who are you really? - obx

chapter three - you are a stranger here.

nia.

after everyone was finished eating, we stayed at the table. after the awkward moment, drew had come to the rescue by making a joke about something on the menu. and everything was surprisingly smooth sailing after that. until...

"yeah my high school mascot was the pirates so when the spirit theme was show your school spirit..." i drifted off, punctuated by laughter.

"don't tell me you actually showed up to school in a pirate costume." jd chuckled.

"listen! i didn't own any brown or red! my only option was too-." drew cuts me off.

"show up like the guy at the beginning of the spongebob theme song?" he added. i playfully hit him as we all laughed.

"i need to see a picture of that." madison joked.

"oh girl tracked down every single person in my school to make sure they didn't have pictures. it was gone within a day. i'm very thorough." i added.

"wow. how did you do that? clear out their phones?" chase asked. no one at the table batted an eye but i knew that he wasn't just asking out of pure curiosity. i nervously shuffled in my seat before i finally came out with an answer.

"well first, i accepted responsibility. i knew that i shouldn't have shown up like a pirate and i knew before i started that if i couldn't get all the pictures back, that's on me for doing it in the first place." i said pointedly. chase looked away with a flash of guilt that no one caught but me. i sighed.

"and then i owned it. so if i did come out and say...got posted in social media for example, nothing bad could happen cause i got out in front of it." i explained.

"finally, i didn't use force or blackmail to get people to delete the photos. i appealed to their sense of humanity. i told them to put themselves in my position, and if that didn't work? i covered my bases. funny enough, that how i decided i wanted to go into PR." i finished.

"so if it weren't for nia the pirate you wouldn't be sitting with us today?" madelyn joked. i nodded my head as i laughed.

"well in that case, i'm glad you didn't own any brown or red." drew smiled at me. i felt my heart flutter. nope.

on the way home, madelyn suggests we meet up in her and chase's apartment for a night cap. everyone agreed without reservations. but i watched the whole way there as she cuddled up on chase without a care in the world. she doesn't even have a clue about the guy she's with. a twinge of jealousy washed over me for a split second out of no where.

the night cap started with a round of shots, and jd's speaker playing a curated list of house party songs.

"let's play a game." rudy says slightly buzzed.

"take a shot if you're glad to be here." he said. everyone down the tito's in their colorful plastic shot glasses.

"take a shot if you're in love." madelyn said, smiling at chase. they both smile at each other and take a shot. madison takes a shot by herself and rudy and emily take a shot. all i can focus on is chase and madelyn giggling and pouring each other another shot.

"you go nia." chase encouraged me. i pour myself another shot and think for a second. my sober mind would of said something safe and funny. but this is my fourth shot.

"take a shot if ever been scared to say what you've needed to say." i blurted. everyone looks a little confused but takes a shot anyway. a few more rounds of the game goes on until everyone is very intoxicated. after the game we all retreated into mini conversations with each other while the music continued. i observed everyone from the apartment's kitchenette. i was so focused i didn't even realize someone had come up to me.

"you looked lonely over here." drew said. i broke focus and looked up at him. he had about 8 inches on me. he seemed less drunk than the rest of the group, but drunk none the less.

"i prefer it that way to be honest." i responded.

"i get that. sometimes i just want that silence too." he said. i nodded quietly.

"but something tells me that's not the only reason you're isolating." he said. i looked up again with a little surprise. he was a bit closer now. i could smell the alcohol mixed with his cologne. and it smelled almost as intoxicating as those shots.

"i have a job to do. when the camera's aren't rolling y'all get a break. work never stops for me." i replied.

"you just got here though. what could you possibly be working on?" he asked.

"don't worry about it. just know you'll thank me later." i answered.

"you're trying to learn us aren't you?" he asked more as a statement than a question. my hard gaze faltered a bit. he was directly in front of me now.

"i want to learn you too." he said with a bit of a smile. those insects started flapping my stomach. it made me sober up a bit. nope. nope.

"we're co-workers..." is all i could get out. he smirked.

"i know, nia. but those eyes, those lips, that look on your face? i want to learn you." he restated, as his eyes shifted to my parted lips. nope. nope. nope.

"so why don't both get what we want and learn each other?" he whispered on my lips. before i could think about a response, i was whisked out of chase's apartment by him. before i knew it we were what i assume is his place. he closed the door quickly and put me against it. this was gonna be one crazy ass summer.