is that she’s so damn confident about everything. She doesn't have any secrets and doesn't feel embarrassed about her mistakes like normal people do. Finally, I grin. “Never have I ever surprised a boy at work with candy and a teddy bear.”
If looks could kill I’d be melted by the sheer heat of her glare. Instead, I just laugh as she takes a gulp of Jack. “The first person I see smirking gets a kick to the nads,” she growls.
“We’re not smirking,” Everett says, patting her shoulder. “We think it’s really great you’re secretly such a sweetie.”
“Let me go before Everett loses his testicles,” Taylor says drily. “So…never have I ever left the country.”
Fred and Hunter both take drinks. “Wow,” Taylor says, looking around. “Not a very sophisticated bunch, are we?”
It goes around like that for a few rounds. Most of the statements are fairly benign, though every question Ellie asks seems custom designed to embarrass me. I do my best to get my own back at her, racking my brain to remember every sappy, girlish thing she has ever done and will now be ashamed of.
“I’ve got a good one,” Hunter says. “Never have I ever been arrested.”
I look over at Taylor, wondering how he’ll react when I take the bottle, only to discover he’s reaching for it himself.
“You’ve both been arrested?” Everett asks. “Jeez. Talk about a match made in heaven.”
Taylor flips him off as he hands me the bottle. I take my swig quickly, not wanting to be reminded of the night I’d been forced to spend in the city jail. Not one of my finer moments.
Taylor gives me a rueful smile. “I won’t ask if you won’t.”
“Deal.”
It turns out to be quite an illuminating game. By the time we’re all too drunk to continue, I’ve discovered that Taylor has been arrested, has been in more than one bar fight, has smoked pot but never tried anything harder, and has never been in love. In turn, I’ve had to admit that I’ve done ecstasy, broken a girl’s nose, shoplifted, and been suspended from school. Even better, Ellie’s had to confess that she cried over Jonathan Rigby for four days straight, that she sleeps with a night light, and not only that she goes to visit her grandmother in a nursing home every other week but that she also plays bingo while she’s there. In spite of my steady buzz, I’m feeling pretty proud of myself.
“I need food,” Everett says. He leans back against the couch and closes his eyes. “If I don’t eat, I’m going to be sick.”
“I’m too wasted to go out,” Fred says. He’s lying flat on his back on the floor, his torso and head under the coffee table. I’m not sure why he chose that spot, but hearing him talk from under the table makes me giggle.
“Come on, tipsy,” Taylor says, holding out his hand to me. “Let’s go upstairs and scrounge up some food.”
I take his hand, still laughing, and he guides me up the stairs.
“You feeling okay?” he asks, looking over at me. “I think Ellie was out to get you down there.”
I scowl. “That’s Ellie. She gets a kick out of embarrassing me.”
“Don’t worry, you held your own and got her back. Besides, I don’t think anything you revealed was all that bad.”
We reach the kitchen, and I lean against the counter, watching as he goes straight for the pantry. “Not too bad, huh?” I ask. “Including the arrest thing?”
He shrugs, riffling through the boxes and canned goods. “Nothing worse than I’ve done.” For a minute I wonder if he’ll go back on what he said and ask me about it, but he doesn’t. Instead, he turns to face me, a blue box in his hand. “What do you think? Mac ’n cheese sound good?”
I nod, and he fills a saucepan with water before dumping in the macaroni. He knows exactly where to find the pan and the spoons, clearly familiar with Fred’s kitchen.
“You hang out over here a lot?”
“Yeah, I guess.” His back is to me, and he’s fiddling with the dials
If looks could kill I’d be melted by the sheer heat of her glare. Instead, I just laugh as she takes a gulp of Jack. “The first person I see smirking gets a kick to the nads,” she growls.
“We’re not smirking,” Everett says, patting her shoulder. “We think it’s really great you’re secretly such a sweetie.”
“Let me go before Everett loses his testicles,” Taylor says drily. “So…never have I ever left the country.”
Fred and Hunter both take drinks. “Wow,” Taylor says, looking around. “Not a very sophisticated bunch, are we?”
It goes around like that for a few rounds. Most of the statements are fairly benign, though every question Ellie asks seems custom designed to embarrass me. I do my best to get my own back at her, racking my brain to remember every sappy, girlish thing she has ever done and will now be ashamed of.
“I’ve got a good one,” Hunter says. “Never have I ever been arrested.”
I look over at Taylor, wondering how he’ll react when I take the bottle, only to discover he’s reaching for it himself.
“You’ve both been arrested?” Everett asks. “Jeez. Talk about a match made in heaven.”
Taylor flips him off as he hands me the bottle. I take my swig quickly, not wanting to be reminded of the night I’d been forced to spend in the city jail. Not one of my finer moments.
Taylor gives me a rueful smile. “I won’t ask if you won’t.”
“Deal.”
It turns out to be quite an illuminating game. By the time we’re all too drunk to continue, I’ve discovered that Taylor has been arrested, has been in more than one bar fight, has smoked pot but never tried anything harder, and has never been in love. In turn, I’ve had to admit that I’ve done ecstasy, broken a girl’s nose, shoplifted, and been suspended from school. Even better, Ellie’s had to confess that she cried over Jonathan Rigby for four days straight, that she sleeps with a night light, and not only that she goes to visit her grandmother in a nursing home every other week but that she also plays bingo while she’s there. In spite of my steady buzz, I’m feeling pretty proud of myself.
“I need food,” Everett says. He leans back against the couch and closes his eyes. “If I don’t eat, I’m going to be sick.”
“I’m too wasted to go out,” Fred says. He’s lying flat on his back on the floor, his torso and head under the coffee table. I’m not sure why he chose that spot, but hearing him talk from under the table makes me giggle.
“Come on, tipsy,” Taylor says, holding out his hand to me. “Let’s go upstairs and scrounge up some food.”
I take his hand, still laughing, and he guides me up the stairs.
“You feeling okay?” he asks, looking over at me. “I think Ellie was out to get you down there.”
I scowl. “That’s Ellie. She gets a kick out of embarrassing me.”
“Don’t worry, you held your own and got her back. Besides, I don’t think anything you revealed was all that bad.”
We reach the kitchen, and I lean against the counter, watching as he goes straight for the pantry. “Not too bad, huh?” I ask. “Including the arrest thing?”
He shrugs, riffling through the boxes and canned goods. “Nothing worse than I’ve done.” For a minute I wonder if he’ll go back on what he said and ask me about it, but he doesn’t. Instead, he turns to face me, a blue box in his hand. “What do you think? Mac ’n cheese sound good?”
I nod, and he fills a saucepan with water before dumping in the macaroni. He knows exactly where to find the pan and the spoons, clearly familiar with Fred’s kitchen.
“You hang out over here a lot?”
“Yeah, I guess.” His back is to me, and he’s fiddling with the dials
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