Worth the Risk

Chapter four

Three years ago

"Try eeny meeny miny moe, works every time." A low, unfamiliar voice startles me and I snap my eyes away from the row of liquor bottles to look over my shoulder. My gaze lands on a dark brown, curly mess grinning at me.

The stranger pops his elbow onto the kitchen island I'm leaning against. Then he lets his brick wall of a jawline, covered by soft tanned skin I can't help but be jealous of, rest on the palm of his hand. My eyes lock with the color pallet of his irises, but I quickly break away to land them back on the booze standing in front of me, scared he might think I was staring.

Which I was not.

"But what if you pick the one you don't want." I cross my arms and cock my head sideways while thinking over the gorgeous stranger's proposition. I thoroughly inspect the bottles as if I haven't been standing there for ages trying to decide which one is worth trying.

Not only is this house party a new thing for me, but each and every bottle I'm studying contains a taste my tongue has never met before.

"Then you know which one you do want," he says.

I hum in consideration, slowly turning my head over my shoulder to face the handsome stranger behind me. He would be absolutely right if I'd know what the rest of them taste like.

"Did someone send you here to give me some life advice?" I ask as I realize how badly I could use his little piece of advice in my life.

Making choices is pretty damn difficult.

Even deciding to attend this party took me two days to consider. It should've been easy when I heard my dad say we were going to stay this time. 'At least until graduation.' The words had ringed through my ears and I hadn't known how to react. Until graduation. That meant I could meet people, and make friendships that wouldn't fade because of my moving to another state. Keeping in touch when you're in college is a whole other situation than when you're in middle school or high school. It wouldn't be easy, but at least the chance of your friendship actually surviving is a little higher. The idea itself was thrilling, exciting even, yet scary because there was always the 'what if' creeping around the corner.

What if we move again? What if I attach myself to the friendship and have to leave it all behind, again? What if a promise becomes worthless again?

Those what-ifs always kept me from creating bonds that go deeper than the surface level because the wider you open your heart, the larger the hole that's left when the bond gets broken.

Then Brooke and Lucie came around. They spontaneously integrated me into their friend group. At first, I kept my distance. However, the more time I spent with the open, loving human beings that they are, the more I started to yearn for the connection that they have. They're always laughing, and having fun, and whenever someone's down they lean on each other.