La Maison 3: Pretty (Complete: mxm)

Chapter 2: Gliti

River pulled on too tight jeans, rolling up the bottom and shucking on his white sneakers. Mat leaned against the door, talking to James, but his eyes kept glancing towards River.

"New jeans, Riv?"

"Yeah, they okay?"

"Uh, definitely. More than okay. Your ass looks great."

River flushed, glancing at James' grinning face before looking at his own feet.

"Come on, Babe, let's go," Mat said, as if his words meant nothing and, to him, they probably didn't.

When they got to the Conservatory's version of frat housing, River took a breath. It was a beautiful old brownstone, battered in the way only student housing can be, but it was far more impressive than anything he'd ever thought of. And David lived here. He'd admitted, when River had messaged him agreeing to come, that his 'friend' was the president of their fraternity, and the party was kind of a big deal. Not that River cared about that side of it. Even if he'd had the money and the contacts to get into the 'old boys' network, he didn't have the inclination. Mateo, on the other hand, walked into the place like he owned it, his arm slung casually over River's shoulder, feeling heavier than usual.

The others split off, seeing people they knew in the noisy, sweating mass of bodies. Mat had insisted in arriving late enough to not look desperate, but in his eyes that was apparently late enough that everyone else was already at the dancing-and-puking stage of the night. Mat shoved a bottle into his hand and took one for himself, pulling River onto the 'dancefloor'. Unlike Mat, River wasn't much of a one for dancing in public, though he could, of course. Perfect timing. But even if it made him uncomfortable, he'd do it for Mat, watching his tanned face gleam under the dim lights, a wide smile flashing as he owned his little space, not even bothered by people jostling into him.

A pretty brunette shimmied over, putting herself in Mat's line of sight, twisting her hips and running her hands down her tightly wrapped body. He flashed that smile at her, reaching out a hand to pull her close. River told himself that he left to give Mat space to do his thing, but he couldn't deny the ache in his chest as he moved to the side.

"River, hey! I'm glad you came," it was David, walking over with a shimmy of his own, taking River's hips and kissing both cheeks.

"Oh, yeah, hi David."

David leaned close, resting his forearm on the wall behind River's head, his mouth close to River's cheek, wafting stale beer across his face.

"I didn't think you'd come, though."

"You didn't?"

"You don't seem the party type to be honest. It was a last attempt from me, because you barely seem to notice me in class."

"I- what?"

"Yeah, I try to flirt with you and you don't seem to notice."

River really hadn't noticed. David flirted with him? Sure, he spoke to River sometimes – occasionally – but flirting? It hadn't felt that way.

"Sorry."

"It's okay. I have you now, right? You're just so talented, I love to watch you work."

"Hey, Riv, where'd you go?"

A scowl passed over David's face, marring the even features with a twist.

"You were happy dancing, Mat. It's not really my thing."

"Sorry, Babe."

Mat crowded in on River's other side, making him feel more than a little bit claustrophobic, hemmed on both sides, a mass of bodies right in front of him.