Chapter 28
Alex
“Are you serious?”
“What?”
“Love, we're going to a party. Your outfit will stand out.”
Elena was wearing a denim skirt and a V-shaped sweater in fine white wool. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror, but saw nothing wrong with it.
“I don't see the problem with this outfit.”
This style suited her perfectly. As always, no matter what she wore, Elena had an elegance that was all her own.
It was also the first time she'd worn clothes that didn't hide her scar.
For that reason alone, Alex wished she'd kept that skirt on.
But he felt nauseous thinking about the hands that might touch her.
“I'll choose your outfit.”
Alex headed for the wardrobe to choose something else, but Elena blocked his path. The dancer crossed her arms in front of her chest, pouting.
“No, thanks! I'll keep my clothes.”
“You don't want to go to this kind of party wearing a skirt. Please.”
Seeing Elena give in, Alex rummaged through her wardrobe. He found a pair of skinny jeans with lots of holes and tossed it on the bed. Continuing his search, he saw a black lace crop top with oriental motifs, and knew it was perfect.
“Now change.”
Elena looked at her new outfit sceptically.
Finally, she grabbed her clothes and left.
After what seemed like an eternity, she reappeared.
Her make-up was simple, consisting of a cat eye and red lips.
Yet that little bit of extra colour made her look even more elegant, and just as seductive.
Her lace top offered a plunging view of her cleavage, and Alex didn't know where to look.
This was going to be an awfully long evening.
Elena was beautiful, and he was about to launch her into a sea of hungry sharks.
***
Elena
“I still don't get why you insisted on this outfit. It’s not like I was planning on hooking up tonight.”
Alex chuckled, opening his car door for me to sit down. As always, he was the perfect gentleman. In the back of my mind, I was plotting the death of the person who invented skinny jeans. My pants were so tight I could hardly move.
“As if you know what that means.”
He started the Polo. I sighed; Sophie and Nina were right. I really did have a too-pure image. It was time to rectify that.
“Unlike what you think, I know what it means. It's just not my cup of tea.”
Alex gave me a sidelong glance, seeming to realize the turn the conversation had taken.
“Are you telling me...”
I bit my thumbnail. Oh, dear.
“It was a mistake, but yes.”
“Do I want to know?”
“Well, do you?”
I really had to stop sabotaging myself.
“I gotta admit I'm a little curious.”
Oh my... The only way to end it was to spit it out. I cleared my throat. Even Alex looked nervous. But he deserved to know.
“It happened last year. I was invited to New Year's Eve by Oscar, from my hip-hop class. And there was this guy I liked, Robin.”
He turned back to me. Of course, he understood who I was talking about.
“Oh, no, you don't! Please don't tell me it's Robin Lafont!”
Robin is the guy everyone knows. Talented, good-looking. He has it all. And like most of the girls in the club, I couldn't resist his charm. Looking back, I realize that the only thing that interested me about him was his looks. Who could blame me? I was just a girl with hormones.
“Unfortunately, yes. Anyway. Robin had suggested we play beer pong, and since I wanted to get closer to him, I agreed to join in the game.
Oscar and I teamed up, and lost. We had to empty all those glasses, and that was that.
I don't remember much of what happened next. Not the first time I'd dreamed of.”
This admission kept him silent just long enough for him to digest the information I'd just given him.
“Uh... okay. But did you hook up with Robin?”
Or not.
“No, Oscar,” I confessed, my complexion rivalling that of a peony.
My friend's eyes widened like saucers. “Oscar? Are you serious?”
“What? Oscar is cute!”
I tried to rectify the situation as best I could. It was all in vain. The only thing I'd managed to do was dig my own grave, so I could die of shame afterwards. Alex shook his head.
“I'm sure he's gay.”
“He is. He told me a few weeks later.”
“I shouldn't be laughing, but this is hilarious,” Alex said, unable to keep a straight face.
He was taking it much better than I'd feared. Not that he had any right to resent me for having a history. I watched the landscape go by.
“That's not the worst part,” I continued.
“Huh?”
“Yeah... I slept with him again after New Year's, before he came out.”
He opened his mouth, but no comment came out. He was just laughing.
“It was so awkward... we stopped in the middle of it, it was too weird.”
Alex laughed until he had tears in his eyes. It was embarrassing to tell him, but somehow I preferred him to know everything about me. Even my worst moments.
“I’ll admit, I didn’t see that one coming.”
“Why’s that?”
“I thought you'd be the type to wait until you met the right person.”
In itself, I didn't mind being seen like that. There was nothing wrong with waiting, but something still bothered me.
“Who should I have waited for, Alex? For you? You didn't wait for me either.”
“That's not what I meant.”
“No, but it’s what I mean. We’re still figuring things out.”
“I'd like to point out that we would’ve had sex if your friends hadn’t come home.”
I choked. How could he talk about it so calmly when I was sitting there, burning on the spot because of embarrassment?
Alex put his hand on my thigh, his gaze focused on the road.
“Just so you know,” my friend admitted in a calm voice, “if I'd known it would be you, I would have waited.”
At the party, everyone was dancing to techno blasting like it was the best time of their lives.
It was horrible. Goodbye Dido, Ed Sheeran, Damien Rice, and Birdy.
It had been an honour. The sound was too loud, and I was sure that once I left that evening, I'd be as deaf as my grandfather.
To think Alex used to come to parties like this, and Kelsey would kill to be invited to one.
I wondered what was wrong with me. A party like this wasn't the place for an introvert.
“Alex, I forgot to ask, but whose birthday is this?”
I'd agreed to come when he’d asked me if I wanted to join him, simply so I could spend more time with him. If that meant following him to a party I didn't care about, so be it.
“Tiago’s.”
Fuck. What the hell had I gotten myself into again?
What if Kelsey were here? How would I react to her?
I hadn't prepared enough possible scenarios to face her.
I wasn't ready. Alex motioned for me to follow.
Just what I needed! Kelsey and I were already in a cold war, but on top of that, I was at her boyfriend's birthday party.
I really couldn't find a better day to go out, huh?
Hopefully, I wouldn't run into either of them.
If I could avoid them, maybe my evening wouldn't be entirely wasted.
We entered the living room, and I immediately spotted an empty sofa pushed into a corner. I tried to sneak away. My plan was discovered when Alex grabbed me by the back of my leather jacket. Shit.
“Where are you going?”
“Uh... sit? My knee is sore,” I lied.
I hadn't had a sore knee in weeks, I just wanted to hide in a corner and wait for this evening to be over.
Damn it. What had possessed me to try and be like everybody else?
I didn't want to be like everyone else! I wanted to put on the clothes I liked, listen to the music I liked, and do the things that interested me.
There was nothing for me here. The introvert in me was scared to death, and I had a mad desire to run away.
“Stay close to me.”
Without giving me time to reply, Alex turned around. Turning my head, I spotted Kelsey. She was alone, but radiant. Luckily, she hadn't seen me. I grabbed Alex by the sleeve before it was too late. I hadn't prepared myself mentally for this.
“I want to go home,” I begged.
“We've just arrived...”
“Kelsey's here. I'm not ready to face her.”
“If you think like that, you might never be.” He sighed.
“I want to go, please.”
Alex ran a hand through his hair, which naturally remained spikey, and sighed again. Still, he nodded.
Just as we were about to leave the living room, someone shouted, “Alex!”
Tiago. I wanted to run away, but Alex held me back, again.
“Leaving already?”
They shook hands and chatted about God knew what.
After a few minutes, Tiago finally gave me his attention.
His eyes lingered a few seconds too long on my cleavage, then his gaze lit up, making my unease return full force.
Now that I could see Tiago from this close, I understood why Kelsey always looked at him with drool dripping from her mouth.
Tanned complexion, sky-blue eyes, and curly brown hair.
Not to mention a smile worthy of a toothpaste ad.
Tiago was the stereotypical hunk, which broke his charm.
Alex was much more to my taste. But my opinion was biased.
What could I say? I'd developed a preference for darker men.
“Who's this?” asked Tiago, pointing at me with his chin.
I didn't like the fact that he turned to Alex to ask this, as if I were a doll incapable of answering. I may have been an introvert, but I could talk. Ten points off for Mr. Handsome.
“That’s Elena, don't you remember her?”
“We've been in the same biology class for five years,” I said, rolling my eyes.
He rubbed the back of his head, unsure of how to react. Tiago tried to dispel the unease by offering us a drink.
“What can I get you?”
“Nothing. We were just leaving...”
“Oh, come on! Just one drink.”
Alex and I looked at each other. Could he see my panic? Apparently not, for he merely shrugged and nodded. Things weren't going the way I'd planned. I had no choice but to stay at this stupid party.
We walked to the bar where Tiago handed us a cup of beer. I watched the liquid, avoiding tasting it. Between my drunken father and my latest misadventure, I'd learned to be wary of alcohol.
Alex beckoned me to drink. It was easy for him; he was used to drinking like a fish and smoking like a chimney.
I hesitated, still staring at the liquid.
The last time I'd touched beer had been during that infamous game of beer pong.
And needless to say, the aftermath had been anticlimactic.
I took a deep breath and took a sip. One drink wasn't going to kill me.
My past mistakes weren't going to be repeated.
The taste was gross, just as I remembered it, and I spat my sip back into the plastic cup. This time, I wasn't going to force myself to swallow beer to try and impress someone. The two boys bent over laughing. Shame.
“I'll go get you something else,” Tiago offered as he took my beer back, still chuckling.
Alex gave me a mocking smile, and I pouted. This was all his fault.
“What?”
“You never cease to amaze me.”
He gently pinched my cheek. Before I could bat his hand away, Tiago handed me another glass.
“What is it?”
“Vodka Redbull.”
We settled into one of the soft sofas. People continued to wiggle to the noise that was getting on my nerves, and Tiago headed back to his group of friends.
After a while, Alex left to join him. He assured me that he wouldn’t be long, but as soon as he was gone, I was overcome by loneliness.
This was going to be a very long evening indeed.
I took a sip of my drink. I just wanted to spend a nice evening with Alex.
Such an epic fail. I raised my glass to myself.
“Cheers.”