THE OXFORD BET *VirginityGames*

Chapter 22 My BestFriend is a Traitor

Francesca

The morning after.

Daniel booked another room that night and stayed in a separate room to mine. I didn't know how to feel about that. I was glad I didn't have to see him. But my thoughts quickly escalated into panic that he to ended up in another girl's room. Had he slipped into Chae-Won's room? Or  was he just tired of playing with me?

I woke up lying on something soft and warm. Every cell in my body hurt, but nothing came out when I tried to groan. It was a pleasing feeling to open the door of the building and come out into the cold November morning. I took a deep breath of fresh air, and I heard Daniel do the same, close next to me.

"What a party." I released a breath, as the door closed behind us.

Neither of us had begun to walk towards the car yet, but instead decided to stay under the dull sky and the partially hidden sun, embracing the fresh air that surrounded us.

"It wasn't as boring as they usually are," Daniel replied, and our gaze met before we both looked away again, "I think that was only because I had you with me,"

I grimaced.

"The place is fantastic. I loved the bar, the drinks they made were fabulous." I was rambling but it was all I could  think to do, to bury the uncomfortable feeling between us. "I had a bunch of fancy flavoured gins. The cocktails were great too. They looked amazing and they tasted good, which was a bonus. I think the amount of fruit juice in them hid the taste of alcohol so well I was far drunker last night than one would have first assumed," I blurted out, without taking a moment for a real breath. I didn't want any of the horrid awkward silence between us, so I tried my best to fill in any gaps.

"Really?" He dug his hands into his pockets. "I took all but two sips of my drink." Then his eyes finally looked over at me. He tipped his chin down respectfully, a smile he could not quite suppress tugged at his lips. "I'm driving us back, so I thought it would be best not to be hungover."

"How come you don't drink so much?"

Daniel laughed mirthlessly.

"What?" I glanced at him quickly. "It's just surprising. I hardly ever see you get wasted. You're a boy from the Bet. It's odd. I've noticed you don't drink as much as...well as much as Brandon and Adam do. Why is that?" I turned away. My gaze lifted to the little chirping sparrows above us. 

"I prefer being sober, unless it's a special occasion." Daniel tried a smile again but I couldn't bring myself to look at his face for more than a few seconds.

So I gave a short nod as looked down at the cream coloured gravel under my shoes. Without a word, I walked on ahead. I took one step down off the grounds that was covered with a thin layer of frost and headed for Daniel's shiny black car. Daniel followed on behind me in silence.

''Francesca I apologise if - "

Even though Daniel's voice was slightly hoarse and very deep, it still managed to be soft and honest. I loved it, and I cherished it, because it was one of the best things to hear and one of the one things I feared someday I would not be able to hear again. I  shook my head in incredulity. Shame curdled my belly. 

"Lets just forget about it and never speak about it again. My drunken mistake." I shrugged, and pulled at the car door handles. With a click it opened. I threw my bags in the back and climbed in silently. He watched me for a moment before chucking his Bennet Winch suit carrier holdall bag in olive green and his black long suit cover into the car boot. He slid into the driver side wordlessly.

That was the most Daniel and I had spoken since the incident at the Thornway estate. We never mentioned it again. And I was glad.

I asked Daniel to drop me off at Victoria's house. He did so without want of an explanation. For that I was thankful. I was also terrifically thankful for an escape from him. Some time with my closest friend wouldn't go a miss. She was an outlet where I could vent and not be judged. I would also have moment to think about everything that had gone on the night before. The memory of Daniel's lips on mine. How I wanted them on my own. How I wanted every part of him. But if I told the others then they would just assume I had fallen victim to the boys scheme. I would look like the weak one. The one who was all bark and no bite. So I spent the day with the girls at Victoria's house. We all sat around her room lazily lounging about, as we tried to concentrate on our study group, but once Izzy mentioned she was hungry as a horse, I mentioned the idea of us getting ourselves dressed up and going out for a girls lunch and cocktails...lots and lots of cocktails. Everyone agreed straight away. No arguments. Everyone was buzzing and it made me feel good to glance around a room at a bunch of young women who had come so far and grown so close. We had come so far is such a short space of time.