Moving In With The Enemy

Chapter 22 ~ "Switch With Me"

Maybe my mission should be to try and kiss someone else tonight.

Ew, no. I don't want that. I can't even remember the last time I wanted to kiss someone, not before last night anyway. I need to play this down, hide my conflicted feelings with dancing and drinks.

The Uber arrives down the block and we hop out, thanking him for the ride. I get out on Mark's side, eager to scramble away from Walker as fast as I could. I walk behind the group of guys, going through my bag for chapstick when I hear someone whistle. 

It was quick and sharp and I turn my head fast to see an older guy leaned up against a wall, smoking a cigarette with three others. "Hey honey, come over here and we'll show you how three real men treat a pretty thing like you!" I roll my eyes, but before I walk one step, my roommates immediately come back to surround me.

"Fuck off, man!" Dustin yells. 

"You get off by hitting on women younger than you, pervert?" Mark shouts. Walker doesn't even say anything, just puts a hand on my shoulder to keep me away from them.

"You guys, it's literally fine." I grumble. "Just chill out." I sigh, finally finding my chapstick. It wasn't right, but it wasn't anything new either. I knew he wouldn't come over and try anything when I had three guys with me.

"It's guys like that that make us all look fucking awful." Mark tells me and I snort.

"Try not to take it too personally." I remind him, shrugging out of Walker's grip. I didn't want his hands on me, I didn't want his complicatedness anywhere near me. 

I cap the chapstick, but drop it and it rolls along the sidewalk. This just isn't my night. I groan and hurry towards it when a familiar face picks it up for me.

"Hey Annie." Chase says, passing it back and I smile.

"Hey, I'm glad you made it." I tell him and he goes in for an awkward hug. He's too far into it for me to pull back without making it obvious that I didn't want to hug him. So I sigh and give him a quick friendly hug.

"Annie!" Abby squeals, pulling him off of me and I grin, easily giving her a hug. "Oh I haven't seen you all week! I missed you last night, where were you?"

I pause a bit, ignoring the first thing my mind says which is 'kissing Walker', and think of a different answer.

"J-just catching up on some sleep and having self-care time." I tell her and she nods. "It was a hard week."

"Oh I heard, I'm so sorry." She sighs, giving me another hug.

"It's alright, she's fine. She made a full recovery and I dealt with it, I'm ready to just.....have fun." I assure her and she nods eagerly.

"I'm glad." She says and I smile. "You look so cute, I literally love your top." She tells me and I smile.

"You too, I love your pants." I tell her, seeing she's in leather, high-waisted ones. "I see them all the time-"

"You should buy a pair." She encourages. "I bet you'd look so cute."

"I'd be worried they might not.....stretch enough."

"Depends where you get them." She smiles and I shrug, looking ahead in the line. 

"How long have you guys been waiting?"

"Oh not too long." She assures me. "The line's been moving pretty well."

"Good, it's getting colder out." I admit, knowing I should have chosen a warmer jacket. "So, how was your week? What did you get up to-"