Captains

Chapter 17

The next night, my parents are gone, and I'm going to party. The sad thing is, my parents went to New York City for the week, and I declined thinking I was going to have a great week with my friends.

Brooklyn, Cali, and Charlotte show up at around 4 to help me out with everything, and everyone else starts showing up around 8:30. I make sure to lock all the bedroom doors upstairs. No one is doing that here.

By 11, I'm drunk. I'm so happy, and I don't really know what's going on, but I'm dancing with a very nice guy from my grade. It's a very fast-paced song, and it takes a while for me to understand what song it is, but once I realize it's Only by Nicki Minaj, I start singing and rapping along with it, and everyone is cheering for me. By the time the song is over, I'm back to just dancing, and the guy has his hands on my waist. All of a sudden he looks behind me, terrified. I turn around and don't see anyone. When I turn back around, he's gone.

"What the hell?" I murmur. I walk into the kitchen and stop. But then I laugh. Cali is sat up on the counter, and who I assume is Flynn, whose back is to me, has his tongue down her throat.

Cali stops and looks at me. Then busts out laughing throwing her head into Flynn's neck. I turn around and head back into the living room. I see Brooklyn dancing with Trystan, and smile. Then it hits me. If Trystan and Flynn are here...

"Sterling." Rider's voice behind me. I turn around, and drunk me smiles, but in the back of my head I'm already crying.

"Rider!" I yell, throwing my hands in the air.

He looks at me, and takes a step closer. He smells like chocolate ice cream.

"You're why I smell like ice cream." he says, chuckling. Whoops. Must have said that last part out loud.

"I don't like you." I say, frowning.

He takes a step closer and bends a little so he is eye level with me. "And why is that?"

I frown even deeper, thinking. "Because I'm in love with you, and you broke my heart." I say, then slap my hand over my mouth. I can't believe I just said that out loud.

He takes a step back, shock written all over his face. "What?"

"Nothing!" I say, and bolt for any other room before he can say anything else. I find Brooklyn in the kitchen, getting a drink. "Help me hide! Now!" I say pulling her.

"Oh God. What did you do?" She says, catching up, and helping me up the stairs. When we finally unlock and get in my room, I tell her what I said. She squeals. "I'm so glad you told him!"

I gasp. "No! I don't want to remember the look on his face. Go get me some good alcohol, bring it back in here, and lock me up." I say, falling onto the bed.

An hour later, I pass out, after drinking my own bottle of Bacardi. What a coincidence.

************************

I wake the next day, with a pounding headache, and Brooklyn, Cali, and Charlotte around the room, sleeping. I pick up my pillow, and chunk it at Brooklyn.

She sits up slowly, and looks at me. "What the hell do you want?"

"What happened last night?"

She smirks. "You don't remember anything?"

I think for a second, but my head starts hurting. "Last thing I remember is rapping Only, and being cheered on, then black out."

I'm not sure what expression comes over her face, but I don't like it. "Nothing happened after that. You locked yourself up here with a bottle of Bacardi then passed out." She laughs a little.

"Who the fuck brought Bacardi?"

She thinks. "Once the party started, you asked Charlotte to get two bottles, so she called her sister to get it and bring it."

What is wrong with me? I love Bacardi, but I don't like what it represents, in a way. Bacardi is in my favorite song by Luke Bryan, and Rider sings it amazingly well. I sound like one of those sappy teenage girls, but I don't care. "Who else got wasted?"

"Not many people. You were the worst at the entire party though." She starts laughing.

I run a hand down my face. Then I look at Brooklyn. "Oh Shit! What is today?" I ask Brooklyn, hoping it's not what day I think it is.

"I think it's Tuesday. Why?"

I jump up, ignoring the hangover, and wake the other girls up. "Up and at 'em, bitches. We have to clean. Now."

Brooklyn hops up. "Wait. Why? I thought you're parents weren't coming home until Saturday?"

Then I look at her. "They aren't. My brothers are coming home this afternoon."

*****************

We finish cleaning up, just as Mason calls to tell me they'll be here in 15 minutes to take me to lunch.

"We're out!" Brooklyn, Cali, and Charlotte say, just as Mason and Brennan pull up.

I walk outside, with the girls, and go toward my brothers.

Brenna just shakes his head, and laughs. "How was the party last night?"

I widen my eyes. Then start laughing. "How did you know?"

"I didn't. You just look like shit, so I assume you have a hangover, and three other girls just left our house, probably from cleaning."

"Well, darn. You caught me." I say, laughing and jumping into the backseat of their black Jeep Wrangler.

They decide on Golden Corral, without even asking my opinion.

Once we sit down with our first course, they begin questioning me. "Why didn't you go to New York? How's school? How did the football team do on Friday?" It's all too much at once.

I hold my hand up, gesturing for them to stop. "As you said, I have a hangover. Pipe the fuck down. I will answer all of your questions. I didn't go to New York because I wanted to spend the week with my friends. School is fine, as usual. The football team won Friday."

"How's your friend?" Mason asks, smirking next to me.

"Which one?" I ask. They always see Brooklyn and Cali everytime they come home, so I don't know who they're talking about.

"Rider Calloway. You we're seeing him right?" Brennan says, concern etched across his face.

"No. I wasn't seeing him. Don't bring him up ever again." I say, fighting back tears.

Mason puts his arm around my shoulder. "Do we need to go kick his ass?"

I wave my hand. "Nah. I think my threatening, and actions have made him stay clear."

They laugh. "I just hope you don't do to him what you did to Blake that one year. No poor guy deserves that." Brennan says, laughing.

I laugh, with tears still in my eyes. "Everyone keeps bringing that up! I'm not going to do that again!" I say.

About an hour later, we head back to our house, staying up really late to watch comedy movies, and eating lots of m&m's.

I go to bed around 1:30 in the morning, and right before I fall asleep, my phone beeps, signaling a text message.

"Please. Talk to me. You never let me respond to you last night, and I want to know how I broke your heart. Please meet me at 7 tonight at your favorite beach. I know which beach is your favorite."

Oh my God. What happened last night? What did Brooklyn not tell me? I am so screwed.