ALL THE WORDS WE COULDN'T SAY

S E V E N

"You bastard! You cheated!" I yelled at Nathan after I downed my shot.

"You're delusional if you think that!"

We were fairly drunk by the time the party was reaching its peak. Nathan, I and a couple of other Libertines had been playing various drinking games in the living room. Other people began to join and it soon became something of a tournament. A very drunk one. When I finally started seeing double, I excused myself to the kitchen to drink a hefty bottle of water.

A breeze from the open garden doors flew into the kitchen. The relief that came with it made me realise how hot it actually was in the house, despite the chilly, autumn weather.

Taking a step outside, I released a deep breath. The echoes of drunken voices laughing and shouting bounced through my ears, the splashing of water where people cannon-balled into the pool. Whose house was this anyway? It didn't really matter. It was probably some rich kid whose parents were gone on some business trip. It reminded me of myself, except I was way too pussy to pull off a party on this scale. I followed the rules, not just followed but enforced. I'd turn in anyone who I even suspected of breaking the rules because it made me feel superior. I didn't drink or get high back then, but the rush of dopamine and adrenaline when I'd catch someone who I could exploit to my advantage, that became my fix. And I couldn't seem to get enough.

I need to be more intoxicated if I'm still thinking about that shit. I turned to go back inside when the smallest glimpse of black hair and olive skin made me stop in my tracks.

It was Persy, dressed in baggy cargos and a baby t-shirt. She was entering the house, arm linked with a familiar-looking face. Wasn't that the Colombian girl Nathan was talking to? My mouth suddenly went dry. Our last encounter ended with her basically admitting she knew me. She hadn't forgotten, and I was an idiot to think she had. How could someone forget a bully? It didn't matter if it happened five years ago or twenty. She'd always look at me and see the pathetic, stuck-up boy who bullied her and everyone else around him.

I fought the urge to go up to her and say how badly I regretted everything. I knew she wouldn't even spare me a second of her time. Plus, she seemed happy and I didn't want to ruin her mood. I'd ruined enough.

I hurried back to the living room, the mass of people seemed like good camouflage as I weaved through the crowd. Nathan seemed to have disappeared until I heard his drunken voice from behind me.

"Killian, you wanna play vodka pong?"

"Vodka pong?"

"You idiot, it's beer pong but with fifty per cent more alcohol."

"Sounds like a fun game." And a good distraction.

"Of course it is. And who the fuck plays beer pong? You can't even get drunk on that!"

"I don't know. Americans?"

Nathan snorted whilst shaking his head. "Fucking Americans..."

As I followed him, I suddenly became aware we were going towards the kitchen. Fuck. What if I bumped into Persy? Hopefully, we'd be playing outside or in the far corner.

"Where are we playing?" I asked, hoping the panic in my voice didn't show.

"Outside. It's bloody boiling in here."

I blew out a breath. But it still didn't mean I was in the clear. What if she was outside as well?

You need to fucking relax! All of this panic-filled thinking about Persy had my stomach churning. And I refused to vomit until the night was over.

"Killian's a menace at any drinking game." He called out to someone.

I genuinely felt my heart drop at the sight of Persy and Sofia standing with a table with cups of vodka on either side.

"Nathan, what the f-"

I couldn't finish my whispered scolding as to why in the fuck he'd put me in this damn predicament when I felt Persy's eyes lock with mine. In the few precious moments, before the realisation sank in, I saw a happy face. A little drunk, yes. But happy. Then I watched the two dimples in her cheeks vanish and the grip against a chilled bottle of Smirnoff's Ice tighten.

A scowl emerged once she'd seen me. Her glare felt strong enough that in an alternate reality it probably laser-melted two holes in my face.

I seemed to have lost the ability to speak as I stood there like some scarecrow whilst Nathan placed some bet with Sofia over who'd win.

"Come on, Killian. I know you're not half as drunk as you'd like to be." He slapped a palm against my shoulder.

"Oh please, look at him. His already too drunk to even form words. Persy's gonna kill him."

That last sentence seemed to hover dangerously between us.

They both began to notice our silence. I could tell Persy wanted to flip the table over, tell us both to rot in hell and storm away, but something was holding her back. In less than a second, her expression changed into a daring look as she took a step forward to the table.

"You gonna play?" Her tone was playful but I registered the disgust behind it. She truly couldn't stand my presence.

"So our bet's still on?" Sofia asked, a smug look plastered on her face. Nathan nudged my elbow. I gave him an accepting glance before moving toward the table. He must've noticed that I was at a disadvantage as I half-stumbled towards the edge. Persy was a lot more sober than I was and I could sense his unease.

"You know what, how about we make it more interesting?" We all looked over at him, both intrigued and fearful of what he'd suggest.

"Whoever drinks must also do a dare."

Persy rolled her eyes. "You want to see my panties just fucking say it."

Nathan stifled a laugh. "If you're as good as you claim to be then we won't be seeing anything. Oh, and you lot can't pick the dare."

"Then who?" Sofia narrowed her eyes at him, just as sceptical as the rest of us.

"Whoever scores chooses a random person around us and they pick the dare."

I furrowed my brows at him. Was this supposed to help our disadvantage?

"Fine." Persy reluctantly accepted as she placed the bottle on the floor. Her eyes once again locked with mine, challenging me to play.

"Sounds like fun."