WE SPENT ALMOST the entire day shopping. I tried to appear involved and as if I was having fun, but I just grabbed whatever Susannah and Mom liked. When we were picking out our white dresses, we must have spent almost two hours searching and trying on several of the dresses. It was exhausting, but it felt nice to spend some time with just us girls.
Belly and I change into more formal wear after we drop Susannah off back home. Then, Mom drives us to the first meeting for debs. Once we get there, we get out and say thanks for the ride. Before we get any further, however, Mom calls us back.
"Girls? I just want you to know that if you decide you hate it or if the girls are mean or even if the food is bad, you can text me. I promise I won't say 'I told you so.'"
I laugh, but Belly just seems annoyed. "We'll be fine, Mom," she groans.
"Humor me?" She tells us to use the code phrase we made up when we were little with a small smile on her face. It makes me smile too.
"Don't worry, Mom," I tell her. "We'll call if we need anything."
Mom nods, so we say bye and start walking to the meeting. We don't speak while we walk, and I desperately want to get rid of the silence.
Just as I open my mouth, Belly grins. "Hey," she calls out.
I look forward and see Jeremiah walking towards us holding towels. He doesn't seem to recognize us at first as he looks into the distance.
"Jeremiah," Belly tries again.
He stops and a look of surprise flashes across his face. He gives Belly a once-over.
"Oh my God," he says. "Wow, Belly. I didn't even recognize you."
His eyes stray towards me, and our eyes connect for a second before I turn away. They continue talking, and Jeremiah is saying how Belly looks good. I grit my teeth together to stop myself from saying something I'll regret.
"Let me walk you over."
My gaze snaps back to him, and he looks at me when he sees the sudden motion of my head. I do not want to walk over with him even if it'll only take a few minutes. He and Belly are going to be talking, and I'm going to feel like a third wheel. Which I guess I have always been.
"There's no need," I cut off whatever Belly was about to say.
Jeremiah glares at me. "I was talking to Belly."
I know that. I don't know why it still hurts when he clarifies.
I nod tersely. "Right. I'm just going to go ahead of you." I'm not looking at either of them when I say it.
And I don't look back as I start walking away from them. I speed walk so that they can't catch up to me. Not that Jeremiah would purposely walk faster just to walk beside me. I reach the door where the meeting is taking place and walk inside. No one pays attention as I walk in. I see a table where there are two seats beside each other, so I go over there. Immediately, I see both Conrad's and Steven's girlfriends at the table.
I go over to the side where Conrad's "girlfriend" is sitting. "Excuse me," I say almost hesitantly. She looks up. "Is it okay if my sister and I take these two seats?"
She smiles and nods. She continues staring at me as I sit down. "You're Danielle, right? I think we met briefly last year before the deb ball. Conrad was my escort."
I smile back at her. She seems nice enough. "Call me Dani. Nicole, is it? Conrad has told me a lot about you."
He hasn't really. I know he isn't really all that interested in her, but he's too much of a nice guy to break her heart. I think leading her on is much worse, though. Especially with the way she blushes when I mention Conrad.
"Has he?"
She starts saying something else, but I see Belly walk in with her arm in Jeremiah's. I frown as they talk with an older woman. I turn my attention back to Nicole, who's looking at me expectantly.
"What?" I ask awkwardly. "Sorry, I didn't catch that."
"No worries. I was just asking if you're going into senior year this fall. I think Conrad said that. And then your sister is going to be a junior?"
"Yeah," I reply, deciding that I actually kind of like Nicky and kind of hate Conrad for leading her on.
Belly sits down and she and Nicole exchange awkward hellos. Shayla, the girl Steven likes, makes conversation with Belly as I continue talking to Nicole. They both seem like cool girls.
The others start talking about colleges, and one girl asks what colleges Belly is applying to. Nicole quickly responds by saying that she's only going to be a junior. The conversation quickly switches, and Nicole explains how Belly and I are family friends with Conrad and Jeremiah.
"So, are you and Jeremiah, like, a thing, or are you gonna take him to the ball?" one of the blonds at the table asks innocently. The question is directed toward Belly.
I clear my throat and look down.
Belly doesn't have time to say anything before Nicole tells the girl, Gigi, to back off. "Gigi has had this thing for Jeremiah..."
"Ever since he got abs?" Shayla quips.
The girls laugh. Belly looks over at me when I stay silent but I just try to force a smile without looking at her.
Thankfully, just as another girl asks how it is to live with Conrad and Jeremiah, the speaker starts announcing things. I sigh quietly.
I already want to get out of here.
✧ ✦ ✧
I START TO like the girls when they pass around alcohol and joke around with each other. Belly rushes out of the room when she sees this guy walk past, and I wonder what that's all about on the way home.
After I change into a The Offspring shirt and ripped jean shorts, I go to Belly's room. The curiosity is killing me.
I knock and then walk in before she says I can. She ignores me as she applies lipstick and looks in the mirror. I fall onto her bed.
"So, what's his name?" I ask. "I can't believe you didn't even tell me about this guy before. Or how you ran to the pier to see whales or something?"
I can see her smiling in the mirror.
"I didn't have time to tell you. And how did you know about the pier thing?"
I shrug. "Conrad told me."
She turns around with wide eyes. "Wait, Conrad? Why would he say anything?"
I shrug again and stare up at the ceiling. Belly sighs loudly.
"Okay, well, I'm going now. We're going to a drive-in movie."
I sit up and grin at her. "The movies, huh?" I say, wiggling my eyebrows up and down.
A blush covers her cheeks as she smiles and rolls her eyes. "Shut up."
I hold up my arms in defense. "Have fun. Remember, wrap it before you tap it!"
Belly groans and kicks my leg before she waves and leaves her room. I smile to myself. She looked really happy about this date. I hope it goes well for her. I lay on Belly's bed for a few minutes and then get up to go downstairs and grab a bag of chips before we leave for Mom's book party.
As I walk into the room where the guys are, I see Jeremiah spinning Belly. "You look hot," he tells her, a wide grin on his face.
My heart drops, and I freeze right before coming into the room. Jeremiah sees me first, the smile on his face slowly dropping before he looks back at Belly.
"You driving with, or are you meeting us there?" he asks with his arms crossed against his chest. He avoids looking in my direction.
"I'm not going to the book party," Belly answers carefully.
I see Conrad looking back curiously, and I sit beside him. I flick his forehead, and he suddenly turns to glare at me. Raising his hand, he pokes my stomach. Just slightly, I flinch at the contact. I don't mean to; it just happens. Conrad doesn't seem to notice as he turns his head to stare behind him at Belly checking her reflection in the mirror.
However, I see Jeremiah looking at me with a concentrated look on his face, his eyebrows knitted together. I turn forward to stare at the tv where Conrad and Steven are still playing the game.
Conrad nudges my shoulder. "You ready to go?"
I nod and smile at him. When I get up to check on Mom and Susannah, I find Jeremiah still staring at me.
✧ ✦ ✧
I SPOT CONRAD throwing back drinks as if it's just water and he just ran three marathons back to back. Walking over to him, I lean against the wall beside him.
"Hey, Con? I think you should drink another. Doesn't look like you've had enough."
He rolls his eyes at me. "Fuck off. Besides, you don't get to say anything with how much you drink."
"I didn't drink anything last night, did I?"
He groans and looks down at me. "Is it just me or did you get even shorter?"
Gasping dramatically, I give him a hard shove. "I hate you. I'll have you know that I'm less than a quarter of an inch away from being five feet."
Conrad comically spits out the drink he just took a sip of and laughs loudly. I cross my arms and pretend to be mad at him, but in reality, I'm just happy he's laughing like this. I haven't heard his laugh in forever.
"Conrad!" I hear Mom's voice call out. We look back and see her with the guy she insulted the other day. "Come over here."
He salutes me and starts walking away. Once he's gone, I pour myself some of the chardonnay. I look around discreetly to make sure Mom isn't watching me and then drink the glass.
"I saw that."
I turn my head at the unfamiliar voice and see a guy around my age. Maybe a year or two older. He has tanned skin and freckles lining his nose. His hair is messy and an extremely dark shade of brown. I would have thought it was black if it wasn't for the light shining right above his head. His light eyes are a sharp comparison to his dark skin. They're a pale shade of green and gray mixed together. Although he looks like he was the mysterious bad boy in high school, his features have an easygoing, boyish look to them.
"Did you?"
I raise an eyebrow at him and cross my arms. He copies my stance and leans his shoulder against the wall beside me.
"I did." He shoots me a lopsided smile.
"Well, if you tell anyone, I'll have to kill you."
"And what do I get if I don't tell anyone?"
He moves a step closer, and I send him a mischievous grin. "Are you new to Cousins?"
He shakes his head. "My dad and step-mom live here, so I spend alternating summers here and at my mom's place."
I nod in understanding. "How come I've never seen you before?"
He shrugs and twists his face into a careless expression. "Same reason I've never seen you before." I let out a soft chuckle. "What's your name?" he asks.
"Dani."
Raising an eyebrow, he asks, "Just Dani?"
"Danielle, but no one calls me that apart from my mom when she's mad and my brother when he's trying to act as if he's smarter than me."
He laughs. "I'm Adrian."
"Pretty name for a pretty guy."
I say it without thinking, but I'm sure he doesn't mind because he grins at me widely. I notice then that there's a small dimple on his right cheek. It's cute.
Before he can reply, someone steps up behind me and wraps their arm around my shoulders. A familiar aroma of faint cologne along with lavender and lemon meets my nose, and I have to rest my hand on the wall next to me so that I can steady myself. I force myself to look up even though I already know who is beside me.
He isn't looking at me. Instead, he's glaring at Adrian with a clenched jaw.
"Who the hell are you?" Jeremiah directs the question at Adrian harshly.
Adrian just shrugs unbothered and sends me an amused look. I can't say or do anything because I can feel Jeremiah's chest behind me and his warmth spreading through my body. I can't remember the last time we were this close.
"Name's Adrian."
"What are you doing with my girlfriend, Adrian?" He spews out his name in a mocking way as if it is some stupid answer a student said to take the attention off of them.
Adrian opens his mouth to reply, but I cut him off. "I'm not his girlfriend." I say it bitterly. Because he has no right to interrupt my conversation like that and because I wish it were true but it's not.
"Relax, man." Adrian shoves his hands into the pockets of his jeans and is wearing a careless expression. He turns to look at me and sends me an easy smile. "It was nice talking to you, Danielle. See you around."
He turns around and walks away. Jeremiah's arm is still slung around my shoulders.
I turn my head and find him already staring at me with a pissed-off look on his face. "What were you doing with that guy?"
"It's none of your fucking business," I scoff, getting madder at him. I push his arm away and it falls by his side. As the warmth of his body leaves, I immediately wish I hadn't done that.
"That guy was clearly a dick. He was going to take advantage of you." His voice's volume raises, and I take a deep breath to calm myself down.
"Why do you even care?"
He lets out a sharp breath and glares down at me while I glare up at him. There's a second where we stay silent and just stare at each other in anger.
"Fine. Whatever. But don't come running to me again when you realize you fucked up with another asshole who doesn't give a shit about you."
My expression falters for a second, and his face falls when he realizes it.
"Dani, I—"
I shove past him and walk away before I hear what he was about to say.
𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲 !
adrian <333
i imagine him as younes kahlaoui