Through My Window (Hidalgos #1)(118)

“I’m . . .” I can only breathe heavily for a moment. “I’m going to die.”

Ares, Marco, and Apolo look like they haven’t just run for their lives. They’re not even sweating. To my relief, Dani and Samy are a few steps away from me, grunting and breathing just as heavily as I am. And Joshua, well, let’s just say Joshua is not in his right mind.

Samy can barely speak when she says: “I’m going to kill you, Daniela.”

“I . . .” Dani raises her hand in lieu of speech.

“That was . . . unbelievable!” Joshua says. We all give him a what-the-fuck look. He runs his hand over his face. “It was like a video game, live play, the adrenaline, wow.”

Okay, there’s a chance that some of us are still very drunk. Dani laughs out of nowhere. Scratch that possibility; we’re all still drunk. Joshua’s sweet brown eyes fall on me.

“And I have to say, if this were a video game, you’d be so dead, Raquel. I would never choose your character to play.”

For the second time that night I give the finger to someone. Alcohol is making me rude. I raise my eyes to the sky, surprised at how clear it’s getting.

“Oh shit. Is that the sun?” I ask. Dani laughs again, and Joshua joins in. Apolo follows my gaze.

“Oh, it’s dawn.”

At what point did the night pass us by? Alcohol made us lose track of time.

Marco watches Samy, and the adoration is obvious in his eyes: he’s so in love. He and Samy are dating now, and I’m glad. Samy deserves to be happy, and he’s a good person. My eyes fall on Apolo, who’s looking at Daniela discreetly. I wonder if there’s hope for them or not.

The delicious new summer weather settles against my skin, warming it. It’s so nice to be outside like this with no coats or jackets. I missed this.

“It’s a perfect day to go to the beach,” Dani says.

“You’re right, I wish we could go.” Samy pouts. Joshua paces back and forth. He gets very hyper when he drinks.

“Why don’t we go?” he asks. We all turn our heads toward him, and he continues. “Ares and Marco are sober, and we can all fit in their cars.”

“Don’t go around making decisions for others,” Dani says, hitting him with her elbow, but Ares smiles.

“No, I think it’s an excellent idea,” he says to Joshua, and Apolo nods in support. “Yeah, this is probably the last time we’ll all be together like this.”

While Dani, Joshua, and I will be attending the same college, I can’t say the same for the others, including Ares. It hurts so much every time I think about it that I’ve pushed it to the back of my head. It’s as if refusing to think about it makes it less real.

Joshua raises his hands in the air.

“To the beach, everybody!”

I can’t help but smile. His enthusiasm is contagious, and I’m so happy to see him happy, especially after everything that happened to him. I was thrilled when I found out that he was going to attend UNC with me. I want to be close to him, not only because I want to take care of him, but because I want to be there if at some point he relapses or feels lonely. Depression isn’t something that can be cured overnight. It takes time, and there may be situations that could lead to a relapse, and if that happens, I want to be there for him.

Samy narrows her eyes, looking behind me.

“Is that Gregory?”

I turn around. Sure enough, Gregory is walking toward us with a bottle of what looks like Jack Daniel’s in his hand. But what . . . ?

“Finally, I’ve found you guys!” he shouts, approaching us. He told us he would catch up with us, but that was about an hour ago, and when he didn’t show up, we assumed he wasn’t coming.

“How the fuck did you get here?” Marco asks, laughing. Gregory shakes his phone.

“Uber.”

Marco pats him on the back. “You’re like a damn cockroach. It’s so hard to get rid of you.”

Gregory acts offended. “A cockroach? Really?”

“Haven’t you heard that cockroaches would survive radiation from a nuclear blast?” Samy intervenes. “It’s a compliment to your endurance.”

Marco smiles at her, looking pleased, but says nothing. I have noticed that, although he is not very expressive and affectionate with her, his look says it all. I find it sweet when a cold boy falls in love.

“I don’t care,” Gregory shrugs. “At least I got here, and I think I heard someone say beach. Count me in.”

Joshua looks at Ares, Apolo, Gregory, and Marco, and mutters: “Wow, you guys are incredibly handsome.”

We all laugh, and Gregory winks.

“Single at your command.”

Joshua gives him a tired look. “No, I mean you guys are the first male friends I’ve ever had, and you’re too good-looking; this isn’t going to work.”

“You’re breaking up with me,” Gregory says, pretending to run out of air. “And we haven’t even started?”

Joshua ignores him. “I mean, if I go out with you, I won’t get girls.”

I turn my gaze to him and grab his cheeks.

“You’re handsome, too, Yoshi.”

I can feel Ares’s heavy gaze on me, and I slowly lower my hands.