Starry Eyed

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

To steal a saying from my mother, Finn's room looked like a bomb had gone off inside it. Clothes were strewn across the room like decorative bunting and streamers, bed sheets were crumpled up in a heap dangling from the edge of the bed, and the whole place stunk of sweat and mud. It was, to put it mildly, disgusting. I felt dizzy standing in the middle of it all.

Star had slipped me into his dormitory so easily, it may as well have been my own room. With an empty coffee cup crushed up in her purse and a fresh coat of lipgloss smacked across her mouth, she was prepared for anything and ready to follow through with her deceiving criminal mastermind plan. And she'd put so much effort into organising and plotting it so perfectly, you just knew the execution of it couldn't possibly go wrong. Maybe that's what gave me the gusto to act so flawlessly under the pressure.

Finn had opened the door with a sigh, one hand in his greasy brown hair. He looked like Shaggy from Scooby-Doo. His eyes were bloodshot, and he smelt hot, like he'd been sweating all night under the blankets. Hiding from anyone who dared to sneak in with a knife.

"Star. Luca. What's up? I was just, uh, cleaning." He looked a whole lot less gutsy than he had the night before at the funeral. Perhaps the champagne had caught up with him.

"You reek," Star commented casually, not caring about his half-shocked reaction. She swept into the room like a princess entering her own coronation ball. "Spray some deodarant on and we'll get going."

"Where are we going?" Yawned Finn, his mouth opening wide.

"Coffee trip. You're invited, by the way."

"Listen, Star, I'm really not in the mood for a coffee trip-"

"Also, I figured out a way to crunch down some of your punishment hours. It involves you taking up some new extracurricular activities and jobs around the school, adding a little sugar to your usual drinking potions, and possibly restoring the relationship you've got with the staff here. Dad said you're not allowed to come back next semester unless you fix your act up, so I suggest you come with me."

Everybody was used to Star's crazy monologues and wild ideas, but nobody actually considered them all that crazy, on account of them always working. So Finn was only confused for a moment.

"What do you mean? Your dad reckons I'm allowed back next semester if I clean my act up?" He asked, wrinkling his nose at Star. She shrugged, flicking her blonde hair over her shoulder.

"I don't know. But I might know if you buy me a coffee."

Even when it was an evil scheme, Star never missed a chance to grab a coffee. It didn't matter if she had literally finished up a cup two minutes before. And Finn took the bait like a curious little fish; he fell for the trick, hook, line and sinker.

"Why's Luca here?" It was his only question, and one we'd covered before arrival. I answered with ease. An actor whose lines were tattoed into his brain.

"James. My roommate. He wants a drink."

Finn raised one eyebrow; I was instantly jealous. People who do that just have the cool factor, you know? "Why didn't James come and get it himself then? Are you gonna sell me out to Star's dad again?"

Okay, I deserved that. "Because he's a a lazy jerk, that's why. And I'm not gonna rat you out."

"I'll take the blame if I have to," piped up Star. "I'll say I made Luca smuggle it for me. He just wants a beer, Finn. Come on."

Finn sighed exasperatedly, flinging his arm back into the exploded bedroom. "Fine. They're in the cupboard. But don't snoop around, you hear me?"

"I won't," I said. But of course, that was exactly what I planned to do. And it just worked out so perfectly that Finn left me to his room alone- he sauntered off with Star, completely oblivious to the bigger picture. I stood there gawping in his doorway as he walked away.