Sydney's POV
Once again I wake up with a headache, trying to shake the dreams that filled my sleep from my mind. Everything seems to be overwhelming me lately, even my subconscious mind, and something has got to give.
I make my way out of the bedroom and into the hall.
This place is trashed. There are cups, bottles, and people everywhere. I am in no mood to help clean up but I guess this is the price we pay for partying.
As I make my way down the stairs Quinn, Maddie, Sam, and Luke have already started cleaning.
"Nice of you to join us sunshine!" Luke addresses me ever so loudly. It's not hard to play hungover when you are in fact emotionally hungover.
"Nice of you to be such a dick," I grumble back at him. He puts his arm around my shoulders and continues. "So would you like to fill the rest of us in on the little scene you caused last night missy?"
Scene?
What. My palms begin to sweat. My pulse quickens.
Did they see it? Did they hear Brooks and I yelling at each other? Well, me, yelling at him?
They couldn't have we were all the way down at the dock? Or could they? Layla? Panic fills my body.
All these thoughts are jumbling through my head and apparently, my face is showing just how worried and confused I was when Quinn pipes up.
"Max Hargrove?" She says to me in a questioning voice, reminding me of his assish behavior.
"Oh, that. Yeah." relief floods me. "It wasn't a big deal. He was just being extra douchey. Apparently, he needs to stay away from the liquor." I say nonchalantly hoping to blow the whole thing off and avoid all further conversation about the subject.
"Well, from what I hear my boy Brooks took care of it. Damn that guy is still a beast." Sam says with a glimmer in his eye.
Boys. They are seriously deranged.
"Where's Layla? " I ask not knowing if I really want the answer to the location of her and her chaperone from the evening.
"They left last night, Brooks wasn't drinking so Clay gave him back his keys back. He came storming into the kitchen demanding he and Layla go.
"Mr. and Mrs. Perfect probably called and forced them back to the palace. " Luke lets out a cackle.
We all join him, laughing at his choice of nickname for Mr. and Mrs. Dawson.
Clay stumbles into the room and tells us all to stop what we're doing. "I called the cleaning crew, they'll be here in 30. You guys just have to help me get all these fucking people outta here before then." As he holds up the key and phone baskets.
Luckily being close friends with Clay he trusts us not to take photos so he never makes us turn our phones in, keys on the other hand only come out if you can pass his form of a sobriety test. Which is usually impossible. Unless your Brooks Dawson apparently.
Thirty minutes later the last of the stragglers are leaving and the cleaning crew is pulling in. We all load up and make the trip home. Twenty minutes later we are in my driveway, I tell the girls bye and head into the house to take a shower and lose myself binge-watching some tv.
***
It's around midnight and of course, I am still awake because even sleep now is my enemy filled with hazel-eyed boys and memries of the past, my phone lights up and it's a text from a number I don't have saved. As I examine it, its familiarity hits me.
"What could he possibly want from me ?" I say to myself quietly as my shakey hands reach for my phone, I hesitate before opening the message, unsure if I even want to know what it says. Once again my body has different ideas than my head as I press the message icon.
You up? -B
Hell. No. Who does he think he is? He can't just text me out of the blue after the conversation we had last night.
Fuck you, Brooks Dawson. My phone vibrates again.
Sydney, I know you're up. We need to talk. -B
Uh, try again. I have nothing left to say to you. As I close my phone without responding.
Another vibration.
Syd. Please. Let me explain. -B
I power down my phone, refusing to give in to his sweet talk and lies ever again. I sink farther into the covers trying to drown my mind, memories, and racing heart with sleep. The problem is even there Brooks can get to me and once again my dreams are full of memories and my heart is full of aches.
***
I coast through the week keeping myself as busy as I possibly can.
Between school, cheer, more cheer, and making plans with my friends, I've even resorted to hanging out with my parents. Literally, anything I can do to keep myself from responding to one of Brooks's ridiculous text messages I keep dodging.
Our volleyball team has a game tonight and if we don't attend Layla might actually kill us via spike to the head so as soon as practice was over we all headed to the gym and take our spots in the designated student section cheering our hearts out. Layla always gives us 110 percent so we owe her just as much in return. The guys are taunting the players on the opposing team as our vice principal is shooting them tons of warning glares. Her eyes might actually bulge out of her head if they push their limit one more time.
Westville takes the victory and we all rush to the court to give our superstar a hug as Clay and Luke rush off to the other side of the court to "send condolences to the other team" which really means finding some girls to hit on.
Maddie and I laugh sending them luck as they jog across the court.
"Aren't you going to join them? " Maddie asks Riley as his face turns eight shades of red and he fumbles his fingers through his hair.
"Uh, no no. Not this time" he tries to say as smoothly as possible. I shoot him a wink, fully catching onto what's happening here.
Little bro Stevens has a crush on our Maddie girl and she is completely oblivious.
***
"Nice game Dawson!" Sam says enthusiastically throwing up a high five as Layla makes her rounds.
"Yeah, our girl here is a badass!" I add as Quinn, Maddie, and I all fall in for a group hug.
"Oh! Don't move stay just like that, let me get a picture!" Mrs. Dawson squeals as they join those of us left on the court.
"Okay, got it!" She continues excitedly.
"You know you girls haven't been to the house in a while. You should have one of your sleepovers this weekend! I can bake my chocolate chip cookies you all love so much and we can order pizza!"
"I actually have to work all weekend, I only have tomorrow night off for the game," Maddie says.
"My brother is actually coming home this weekend and bringing his new girlfriend so my parents would kill me if I made any other plans. I'm sorry Mrs. Dawson, rain check? " Quinn adds.
"Of course girls, so Sydney that leaves you?" She says it so sweetly it almost makes me gag as the nausea pools in my gut.
My pulse quickens and I scramble to come up with an excuse. "I, uh...I..." I stammer looking to Quinn for some help.
Layla pipes up, "Of course, she's in! What else could she have going on ?"
"Yeah..." I say with wide eyes. "Of course. Sounds great." I give in without having much of a choice.
Obviously, I have no problem spending the night with Layla. I'd usually jump at the chance no question but the fact that the one person I'm currently avoiding like the plague lives in the same house, just made everything a lot more complicated.