Five
Eli
"O kay, let's forget about the stupid election for a minute," Ricky said, mostly to Kailey and me.
It was Thursday night, the night before the election. Me, Kailey, Bella, and Justin were at Ricky's house. Kailey and I were stressing over the possibility of not winning, and it must have been tiring the other three out because they were getting visibly irritated.
Kailey sighed. "I know that I was class treasurer last year, but I really want it again. You can’t expect me to not be worried."
Justin rolled his eyes. "But that doesn't mean you have to keep talking about it. Elias has been bitching about it forever and you're starting to add to it."
I wanted to give my rebuttal to Justin, but Bella gave me a stern looking. She knew I was about to say something and was silently advising me against an unnecessary argument.
"C'mon, let's start the movie," Ricky changed the subject
"It's a school night," Justin pointed out.
"You knew we were having a movie marathon before you came here," Ricky reminded him while he searched for the remote. "Eli, go grab drinks. Bella, you grab the blankets. Kailey—"
We had planned a movie marathon sleepover, another thing suggested by Bella and Ricky to get our minds off the election.
Yes, it was a school night, but it was not like anything productive was going to be done anyway.
Tensions were high and it would not be resolved until after the results were announced.
I did not ask for permission to go by Ricky’s or spend the night. My aunt worked late tonight, so when she made it home it would be too late for her to care where I was or what I was doing. She more than likely wouldn’t even notice I wasn’t there.
"Get the snacks, yeah I know," Kailey said, already moving toward the kitchen because she knew the drill.
Ricky laughed and then turned to Justin. "Would you go pop the popcorn?”
"Sure man.”
The three of them went to get what Ricky asked them to. I was about to do the same, but Ricky grabbed my hand and pulled me back.
"Eli," his tone was flat.
"That would be my name," I gave a closed-lip smile.
Ricky chuckled, but I could tell he was trying to be serious. My smile faltered and my lips formed into a straight line.
My best friend put a gentle hand on my shoulder. "I wanted to talk to you about something. Look at me."
I did not look at him because Ricky trying to be serious concerned me, so holding eye contact was difficult. I tried to seize the awkwardness with a joke. "This feels pretty intimate, Richard.”
Ricky ignored both my comment and my use of his government name. "Be honest with me."
I shrugged, still staring past him instead of at him. "I always am."
“If you lose to Javier again you won’t be too hard on yourself, right?” he asked quietly. He spoke as if he was about to tell a child the word ‘no,’ and saying it too fast would send the kid into a tantrum.
“Of course not,” I scoffed. Ricky then gave me a knowing look to which I sighed.
His eyes watched me with sympathy. “I just don’t want to see you beat yourself up over it. It isn’t the end of the world if he wins. You’re running for senior class president, not president of the United States.”
“I think I’d make a great president of America,” I said confidently.
Ricky snorted and ran his hand through his hair. “Yes, because a teenaged overly competitive asshole is exactly what America needs.”
I looked at him incredulously as I playfully punched him in the arm. “I am not an asshole!”
He smiled at me, his teeth showing as he did. “Yeah, and cupcakes are better than cookies.”
“They are.”
“Are not.”
“Are too,” Bella joined in as she carried what looked to be about four huge blankets in her arms. She dropped them all on the floor and laid down dramatically like she had just hauled four boulders across the room.
After a few moments of over dramatic huffing, Bella stared at me. “Where are the drinks, Eli?”
“I’m going, I’m going,” I drawled, giving a reassuring smile to Ricky before I made my way to his kitchen.
After grabbing the snacks and setting up the living room, we made ourselves cozy and started the movie.
Our setup was nice, plenty of pillows on the floor so that we could lie on something small, and multiple blankets to keep us warm.
Every thirty minutes or so Bella would talk too much and either Kailey or Justin would throw pieces of popcorn at her. It was hilarious.
Everyone was asleep by the third movie. It was midnight and we had school in a few hours, so I needed to go to sleep as well. I paused the movie so that we wouldn’t lose our place before I snuggled under my blanket.
At night my mind tended to wander. Actually, my mind would do that often. At school, at home, with friends, but it was the worst at night. During school and with my friends wasn't too bad, they were my distraction. At home my distraction was something else.
Without the distraction, I would remember and dwell on every bad thing that ever happened in my life, all floating around at once. My parents' deaths, my siblings blaming and hating me for it, my aunt's cold attitude, me constantly losing at everything I attempted.
Just a few sips, that's all I need to fall asleep .
I had stayed over at my best friend's house enough times to know where his parents’ liquor cabinet was. I felt bad for stealing, but I only ever drank a little. Luckily his parents had never caught me before. I had no idea how that awkward conversation would go down if they ever did.
So, I took a couple of sips and then I tried to fall asleep. However, it wasn’t helping. I didn’t know if it was because of the stress of tomorrow's election or if it was some other reason, but it wasn't enough.
So, I fixed the problem.
I couldn’t remember at what point in my life that I started to need to drink to fall asleep. Before, it was just a way to pass the time and suppress the thoughts before bed. Now, it soothed me like a warm bottle of milk soothed a baby.
The first time I had gotten a hold of alcohol I couldn’t figure out why people enjoyed it.
It was bitter and made my nose burn and my face scrunch up when I smelt it.
I remember when the first drop of the cheapest brand of tequila I could find touched my tongue.
I spit it right back out and went to the sink to wash my mouth.
That shit was like rubbing alcohol, so I couldn't understand the appeal. It wasn’t until I manned up and drank more of it and started to feel the effects that I began to realize why people enjoyed it so much.
It was all downhill from there. Now it was a sleep supplement for me, as well as something to enjoy at parties and with friends. It was my buddy. My partner. My companion that others believed was a bad influence. They were wrong.
The extra that I drank did its job at making me finally doze off, but it didn’t stop its effects from showing its ugly face the next morning. After the sleepover Ricky’s parents brought us all to school. I had a hangover, so I sported a mean headache all day with no way of stopping it.
"Hells wrong with him?" I recognized the voice to be none other than my rival’s.
My head was buried in my folded arms resting on the lunch table. It was pounding and throbbing so aggressively that I could hear it in my ears, it wanted to explode. A gracious and thoughtful gift from my friend, liquor.
Maybe I went a little overboard the night before. It didn't help that I didn't eat any food besides a bit of popcorn, either. Vodka plus an empty stomach do not mix well.
"He's tired," Ricky lied.
He knew the real reason. I confessed to him that morning because of the guilt I felt, it was eating at me terribly all morning.
Ricky was upset, rightfully so, but to my surprise he did not lecture me about it.
The only thing he said was that if his parents saw it was missing and he had to take the fall for me, I would owe him forever.
"Or," Javier was speaking again, "he's just upset because he knows he will lose for the fourth time in a row."
Everyone is talking so damn loudly.
"Could you leave Eli alone?" I could smell the attitude in Bella's voice from a mile away. "Why do you insist on pestering him?"
"I don't pester him," Javier scoffed. He sounded slightly offended.
Then I felt someone rub the top of my head. My hair was a mess. I didn't do anything to it before leaving for obvious reasons, but that did not mean I was okay with someone touching it. This caused me to finally sit up, the sudden movement causing a wave of nausea, but I ignored it.
I glared at Javier. "Don't touch me."
His facial expression changed from playful to a mix of shock and concern. "You look like shit."
"How sweet of you," I said sarcastically.
"Is it because the thought of me kept you up all night?" He asked.
"Why would I be thinking of you?"
"Because who wouldn't think about me?"
"Me."
“Can I enjoy my lunch without having to sit through your lover's quarrel?” Asked Justin in a not-so-kind tone.
Javier and I look at each other with disgust. Lovers quarrel? There was not a universe where I would ever be with Javier Cortez. Ever.
***
Our principal had just finished announcing the underclassmen class officers, so it was finally time to announce the senior ones.
The entire school was seated in the gym.
Our school loved to make a big deal out of the announcement and have the chosen class officers be presented in front of the entire school.
This year was finally my year to walk in front of everyone as senior class president. I could feel it in my bones.
I couldn't wait for my older siblings to see that I was good at something. Sure, they knew I was a straight A student, but that was not as big of a deal as being class president. For them to know their little brother was class president would be for them to know that I was worthy of something.
I was shitty at sports, music, and everything else my siblings were interested in. I was good at school but they weren't, so I couldn't bond with them over that. But being liked across the entire school? We could possibly bond over that.
My sister being a cheerleader and my brother a football player made them popular, but I was the goofy little brother who was only known because of my cool older siblings.
Being class president would mean that people knew me.
It would mean that people liked me, so maybe Emerson and Easton would like me too.
It would also mean that I finally beat Javier, which I had never done for something so big. I could finally have something to rub in his stupidly perfect face.
"Our treasurer this year is...drum roll please," said Mrs. Montgomery, our overly enthusiastic and animated principal.
Everyone began to stomp their feet in the bleachers, sending large echoing booms across the room and upping the tension.
"Kailey Feathers!" the principal cheered.
Kailey jumped up and erupted in cheers. Ricky kissed her on the cheek while Bella, Justin, and I cheered her on.
She skipped down the bleachers and stood next to our principal with a huge smile on her face.
The principal congratulated her and gave a small speech about how fit Kailey was to class senior class treasurer.
She then announced class secretary, which was some girl who I didn't even know went to our school. Next up was vice president. That person would be the person that I work with to make decisions and plan events. It would hopefully be someone that I could get along with greatly.
"Our senior class vice president is none other than Liliana Smith!" Principal Montgomery announced before doing a performative cartwheel. Again, she was very animated.
The gym erupted into cheers as Liliana popped up from the bleachers and made her way down to the center of the gym next to the other class officers. I liked Liliana. I had only spoken to her a couple of times, but they were pleasant conversations.
Now it was time for class president. I could feel my heart beating rapidly from nerves but also excitement. Bella and Ricky gave me encouraging smiles, telling me that this was going to be my year.
"Alright," Mrs. Montgomery began, "before I announce class president, I would like to say that this child has been an amazing student since the beginning. Your senior class president is one of the kindest and selfless people, and they deserve this more than anyone."
Ricky nudged me in the shoulder with a supportive grin.
I looked through the crowd until I spotted Emerson and Easton. It seemed like, for once, they were paying attention. Maybe they thought I had a chance, too.
"Everyone who ran this election did an amazing job and I'm very proud of all of you," she continued. "However, there can only be one class president."
Luckily my hangover had surpassed me for the most part because it was now the end of the day. I squeezed my eyes shut and crossed my fingers. My legs felt tingly, and it was as if the room went completely silent.
"Mr. Javier Cortez, come on up here!"
Fuck.