She Was Like Magic ✓

Chapter 11: Party Popcorn

Ari 

Well this wasn't awkward at all. 

I cleared my throat and drank my beer, but I took a very tiny sip so if there were any more gaps in conversation I could just take a sip again and again. Because I knew there would be more silences. 

The liquid slid down my throat a little too quickly for my liking as the five guys standing around me in a circle just stared at me and each other. One of them started a new conversation about the latest video game they had played that I had absolutely no idea about. As they talked amongst themselves I just stood there like I was the annoying fly hovering around them. 

One of the guys with a blonde haired buzz cut was listening to the conversations. But you could tell he was the alpha of the group with how he kept re-directing the conversations every so often if he got bored with them. Then there was the guy with the olive skin who although was smiling, when the alpha interrupted the conversations his eyes would narrow the slightest and his hand hanging at his side that the guys couldn't see would clench. So either, he was treated like the underdog in his life at some point and didn't like the authority the alpha had or the alpha had directly undermined him in some way and he did not like it. The other two guys just followed the alpha's every word like they had something to prove even though they were trying to play cool. But in any case, they had no real interest talking to me and neither did I in talking about video games.

Ask me about TV shows, psychological thrillers or even how to read people and I could answer with so much. But even then who was I kidding? Even if you asked what was the guarantee that I would answer if you weren't Franco? Slim to none. 

Unless you were Sierra. I exhaled a breath and a chuckle left my lips. I was so glad she was talking to me again. How I survived when she wouldn't talk to me I had no idea. All I knew was that if it wasn't for Franco I would have done something stupid. Something very, very stupid. 

And had I not decided that I would get her to speak to me again I would never be the same ever again. But she didn't need to know that. She didn't need to know how my heart thrummed in my chest when she came near me. How hard I had to work to make sure I could hide my tells so they wouldn't give me away. 

Speaking of her, this was her party. The only reason I agreed to come, but she was nowhere to be seen. The only reason Franco agreed to come was because after taking care of me for so long when Sierra wasn't talking to me he needed a well-deserved break that came in the form of the two girls that adored him that were Sierra's friends. His words, not mine. 

Deciding that I would probably have to finish the beer supply at this party if I stuck around with these guys, I left them and started to look around for Franco. The music wasn't too loud, people could still talk comfortable but the lights were on dim so it made it harder to search for Franco. I searched the sofas scanning the faces that were hard to see when they were making out with each other. But he wasn't there and I couldn't see him in the room. 

Damn it, where was he? 

I sighed. He deserved the break from me so I stopped looking for him. I poured myself another beer and dragged myself back to the five guys begrudgingly. They hadn't even noticed that I was back. 

I looked around the room. I saw a few girls smile and wink my way. But I gave them nothing but a cold look in return. I didn't want to subtly pull them towards myself. 

"Hey guys!" a bubbly, bright voice came up behind me. 

I turned around and there she was dressed in a simple black dress that hugged her figure with thin spaghetti straps. She had minimal make-up on and it suited her so much. Just mascara from what I could tell.