Chapter 20 – Beau
TEN YEARS AGO
BEAU
He doesn’t get why we’d rather hang out in his basement than ours.
Yeah, James’s basement has an in-home movie theater, Nate’s basement has a pool table, and Ryan’s basement has a sound system and the latest Call of Duty .
They also had housekeepers prone to coming down to check on what we were doing and offer us gourmet snacks.
“Oh, fuck you, Kirby!” Luke yells. “Who the hell just killed me?”
“Should’ve been faster,” Nate grunts, right before I stomp him to the ground.
“Suck it,” I say as Bowser’s face fills the screen.
“Where’s Ryan with the booze?” James mutters. “I’m tired of losing to Bishop.”
“Did I hear my name?” Ryan strolls down the basement steps and holds up a plastic jug of vodka like a trophy. “Looking for this, motherfuckers?”
Luke and I whoop with delight, and Nate lets out an amused chuckle. James just nods and says, “Nice.”
“What do you want to do for mixers?” I ask Luke.
“Mixers are for pussies,” Ryan scoffs. “I’ll take my vodka straight, thanks.”
“Not this vodka. It’s cheap shit, and it’ll taste like rubbing alcohol. Not that I’m not glad you got it,” I say quickly, before Ryan can get all pouty. “We should just mix it with some orange juice or something, that’s all.”
“I can get orange juice,” a soft voice offers. Brinley gets up from the armchair she was curled up on.
“Why don’t you stay upstairs while you’re at it?” Luke groans. “I don’t even know why you’re down here.”
“Same reason you’re here. I live here.” Brinley trots quickly up the stairs, and Luke groans.
“Bros, I’m so sorry she’s crashing again. ”
Nate shrugs. “It’s fine. She doesn’t even talk.”
“Yeah, even James says more than she does,” Ryan says.
I get why Luke wouldn’t want his fourteen-year-old little sister hanging around all the time, but he’s the only one who really cares. To the rest of us, Brinley’s as harmless as a housecat. She mostly just sits on a chair in the corner and reads while we hang.
Brinley reappears quickly with a jug of orange juice and five plastic glasses.
I take charge, filling them with orange juice and vodka, because I know Luke and Ryan would use too much vodka and James and Nate would use too much orange juice.
I hand the guys theirs, but Luke grabs my hand before I can give a cup to Brinley.
“None for her,” Luke says. “She’s fourteen.”
“Oh, come on, let her live a little,” Ryan says. “She’s a freshman. She can handle a bit of vodka.”
“Don’t worry. I poured hers light,” I lie. It’s not like it’ll be a big deal if Brinley has one drink. I bet she’ll just nurse it for a few hours without.
“So, are we playing more Smash ?” Ryan asks.
“No way,” James says. “Beau always wins.”
I shrug. “Not my fault I have a natural talent.”
“We can play something else. Truth or Dare?” Ryan suggests.
“Nah. It’s no fun without any chicks,” Nate says. “Poker?”
Luke shakes his head. “We don’t have any chips. How about Never Have I Ever?”
“Perfect,” Ryan says as he plops down on the sofa. “A drinking game where I can sit down? Can’t ask for more.”
“Go first, then,” I tell him.
He thinks. “Never have I ever peed in Nate’s pool.”
Everyone else drinks except for Brinley, and Nate looks horrified. “You what ?”
“Not recently!” James says. “Like, when we were ten and disgusting.”
“Speak for yourself,” Luke jokes.
Ryan looks to his left at James. “Your turn.”
“Never have I ever measured my own cock.”
We all drink, and Brinley’s face turns beet red.
James rolls his eyes. “You seriously care about how long it is?”
“Duh,” Ryan says. “You gotta find out if you’re above average. Which, for the record, I am.”
“Nobody wanted that information,” Nate says.
“Never have I ever googled the average size of a penis,” Luke says. Ryan drinks and shrugs.
“It was in the name of research. You’re all curious now, aren’t you?”
As the game goes on, it escalates the way it always does. Instead of just asking stupid questions to make the other guys laugh, we start getting personal, picking on old grudges.
“Never have I ever copied off James’s math homework,” Luke says, cackling when Ryan and I drink, as he knew we would.
“Never have I ever sent a love letter to the gym teacher,” James says.
“I regret nothing!” Luke says as he takes a long drink. “I don’t care what you say, Mrs. Schafer was a hottie.”
“Never have I ever kissed a friend’s ex-girlfriend,” Nate says.
“Are you still pissed about that?” Ryan groans. “You dated Natalie in fifth grade. It’s not like I made out with a real ex.”
“It was real to me,” Nate says.
“You really didn’t find it at all weird that you basically had the same name?” I point out. “Nate and Natalie?”
“It was convenient. We were always next to each other in alphabetical order.”
“Besides, I only kissed her one time on a dare,” Ryan says. “It’s not like I had feelings for her or anything. You would know if I did.”
“How would we know that?”
“I’d tell you,” Ryan says simply. “You guys know about all the girls I have crushes on. Right now, it’s Priya, Charlotte, Katie, and Nicole.”
“It’s not exactly privileged information if you have four crushes,” James says.
“Well, never have I ever had a crush on someone that I’d be too embarrassed to admit.”
Everyone drinks then, even Brinley. Then her eyes meet mine. She seems a little shocked that I’m looking back at her, and for a long moment, we stare at each other.
“Oh shit,” Nate says, drawing my attention away. Everyone else is looking at Brinley, watching her watch me. Because the vodka made her reckless enough to give away the truth.
Now everyone knows that her embarrassing crush is on me.
“No way,” James says.
“Brinley, seriously?” Luke says.
“Why Beau and not me?” Ryan demands.
Then everyone’s gaze pivots over to me, and my face turns hot.
I force out a laugh and look down at my drink.
I mean, it’s not like Brinley having a crush on me is some huge hardship.
She’s pretty, for a freshman, but it’s not like I’ve ever thought about her in that way.
I mean, she’s Luke’s sister, and she’s way too young for me. It’s a nonstarter.
My stomach feels weird. There’s a heavy, leaden guilt for laughing at her, the girl who just put something real on the table in a room full of boys who treat vulnerability like a punchline.
I also feel warm pleasure spreading through me, mixed with an unexpected urge to smile.
You’re just flattered , I tell myself. It’s always flattering when someone crushes on you.
But that’s not the whole story. That warmth feels like—well, something I definitely shouldn’t be feeling. Something that needs to be shut down stat.
The guys keep laughing, and Brinley slams her cup down, orange liquid sloshing over the sides. Her face is watermelon-pink, and her eyes shine with what I wish was anger but which are, unfortunately, tears.
“I’m done playing this stupid game,” she declares. Spinning on the heel of her purple socks, she rushes up the basement stairs and slams the door behind her. The other guys clutch their stomachs, unable to hold back their laughs.
“Looks like you’ve got a new brother-in-law, Luke!” Nate laughs.
“How’s it feel to be killing it with the fourteen-and-under crowd?” James says.
Ryan elbows me. “Seriously, dude, why you and not me? Am I not muscly enough? Is it the Italian thing?”
“Trust me, Ryan, you don’t want Brinley crushing on you,” Luke says. “She’s so fucking annoying. She’s always writing in that stupid journal. She probably doodled Brinley L. Bishop like a zillion times.”
I sink back against the couch cushions. If I can’t convince these assholes to change the subject, I’ll be hearing about this stupid crush all night. So I raise my cup. “Never have I ever wished a fourteen-year-old had a crush on me, instead.”
Ryan drinks, and the other guys turn their attention back to him. After a few minutes, they move on to debating his chances with all four of his crushes.
I find my eyes drawn back to the stairs where Brinley ran. She’s definitely embarrassed, but I hope she’s not hurting too badly. I’m pretty sure everyone will forget about the whole thing by tomorrow.
Everyone except me.