Close (Distance #3)

1. Lilian

Chapter 1

Lilian

My heart races. Parties have never been my scene. I pull down the hem of the little black dress my roommate loaned me.

“Isn’t this way better than being buried in books?” Ju gestures at the scene before us.

A steady stream of people shuffle in and out of with loud music blaring frat house, drinks in hand. On the left side, a guy is hunched over the bushes, retching violently.

I can’t believe I let her convince me to come here.

“See? Everyone’s having a blast.” Ju grabs my arm, trying to tug me forward.

“I’m not so sure about this.”

“Come on, give it a chance. Besides, I didn’t help you dress this sexy for nothing. You deserve to let loose for once and with a certain someone.” She wiggles her eyebrows .

Mike—tall, charming, and undeniably attractive—is someone I’ve been crushing on. We’ve been on a few dates since meeting in English Lit, but after our last kiss, I—

“Listen.” Ju places a hand on my shoulder. “We go in, have a drink, you find your boyfriend, and if you hate it, we bounce. Deal?”

“One drink?”

“One drink and one shot.”

I glance at the guy still hunched over the bushes. I don’t want to end up like him.

“Lil, it’s not really a party without at least one shot.”

“Fine. But that’s it. I’m serious.”

She grins, dragging me after her.

We squeeze our way through the drunken crowd. I try to avoid bumping into anyone while Ju shouts greetings to every familiar face. Everywhere I look, people are laughing, dancing, making out, or chugging beer. In the kitchen, Ju flags down a shaggy-haired guy I vaguely recognize from my psych class.

“Two tequila shots, please,” she says.

He slides two overflowing shot glasses toward us.

“Ready?” She raises her glass.

“Do I have to?”

“You promised.” She shoves the shot glass into my hand, tapping it with hers. “Bottoms up.”

The tequila burns going down, and I cough. “Did you see Mike anywhere?”

“He’ll turn up eventually. Let’s play some beer pong. ”

“That’s more than a shot and drink.”

“It’s gonna be fun.”

Before I can protest further, she grabs my hand and tows me toward one of the long tables set up with cups. Two guys stand at the end, filling them.

One of them is taller and sports this cocky grin on his face, blue eyes and dimples flashing as he laughs at something his friend says, the kind of smile that probably makes most girls melt. Light brown hair falls over his forehead in that tousled way you’ll normally only see in movies.

“Another game?” Ju eyes the taller one.

“You want to lose again?” his friend asks. A stark contrast. Dark hair, dark eyes, and an intensity that scares me.

It’s a bit unnerving, if I’m being honest.

“No one asked you, Connor.” She waves him off. “So you’re up or not?”

“Sure.” The taller one points at himself. “I’m Brandon, by the way.” He gestures towards his friend. “This here is my cousin, Connor. Hope you can handle your alcohol, swee—What’s your name?”

I bite my lip, trying to quell the nervousness fluttering in my stomach. “Lil.” I offer my hand.

Brandon shakes it. “Didn’t know I’m making a contract here.”

“Leave her alone. She’s not used to this,” Ju says .

“My apologies. Well, then.” Brandon dips his head and is about to place a kiss on the top of my hand when Ju hauls me to the side.

“I told you to leave her alone. Plus, she’s taken,” Ju says.

Am I? Does she mean Mike?

“I bet she is,” Brandon says.

I’m not sure if it’s the alcohol or his brazen confidence, but I feel off-balance.

“Let’s start,” Connor says gruffly.

Ju places an arm around my shoulders. “Be ready to lose. We’ll win, right, Lil?”

God, this is so not me. I don’t do parties, I don’t do drinking games, and I definitely don’t do flirting with random guys. I take a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. I can do this. It’s just a game, right?

We line up on opposite sides of the table, red cups filled with beer arranged in a pyramid formation.

Connor sinks his first shot with ease, the ping-pong ball landing in one of our cups. “Drink up.”

Ju hands the beer to me with an apologetic shrug. Fantastic. I grimace as I lift the beer to my lips. It’s warm and tastes disgusting, but I force myself to swallow it. How do people drink this stuff for fun?

“Don’t worry, it’ll get better.” She pats my shoulder.

Brandon chuckles. “You sure you got the right partner there?”

“Oh, it’s on now, pretty boy.” She hands me the ball .

“What? No.” I try to give it back to her. “You do it.”

“No. We need beginner’s luck.” Ju pushes my hand back.

My hands shake as I stare at the ping-pong ball in my palm. This is not going to work. I glance at Brandon, his cocky grin making my stomach flip. Or it’s the beer. I can’t tell.

“You got this,” Ju says. “Just throw it.”

“Throw it?” I imitate the movement.

“Yes, you’re good at math, right? Angles and stuff?”

Geometry and physics. Simple trajectories and velocity.

“Yo, Bash.” Brandon waves at someone behind us. “Where you been, man? We got freshmen at the table tonight. Cute ones.” He winks at Ju.

“Ew, Bran, leave that for Naomi.”

Concentrate. Don’t let him distract you. Don’t think about how warm the room is or how loud the stupid music is pulsing in your ears. Focus on the cup.

I close one eye, aim, and toss the ball. It arcs through the air and lands right into one of their cups.

A shocked laugh bursts from my lips. I can’t believe I made it on my first try.

“That’s my girl.” Ju draws me into a sideways hug. “You guys are going down.”

Okay, this isn’t so bad.

Brandon’s eyebrows shoot up. “Beginner’s luck.” He chugs down the beer. “We’re just getting started.”

The game continues, and Ju chugs beer after beer without flinching while I have to pinch my nose. It really was just beginner’s luck because we’re losing pretty badly, which doesn’t stop her from trash-talking up a storm.

Brandon lines up his next shot, and a girl with jet-black hair appears behind him.

“Hey,” she says right as he releases the ball. It goes wide, missing our cups.

I let out a relieved sigh. Finally, a break.

“Dammit.” Brandon whirls around to face her. “Come on, this is not how to be a lucky charm, cupcake.”

“Luck isn’t my style. I prefer skill.” She glances around the room. “Have you seen B anywhere?”

“And here I thought you wanted to kiss me good luck,” Brandon says.

“Tempting. But I’ll pass,” she says.

“That’s Naomi,” Ju whispers to me. “Brandon’s been trying to get into her pants since forever.”

The way he leans in, his grin a little too wide, flashing his dimples. The way she rolls her eyes but doesn’t step back. Is that what flirting looks like?

“They’re like an unofficial couple,” Ju continues. “Everyone can see they’re into each other. Well, everyone except them, apparently.”

I wouldn’t know. I’ve never been good at reading those signs.

Brandon says something, and Naomi laughs, shaking her head. She’s beautiful and confident in a way I could never be.

“I think you just can’t handle me,” Brandon says .

“Please.” She pokes her pointing finger at his chest. “I’d drink you under the table in a heartbeat.”

Meanwhile, Ju throws the ball and misses. “Dammit.”

“Is that a challenge I hear?” Brandon braces his hands on the table.

Naomi doesn’t back down, matching his posture as she gets right in his face. “Maybe it is. Unless you’re too scared to take me on?”

“Oh, it’s so on, cupcake. But if I win…” He whispers something to her.

She laughs. “You wish. When I win, you have to cook me dinner. And I expect a five-star meal.”

“Deal.”

It’s like watching an old married couple fight over the last cookie.

“Blake is probably off chasing Bash somewhere.” Connor places the ball into Brandon’s hand.

“Ugh. Thanks, Connor. At least someone’s helpful around here.” Naomi’s eyes pore over Brandon. “Prepare to have your ego bruised along with your liver tonight.”

“Can’t wait.” Brandon’s eyes are glued to her backside as she disappears into the crowd. “You know where to find me when you want to lose.”

“We’re still playing, lover boy.” Connor snaps his fingers in Brandon’s face.

He turns back to the table. “Sorry, ladies. Let’s end this quickly. I have to be somewhere. ”

The game continues, cups disappearing rapidly now.

My head is foggy from all the cheap beer Ju keeps shoving into my hands.

“You good?” Ju asks me.

“Yeah, fan-fucking-tastic.”

We are getting absolutely destroyed. The score is something like—I don’t know anymore. But we’re down to our last cup while they still have 1,2,3… a lot.

“Come on, we can still beat them,” she says as I reluctantly swallow another mouthful of beer.

Yeah right. At this rate, we’ll join the guy outside hunched over the bush before that happens.

Brandon snickers as Connor lines up his next shot. “Give it up, ladies. We’ve got this in the bag.”

The ball lands right in our last cup with a mocking plop.

Ju slams her hand down. “Oh, hell no. Rematch. Right now.”

“If you want to lose again, be our guests.” Brandon shrugs.

“I should go find Mike,” I say.

“Want to split up to look for him? Check upstairs?” Ju asks.

“No, it’s fine. You stay here.”

“Okay, but don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” she says, shifting her attention back to Brandon and Connor. “So, where did Naomi go off to? I need a new partner.”

I fight my way through the crowd, climbing the stairs to the second floor, which is even more crowded than downstairs, with couples making out in every corner .

The heat and noise threaten to overwhelm my senses, and for a moment, I consider leaving, but then my eyes land on Mike.

My steps falter as a wave of numbness washes over me.

He stands in a corner, lips locked with a beautiful girl with red hair.

The world stops spinning. I stare at them, unable to look away, waiting for the sight to make sense. But it only grows more surreal.

After what feels like an eternity, the girl’s eyes flutter open and land on me. “You want to join in?”

Mike pulls back from her, his hands still on her waist, gaze finding mine. “Fuck.”