No Matter What You Do

3. Hate the Game

Cameron comes to the door dressed in an oversized T-shirt and an ugly green visor on his head. His hair is shorter on the sides and pokes out through the top of the dumbass hat in a way that annoys me.

He is larger than when I saw him about three months ago. He must have been hitting the gym every day to impress the college ladies. Pig.

“Coleson,” he says as if he’s been expecting me. His eyes quickly shift to Brandy. “Who’s your lady friend?”

Cameron, drop the smirk. She’s off-limits.

Brandy steps forward and introduces herself as my roommate and best friend. Only friend would be closer to the truth. He looks her up and down then lets us in. I ignore his eyes as both of us slide into the room.

Mikey was not lying when he said this was just a gathering. I can probably count the amount of people here on my fingers. I take a quick glance for a familiar face that is not Cameron’s, and I spot Mikey approaching us.

“Hey. I’m glad you decided to come,” he says sweetly.

I give him a tight smile in return.

This is pretty lame on Cameron’s part. Pretty sure he had a reputation in high school for throwing raging keggers. At least for going to them.

“Where the hell is the party at?” Brandy asks.

Mikey shakes his head. “It’s not a party. Just some people on our floor.”

Disappointment floods Brandy’s face. Clearly her intention was to attend the hottest rager on the block. I already told her that was not what this was.

A firm body brushes up against mine from behind. “It sucks,” Cameron says. “RA lives right across, so we can’t just throw a kegger, ya know?” I step away from Cameron, and we briefly make eye contact.

“So, this is as good as it gets?” Brandy asks no one in particular.

Mikey raises a disapproving eyebrow, and Cameron shrugs. “Yeah, but we got beers in the fridge. And weed if you like that. But if you’re smokin’, you gotta do that outside.”

I wonder if he participates in this smoking of marijuana.

He looks at me. “Want a drink?”

Not from you.

“I guess I’ll take one,” Brandy says.

Cameron smiles and nods to a mini fridge they have in the far corner. He walks off, and Brandy follows him, but I pull her back.

“He’s a douchebag, don’t go with him,” I warn.

“He doesn”t look the type. Plus, he seems to like you, so he can’t be that bad.”

I could not give two shits if he likes me. I do not like him. That is the point.

“It’s about making friends,” Brandy reminds me. “If I need you, I’ll holler.” Then she’s off, leaving me with Mikey.

“You know my roommate?” he asks.

I keep my eyes on Cameron and Brandy. I watch him get her a beer and one for himself.

Mikey gains my attention again by snapping his fingers in front of my face. Right.

“Unfortunately,” I tell him. “I knew him from high school.”

He sighs. “Know him well?”

I can pick up what he’s really asking. Just the thought makes me cringe. “God, no. He dated one of my friends and cheated on her. Therefore, he is scum.”

Mikey cocks his head. “He’s not that bad. He’s been chill with me. He’s actually really nice.” Boys gotta stick together, I guess.

I glance back to Cameron and Brandy who are now sitting on his bed. She’s laughing at something he is saying, and I wish she would walk away. She takes off his visor and tries it on her head, then spots me staring. She throws up a peace sign and purses her lips like she’s posing for a photo. Cameron’s hand slides next to her on the sheets.

I excuse myself from Mikey and march over to Brandy. When I get close, she places the visor on my head. “Girly, we were just talking about you!”

I look at Cameron with a lethal glare plastered on my face, and his grin immediately melts away.

He pouts a bit. “Why the scowl?”

Beside me, Brandy grabs my arm and pulls me to her.

“What did he tell you?” I ask, eyes glued to Cameron’s.

Cameron groans. “You’re just as apprehensive as you were in high school.”

“Go screw an elephant, Cameron.” Yes, I realize the randomness after I say it, and I bite the inside of my cheek.

“What?” Cameron asks in horror. “You want me to fuck an elephant?” He shakes his head in mock disappointment. “That’s messed up, Coleson.”

Ever since I met this boy, he’s always referred to me by my last name. Part of me wishes he would just be normal and call me Lainey. Maybe he does it to irk me. “No, what’s messed up is that I am standing this close to you. What did you tell her?”

Brandy tightens her grip. “He only mentioned your freshman spelling bee.”

Oh hell no! I smack Cameron on the arm as hard as I can, and his hand flies up to the place I abused. “The entire school promised to never ever speak of that day ever again!” I shout. Thank God there is loud music playing right now.

“It’s okay to laugh at the past. It was funny.”

“You have no right to laugh at me. No right to even talk to me,” I tell him. It satisfies me to see that silly smile leave his lips.

I give Brandy another glance. It doesn’t look like she will be leaving him. I turn to walk away.

“Coleson,” Cameron says.

“What?!” I look back. A frown is plastered on my face.

“Visor.”

I rip the stupid visor off and chuck it at his chest. Then, I make my way back to Mikey, and apologize. He waves it off, though, as if there’s no need. “You wanna play something?” he asks. “I got Uno in my dresser.”

“What better way to make friends than a passionate game of Uno?” I force a curt laugh.

Mikey beams at me and goes to retrieve the cards. Then he gathers about four other people to play with us. The entirety of the game, I kind of lose myself in it. Once the first person places the first card down, it’s an intense force that pulls me in. No more Miss Nice Lainey.

Plus two for you! Plus four for you! Haha, you skip your turn, loser! It seems that college kids abandon all the rules and allow a plus four to accompany two plus twos, resulting in me having to scoop up eight cards from the center deck.

“How dare you!” I shout at Mikey, who just placed the plus four card down.

Mikey laughs. A light shade of pink comes to his cheeks. Aww. “Don’t hate the player, hate the game,” he tells me.

Long story short, I lose. When it’s down to Mikey and a girl named Tamara, it really gets intense. She puts down a plus two, plus four, and a skip a turn card, then shouts “Uno!” I really do not get all these college Uno rules, or lack thereof. I toss my hands in the air and cheer. Tamara gives me a high five.

The excitement fades, and I notice that Brandy and Cameron are still chatting. Man, that is really getting on my nerves.

Tamara softly nudges me and gestures to where they sit. “A friend?”

“The girl is my roommate, and the boy is a douchebag from high school. She’s been talking to him all night despite the warnings I gave her.”

Tamara shrugs. “He’s one of my best friends. Lainey, he’s not a bad guy. He?—”

“I wish she would stop.”

“You can warn her, but ultimately people are going to do what they want.” Tamara steps in front of me, blocking them from view. “Keep looking at him like that and he might get the wrong impression.”

I ignore her comment, keeping my eyes on them. I can’t have this going on. She needs to?—

Cameron pivots his head and catches my eye.

Look away, look away, I tell myself, but almost like a magnet, my eyes are glued to his.

He shifts his weight onto one of his legs as Brandy speaks to him. An invisible string pulls at the corner of his mouth. Then my stomach jumps at the wink he gives me.

I finally gather the strength to look away, and Tamara cocks her head. “See?”

My cheeks grow even hotter. Crap.