𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐈𝐒 𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐄 |𝐓𝐎𝐌 𝐊𝐀𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐙| 𝐃𝐈𝐒𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐔𝐄𝐃

𝑶𝑯 𝑵𝑶

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗔'𝗦 𝗣𝗢𝗩

"I'm not going to lie. Your suggestion does sound awfully tempting and appealing." "I'm full of—" "It? Yes." I nodded. "I agree." Thinking about it for a second, I asked what we were probably both thinking, "What do you think Tom would say?"

"To have someone look after you? I think he'd appreciate it or..." He paused, leaning back into his chair. "He's going to murder me for suggesting it. Honestly, it could go either way." I grabbed another shot while handing him his. "I'll think about it. When does the summer session start?"

In another huge gulp, he drank his shot. "Right after graduation."

"Yeah..." I lifted my empty glass in between us. Breathing out the liquor, I rasped, "I'm going to need more of these." He clapped his hands together and stood. "That's the spirit. I'll be right back."

My mind drifted the entire time he was gone, thinking about St. Thomas, about Tom, about my future, about his. Thought after thought assaulted my brain in a matter of a couple of minutes. I never considered an island for grad school, but now that the thought was put into my brain, I couldn't stop thinking about it.

Could I do this?

Just pick up and move to an island?

"All right, An, we're not here to contemplate our futures and wallow in our own self-pity. We're here to celebrate our paper and get fucking shitfaced. Comprende?"

"You speak Spanish now?"

"I get by."

"Is there anything you can't do?"

"I can't spend the night. I hate cuddling. It makes me hot, you know, hotter than I already am." "So humble."

"I can also kick your ass in a game of darts."

"I don't know how to play darts, so that's probably true." Well then, Miss Johanna, step into my office and let me show you the way."

"How noble of you."

He extended out his arm, leading the way to the dartboard that was in the back of the bar. Cain got everything ready before handing me three darts. "Here you go. You need to stand here." Grabbing my shoulders, he placed me maybe eight or nine feet away from the wooden board that was hanging on the wall.

"Now what?"

"Now we practice. Take the dart and chuck it at the board. The closer you get to the bullseye which is the middle red circle, the better score you'll have." "Okay." Holding the dart like a pencil, I raised my hand and threw it in the direction of the board. It wasn't even close to hitting a number, my dart bounced off the rim and fell to the floor.

"That was pathetic. Were you even trying?"

"Hey! That's not very encouraging."

"You're right. Where are my manners? Let me help." He quickly stepped behind me and molded his body to mine. "That better be your cellphone that is digging into my ass, Cain."

"An,you can call it whatever you want." "Cain!"

"All right, all right, I'm joking. Don't get your panties in a bunch." With his right hand, he grabbed mine that was now holding the second dart while the other hand gripped onto my hip. "You need to be one with the dart, Johanna. Do you feel that?"

"I don't know, I thought it was your cellphone but now I'm not so sure."

He chuckled, "You need to loosen up. You're too stiff. You're playing a game of darts, not about to be fucked in the ass. Relax." "I'm relaxed."

"This is your relaxed?" I shook it out, wiggling my body.

"Do that again, except this time squirm a little to the left."

"Cain!" "I love it when you scream my name." I giggled.

This idiot!

"We're going to do this together. You ready?" "As ready as I'll ever be."

one fluid motion, he rocked his hips into my ass and shot the dart straight into the bullseye. "Ahhh!" I shrieked in excitement.
"We make a good team."

"We did it!" I instantly turned around and jumped into his arms. Cain didn't hesitate, lifting me up off the ground. "That's my girl." "Your girl?"I froze, recognizing that voice.

"Last time I checked, she was mine."

My heart dropped to the floor.

Tom. Was. Here.. And I was in Cain's arms.

𝗧𝗢𝗠'𝗦 𝗣𝗢𝗩

She slid down Cain's chest.

What the fuck?

"Bro," Bill chimed in, trying to cut the sudden tension in the room with a joke. We'd all just walked in. "Why are you so selfish? If An is handing out hugs, then I would like to take one too." He extended out his arms. "Come to daddy, baby."

"Is this why you texted me?" I asked, ignoring Bill and looking at Cain.

"Of course. We're fucking celebrating, man! We aced our paper."

"Congrats." I said dryly.

Everyone's attention drifted from me and Cain to Bill and Johanna. Bill pulled her into his chest. "I'm so proud."

I scoffed out a chuckle. This dumbass always had a way of making me laugh. If there was one thing Bill was good for, it was his comedic relief in moments we needed them the most. Women loved how he made them laugh with all his stupid antics.

Bringing my gaze back to him, Cain handed me a shot. "Take a load off, Tom. I was just teaching Johanna how to play darts. I can't believe you've never taught her." "She's more of a ping pong kind of girl."

"Hence, why I'm teaching her."

Bill let go of Johanna and she walked right over to me. "You're up," she announced, handing me a dart. "I kick Cain's ass at this game all the time. I highly doubt he taught you anything useful."

"Fuck you, needle dick." Cain rolled his eyes.

Johanna smiled, only staring at me. Trying to lighten the mood between us. I grinned, giving in. I could never stay mad at her. Shit, I couldn't stay mad at Cain either. There was a reason they were both my best friends.

Bill called the waitress over and for the next two hours, we all hung out like old times. As if nothing was changing, when soon, everything would.

Drinking my sixth shot of the night, I came up behind Johanna, who was next on the game of pool we were playing "How many times have I told you that you need to lean into the table like this?" "You just want my ass against your body."
"It is a nice ass."

"I know."

"You guys do realize that this might be one of the last times we're together for a while, right?"

Our eyes shifted to Sawyer, he was sitting on a barstool waiting for his turn.

"I'm going to medical school, Ashton is... who the fuck knows what he's doing, least of all him."

"I know what I'm doing with my life, jackass." Ashton added.

"And what is that?" Bill spoke up.

"Real estate. I want to be an agent."

"Where did that come from?"

"I'm a finance major and I'm a people person, I could sell sex to a nun."

"On that note, I'll continue on. We all know Tom is going to become a workaholic like our father, and then we have Cain here." Sawyer put his arm around Cain's shoulders. "He's moving to St. Thomas and leaving us."

"Bro, don't be such a downer. You guys can come visit anytime you want. I'll even try not to fuck all the girls on the island before you visit." He smiled at Johanna. "Not to mention, you'll have two people to visit when you come down."

"Oh, you're taking your mom?" Bill remarked as a joke, hitting the four striped ball into the corner pocket.

"Nope." Cain moved away from Sawyer and tugged Johanna out of my hold, pulling her toward him with around the swell of her back. "I mean, if she actually decides to go to grad school with me over there."

"Wait. What?" I blurted, completely lost with what just happened. I was aware that Johana wanted to move outside of Germany , but there was no way in hell I thought it was going to be clear across the fucking Atlantic. Our eyes locked. "The fuck?"

"What Cain has so unrightfully just announced isn't entirely true."

"What part? The one where you're moving to an island or the one where you're moving with Cain to an island?" "That's not the case, Tom."

"She's not moving with me, man. She just might be moving to the same island as I am. Besides." Cain shrugged, only looking at me. "I'll be there to watch over your girl. I thought you'd be happy about that."

"Can we talk in private outside?" She nodded.

With that, I snapped around. Desperately trying not to lose my shit.