Head Over Leather #Wattys2017

XVI. Halloween (2)

Riley folds her arms self consciously across her chest, adjusting her slumped position, as her sister makes her way over. While Riley's hair had been cut short and straightened frequently, her sister' dark locks were freely grown out and curled.

"Miss me Riles?" The girl drawls out, head tilting as if to taunt her sister. Riley scoffs, face morphing into a frown, which I had honestly never seen on her.

"What are you doing back here Rachel? How did you know about my party?" Riley continues, throwing her hands up in disbelief, eyes pooling with question.
Rachel lets out a soft chuckle, shrugging her shoulders casually.

"Mom and dad said I could finish the year here. So here I am. They told me they wouldn't be here when my flight landed because of your party, so I decided to surprise you."

"This is more of a nightmare than a surprise, Rach." Despite the endearing nickname, Riley was far from amused at her sister's presence.

"Why don't you introduce me to your friends, Riles?" Rachel clicks her tongue, dark eyes twinkling with mischievous as they trail over us. I don't miss the way she stops momentarily on Ethan, a smirk forming on her lips.

"I'm Ethan." Ethan holds out his hand, with a lopsided grin and I glance up at him, raising my eyebrows at his sudden perkiness. Rachel responds immediately, reaching out with a freshly manicured hand and gripping his. They hold it for far too long and I find myself shifting out from Ethan's free hand on my waist.

"I'm Maya." I interrupt their moment, as I hold my hand out with a forced smile plastered across my face. I hear Mia snort beside me at my obvious jealousy, but I elbow her, before anyone has a chance to question it. The two finally release their hold and she places her hand in mine, shaking it with an equally fake smile. Before she moves to Mia, Rachel turns to Ethan, biting her lip,

"Hope you won't have to use those handcuffs tonight, officer. Trouble always seems to find me."

"Or do you find it?" Ethan counters, a flirtatious tone lacing his voice, as I find myself getting more and more irritated by her presence. Rachel closes her eyes, letting out a short laugh, before turning to introduce herself to Mia. Eva and Ryder were nowhere to be seen and for once I found myself wishing I was too.

"Hey guys! Sorry I'm late." Jess bursts through the crowd, her Red Riding Hood cape breezing behind her. The hood is loosely settled on her head and her hand is gripping a small basket with a checkered cloth peeking out.

"I'm Rachel, Riley's sister." I watch as Jess raises her eyebrows and purses her lips, but shakes her hand in greeting nonetheless.

"So, uh, Rach? Where you been all this time?" Ethan asks, leaning over me to look at Rachel. A smug look settles on her face and she twirls a strand of her hair, as her eyes trail Ethan's body.

"Here and there." She answers vaguely and I roll my eyes discreetly, irritation spreading through my body.

Woah.

Woah.

I am seriously jealous.

"Smoke?" I lean beside me, whispering to Mia, who nods in response, before linking her arm through mine. I don't bother telling Ethan, because I highly doubt he would even notice my absence. Jess follows behind us, finding the situation much too awkward to be left alone in.

As the crisp cool air hits my face, I can't help but let out a breath of relief. Mia wordlessly hands me a cigarette and my fingers play around with, contemplating just how much I actually needed it. Jess stares at me for a moment, mouth slightly parted, and eyes wide in realization. I open my mouth to tell her it was an occasional thing, but she interjects before I can,

"You like him."

"What? No! I just think it's disrespectful to flirt so openly with a girl he just met. And here and there? Really? She's like a walking cliche, of course he would go for that kinda thing.." I trail off in realization that I'm rambling and I slump against the doorframe, leaning my head back.

"I don't like him." I repeat, shaking the thought out of my head, because it was honestly the last thing I wanted to think about. Jess nods, licking her lips and refraining from calling me out. The two girls lean against the wall on either side of me, with Mia lighting her cigarette.

I don't like him, I repeat to myself once more, before glancing down at the cigarette and holding it up to my mouth, prompting Mia to light it for me.

***

"Did you have fun tonight?" I refrain from turning to Ethan in disbelief, instead tucking my hair behind my ears and nodding slowly. I barely saw him for the remainder of the night and devoted my attention to spending time with Jess, along with Mia and Riley. It was nice to know I had more people to count on. I just wonder if it'll be the same when the game ends.

"I'll pick you up bright and early tomorrow." I scrunch my eyebrows in confusion, my head turning to face him but his gaze remains on the road ahead of him.

"What?"

"We're going to see your dad."

***
Uh oh, does Maya like Ethan? What do you guys think about Rachel? Is she going to cause trouble for them?