Chasing Spring(54)

He pocketed his phone and then gave me an innocent smile. “How about we just go check it out and if you're bored or if you want to leave, we'll head out.”

I crossed my arms and took a deep breath. I was probably overthinking things. I'd go with Trent for a little bit since he'd saved me from walking home in the rain, and then I'd go back to my life and figure out how I could possibly move on from Chase. My stomach clenched at the thought and then before I could stop it, images of him and Kimberly sprang free in my mind. I could see them walking to class hand in hand. I could see her in the stands watching him play baseball with his last name on the back of her shirt. I could see him sitting down for dinner with her family, a perfect group of four.

I let Trent lead me out to his car, but I didn't pay much attention as he drove toward the outskirts of Blackwater. The roads were a muddy mess from the storm and as we pulled off in front of a doublewide trailer, I feared Trent wouldn't be able to get his car back out of the mud when it was time for us to leave.

“Ready to go in?” he asked with a cheerful tone.

I swung my door open and tried to step around most of the big piles of mud on the way to the front door. Trent went ahead of me and mapped out a safe route, but it was no use. By the time we reached the front door, my shoes were covered in mud. I tried to kick some of it off when the trailer’s door swung open and two drunk girls giggled past us.

“Trent!” they called as they walked by. I smiled to myself, having forgotten the bad boy appeal most girls saw in him. He tipped his head in their direction and then put his hand on my back to guide me inside. The trailer was small and cast in a yellow glow from the old fluorescent bulbs that hung from the ceiling. A tattered, stained couch sat directly next to the door and there were three boys each rolling a joint, trying to race one another to completion. I looked past them toward the kitchen and saw Ashley chatting with Blake.

It wasn't until I saw her that I realized how underdressed I was for the occasion. I hadn't bothered to put much makeup on before school and I was still wearing jeans and an old Rolling Stones t-shirt.

Ashley was decked out in a short denim skirt and a white lacy tank top. Her four-inch heels added to her height and when Blake straightened up after pouring her a drink, she towered over him.

He was just as I suspected: a guy in his late twenties with a slight beer belly and thick, gelled black hair. In other words, he looked like someone who shouldn’t have been partying with a bunch of high schoolers. As I stood, taking him in, Ashley looked up and spotted me. I braced myself for an awkward encounter, but her shock was quickly replaced with a giant smile.

“Lilah!” she squealed, stumbling in her high heels to reach me.

I laughed and reached out to help stabilize her as she all but fell onto me. “Hi Ashley.”

“I can't believe you're here! How did Trent talk you into coming? I thought you only hung out with Chase now.”

I rolled my eyes and released her arms.

“I hang out with whoever I want to, and tonight I'm here to see you,” I said, putting on a fake smile.

Trent tapped my arm and motioned toward the kitchen where Blake was still standing, watching my encounter with Ashley. I wondered if I’d interrupted something between the two of them.

“I'll go get us some drinks, be right back,” Trent said.

Ashley took the opportunity and tugged me toward the couch. The guys moved over for us and I let Ashley squeeze in next to them so I could sit on the arm of the couch.

Ashley took a joint from one of the guys and took a hit. She offered it to me but I held up my hand in protest.

“Here you go,” Trent said, appearing by my side with a red Solo cup in hand. He grinned wide as I took the cup and peered inside.

“What is this?” I asked, taking a sniff. There was a faint hint of alcohol but it wasn't too overwhelming.

“A rum and Coke. I went easy on the rum because I knew you'd give me hell,” he joked, bending down to take a seat on the edge of the couch.

I smiled and took a tentative first sip, relieved to find that it was mostly coke.

“Let's play King's Cup!” Ashley said, clapping her hands together with glee.

Blake pulled open a kitchen drawer to retrieve a tattered deck of cards and then tossed them over to us. Trent caught them midair, pulled open the box, and started to shuffle the cards on his lap.

Ashley brushed me up on the rules of the game as I finished my first drink. Trent stood to get me another one, but I held up my hand to stop him. I wanted the first one to settle in before I had any more. It hadn't tasted very strong, but I didn't want the rum to hit me all at once.

“I'll just fill it with water. You need a drink to play the game,” Trent whispered in my ear. I smiled and blinked, feeling a faint lightness in my head, probably from the smoke in the air. Water was a good idea.

When he returned, I took a few sips as people started drawing cards.

Ashley reached forward and picked up a two of hearts. “Two, you!” she said, turning and pointing to me.

“What does that mean?” I asked, trying to recall the rules she'd just explained. My head felt fuzzy and I tried to blink away the confusion.

“When someone draws a two, they get to point to whoever they want and that person has to take a drink with them. So drink up!” she hollered into my ear.