You knew me already?//Billie Eilish

clout chaser*

July 26th:

-Lisa's pov-

We returned to the house and into the kitchen, asking our chefs, Dante and Zoe if they needed help. Max was outside caring for the smoker's fire, and I joined him to set the table. 

"Oh, the professional is at work," I teased him. He ignored me and continued blowing air into the ember of the fire.

I approached him, asked if everything was alright, and explained that he seemed slightly off to me. 

"Don't worry about it; you're busy with Billie anyway." 

"Since when do you mind about who I hang out with?" In the 15 years of knowing him, I had never experienced him being jealous of anyone. 

"I don't. Don't worry."

Something was off; I could sense it. He got along so well with everyone, especially with Ricky, that I thought everything was fine. Apparently, I was wrong.

I returned and brought the baguette, cucumber salad, tomato salad, and the Tzatziki Zoe made. Dante then brought out a big platter of cheeses, marinated tofu, zucchinis, and eggplants to put on the barbecue. Everybody seemed to be a little bit sobered up again. 

I opened a nice bottle of Rose and set it in a cooler on the table. 

Everybody except for Ricky and Max, who were still taking care of the food, settled around the table. Billie took a photo of the table and added it to her Instagram story. 

I remembered that I bought gluten-free bagels for her because she couldn't eat the baguette the rest of us were having. I brought out a bagel and put it on her plate. 

"Thank you for being so thoughtful with me," she smiled at me.

I saw Max mocking Billie in the corner of my eye. I was done with him playing the victim. 

"Something wrong, Max?" I said, confronting him in front of everybody. He shook his head no, so I let it slide again. I didn't understand, though. It annoyed me.

I opened the Frizzante and poured it into six glasses, distributing it evenly. 

Billie stood up, holding her glass up. 

"I wanna make a toast, guys. Meeting you was one of the best things that happened to me this year. These past few days have been so much fun, and I'm happy to be here with all of you. And also, a special toast to the Beeranjas for being the best Beerball team ever. Thanks for dinner, you two. Cheers!" 

We all clinked our glasses and started eating the food. We were all starving at this point, so we really needed it.

Once we finished eating, we brought in all the plates. Zoe and I loaded up the dishwasher and tidied up the kitchen. I grabbed another bottle of Frizzante and brought it out on the terrace, where everybody was still sitting and chatting. The only light came from the candles lit on the table since the sun had already set.

We emptied the next bottle, and everybody returned to feeling dizzy and boozy again. We decided to play Spin the Bottle, asking truth-or-dare questions. Even if it was a game for teens we were in the mood for it.

I spun the bottle, making it land on Dante. He went for the truth. 

"Have you ever had a crush on somebody in this group?" 

"Nope, I genuinely haven't," he replied. 

He then continued to spin the bottle, and it landed on Billie. 

She went for a dare. "Take a shot of hot sauce." 

"That's too easy, bro. You know I don't mind hot sauce at all," she said.