10 Things I hate About Her (10 Things #1)

1. Better Off Without

The club was packed with sweaty teens. It was like walking into a closet with no windows or any source of natural illumination. Colorful circles of light splashed the wall and cut through the crowd. In a sense, we were all crazy enough to be trapped in a poorly lit metal container. Some skimpily dressed girl, mistaking me for a guy, tried to grind against me. She whispered, the scent of alcohol on her breath, "You're hot."

"Sure," I said, pushing her away with a gentle hand.

She got the message and walked away, slurring, "Whach a dick."

Lost to the control of the spirits she had consumed, she danced like a possessed demon. I frowned and picked my way through the herd towards the bar counter.

Sweat trickled down my skin; I had willingly put myself in an oven. The room felt like it was a thousand degrees. I despised going to these things.

A tall, Italian man named Romeo worked the bar. His black hair was stiff with gel. He looked chill, laid-back, or half-asleep, it was hard to tell in the poor light.

He walked over to me. "Some hot girls here tonight, huh?"

I put my elbow on the counter, balanced my chin on my fist, completely disinterested. "Yeah."

"A bit under the weather, huh? I can get you something good to cheer you up."

"I don't drink."

"Really? Don't people die after three days or something if you go without water for that long?"

I smiled. "I don't drink alcohol."

His eyes squinted, a playful smile on his lips. "Alright. I hope you don't mind me asking, but are you a girl or a boy?"

"He's a girl." Someone threw their arm over my shoulder.

I looked up to see Naomi. Her face had beautiful features that complemented its shape. Her cheeks were pinkish. Her hair was wild, framing her head like a reddish halo. I could feel her sweat mixing with mine on the back of my neck. She said, "By the way, this is Hunter."

She motioned to a guy on the right. I knew of him, but we had never spoken to each other, or gotten together for any event. He played football for our team. He had a nice bod, well-developed muscles; sweat glistened on his dark brown skin. His arm wrapped around her waist as if to tell everyone that she belonged to him. His dark eyes watched mine with faint curiosity.

I turned to the bartender. "Coke, please."

"Alright." He got me a can of coke from the fridge and slid it my way.

I cracked it open. The loud music pounded against my eardrums; I grew more and more annoyed.

Hunter leaned against the counter, studying me curiously. "Your sister is Juliana, right? The two of you are twins?"

"I am aware of a twin sister whose name is Juliana, yes," I said dryly.

"Oh, cool. Are your eyes naturally that color? Goldish?"

"Yes."

"Oh, alright, I always thought they were contacts. Well, do you want to ask me anything?"

I looked him up and down, then turned back to my coke. "Nope."

He glanced at Naomi anxiously.

Naomi pinched my side and whispered into my ear, "Remember how we talked about being nice?"

"Well, gee, Naomi, it's not like I have my foot down his throat. I'm plenty nice. I'm all, 'Good day. How do you do?' All the niceties and none of the menace."

Her facial expression cooled. She said, "You know what, Val? Fuck you. Can't you just be happy for me?"

I took a sip of my drink. "Happy for you? Yeah, sure. I'm happy." I held up my can. "To new beginnings and boys, yeah? A boy for every girl. Wow, so wonderful. You know what?" I told Hunter, taking his hand in mine. "Three months from now she won't even remember your name. You'll be boyfriend number... what was it?" I pretended to count my fingers.

Hunter's expression darkened.

Naomi sighed. "I knew I shouldn't have brought you. You always do shit like this. I'll see you tomorrow, dumbass." She slapped the back of my head, took Hunter's hand, and pulled him away from me. He watched me over his shoulder, a quizzical expression on his face.

It wouldn't last for three months, but what if it did? What if she actually fell in love with that guy?

What would that mean for me?

For us?

The soda tasted bitter on my tongue.

Love, romance, all that stuff was a freaking waste of time. All it did was cause us unnecessary pain. Do you want to know my honest opinion? We are all better off without it.