The Deep End

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Tia's head was throbbing. And she was hot. She felt heat pulling at the seams of her red, frilly halter top. The skin-tight jeggings on her lower body felt like they were restricting her movement. She fanned herself and when that wasn't enough she stumbled through the crowd and toward the sink for a drink of water. The space of the apartment was too stuffy and she leaned against the kitchen counter for support, trying to clear her cloudy mind.

"Hey, you want a brownie?"

Tia jumped, clutching at her chest. She looked at the tray of brownies being offered to her. A part of her was hesitant. But with the way her stomach was bubbling and lurching? Maybe eating something would help...

She looked at the guy offering them, their eyes meeting. He was dressed casually, wearing a black shirt with CSU in big maroon letters across the front. He nodded his head at her, a brow raised, "You want one or nah?"

Tia's judgment was loose and she wasn't sure where Shai was. She looked around, her eyes scanning over several other people with brownies in their hands. All of them eagerly ate the baked goods. She nibbled her lip and before she could stop herself, she took one, mumbling a slightly slurred 'thank you' before taking a bite. The brownie went down dry and she reached for one of the empty solo cups, leaning her whole body onto the counter as she turned on the faucet and filled it with water. She tilted the cup back, drinking down the rest of its contents to combat the struggle of swallowing the dry mass of dough. It all went down hard and she slammed her cup down on the counter. Dizziness seemed to slap her in the face and she groaned. Uh, uh. She was ready to go. She stood up as straight as she could and took a step through the crowd. The room seemed to get hotter by the second, she felt as if she were melting, standing outside in 90 degree weather. She stumbled, moving through the people, nearly falling onto the carpeted floor. Suddenly it was all too much. She was dizzy, it was hot, her stomach was lurching, she couldn't feel her damn tongue...her limbs felt weightless. Did she mention it was hot? So, unbearably hot.

She grabbed the hem of her shirt and began pulling it up slowly over her head. Sweat was building on the small of back, and falling down her temples. Just as she raised the shirt above her bra, her name was being screamed in her ear.

"Oh, my god. Tia!" Shai screamed at her over the loud music as she grabbed her arm. "Girl, no."

Tia couldn't think, couldn't really breath, she felt so suffocated. "Shai... I'm ready to go."

Shai grabbed her shirt, pulling it back down. "Yeah, I know, we're definitely leaving. Now. Come on."

Wyatt laughed as Mikey flexed his arms, trying to prove that he had muscle. The small group surrounding him were all his teammates and a few girls who had followed them outside to escape the heat of the party. Several of them had bottles of liquor in their hands, taking long swigs from them and passing them around. Others were smoking thickly packed blunts as conversation and jokes intermingled between them. The music from the party upstairs was loud enough to hear from where they were.

Several of the girls were wrapping themselves around the guy of their choosing, pressing their bodies against each other as they exchanged words amongst the Friday night conversation.

Wyatt hadn't had a full drink yet, just a singular shot, preferring to smoke from time to time and joke with his friends with a sober mind. Though he wanted to participate more, be more indulged in the fun that they were all having, he couldn't find the will to do so. His mind was still stuck on his father, and his expectations. He was tired of it, and trying desperately to ignore the anger sitting in his belly like lead.

The girl Mikey had been trying to impress giggled at something he said, moving in closer to him to whisper something in his ear. Mikey grinned, the smile on his lips wide, showing all his teeth. Wyatt burst out laughing, unable to help himself. Mikey sent him a look, his eyebrows furrowed.