What It Cost

Eyes & Lips

The girls sat on the concrete curb outside of the frat house, knees touching, shoulders pressed together. They were giggling, whispering about the party. How they danced on the table, playing beer pong together, and the sweaty dancing. Lilly, despite her drunkenness, felt light. The months without her best friend had been weighing on her more than she realized.

"So..." Tasha's voice cut through the laughs, her tone sharp. "Are you going to fix..." She waved her hand in the air.

Lilly gasped and nudged her friend. "Don't say his name! He might pull up..."

Tasha titled her head, staring at her.

Lilly looked away, staring at her feet, pushing rocks around with the ends of her shoes. "Yes... I will..." The thought alone made her stomach churn.

Just then, headlights swept across the pavement. A black car slowed to a stop in front of them and a dark figure slid out of the backseat. 

Noah.

Lilly's breath caught in her throat.

"Speak of the devil..." Tasha mumbled, nudging her leg.

Noah was in sweatpants and a hoodie. He raked his fingers through his hair, scanning briefly for the girls. Lilly's mind went quiet, all she could focus on was how effortlessly cool he looked with one hand in his pocket, the other in his hair.

"Lilly."

"Um, yeah..." Lilly placed her hands on the edge of the curb and hoisted herself up. Her alcoholic state catching up to her too fast as the world pushed in on her, sending her mind spinning. She stumbled forward, tripping over her own feet.

Noah darted to her, catching her under her arms. "Hey, whoa, easy." His voice was low, steady. "How was your night?" He looked down at her, holding her upright.

Lilly looked up at him, her eyes glassy. "It, um.. It was amazing." She looked behind her to her best friend. "Right, Tash? We danced sooo much!"

Tasha gave her a thumbs up. "We sure did."

"Sounds like you two had fun." He looked to Tasha, offering her a free hand. "You want us to take you back to your place?"

Tasha took his hand and stood up, smoothing out her skirt. "Oh, nah. Our apartment is actually just down the street."

"We'll walk you home, then." He looked down to Lilly who was clinging to his sleeve for support. "We can just Uber back to the venue from there."

Tasha dug her keys out and tossed them to Noah. "Just take my car. I'll just take the bus tomorrow to get it."

Noah caught the keys with his open hand then looked down at Lilly. "Ready?" 

She nodded and let go of him, her eyes never leaving his face. 

--------

Noah pulled into a parking space, shifting the vehicle into park and shutting it off. He turned towards the backseat and handed the keys to Tasha, they landed in her palm with a soft clink.

"Thanks for driving." She said as she slid out of the backseat. "Can't say I loved being in the back of my car, though." Tasha opened the door for Lilly and helped her step out. "Can you make it up the steps?"

Lilly, eyes half lidded, nodded. 

"I think it all caught up to her," Tasha gave a slight laugh, glancing at Noah as she caught Lilly stumbling out of the car.

Noah brows furrowed together, worry etching his face. "Here, let me..." He stepped over and held a hand out for Lilly.

"No, no I got this..." Lilly waved him off and faltered forward.