All That and a Bag of Chips

Chapter 12

Heather laughed and pushed him playfully. "You are such a cornball! Let's get another drink. Want to do Long Islands?"

He knew he would regret it the next day, but he nodded. "Let's get druuuunk."

Veronica and Monica had faded into the throng of dancers, so when Collin caught the attention of the bartender, he ordered and paid for Long Island ice teas for just him and Heather. Four shots of different alcohols mixed into one deceptively smooth drink.

Heather sipped her beverage through the tiny red cocktail straw; Collin drank directly from the lip of the tall skinny glass. There was nowhere to sit, nowhere to stand. They were at the mercy of the tide of people, which pushed and pulled them together. But they both imbibed quickly, and as the alcohol seeped into Collin's bloodstream, it was easier to go with the flow.

They placed their empty glasses on a tall round table that was pushed against one wall. Several other people had abandoned their glasses there, too. The discarded containers of bravado: melting ice, chewed on straws, and forgotten garnishes.

With their hands empty again, their bodies moved more freely. As Shakira's Whenever, Whenever started playing, Heather lifted her head and looked up at the ceiling. Her auburn hair cascaded down her back like a lava flow. With his eyes, Collin traced the line from the tip of her chin, down her throat, and to the supple shadow between her breasts. His mouth watered, and he desperately wanted to nuzzle her neck. To taste her sweat and feel the length of her against his body.

Collin hadn't been this drunk in a long time, and he could feel his mind surrendering to the urges of his body. He closed some of the distance between them, his lips mere inches from her shoulder, his hand grazing against her forearm.

As she swayed her shoulders with the music, her head lowered, and their eyes met. "You're a good dancer," she told him, and he could smell notes of rum and tequila on her breath.

"Thanks, so are you." His lips brushed against her ear, the glint of her piercings kissed the corner of his mouth.

He was lost in the movement of her body, and the haze of alcohol numbed all thoughts. If only he could live in the infinity of this moment.

Too soon, however, Veronica and Monica reappeared. Heather stepped back, opening a space for her friends, and they began dancing as individuals in a group, rather than two people moving in sync.

"Better watch out. I saw Brandon here," Veronica shouted towards Heather.

Monica nodded. "He was over there."

Heather rolled her eyes and gave an exasperated sigh, but kept dancing. She seemed distracted and kept looking over her shoulder. "Shit! I think he's coming this way." She grabbed Collin's wrist. "Dance closer to me."

He obeyed, but in his drunken stupor, he was having a hard time following along with what was happening. "Why? What's wrong?"

"It's this guy I went out with a few times, and now he won't leave me alone." Heather put her hands on Collin's shoulders and danced against him, sending heat waves down his abdomen. "Maybe he'll think we're on a date and will finally fuck off."

With her words ringing in his ears, Collin placed his hands on her hips. Hadn't this been a date? Had he imagined the tension building between them?

She had never acknowledged his comment about being trans. Was that going to keep him in the friend zone?

The songs changed. More drinks ordered. They kept dancing. Veronica and Monica bumped into two guys they knew from their on-campus days and disappeared again. Collin tried to shake the feeling that he had misread every interaction between them, but when he looked at Heather, he couldn't help wondering how she saw him.