The Beautiful Truth

// 104

"Who are you?"

Chase and Travis had left me a note, telling me to 'Take a shower and walk your tiny ass to 2726 Channing.' So here I was, clean, socially acceptable, and in the doorway of Phi Delta Theta, where, by the way, I could hear a raucous party going on in the back.

"So welcoming," I muttered. "Uh, Sawyer Fitzgerald," I told the annoyed-looking guy at the door, shifting my weight in my flip-flops.

Just then, Travis walked by the entry. "Ay! Sawyer, you showed!"

I hesitated, despite his overwhelmingly friendly greeting. "Was I not supposed to?"

Travis rolled his eyes and bounded toward me and the d-bag gatekeeper. "Josh, this is my pretty roommate, Sawyer. Sawyer, this is my dick brother, Josh."

Josh looked about as WASP-y as the day is long. I safely assumed he meant 'fraternity brother.' "Oh, hi!"

"Yeah, now you're nice," I laughed at him, flaring my nose. "Good thing I live with two seniors, right?" I knew how frats worked.

He reluctantly shook my hand. I rolled my eyes and Travis reached his bulging arm around my neck. "Good work," he grinned, leading me through the house.

I scoffed. "Woah."

I stopped us in our tracks, reeling Travis back mid-stride. The kitchen bar was completely covered with alcohol. "And there's a list for this thing? As in, a finite number of people have access to this much booze?"

Travis laughed. "So you've never been to a party here?"

"False," I answered, still staring at the liquor collection. "I've been here twice, but I'm pretty sure it was around 1:30 a.m., way early in the fall semester last year."

"Ah," Travis understood. "Well, as a guest of honor, let me be the first to make you a drink. As you can see, we have everything, so..."

I laughed. "Make me something that tastes like summer."

"Oh, one California Summer coming right up," a familiar voice announced, having just walked in from the back patio.

"Oh no," I protested, watching Chase move around the kitchen as if to start mixing my drink. "You...I've seen you drink. I'd like to avoid alcohol poisoning tonight, thank you very much."

Chase gave me a look of mock-hurt. "I may not drink anymore, but I can mix a mean drink, Fitz. Trust me...if we can't trust each other, how are we going to live together?"

I leaned against the opposite side of the bar and rolled my eyes.

Chase smirked at nothing but the cup he was mixing booze in. "Come on, laugh. You know you want to."

I scoffed again.

"Honestly," Travis complained. "Who pissed you off so badly and where can I find him and kick his ass?"

I turned to him and cocked my head to the side, biting my lower lip.

"I mean, really," Chase continued. "I've never seen someone who was just gifted a Beamer so angry at the world."

I sighed and met his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"It's OK," Chase shrugged, handing me my yellow-orange drink. "We'll get it out of you sooner or later."

"In the meantime," Travis interrupted, raising his cup, "a toast!"

Chase raised his water bottle and I half-heartedly lifted my cup.