The Songs in Our Hearts: A Young Adult Romance(39)
“You’re quiet over there,” Micah said gently.
“Just thinking,” I said with a lazy shrug.
“What about?” He pressed, raising a curious brow. His fingers tapped against the steering wheel as he briefly darted his dark eyes in my direction. I hesitated.
“Do… Do you ever worry what people are saying about you?” I asked.
“Do I look like the type that worries about that?”
“I’ve come to know you can’t judge an album by its cover.”
Micah glanced at me for half a second before turning his attention back to driving. No matter how he wanted to appear, I knew there was more to him underneath his tough exterior.
We didn’t say anything more until we reached Marshall’s house. He lived on the west side of Grand Lakes, out in the middle of nowhere. I could only imagine what it was like to drive out that way in winter. As I climbed out of the car, I could hear a selection of hard rock blasting from the back yard. Smashing Pumpkins or something.
“Sounds like the party’s already started,” Micah remarked, following the music. I trailed silently behind, wondering if this might be a poor decision on my part. I could, however, always call my dad if I needed to. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself. Micah rounded the corner of the house, and lifted a hand to greet his friends.
“The party can now officially begin!”
He and Marshall did one those stupid boy handshakes—the kind where they look like they’re about to do the whole Kit-Kat hand slap. (I mean, really…what is that?) He led Micah toward the fire as he shouted to a group of other people. Micah turned to make sure I was following, but only once. I was completely out of my element.
“This is Charlie,” Micah announced to the group, when I caught up. A few nods and grunts greeted me. Not the liveliest bunch. There were a few guys in the back, smoking what looked to be pot. Great. I noticed a few cases of beer behind their lawn chairs, and Marshall picked one up and held it out to Micah. I watched him, wondering what he’d do.
A few days before, I told Micah about my dad’s rule, to which he had agreed. But as I saw him take the beer can, I figured he must have forgotten his promise. Marshall started to hand me one, but Micah intercepted before I could say no.
“Just get her a soda,” Micah said. “No beer for her.” I wanted so badly to take his beer can and dump it out. He had no business speaking on my behalf; he should have been more concerned about his own choices.
Marshall grabbed a cold soda from the cooler and held it out for me. I was really starting to regret coming. I knew I didn’t belong here. There were two girls sitting on tree stumps, wearing holey T-shirts. I couldn’t help but notice all the black eyeliner they wore around their eyes. They reminded me of raccoons. One of the girls had hot pink highlights in her hair, while the other had a head full of purple. Next to them, two guys were smoking cigarettes and already had an assortment of empty beer bottles around them. I was pretty sure I saw some tattoos, too. Closer to the fire, a couple was heavily making out. The guy was either trying to kiss the girl or eat her face. I couldn’t decide which. But his roaming hands made his intentions quite clear. A shudder ran down my spine and I quickly looked away from them.
“Where is Paul?” I mumbled to Marshall and Micah. Marshall shrugged as he took a sip of beer.
“He doesn’t come to these. He’s usually too busy helping his family run the shop.” Responsible. That was a good thing. At least not all of Micah’s friends were lame.
“Take a seat,” one of the girls said to me, patting a tree stump beside her. I glanced at it, fighting the urge to go home. The guys smoking pot behind them were whistling to us—them. The girls giggled and glanced over their shoulders, biting their bottom lips in a tempting way. The purple-haired girl eyed me as I eased down onto the stump. I couldn’t stop looking between her hair and the large Avocado Addict words on her shirt.
“Don’t mind them, they don’t bite. At least not in a way you wouldn’t like.” She winked with a leer.
“Someone needs to change the radio up!” The girl with pink highlights shouted over the noise. I agreed wholeheartedly, but I also wasn’t a fan of screaming hard rock bands.
“Micah’s the music freak,” Marshall replied to her. “Tell him to pick out a good song for you guys.” I found Micah standing beside the raging bonfire, the flames high and a little out of control. I guessed that meant no marshmallows, though Micah’s friends didn’t look the type to enjoy a good s’more. As I watched Micah, I realized he was only drinking a soda as he lifted the can to his mouth. What had happened to the beer?
“Not a freak,” he nudged Marshall. “I just have better taste than you.”
One of the guys stood up and went over to a beat-up sound system and started to shuffle through a few CDs. I was surprised to hear “Hysteria” by Muse. It was a noticeable change from what had just been playing. I sipped my soda and stole a glance at the time on my cell phone. I felt as though an hour had gone by, but only fifteen minutes had passed. It was going to be a long night.
“So, you go to Grand Lakes too?” The girl with the purple hair tipped her beer can, taking another sip. I gave a silent nod, trying to keep my gaze in Micah’s direction. She continued, “I’m Jadie.”