Neighbors

Chapter Seventeen: Hello, My Old Friend

Just as I glanced out into the crowd for Nikki, my eyes found someone else. I could feel my stomach twisting in knots. That blonde hair and those icy blue eyes -It was Jeremy. Sure he and I had spoken over Skype, but seeing him in person again was almost surreal. Talk about being at the same place at the same time, it was spooky how that happened. I should have known he would be at a place like this considering he was so into music.

My plan was to avoid him. That is until he saw me. He quickly pushed through the crowd over towards me, a smile on his face.

"What the actual fuck?" he laughed. "Are you stalking me, Ryder?"

I rolled my eyes. "You wish, Jer. I'm here with my friend, Nikki. Remember, I think I told you about her."

Jeremy nodded. "Yeah. Yeah. You mentioned her. I can't believe you're here though. This is hilarious."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Have you been drinking?"

Jeremy winked at me. "Maybe. I've had a couple of shots. Damn. You can always tell. I always thought I was a good drunk. My parents could never tell, but you always could."

"Your eyes get darker when you drink that's why," I retorted. "Are you here with anyone?"

Jeremy shook his head. "No. I was supposed to meet a guy I met online here. But it appears I've been stood up. So now I'm alone."

"I'm sorry," I replied. "If it makes you feel better, Nikki kind of ditched me, so if you want to hang out with me that's fine."

Jeremy nodded. "Perfect. Spending the night with my ex. This was the last thing I thought I'd be doing. To be honest, I thought I'd be tongue deep in this hot Australian guy."

I rolled my eyes. "I can be hot and Australian."

Jeremy scoffed, unable to hold back his smile. God, I forgot how much I loved his smile. I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him into the crowd. Jeremy could be a bit wild when he was drunk. The last thing that I wanted was him getting taken advantage of by some asshole. He was drunk, and horny - I'm sure he'd do anything with any guy given his current state. So I kept a close eye on him.

After not seeing for Nikki for an hour, I texted her. The concert seemed to be wrapping up, but she was nowhere to be seen. I found her on my way to the car. She was making out with some guy that she had probably just met at the concert. Her eyes found mine after a minute or two, a wide smile on her face. She whispered something in his ear, before coming towards me.

"Ready?" Nikki grinned her eyes flickering to Jeremy's. "Who's this?"

I sighed. "This is Jeremy, my ex. We ran into each other. Jer, do you want me to drop you off somewhere?

"The bus station," he groaned. "I was supposed to stay with the Australian guy, but as you see I was fucking catfished."

I laughed. "It's too late for you to take the bus. How about you come home with me? You can take the bus in the morning."

"Fine," Jeremy said sliding into the backseat. I couldn't let Jeremy take the bus alone considering his state, so I figured I'd do the next best thing. I'd bring him to my house. I mean my mother probably wasn't awake, and she probably wouldn't care. I'd just tell her that Jeremy was a friend from state. I doubt she'd suspect anything.

"So who was that guy you were making out with?" I asked Nikki as I drove home.

Nikki shrugged. "I don't know. Just some guy. But Jeremy – Tell me more about him. He's hot."

I chewed on my lower lip, glancing back at him in the rearview mirror. He was fast asleep.

"It's complicated," I shrugged. "He's my best friend. I care about him. He cares about me a lot too. We tried dating, and it was a mistake. You shouldn't date your best friend especially when you're in love with someone else."