The party was in full swing when Sasha and the others arrived, and the garden was filled with laughter and a low hum of chatter. The sun was high in the sky, beating down on the crowd of sweating teenagers, causing cheeks to become flushed and the pool's water to sparkle a brilliant blue. It smelt of cut grass, sweet spicy wine and cigarettes. Golden buttercups glinted amongst the blades of grass as though it had been sprinkled with glitter.
Groups of people were dotted about the garden sitting on blankets or padding barefoot through the cluster of youths. The swimming pool was also full to the brim with party-goers and floating inflatables. It's sides were cluttered with damp towels and pairs of shoes, kicked off by those taking a dip.
A narled and knotted tree stood at the side of the garden with a swing tied to its branches. Beds of rich soil, struggling to contain wild arrays of summer greenness and budding flowers lined the house. Another crowd of people surrounded a white metal table which was positioned by the house on the outdoor terrace leading down to the pool. The table top was crammed full with bottles of alcohol and empty cups.
Peering around, Sasha caught sight of Polly and Cass chatting on the other side of the pool. Gripping Julien's wrist she pointed a finger towards them, "My friends are just over there".
"Tu veux prendre un verre? (You want to get a drink?)", Luis interjected, slapping Julien on the back and motioning in the opposite direction to the table of booze.
"Bah, oui (Um yes)" Julien replied before sending Sasha an apologetic look, "do you mind? I'll catch up with you in a second?"
She shook her head, somewhat relieved they were splitting up for a moment. It meant that she could prep herself and her friends before being thrown straight into the deep end of introductions. And it also meant that she could take a break from Carla's sour glares.
----
"So which one is your exchange?", Cass asked, her eyes latched onto the group of french boys in the distance.
Sasha nibbled her bottom lip, "He's the one with the curly brown hair in the striped shirt".
Cass wiggled her eyebrows suggestively, "Wow, he's gorgeous. No wonder you haven't been messaging us. You must have been very preoccupied", she sent a smirk in Sasha's direction.
Sasha could feel her cheeks start to redden at her friends blunt comments, "What do you mean? He's just staying with us, that's all".
She didn't know why she was lying to the two people she considered her closest friends. She usually trusted them enough to tell them everything, or at least everything concerning boys. Both of them had so much experience that it seemed stupid not to ask them for their advice. She'd gained so much knowledge from them both over the years about how to take a conversation from friendly to flirty, how to get a guy to kiss you and how to read the signs that someone might like you.
But it was different with Julien. Sasha was reluctant to share it with anyone else. And watching Cass oogling him was causing a foreboding sensation to swell in her abdomen.
"Whose the girl that's with them?", Polly piped up from behind. She was sunbathing on the grass a little further away from the pool clad in a gingham bikini and fashioning a pair of sunglasses that were way too big for her face. Andrew sat beside her, cracking open another can of beer so the liquid foamed up and spurted over his hand, leaving a bubbly trail in its wake.
"That's Carla", Sasha said, watching as the very girl placed a hand on Julien's head, ruffling his hair and messing up his curls.
"So those two are a thing then?" Cass guessed, her eyes also glued to the playfight that was now occuring between Carla and Julien.
YOU ARE READING
The Exchange
Chick-Lit-A coming-of-age story about self-discovery- Sasha has always been the girl without the boyfriend. The girl who always fades into the background, hiding behind her confident, sassy friends. But things are about to change- it's the summer before Uni...
