No Matter What You Do

12. Claim this Virgin

Two weeks without a party and some strange fragment of my being wishes it weren’t that way. Tamara’s birthday wasn’t the first event of the school year, but it was certainly the only one where I had an incentive even if it didn’t go as planned. Next time, I’ll be sure to do better.

Brandy barges into our dorm room accompanied by Mikey clearly being held against his will. “Guess what this hipster boy just said to me?” She doesn’t even give me time to guess. “His cousin is having a party for her twenty-first.”

He releases himself from Brandy’s grasp and looks at me when he says, “Is she okay?”

I shrug in response.

“Listen, it’s for my cousin, and you don’t know her, so it would be weird,” Mikey explains.

“Can’t you see we’re in the middle of a party bucket list?” Brandy says without a second thought.

“What?”

I wave her off. “Nothing, ignore her, she’s insane.”

He nods. It’s been a while since I’ve seen Mikey, and somehow I forgot how sweet he is. Nothing like Cameron. He’s buff, cocky, and a pain in the ass. Mikey, he’s like a brother type but also nothing like my actual brother.

“You suck,” Brandy says.

“She doesn’t mean that,” I tell him.

“Yes I do. The past weeks have been atrocious. Three papers already and hours’ worth of stupid editing for my graphic design class. I’m so over it.”

“Not the only one. Try doing my seven-page chemistry lab reports every week. And all the writing for both my writing classes.”

Brandy takes a deep breath. “Is there any place that we can go to have fun?”

Mikey pushes his glasses up with one finger. “I don’t have the answer to that question.”

Brandy moans dramatically. “A club, pub, speakeasy, bar? You have nothing?” She is getting really desperate. This is embarrassing.

“You’re so needy.” He makes eye contact with me and says, “Nowhere you can get in without a fake.”

“Fake IDs! Why didn’t I think of that! Do you know a guy?” Brandy suddenly perks up.

“I actually am that guy.”

“Holy crap! Oh my God. Well, what the hell are we waiting for?”

Mikey sighs. He should have kept his mouth shut. “It’s not free, except maybe for Lainey.” He smiles in a way that shows the dimples I never noticed in his cheeks.

Brandy doesn’t like that.

She stomps into the bathroom, and there’s a notification on my phone: “Braze_Hast210 mentioned you in their story.” Oh God. How does she even know my username?

Mikey moves close to see over my shoulder.

I unlock my phone and am automatically redirected to Brazely’s Instagram story, which is a picture of me kissing Cameron at Tamara’s party.

Now she has her own secret photographer? Crazy lady!

On the photo is a caption that reads: “Anyone wanna claim this virgin? @cameronleary, sorry you had to experience this firsthand :(”

“Bitch,” I find myself saying out loud. Nothing better to do than bash people on her personal Instagram. It says more about her than it does about me, but I still feel my heart sink.

“Is that you and…my roommate?” Mikey’s tone is accusatory. I don’t know why. I never made him any promises. “You like Cameron?”

I shrug. “I really only did it to get my first kiss out of the way. I guess I should’ve been more prepared.”

“Why would you want to waste your first kiss?”

Wow, I’m sensing some resentment for Cameron. Yikes.

“Did you enjoy it?”

Really is nosy, huh?

“Not necessarily. It was super awkward.” Why did I even bother to answer that question?

“Do you like him?” he asks again. “You kind of look like you do.”

I look at my feet. I wish he would drop the Cameron topic. I do. I must like him. Why else would I be so worried about our first kiss? Why would he make my cheeks get hotter than Palm Springs, California? Why do I want to kiss him again?“No.”

Mikey must tell I’m lying because he takes a step back and dismisses himself without another word out of me.

A peaceful dinner at the dining hall is interrupted by Cameron sitting down in the booth beside me. It would be a lie if I said I completely hated it. He comes with nothing but a plastic cup of what I assume to be iced tea. He calmly pulls out his phone and sets it on the table. On the screen is Brazely’s story.

“Something is wrong with this girl. I wish she didn’t tag me. We don’t even talk.”

“Sorry,” I tell him.

“Don’t worry about it, Coleson. It’s her I’m embarrassed for.”

“Says more about her than you,” Brandy adds, confirming what I already told myself. “I’d really like to see her dumb smile be slapped off her face.”

I silently agree with her. “You think our chat in the bathroom brought this on?”

“I bet accusing her of being threatened by you didn’t help.”

“But it just proves that she is!” I whisper-shout. Maybe I was being too bold back there. Maybe I should just keep my head down like always. That does get pretty old though.

“Forget her,” Cameron says, bringing his cup to his lips and taking a sip. “And forget her post.”

“You gonna eat anything?” Brandy asks him.

He takes a glance at my untouched plate of overcooked rice with curry sauce. Sadly, the sauce is heavily watered down, which is why I opted to skip the tasting process. “If it’s more of that, God no.” He bows his head and laughs to himself. I like how he looks when he does that. “Can’t believe she called you a virgin to her entire following.” Never mind.

“I’ll beat you with my rice,” I threaten.

He turns to me, head tilted. “I’d like to see you try to beat someone with that burnt rice.”

“Twelve o’clock,” Brandy interrupts.

Both Cameron and I look and see Brazely entering the cafeteria with a couple of other girls. One has fishnets on her legs, the other on her arms. Brazely wears a white satin camisole. I notice her lack of bra and want to bash my head in. I could never pull that off. Honestly, with that shirt, I don’t think she can either. Too much pointy nipple.

Cameron repositions himself in the booth so he is completely facing me. One of his legs rests on the seat a bit. “She’s spotted us.” It’s three words he speaks verbally, but it’s so much more he says with his eyes and his seductive grin. Just let me know, I hear him tell me in a memory.

I receive his message but cannot take the time to analyze it fully. I look over his shoulder, and sure enough Brazely is glaring at me. She turns to the other girls and laughs. They keep getting closer and closer. I meet Cameron’s eyes and nod the slightest bit. Do it!

He lifts a hand to my cheek and strokes my skin with his thumb. I latch on to his arm and squeeze it. He parts his lips before they meet mine, and immediately shivers run down my spine. He slips his tongue in my mouth, and I do my best to mimic what he is doing. He tastes like the iced tea he drank not too long ago, and I lick his lips behind our kiss. I feel his smile, and he surprises me with some trick with his tongue. I let my hand fall to his leg, and I slide it up. He pulls away, surprised by me this time.

There is something I love about knowing someone like Cameron, an experienced individual. I couldn’t give a crap about anybody else he’s been with, even if one of them was my ex-best friend. I owe them all my gratitude. He’s really good at this.

Under the table, Brandy taps me with her foot, and both Cameron and I separate. Oh goody. Brazely is staring at us by the salad bar not even ten feet away. Cameron pulls on my lower lip before reaching for my plate. “Done, babe?”

I’m slightly confused, but I just go with it. “Uh, yeah.” Sadly, my response comes out quieter than I intend and a little strained. He’s so freaking good!

He winks at me and stands up with my dish. Brazely raises a brow. He walks backward slowly as he speaks. “Maybe later I’ll take you out for something less shitty.” He turns around and collides with Brazely, who lacks enough time to move out of the way. Cameron makes sure all my food covers Brazely’s beautiful white shirt. The plate falls to the ground, shattering, which attracts attention. A hand flies to my mouth.

“Are you fucking kidding me, Cameron!” she shouts. Her face is as red as a ghost pepper, and if I squint real hard, I can kind of see smoke coming out her ears.

A female worker rushes to the scene and takes charge.

“Oh, curse my two left feet,” Cameron says. “Sorry for the mess.” He aims the last part to the woman now cleaning rice, curry, and broken dish off the ground.

“Eat shit!” Brazely yells after Cameron. He only turns back around to give me a last look. I might be in love.

Whoa. Take a chill pill, girl.

Brandy stares at me, and I can read that she has so many questions for what she just witnessed. Instead of answering them, I excuse myself for a cup of water. Boy, do I need it.