𝐁𝐈𝐓𝐂𝐇 • Miguel Cazarez Mora

I: MOVIE NIGHT

Movie night was always eventful with the group. It was always held in Mason's house, it would be wrong to do it anywhere else. They almost always chose to watch horror, but they could never decide whether to go with something paranormal or a good old gory film.

The debates would usually end in them watching something paranormal after Tatum complained gore made her feel sick, but this time she lost, and they watched Saw.

To a lot of people, the gore in Saw may not seem so bad. But for Tatum, who could barely stand the sight of a bloody knee, it was terrible. She covered her eyes throughout pretty much the whole thing, unintentionally leaning into Tristan whenever she looked away.

The two were sat on the floor, along with Brady and Becca, and Miguel, Maddy and Mason sat on the couch. Mason noticed Miguel was staring at Tatum and Tristan, his jaw slightly clenched. It wasn't something you'd notice if you weren't paying attention, but Mason was paying attention.

In fact, Mason had be paying attention to the pair since the day they started filming. He didn't know why, but he could tell that Miguel didn't hate Tatum as much as he let on.

"I'm gonna throw up," Tatum said, Mason peeled his eyes from Miguel and turned his focus to the girl, who was running to the bathroom. He followed her, figuring she'd need someone to hold her hair back considering it wasn't tied up, and she was definitely going to puke.

Tatum finally finished after what felt like ages of vomiting. She sat on the bathroom floor for a minute in silence, before Mason spoke up. "So, you and Tristan?"

"What? Oh my God, Mace, no way. He's like my brother. Where the hell did you get that idea from?" Tatum seemed disgusted at the idea of ever being anything more than friends with Tristan.

"Nothing, just they way you were clinging onto him, that's all."

"Trust me, I would cling to anyone while watching Saw. That movie makes me wanna rip my eyes out."

"Even Miguel?"

"Okay, maybe not anyone. I'd rather watch Saw the whole way through than ever willingly touch Miguel."

"That's like, really harsh."

"Did you see the look he was giving me out there? That was harsh. He looked like he wanted to kill me."

Mason didn't argue. He assumed that Miguel's look wasn't out of hatred, but if he shared his theory he knew Tatum would just deny it, and probably get mad, then throw up again.

They finally decided to go back out to the others. The movie had finished and they sat around in a huddle. "What took you guys so long?" Becca asked.

"Nothing," Tatum replied, "I was just throwing up my breakfast, lunch and dinner from the last seven days. Why are we sat in a circle?"

"We're gonna play truth or dare, but with spin the bottle. So I spin it, and whoever it lands on pick tru-" Becca began, before Tatum stopped her.

"Becca, I love you. But we all know how truth or dare works. Who's starting?"

They played a few rounds of truth dare. The dares and questions were all pretty standard, and Tatum hadn't had a turn yet. Until Maddy span the bottle and it landed on her.

"Finally!" Tatum exclaimed, "Dare."

Maddy thought for a second. "I dare you to kiss the person you find the most attractive."

Tatum was taken aback for a second. Not because she was scared, but because she actually didn't know which of her friends she found the most attractive. Plus, it would be unfair to choose between them.

She finally remembered the compact mirror in her pocket, pulling it out and kissing herself in the mirror. Everyone laughed and they moved on with the game, going for a few more round before they finally got tired.

"Who's sleeping where?" Miguel asked.

"Dibs on the couch!" Tatum yelled.

"Would you not rather have the bed?" Brady asked, confusing why she's call dibs on the couch when there was a more comfortable bed available.

"Because it's a king size, I'd have to share with someone. Maybe even two people. But the couch is too small for two people, so I choose the couch, because I can have it to myself."

"Smart," Brady replied, "I still call dibs on the bed though."

They all decided where to sleep, but Tatum didn't lay much attention as she made the couch comfy for herself. Finally, they all headed off to the bedroom, except Miguel.

"Why aren't you going with them?" Tatum asked. Her voice was slightly harsh, but not harsh enough for Miguel to care.

"Because, the girls have to sleep on the floor, and there's no room for three of us on the bedroom floor."

"So? Couldn't one of the girls stay in here instead."

"The floor in the bedroom is more comfy, and I'm a decent person so I let them have it."

"Are you, though?" Tatum questioned.

"Fuck off, Tatum," Miguel said, making himself comfortable on the floor with pillows and a blanket.

Soon enough, Tatum got cold. Really cold. "Holy shit," she whispered, shivering.

"Cold?" Miguel asked, sounding smug.

"Yeah," Tatum replied. She wanted to think of some witty comeback like she always did, but there was no witty comeback for a one word question.

"You know, I could always join you up there, keep you warm."

"You're only saying that because you don't wanna sleep on the floor."

"Maybe. But you're not gonna be able to sleep at all if you're cold."

He was right. Tatum hesitated. "Okay, fine. This doesn't make us friends."

"Trust me, I know," Miguel said, climbing onto the couch. Tatum faces away from him, still shivering. Miguel soon realised that was no comfortable way for him to lay on the couch unless he was touching Tatum. Trying not to think about it too much, he wrapped his arm around her waist. "Are you alright with this?" He asked. He didn't like Tatum, but he also didn't wanna make her uncomfortable.

Tatum nodded. She didn't know why butterflies spread across her stomach. His stomach was pressed against her back and his head rested on her shoulder.

She convinced herself it was because she'd never been in a situation like this before. That she'd get butterflies no matter who it was. Maybe that really was the case, she couldn't quite tell yet.