyes, angling my body so I was partially facing away. It was a good thing I didn't have a shy bladder.

"I don't know why you're being so prudish. It's not like I haven't seen your dick before. I highly doubt it's changed any in the last three years."

I laughed, thinking back to that day in ninth grade when Carrie convinced me and several of our friends to go skinny dipping.

"Do you remember Dan's?" I asked, zipping up my pants.

"How could I forget? I didn't know a guy that skinny could have one that big." She raised her lipstick and twisted it all the way out, giggling. She twisted it back to a reasonable size to apply a fresh coat. "The proportions just make no sense."

I nudged her to the side so I could wash my hands. "I don't know how Makenzie walks straight after taking that thing."

Carrie barked out a surprised laugh. "Tell me about it. I couldn't handle that."

"I second that, sister." I glanced down at her makeup bag. I picked up her eyeliner. "Can I use this?"

"Really?" She looked surprised. "You don't usually wear makeup around the straights."

I shrugged. "They all know anyway. Why not be myself while I have the chance?"

Carrie held the tube out to me. "Go for it."

"Clay's never seen me like this." I expertly drew thin lines around my eyelids without once poking myself in the eye. "I don't know if he'll like it."

"That boy is so smitten with you, he'd probably like you in full clown makeup."

"No!" I shook my head vehemently. "He actually hates clowns. He's terrified of them."

"That's hilarious." Carrie mumbled, holding her mouth wide open as she put on mascara.

"It's really not. He has an actual phobia. I was watching The Greatest Show on Earth one day when he came over."

"You mean The Greatest Showman?"