Toxic

Toxic: Chapter #10 | Reu-Night-ed

Zach's Past

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February, the month of love, was filled with a flurry of people exchanging kisses, hugs, gifts, and saliva. Alright, that's gross I know but seriously so many people just kissing and I honestly lost my interest in kissing within the first few days of February. I put my head down focusing on my classes, clubs, and cheerleading. I called them my Saving Cs because they kept my focus off of what the focus of everyone else seemed to be on.

Then about a week before Valentine's Day our coach, Coach Patrick, called a meeting but he wasn't the only one. Apparently, every coach at the university had called a meeting and attendance wasn't optional. It wasn't a threat, but it was a reminder. So, Ad, Abby, Addie, and I decided to just go straight to the meeting from practice but what we hadn't expected was for Coach Patrick to ask us to be in uniform. I loved our uniforms because they were cozy, and they were a comfort to me. We got there early and took our place on the far left side of the room. As it drew closer to the time the meeting would start people began trickling in and even continued arriving after we started.

I didn't pay much attention to anyone else there outside Ad, Abby, Addie, myself, and of course the coaches. Being unanimously voted captain of our squad meant a lot to me and I planned to show that they made the right decision. I crossed my arms halfway through the meeting which was something I did when I was intensely focused on something. The meeting didn't last forever but long enough that you could tell people were desperate to be anywhere else.

When the meeting finally did end, and the coaches had all left, a blonde girl started going around passing out flyers that were bright red. She made sure that every single person took one and when it came time for her to hand me one, I decided to take it rather than refuse it just so I could move the whole process along. I looked at the flyer and began to read it.

"It's That Time of Year Lovers! What better way to celebrate the month of love than a party? There will be fun and of course lots of alcohol. What are you waiting for?"

I rolled my eyes after reading it because I never understood the appeal of getting drunk or really drinking at all for that matter. I crumbled the paper up as I left the meeting room and tossed it in the trash can. Ad and Abby had left right away ignoring the girl and her flyers because they had a date planned that night. Addie had kissed my cheek before leaving and going to meet Raven for their anniversary. So, it was just me by my lonesome leaving the building and heading back to my dorm but just as I was about to walk outside a voice to my left asked, "So are you going to the party?" I felt myself sigh and turned towards the voice but when I saw who it was, I lost all ability to speak. I found myself face to face with none other than Jayden Knox.

He tilted his head leaning against the wall right next to the door and after a couple of minutes of me simply staring his mouth quirked into a smile that made my stomach flip.

"Still struggling for the right words there middler?"

I blinked and frowned crossing my arms. "I'm not a middler. That's so five years ago. I'm not a kid anymore."

If it was possible, he became more appealing when his eyebrow quirked and then his eyes roamed over me a moment. "No, you sure aren't."

I blushed deep red when I realized what he was doing and took a subtle step back. "W-What are you doing here Jayden?"

He noticed me move back and almost frowned but then when he saw how red my cheeks were his smile was back. "Well, I have a few friends that are athletes. I heard there was going to be a big meeting and thought I'd see who all would be up for a party."

I tilted my head because that did make sense. "Oh. So, the party was your idea?"

He nodded making his hair fall in front of his face and when he raked his hand through his hair, I felt my stomach flip twice. "Yes, the party is my idea and it's at my house."