Just a Game » Dave East

one.

"Truth or dare, Shanice?"

"Come on you guys, don't you think we're a little bit too old for this game?" I rolled my eyes and topped off my alcohol glass.

"Hell no. You're never too old for Truth or Dare." Kayla drained her glass and held it out to me for a refill, but I only filled it halfway. She pouted and continued to hold the glass out. "I live two blocks away. I'm walking home."

"Fine," I groaned, filling Kayla's glass. "But you know I hate Truth or Dare."

"Still? Damn, that was so long ago."

"And yet it remains one of the most mortifying moments of my life."

"Oh come on, lighten up. It's just a game."

"Truth," Shanice interrupted, tossing her thick box braids over her shoulder.

"God, y'all are so boring." Kayla's voice had taken on that whiny, belligerent tone that meant she was on the verge of getting obnoxiously drunk. I sighed to myself as I refilled Shanice's glass and settled back into the couch between my two best friends. I missed them like crazy while we were all away at school, but it was funny how quickly we fell back into our old tired roles when we got together. Last week we'd all been so busy with Christmas that this was our first chance to really hang out and now I was questioning the wisdom of opening a bottle of Henny for the occasion.

"Dares aren't as much fun when there aren't any guys around. We might as well catch up on girl talk." Shanice poked me with her bare toes and winked at me sympathetically.

"Well, I beg to differ. My new roommate this semester showed me a thing or two about the kind of fun you can have when there are no niggas around. But if you guys aren't up for some real fun, then fine. Shanice, here's your question: did you fuck that English professor you were crushing on?"

Shanice laughed and shook her head. "No, he's still sexy as hell but I spared him. I'm about to declare an English major and it would make for some awkward advisor meetings. Truth or dare, Kayla?"

"No one ever accused me of being boring. I'll take a dare."

"I dare you to take your panties off and wear them on your head."

Me and Shanice dissolved into giggles and Kayla heaved a sigh as she stood and reached under her Fashion Nova dress to work her underwear down.

"Oh my God, what are we, twelve? This is not what I meant when I said I learned a thing or two." She may have complained, but Kayla couldn't keep her giggles entirely under wraps as she pulled her ponytail up through the leg hole of her red thong, sat primly down on the couch and turned to me with exaggerated dignity. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"Of course. Do you have a vibrator?"

"Oh my God! No, I don't have a vibrator. Gross, Kayla."

"It's not gross, you prude bitch, it's a necessity. Maybe I'll return that shirt and get you one of those for Christmas instead. You look like you need to loosen up a little. Something's got you more stressed out than usual."

"No, I love that shirt. And I'm not stressed out. Please, I'm begging you. Do not get me a vibrator. Help me out here, Shanice."

"Sorry Lex, I'm gonna have to go with Kayla on this one. I love mine. Both of them. Sometimes at the same time."

"That's what I'm talking about!"

Kayla and Shanice high-fived over my head and I tried to force my blush back into hiding. This was one of those times I wondered if I was the weird one or if my friends were. The thought of owning a vibrator, let alone getting one from someone else as a gift was enough to make me tremble, but my best friends didn't seem to find it embarrassing in the least. In fact, they were currently comparing their sex toys' sizes and features, casual as could be, as if they had been using them for years. Hell, maybe they had.