One Summer

Chapter 10

I don't know how Alex ribbing me about my friendship with Jake turned into a game of I Have Never, but it did. The six of us (our parents had mysteriously disappeared), were sat in our reorganised T.V. room swigging from bottles of liquor that Chris had conveniently stashed in his room. Since we had no mixer, nor the effort to get some, we were drinking spirits straight.

"I have never," Chris drawled. "Had a piss in a public place."

A collective groan rippled around the circle. Everyone else had been asking questions that enticed either a shameful or, in the boy's case, a cocky, swig from a bottle.

"Can't you ask better questions?" Casey grumbled.

"The aim of the game is to get drunk, so drink up bitches!"

In sync, we drank from our respective bottles, shuddering as the alcohol hit the back of our throats.

"I have never, lied to someone close to me about something important."

I stole a glance around the room before putting the bottle to my lips and drinking. I wasn't entirely surprised that everyone else drank either.

"I have never," Casey started, drawing out never whilst she thought of something. "Ooh! I have never cheated on someone."

I wasn't at all surprised that Chris drank, a smug look on his face, but what did surprise me was that it was the younger Richards brother that took a drink, and not the oldest one.

"Chase?" Ava asked, suddenly uneasy.

"My fourth grade girlfriend," he shrugged sheepishly.

"That doesn't count!" Chris protested.

Chase shrugged. "Casey never specified."

"I have never had sex in a public place," I said.

My eyes nearly bulged from their sockets when the brunette girl next to me drank from her bottle.

"Casey!" I exclaimed.

"Park bench with James Samuels after Connor's party last year," she explained.

"You never told me this," I accused.

"You don't tell me every time you've slept with someone," she fired back.

"Yes I do! You badger me into telling you."

Chris slapped his hands over his ears. "She's my sister," he whined at Casey.

"She started it!"

"I have never," Chase cut across. "Done something illegal."

It wasn't surprising that everyone drank. Every summer we got caught up in something that was illegal.

"I have never taken drugs."

Chris, Alex and I were the only ones to drink.

"Alexandra!" Casey exclaimed, slapping my arm.

"What?! Everyone does it!"

"Not everyone," she scoffed, appalled.

"It's not like I'm an addict. I tried a joint once, almost choked to death, and I haven't tried anything since. It's not a big deal. And don't call me Alexandra, you know I hate it."

"Your real name is Alexandra?" Ava asked.

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Yeah yeah, we all know Lex hates her full name, can we get back to the game now?" Chris whined.

Casey sighed. "I'm bored of this game now, can we play something else?"

"Shot roulette?" I suggested. "We still have the wheel from a couple of years ago."