Chapter 2 #2
They were right. I’d forgotten the vow I’d made over the summer. If I kept going this route, I would likely end up wasting my sophomore year man-crushing on some random guy I’d met one time. My friends’ words finally sank in. It was a stupid waste of time.
“You’re right.” I got to my feet with such ferocity that Josh leaned back. “And to get my mind off things, we should go out and hit on some girls.”
“That’s my guy!” Kellan finally put away the Switch.
“It’s Monday,” Josh pointed out, ever the model student.
“Your point?” Kellan asked. “It’s only the first day of the semester, and Kappa Pi is hosting a party tonight.”
“No, no point, I guess,” Josh mumbled.
“Then it’s settled.” I went to the kitchen and opened a beer. “Let the pregame commence!”
We rolled up to the frat house with a healthy buzz.
It didn’t take long for Kellan and Josh to wander off to find someone to talk to, leaving me alone to fend for myself.
It wasn’t a foreign situation to me. My friends were way more popular with girls than I had ever been, but it still felt like borderline abandonment.
I made my way to the table where drinks were being served.
The house was packed with people dancing in various stages of drunkenness and undress.
From the smell of things, at least one person had already vomited.
Music thudded around me, and lights flashed in time.
It didn’t feel like a place people could live, more like a nightclub than anything.
At the table, one girl stood with a guy. She drew away from him, looking incredibly uncomfortable and shot me a look as she saw that I was likely the only person paying attention to the situation, then mouthed, “Help me.”
I sighed and poured myself two drinks and approached the scene. I really hoped I wasn’t about to get my ass kicked by some drunk guy.
“Hey, babe, I got this for you.” I held out the drink to the girl.
She grabbed onto the red Solo cup like it was a lifeline. “Thank you so much, dear.”
“Oh shit,” the guy slurred. “This is your girl?”
I nodded grimly.
“My bad, man. I’ll head out.”
And just like that, he left. I almost couldn’t believe he’d been so compliant.
“Thanks for that.” The girl set down the drink.
I could appreciate her not drinking it. Sure, I’d just come to help her, but for all she knew, I could be much worse than the other guy and had spiked the drink or something.
“No problem.” I took a sip from my own cup. The drink was awful. “I’m Ethan.”
“Piper.”
“I assume he wasn’t taking the hint.”
“You know, I’m pretty sure he was so drunk, he thought I was someone else,” Piper said.
“Well, I’m glad someone managed to enjoy this.” I pointedly set down my drink. “Tastes like nail polish remover.”
Piper laughed and placed a delicate hand on my arm. My skin warmed at her touch, the hairs rising in response to her.
I opened my mouth to ask more about her but froze.
Right behind her, coming down the stairs was Grey.
He looked great, wearing a white button-down shirt, tight black jeans, and brown shoes.
His hair was messy perfection, as if he’d spent hours ensuring it looked like he’d put zero effort into it.
Or maybe I just assumed anyone who had the nerve to look that good with messy hair had to put effort into it because it made me feel better.
I’d never been the poster child for effortlessly cool.
And that was exactly what good-looking messy-haired people were.
After looking at his pictures and reading about him all day, I was unprepared to see him in person.
Dread pooled in my stomach, and my limbs felt weak.
I was seconds from being spotted. His eyes latched onto mine like magnets, the deep brown of them pulling me in, even from across the room.
A cocky smirk flitted across his face, and he headed in my direction.
A small gasp escaped my lips.
“What’s wrong?” Piper asked.
I tried to come up with an answer, but my brain had been reduced to radio static—no coherent thoughts, only the awareness that every step Grey took was closer to me.
Then he was standing in front of me. “How’s it going, Ethan?”
I gaped at him. He remembered my name? Why can’t I think straight? I had been drinking, but it didn’t usually make my head so cloudy.
Grey stepped closer to me, leaning in to whisper in my ear over the blasting music. He smelled of sweat and mint and orange and vanilla. When he spoke, chills rolled down my spine.
“You shouldn’t stare at me like that. People might get ideas about your intentions.”
Before I could come up with a response, he kept moving through the room, weaving between the dancing strangers.
“Oh my God,” Piper said. “Do you know Grey? What did he say to you?”
Her questions fell on deaf ears because, despite Grey’s words, my eyes were locked onto him as he crossed the room.
I could still feel his breath on my ear, the tingling left behind by his words.
He was about to leave the party, and here I was, stuck in place, wanting nothing more than to run after him.
Grey paused in the doorway and looked back, locking eyes with me. Of course he knew I would be looking as he left. How could I not?
Then the corner of Grey’s mouth lifted into a satisfied smile.
My heart did a somersault in my chest.