One Last Shot

[11] Code M

                                                                                  Liam

Marcus invited us over for a movie night. Everyone's settling in, even Violet's new girlfriend is over. Iris is nowhere to be seen, per usual. Time to get her. Walking to her room, I see her door cracked a bit. She's leaning back in her chair, hand on her forehead, palm up. Her hair is back messily by a large clip, and she's wearing brown rimmed glasses. In a pair of sweats and a hoodie, she resumes studying. She keeps tucking her hair that falls out of her clip behind her ear, and when she's thinking really hard, she sticks her tongue out to the side of her mouth, I can tell she doesn't realize it.

"You know you can't study anything from over there," she says nonchalantly, her eyes not moving from her notes.

"I wasn't trying to study," I smirk, arms crossed, leaning against the door frame.

"You're looking pretty intently, it seems like studying to me."

"Just enjoying the movie."

"I think it started in the other room," still not looking at me, she waves her pencil in the direction of the living room, before biting on the eraser as she furrows her brows.

"I like the one I'm watching here better."

"And what exactly are you watching right now?" She looks up, takes off her glasses, turns, and looks at me. Her face says she's over it, but her eyes seem interested. She's half-assed glaring at me, and our eyes burn into each other's retinas, neither of us saying anything. A glaring contest. Fuck staring contests, these are much better.

"OH MY GOD. THERE'S A PARTY TONIGHT. WE'RE FUCKING GOING." Lilly shrieks from the other room, and I feel the floor creaking as people disperse to get ready. I see Iris roll her eyes, before standing up, walking over to me, and starting to close the door.

"I don't think so, little lady," I smile, sticking my foot to stop the door from closing. "You have to take care of Lilly."

"I hate you."

"Feeling is mutual."

I don't bother going home to change, I'm just going to DD so sweatpants and a hoodie will suffice. The girls are dressing to the nines, but Iris leaves wearing a baggy t-shirt and ripped jeans.

"Why don't you try more," Lilly whines.

"You know she doesn't want to go, and it's not like she's trying to get laid tonight anyway, she has that big test tomorrow."

"Since when does Iris want to get laid?" Jasper laughs, "I mean, I can always help." I shoot him a look of annoyance and he sighs a huff of defeat.

"When DOESN'T Iris want to-" Iris' hand flies over Violet's mouth.
"You want to party? Let's fucking go," Iris is the first out the door.

After arriving at the party, I see Iris standing by the chips. I feel this urge to go talk to her, but I'm roped into a conversation with Violet about pre-law and all that stuff.

"Oh no, Violet, code M." Lilly runs over, looking frantic.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding me," Violet whines. "Why is she even here?" I turn to see where they're looking, and see two girls talking to Iris. Iris is looking at the girl on the left, with flashes of anger, hatred, and longing in her eyes.

"Who is that?"

"We gotta get her outta there," Violet says, looking for a distraction. Well, fuck it, I'll go help.

"... So next time you want to fuck one of my friends, at least ask first," I hear the girl on the left say as I get closer.

"Ask? Like that'll do anything. Your friends beg me to fuck them, something I recall, you wanted me to do." Iris scoffs. "Please, you can't act all mad when you're here with some bitch you picked up last time you came to visit me because you wanted a booty-call."

"Is she serious?" The girl on the right looks at the girl on the left.

"No she's such a liar baby, we met by fate. I love you so much baby."

"What's going on here?" I ask, entering the conversation.

"Jesus Christ," I hear Iris mumble under her breath.

"Are you her latest fuck buddy?" The girl on the left asks.

"What? And who the fuck are you?"

"Megan, Iris' ex girlfriend. You're telling me you're not fucking her?! Iris, you managed to make friends with people and not fuck them? That's a first."

"What is she talking about?" I turn and ask Iris, whose glaring eyes have not moved from the girl on the left.

"Why, Iris is the campus' slut, don't you know? She's got lists and lists of numbers who will drop anything at her beck and call just so she can come and leave them an hour after," the girl on the right, who I now recognize as a junior on the girls basketball team, Veronica, says snarkily. Iris pushes past us and walks away, out to the patio.

"Walk away slut, go find someone to fuck here, I'm sure half your links are at this party waiting for you," Megan calls after her.

"Hey!" I shout, angry that she would have the balls to talk to someone that way. "Keep calling people a slut and a whore and people might start to think you're covering your own shit with others."

"The hell's that supposed to mean?" Megan asks, standoffish.

"God Liam, that was such a dick move," Veronica rolls her eyes. Fuck this, I have to find Iris. I push through people to the patio and see her sitting on the steps to the yard.

"Hey." I sit down next to her. She doesn't say anything, her eyes don't break from the swaying grass from the slight breeze in front of us.

"That was my ex-girlfriend."

"I figured."

"She's a bitch."

"I figured."

"We had a messy breakup."

"I figured."

"Expand your vocabulary dipshit."

"Tell me about the breakup."

"Oh hell no! Anyone that needs to know, knows, and that's how I'd like to keep it."

"Well I just defended you in there, so I'd like to know what I got myself into."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"You know you can talk to me, right?"

"Bitch since when? When did we reach a new level of 'friendship' and why wasn't I told about it?"

"Well I just meant if you don't want to talk to Violet, Lilly, or Marcus about it, I have no interest in spreading your life so, it was just an offer."

"We're going home," Violet walks out, "Megan showing up ruined the vibe."

"A-fucking-men," Iris cheers, standing up. As she does, a gust of wind blows, and I catch a whiff of her perfume. Lavender. Of course. It's perfect. It's so her. Extending her hand to me, I look up. "Come on pretty boy, we have to get you home before your car turns into a pumpkin." I push her hand to the side and get up on my own.

"Haha, very funny. You're really making me laugh over here."