Permanent in the Stars

14: Oliver

 Asher brought Jacobs home with him- I had a feeling he might. Jacobs' family lives in Texas; I know he'd love to fly out to see them, but I also know he can't afford it.

I watch as Rory brightly talks to him about her club as Asher and I peel the potatoes. "She's very cool," Asher says, catching my gaze.

"Yeah," I agree.

"And easy on the eyes. She's 'girl-next-door' pretty."

Before I met Rory, I didn't really give a second glance. Don't get me wrong, Rory is gorgeous. When I got to know the person she is though, my attraction was undeniable.

"I guess," I play it cool. "She's off-limits, though."

"Of course she is. Because you're going to ask her out."

"No, because she's my friend. And deserves more than one of you assholes."

"Whatever you say." Asher puts the peeler and potato down and waltzes over to Rory with confidence. The closer he gets to her, the faster my heartbeats.

"Need a new drink, Rory?" I eavesdrop in on their conversation.

Rory lifts her drink, as if weighing it. "I think I'm good. Thank you though." She smiles at him with rosy cheeks. I've noticed that when there's alcohol in her system, her face flushes with warmth. It makes her look soft.

Asher sits on the back of the couch and looks down at her. "Did I tell you that you look really pretty tonight?"

Her cheeks grow brighter and Jacobs hides a chuckle back. "Oh, um, thank you. I thrifted the dress."

"It suits you. And the leg warmers look good," he flirts.

She clears her throat and I set my peeler down to intervene. "Want to cut some potatoes for me Rory?"

"Yes," she breathes out thankfully. "Excuse me," she addresses the two.

"You good?" I ask when she stands next to me, fanning her face. She rolls the sleeves of her sweater.

"Just a little warm."

"Do you want to stand outside for a minute?" She is hesitant to answer. "Come on, I could use some air."

There's a sliding door to the backyard connected to the kitchen and I lead her out. The air is cold, and the sun is setting. The sky, an array of orange and pinks, puts a soft glow on Aurora's figure. I watch her take in the sunset, her face visibly morphing from stress to peace. She really does love to be outside, I take note of it.

"Sorry about Asher, he flirts with anything that breathes." Her face sours, involuntarily. "Not to say that he wouldn't flirt with you, of course he would. You look stunning today."

"Thank you." She looks at me when she says it. When Asher said it, she couldn't look at him.

She starts fiddling with her necklace, another thing I've noticed. In silence, she plays with her necklace or earrings, like doing something brings her comfort.

"I got you flowers," I say.

"What?"

I take a small container out of my pocket. Inside, there's two joints that I pre rolled for her.

"What the hell? You don't even smoke weed."

"I like the way it smells. I smoked a lot in middle and high school and the frat is always giving me free weed. It's just sitting in my closet and I know you and your cousin are stoners."

"I wouldn't call us stoners. We're more of what you'd call social smokers," she claims as she takes the case from my hands.

"I wish you smoked. I'd light one for us if you did."

"Asher and Micheal will probably smoke with you if you ask." I'm so tempted to do it. I want us to share a joint. To pass it back and forth with brushed fingers and touched lips.

"I thought you weren't allowed to during the season."

"We only get drug tested at the beginning of the season, which has already happened. After that, they don't give a fuck."

"Well, it's not a performance enhancing drug, so it's stupid for them to even test for it in the first place. Why'd you quit?"

"I fried my brain growing up. Smoking socially wouldn't work, I'd abuse it." Last time I took a hit, last year with Asher, I got paranoid. "Once I retire from hockey, I might give it a go, but not until then."

I open the slider, "Joint," I yell. All four of the hockey players come out. I know that Rory wants to smoke because she once told me that it's the best way to get her to eat. I want her to have a good time and eat lots tonight. Plus, the boys will appreciate it too. Maybe it'll get her to relax around them, she's been uptight since Asher came back with the three guys: Jacobs, Michael Mare (freshman bench warmer) and his girlfriend Lin (I don't know her last name), and Hinders (a junior). Hinders has been a big topic in our house because of his flirtatious motives with Sam.

"I didn't know you were cool, Rory," Hinders says.

We all watch as she lights the joint and takes a puff. She exhales slowly and sinks into herself when she realizes everyone's watching her. She passes it to him. "What did you think I was?" She crosses her legs and leans against the outside table. "As opposed to cool?"

"Innocent." Hinders tilts his head. They keep eye contact as he inhales the flower. Rory is innocent, I think.

"Marijuana corrupts me?" she jokes.

"No, it makes you cool," Hinders says. He passes the joint to Asher, who stands next to him. Asher is watching for my reaction.

I have my phone connected to the outside speaker and put on a playlist to fill the background.

Rory now looks at me with a smile on her face, "Good choice," she compliments the music I've picked. I'm glad her attention is back on me, and I move to lean on the table next to her. Our crossed arms and hips press against each other. Micheal declines the offer but gives the joint to his girlfriend, who stands next to Rory.

"Rory, you should come to our hockey game this weekend," Asher exclaims.

"Rory doesn't like hockey," I say.

Everyone looks at her again, this time in shock. "You don't like hockey?" Hinders is the first to speak.

"To be fair, I'm not a fan of anything sport related. It's just not interesting to me," she shrugs.

"I take it you won't like when we put football on later," Michael says.

"I wouldn't blame her, football is boring," Lin says, handing Rory the joint.

"I brought yarn," Rory says, taking a draw.

"You brought yarn?" Asher asks.

"I knew you'd put on football."

"You just knew?" Hinders says.

She laughs and shrugs, "It's kind of predictable right?"

"We're predictable?" Asher exclaims with shock.

"I guess not you uniquely. Men as a whole are predictable." She states it so bluntly that the 4 of us look at her with gapped mouths and surprised faces. All except Lin who seems to understand her completely. "Sorry," she giggles under her breath and exhales the smoke.

By the time the joint is finished, the sky is dark and there's a smile on everyone's face. Holidays are hard. But when I replace them with memories like sharing the day with people I care about, they're not too bad.

"Do you think they like me?" Aurora and I stay back in the kitchen to finish up the cooking while the rest go to watch the football game.

"Do you care?" I ask. We're shoe to shoe. She smells like sugar and weed.

"Of course I do," she says.

"Why?"

"Because you care about them." I like when she's honest with me. The timer on the oven beeps, indicating that the sweet potatoes are ready to go into the oven.

"Did you start boiling water for the potatoes?" Aurora moves to the stove to see that I did. "Perfect." We both quietly get back to work.