After 2

Chapter 147.

The house is more crowded than ever before and Hardin is no where to be found. Half of the living room has been taken over by a long card table filled with rows of red cups. Drunk college students throw what appear to be ping pong balls into the cups, I will never understand the need for them to play all sorts of games when they are intoxicated, at least this one doesn't seem to involve kissing. I spot Tristan sitting on the couch next to the red head male I remember seeing here before. He was smoking a joint with Jace the last time I saw him. Zed is seated on the arm of the couch he says something to the group causing Tristan's  head to fall back from laughter. When Tristan looks up at Steph walking toward him he smiles. I have always liked Nate's roommate since the first time I met him. He is sweet and he seems to really care for Steph.

"How are things between the two of you?" I ask her before we approach them.

"Great actually. I think I love him." She smiles.

"Think? You guys haven't said it yet?" I gasp.

"No..god no. We have only been dating three months!" She laughs.

"Oh.." Hardin and I said the words before we were actually dating.

"You and Hardin are different." She really must be able to read my thoughts.

"How are you two?" She asks.

"Good, we are good." I tell her and mean it. We are good, for once.

"You two are really the oddest couple."

"Yea we are." I agree.

"It's a good thing though. Could you imagine if Hardin were to find a girl like him? I would never want to meet her, that is for sure." She laughs.

"Me either." I join her.

"There is my girl." Tristan waves to Steph and she pads over to take a seat on his lap.

"How are you Tessa?" He asks after giving his girlfriend a swift kiss on the cheek,

"I am very well, how are you?" I ask. I sound like a politician. Relax Tessa.

"Fine, drunk as shit but fine." He laughs.

"Where is Hardin? I haven't seen him." The boy with the red hair asks me.

"He's... well I have no idea." I answer.

"I am sure he is around here somewhere. I don't see him going far from you." Steph tries to comfort me.

I don't mind that I haven't seen Hardin in a while because the alcohol is making me less nervous but I do wish he would return and hang out with me. These are all his friends, not mine. Except Steph, who I am still deciding on but right now she is the person that I know the best and I don't want to stand here awkward and alone.

Someone bumps into me and I stumble forward slightly, luckily my third drink is empty and when the cup hits the already stained carpet only a few drops of pink liquid dot the surface.

"Shit sorry." A drunk girl stutters.

"It's fine, really." I respond. Her black hair is so shiny that it literally makes me squint. How is that even possible? I mist be more intoxicated than I thought.

"Come sit down before you can trampled over." Steph teases me and I laugh before taking a seat on the edge of the couch.

"So did you hear about Jace?" Tristan asks me.

"No, what about him?" The mention of his name makes my stomach turn.

"He got arrested, he just got out yesterday." He explains.

"What? Really? What did he do?' I ask.

"He killed someone." The red head answers.

"Oh my god!" I gasp and everyone begins to laugh. My voice is much louder now that I am on the verge of being intoxicated.

"He's just fucking with you, he got pulled over and had some pot on him." Tristan laughs.

"You are such  a dick Ed." Steph says and swats the guys arm but I can't help but laugh at how quickly I believed him.

"You should have saw your face." Tristan laughs.

Another thirty minutes go by with no sign of Hardin. I am getting slightly annoyed by his absence but the more I drink, the less I care. Some of that is due to the fact that Molly is within eyesight and she has found herself a blonde plaything for the night. His hand keeps snaking up her thigh. Yuck. Better him than Hardin.

"Who's up now? Kyle has obviously had enough." A male with glasses says, gesturing to his drunken friend who is lying in the fetal position on the carpet.

I look over at the table lined with cups and put two and two together.

"I'll play!" Tristan shouts, removing Steph from his lap.

"Me too!' She chimes in.

"You know you aren't very good." Tristan teases her.

"I am too. You are just mad that I am better at you. I am on your team now so there is no need to be intimidated." She bats her lashes playfully and he shakes his head.

"Tess, you should play!" She yells over the music.

"Uhmm.. no I am okay." I have no idea what they are playing but I know I would be terrible at it.

"Oh come on! It will be fun." She brings her hands into a praying motion to beg.

"What is it?"

"Beer pong, duh." She shrugs dramatically before bursting into drunken laughter.

"You've never played huh?" She adds.

"No, I don't like beer."

"We can use the cherry vodka sour mix instead. They literally have gallons made. I will grab one from the fridge, line up the cups." She tells Tristan.

I want to protest but at the same time I want to have fun tonight. I want to be carefree and let loose. Beer pong may not be so bad. It can not possibly be worse than sitting on that couch alone waiting for Hardin to come back from wherever the hell he is.

Tristan begins to put the cups back into a formation that reminds me of bowling pins.

"Are you going to play?" He asks.

"I guess. I don't know how though." I tell him.

"Who wants to be her partner?" Tristan asks.

I feel foolish when no one speaks up. Great. I knew this was ..

"Zed?" Tristan says interrupting my thoughts.

"Err.. I don't know.." Zed responds, not looking at me. He has been avoiding me the entire time that I have been here.

"Just one round." Tristan attempts to persuade him.

Zed's caramel eyes flicker to me quickly before moving back to Tristan.

"Okay, one game." He gives in.

Zed and I stand silently on one side of the table as Steph fills the cups with the alcohol.

"These cups have been used all night?" I ask her, trying to hide my disgust at multiple mouths drinking from them.

"It's fine." She laughs and I cringe.

I notice Zed smile out of the corner of my eye but when I look at him he looks away. This is going to be a long game.