Not Very Stereotypical.

Chapter Seventeen

My words was caught in my throat when I finally arrived back into the kitchen. I had just had a conversation with Noah Jackson and I still wasn't thinking straight. Catching eyes with Milly she gestured me over to the large dark centre island where she was pouring another drink into Leighton's plastic champagne glass.

Gracie is swaying her hips and clearly started relaxing more due to the alcohol when she sees me. "Hey where have you been? You took forever!" By the time I reach the table I am able to pour myself another drink from a different bottle and began to answer them.

"Well yeah I was just about to leave before Noah Jackson turned up." The girls all gasped dramatically, Milly jumped herself onto the table and Leighton turned towards me with wide eyes.

"As in the one you said all that attractive British stuff about? The Noah Jackson jersey 13?" I nodded and couldn't hold back a smile. "Bethan that is huge. Please don't tell me you did something embarrassing."

I laughed quite loudly and denied the accusation. "No I didn't but he did get pushed into me and I almost fell flat on my face."

"But you didn't so that's okay." Gracie reassured me before taking another drink. I smiled at the words realising I was quite lucky for nothing worse to happen. But before we could carry on our conversation the music stopped and a loud voice asking for attention was heard in the living room. "Come on that will be Mitchell." Gracie skipped away and began moving into another room to watch Mitchell make his announcement about who was going to become the lacrosse co-captain.

"I think it's pretty obvious who it's going to be." Leighton said as we joined the crowd at the back of the room next to the doorway. It was full of people now and the heat was rising inside because of it. Mitchell was stood on a wooden table with the rest of his newly formed team surrounding him.

"Thank you everyone for coming, even if it is just for the drinks but I appreciate that too." A crowd of cheers and laughter erupted. "So now for what you're all here to hear.. my co-captain. Well he's hard working, funny, attractive." He seemingly looked towards me as he said it but carried on anyway. "He's been my best friend for years and I think he's the best person to take on the position."

"Told you so." Nudged Leighton. She nodded her head towards the boys doing a drumroll in front of the table.

"Plus he's amazing at lacrosse." Looking down at his friends he paused before announcing. "So Mr Jackson, do you want to be my co-captain?" The crowd clapped and cheered as they pushed a boy onto the table with Mitchell.

The ruffled brown hair I recognised had light shining through it from behind so his face was shadowed but the tight fitting white polo shirt made me slightly weak at the knees at it was. "Well thank you very much. Here's to a killer season." He raised his cup towards the team, exciting the room and starting the party properly.

"Come on Bethan, let's get your man." Leighton tugged me into the crowd who started to divert into different parts of the house.  Another song I'd never heard of started playing as we all corralled together and started dancing, not caring who was watching.

Songs played and drinks were drunk and soon enough it was dark outside. The energy from dancing turned thermal and the heat was closing in. And that's when games started to be played, the door to the huge garden was opened and everything got a bit messy.

"Bethan! Mitchell asked if you were still up for a game!" Gracie twirled her way into the house from her adventure outside and said her words before continuing to dance. The warm in my veins from the alcohol fuelled me comfortably so I grabbed onto Leighton and dragged her outside with me, following Gracie and Milly as they went.

The garden was lit up with cute fairy light and the large patch of grass had been taken over my dancers. The centre piece of the garden is a pool, glimmering slightly and the breeze rippled the water. On the decking we were headed too, there was a long table lined with red tumbler cups in triangles at either end and a few people surrounding it, waiting for the game to start.

"Here she is gentlemen, breaking all the stereotypes and about to kick your ass at this!" Gracie pushes me forward and I do a little curtsey in front of the crowd of boys preparing to play the game. Mitchell looked at her, smiling from ear to ear as he starts dividing us into teams. We were the only girls who decided to play the game of beer pong, whilst the others just watched and continued to gossip and drinks from the sidelines, watching the boys as the toxic masculinity peaks it levels with the influence of alcohol and girls' attention.

Teams were decided quickly as we were eager for the game to begin. I stood with Mitchell, Milly and another boy called Harry behind me all ready to begin the game. Looking towards the plastic cups, I was handed a small ping pong ball from someone I didn't recognise and was nudged from behind to start the game.

"Go on Beth, get them gonked!" Ignoring Gracie who was now beginning to slow dance with Leighton I raised my arm and aimed the ball at the triangle of full stacked cups and released it into the air. The ball dropped perfectly into the tip of the triangle- causing my team to roar with excitement.

I squealed, spinning around to high five Mitchell and hug Milly before looking at the opposing teams reaction. The brown hair on Noah's head flopped dramatically as he laughed in shock, reluctantly beginning to reach towards the cup which the ball landed in. Sighing before he took a sip, he downed the alcohol and looked back up, giving me the perfect view into his eyes, which seemed slightly blurred. "I didn't think the British played beer pong."

Laughing at him, I twirled on my toes and retreated away from the table in order to watch the next shot being thrown. Taking a final glance at me before he raised his hand, his bicep flexed slightly , causing a stirring in my stomach to begin. The ball bounced off of the point cup and dropped into another, Mitchell leant forward along with Milly- almost head butting as they did and tried to blow out the ball before it counted.

"Hey I thought we said no blowing?" Noah shouted, slightly pouting as he points towards them. I rolled my eyes and looked over at Mitchell to confirm the rules.

From behind me Leighton raised her voice, "you won't be saying that later." Bursting our laughing I choked on the air and turned to high five her immediately after her quick comment.

With a blush settling on his face, Noah turned to Mitchell and gave him a look. After fist bumping Leighton again for her sharp comeback he looked at me, "fine they didn't try and get yours out. We'll leave the blowing." I inwardly cringed as the boys continued to play with the new rule in place.

After a few more rounds we're on an even playing field, 4 cups left on each side as I approached to have another shot. It was this time of the night where I could admit to having slightly affected vision due to the alcohol consumption but I definitely was hanging in well if we compared it to Mitchell, he had been slow dancing with Gracie in the intervals of the game- then I definitely seemed the most sober.

I threw the damp ping pong ball across the table and into yet another plastic tumbler belonging to the opposing team. Noah's blue eyes shaded as he reluctantly reached forward to grab the cup, his movements much slower and concentrated then compared to earlier in the night. He sighed before using his fingers to reach in the cup and lift out the ball and swiftly dropping it onto the table for him to use after.

Noticing the slowing of his pace and the obvious signs that the alcohol was hitting him I decided to annoy him slightly. I reached to the ground and picked up my original drink I had left there, underneath the table.

"Can't you keep up Jackson?" I smirk lifting up yet another red cup to my lips. The boy wearing a tight fitting polo shirt glanced at me, shrugging away the close air from the intensity of the people outside.

He raises his cup towards me, winking as the antagonising words leave his mouth "I've got stamina, Bethany."