Chapter 15 Zeke
fifteen
Zeke
Since when are you throwing a Halloween party?” Marcus looks at me as I flop down on his couch.
“Since little Sanderson sat all of us down in the living room and told us we were throwing one.”
“Baby Sanderson has your whole house by their balls.” He laughs. “You guys always do what she tells you to?”
“Laugh all you want, but Brinley’s scary,” I reply. “When she wants something, she knows how to get it. Plus, I don’t think this whole party’s her idea. I think Declan wants to have the party but doesn’t want us to know he wants to have the party.”
“Sanderson wants to throw a party?” he scoffs. “Now I know you’re pulling my leg.”
“I wish I were kidding,” I continue. “And get this, Declan’s throwing the party for a girl.”
“Holy shit, Declan Sanderson’s turning a new leaf?” He stares at me with a smile full of amusement. “Never thought I’d see the day where Declan Sanderson cared more about a girl than hockey.”
“I don’t know if he’s there yet, but definitely close.”
“Is it still the project girl?”
“Ember,” I say, even though I know I’ve already told him her name.
“After they almost kissed,” I pause and point a finger at him, “don’t tell anyone I told you about that.
But things have been kind of off between them since.
She barely comes over to play NHL 17 anymore.
I think he’s having this party to try and fix it. ”
“It sounds like you miss this Ember just as much as he does.”
“She’s like a little sister. Like Brin, you know? I’ve known her most of my life but never really knew her. I wish I had taken the time to get to know her back then.”
“Is this one of those situations where someone says that a girl is like a sister to them, but really they’re harvesting deep romantic feelings?” he asks. “Like how Jaxon’s lying to himself about how he feels toward Brinley.”
“I don’t know if he’s lying to himself,” I argue. “Or just oblivious. And no, it’s not one of those situations. I think you’d like Ember, too. She’d probably think you’re cool, and not many people do, so—”
“I don’t know why I’m friends with you.” He drinks his beer. “You’re an ass.”
“But I’m an awesome ass.”
“You’re an egotistical ass.”
“Nothing wrong with that.”
“So, back to this Halloween party,” he begins. “You guys doing your costumes this year?”
“Just like we do most years. I got Bowman’s jersey this year, so I’m in for a boring night.”
“Unless he’s one of those guys who’s actually super freaky but really good at hiding it.”
“I doubt it,” I reply. “Invite your teammates to the party, alright? I know it’s last minute, so I’m trying to get the word out. I can’t be known as the guy who threw a lame-ass Halloween party.”
“Between the people I know and the people the rest of the team know, that party will be anything but boring.”
“Maybe just invite the team.” I chuckle. “I’ve been spreading the word, and there’s a fine line between an awesome party and claustrophobia.”
“You sure?”
“Definitely. Now, are we gonna go to Marshall’s pub tonight, or what? There are a few girls down there waiting for me.”
“Oh, another fun night watching Zeke Harris shove his tongue down some girl's throat while I keep her friends entertained.”
“I didn’t forget about you this time, Marky.” I slap his shoulder as I stand up. “She’s bringing her brother.”
I barely finish my sentence before Marcus puts on his shoes and walks out the door.
Imight’ve gone overboard with the invitations to the Halloween party. In my defense, I thought it’d be so last minute that people would already have other plans; I never thought those other parties would cancel.
Which is the only reason our house is an absolute zoo right now.
Not that I’m complaining. We’re gonna be legends after this party…
but we definitely don’t have nearly enough alcohol.
Tate and Fletcher bought a shit ton while they were out today, but I think we’ve already gone through half of our supply.
I’m just lucky that I told Marcus to only invite the football team because I don’t know if we’d have space in our house for anyone else. We got lucky that it’s not too cold outside, so people can hang out in the backyard, giving everyone inside a little more space.
“You definitely didn’t let Brinley down.” Tate’s voice comes from behind me, and I turn to see her and Fletcher walking toward me.
“What can I say? I hate to disappoint.”
“You just want people to know you throw bomb ass parties.” Fletcher laughs.
“True. And Little Sanderson scares me, so I didn’t want to let her down. Why’d she want to throw this party so bad anyway?”
“No idea.” Tate shrugs, but by the look on her face, she knows exactly why she threw this party.
“Maybe it wasn’t her idea.” Fletcher points toward the door. “Declan’s been staring at that door for at least ten minutes. You think he’s waiting for someone.”
“We’re all waiting for someone, Fletch. We all just wanna be loved,” I reply, and he shoves me.
“You know what I mean, asshole.”
“Maybe. Plenty of women are here, so if he was just looking to get off, he has a whole party to pick from. So, he’s probably waiting for his econ partner, who he’s totally only platonic with.”
He’s not. But I don’t know if he’s told anyone else that they almost kissed, and I’m not about to tell everyone something that’s not my business to tell.
Tate definitely knows, though. I know she, Brinley, and Ember have been hanging out pretty often, so there’s no doubt they know.
“So, you agree that the party was Declan’s idea?” Fletch takes a swig of his drink.
“Oh, no, I totally think Brinley was behind it. But for the sole purpose of matchmaking.” It’s then that I notice Fletcher and Tate’s costumes. “Speaking of matchmaking… are you guys wearing a couple’s costume?”
“What are you talking about? I’m wearing a team jersey. You were there when we picked them.”
“And Tate’s what?”
“The Stanley Cup.” He shrugs. “She wanted to change it up this year and wasn’t feeling the jersey thing with Brin.”
“So, out of all the costumes she could’ve picked, she chose one that girlfriends wear when their boyfriends dress up as hockey players?”
“Get over yourself, Zeke. Fletch isn’t even dressed as a professional player. You guys don’t win Stanley Cups in college.” Tate rolls her eyes. “Plus, with this party being so last minute, I had to work with what I had.”
“And you just had this lying around?”
“I did, actually. From when we threw that party in high school when the Hawks won the Stanley Cup.”
“Right.”
I forgot about that party. Tate and Brinley thought dressing up as Stanley Cups would be cute, especially because they knew we’d wear jerseys.
They even went to the parade that day in their costumes, and I’d be lying if I said none of the players noticed.
A lot of the players noticed. A lot of the crowd, too.
“So, now that we’ve moved on from this being a couples costume,” she chugs what’s left of her drink, “I need a refill.”
“Nice going, Zeke.” Fletcher pats me on the shoulder. “I don’t know how many times we have to tell you guys we’re just friends.”
“Who’ve—”
“Yes, who kissed. We’ve been over this a million times. It meant nothing. We’d never do anything to jeopardize our friendship.”
“All I’m hearing is you're interested but too scared to take the risk.”
“You’re ridiculous.” He flips me off as he walks away.
“Pretty sure you just gave me my answer.”