Chapter 33
THIRTY-THREE
Prom Night
Astrid was beautiful. It was something I had come to terms with a long time ago, but I was able to push that fact to the back of my mind—otherwise it would drive me insane.
Tonight it was front and center.
Astrid wasn’t just beautiful, she was a fucking vision.
I was trying so fucking hard not to stare like a creep whenever she walked by me. Her hair was down in pretty waves, and I could catch a shimmer when the light would hit it from a certain angle.
That dress on her—fuck.
I had always thought she was like sunshine, but today she was the whole damn sky. Her dress was blue, with sequins everywhere, making her sparkle at every turn. I literally couldn’t keep my eyes off her.
“Tyyyy.” Samantha’s whinny voice reminded me that I should be focusing on my date and not on my best friend.
“Want to dance?” I pointed toward the makeshift dance floor.
Samantha wrapped her hands around my neck possessively and then proceeded to lead me to the dance floor. Sam was a cool chick, especially when we were alone, but it was when we were around other people that she got clingy and territorial—and that shit annoyed me.
Then I felt like an asshole because I knew the problem wasn’t entirely Sam; the problem was me.
A few dances later, I was sitting down with Sam in my lap while she carried on talking to one of her friends. When she did this, I would usually tune her out, but it was kind of hard to do when she was sitting on me.
“I mean, if I were her, I wouldn’t even bother to show up,” Carrie said.
“She couldn’t even get a date,” Sam added.
At that, I finally began to pay attention to what they were saying.
“Look at her dancing with all the losers.” Carrie laughed, and when I followed her gaze, I realized they could only be talking about Astrid.
My chest tightened, and my stomach churned at their words. Rage coursed through me, but also guilt.
Astrid didn’t have a date because of me.
Ever since my fight with JD, it was an unspoken bro code that Astrid was off-limits.
Something I did nothing to stop. Guys figured she was more trouble than she was worth because if you got her, it meant dealing with me, and no dude around here wanted the hassle, and that was fine by me. No one here was good enough for Astrid.
Would anyone ever be?
So even if I did feel some guilt for her being dateless, I knew it was better than having some date that would’ve just wanted to fuck her on prom night. Just the thought of that had my blood boiling.
Now that high school was over, and people began to move on, what hold would I have on her?
Astrid wasn’t going far, which was great for me.
Her community college was an easy commute, but that would give her new opportunities—opportunities she would never find here.
What if that changed our friendship? Did it even fucking matter?
Our friendship was beginning to feel like a noose that tightened with each passing day.
“It’s so embarrassing that no one asked her out.” Carrie smirked at Sam, and I snapped.
“And you think all those guys asked you out just because they wanted your company?” I bit out, and both Carrie and Sam turned to face me. “They knew you’d be an easy lay. No effort needed.”
I pushed Sam off me because even though I wanted to chew her head off, my father taught me better than that. I left the tent and walked closer to the woods, away from the crowds so that I could get some fresh air.
“Tyler!” Sam yelled after me, but I didn’t stop.
“What the hell is your problem?” she spat at me.
I stopped in my tracks, baffled that she would even ask that question “My problem? You’re the one talking shit about my best friend.”
Her perfectly made-up face morphed into an ugly snarl as soon as I said those words.
“Do you even care that I’m your girlfriend?” she questioned me, her voice losing some of the anger.
I took a deep breath as I looked at anything but her.
“What kind of stupid question is that?”
Sam let out a humorless chuckle. “I’m your date, yet I’ve found you looking at her more than once tonight.”
“I’m just?—”
“Stop with the fucking lies, Ty,” she spat at me. “I feel like a third wheel in my own relationship. No one will ever be as perfect as your fucking best friend. Do you even care about me at all?”
As angry as I was at her, I still felt like a fucking dick. When I opened my mouth to explain or deny, people started to chant.
“Drink. Drink. Drink.”
Sam rolled her eyes at me, then turned around and walked away. A part of me told me to go after her, that I needed to console her because she was my girlfriend, but the other part of me was relieved I could finally be done with this farce.
I knew I should go back, but I stayed put, looking up at the starless sky and wondering how my life had come to this.
“Mom, if you have any guidance for me, I’d appreciate it now,” I whispered into the darkness.
It had been a long time since I asked my mom for help.
I used to talk to her more often when I was younger, but the more time went by, and her memory began to fade, so did our conversations.
Tonight, I just needed a sign or a push in the right direction.
With school coming to an end, it felt like I was at a crossroads with my friendship.
I would have stayed out there on my own longer if it wasn’t for all the shouting and booing I began to hear.
I quickly made my way back to the party when I noticed the DJ had stopped playing music.
Some people were already running away, while others gathered in a circle.
My first thought was of Astrid, and I instantly began to scan the crowd for her.
What I found was Collin Rivers sitting down on the floor, his face red and swollen, and he was glaring at Astrid while everyone around her did the same.
“I-I-I’m fine,” he wheezed out, sounding anything but fine. “You didn’t h-have to be a m-m-meddlesome bitch.”
Astrid flinched.
Anger quickly spread through me. How dare he fucking think he could say that to her and in front of others?
Years of friendship allowed me to know all of Astrid’s tells, and I knew she was close to crying in front of everyone. I needed to make the pain stop. I needed to make this right. My Achilles’ heel had always been seeing Astrid in pain.
“Just because you couldn’t get a date, doesn’t mean you had to ruin our prom,” Sam spat at Astrid.
“What the hell is going on?” I asked as I rejoined the scene.
“Astrid called the cops for a stupid prank,” someone else yelled out.
“Not surprising.” Carrie glared at Astrid. “She’s ruining prom just like she’s ruined all of Ty’s relationships.
Fuck.
Sam had probably already told Carrie, and now she was making it all worse.
Astrid’s eyes began to water, and she looked around, noticing that everyone was angry at the fact that the cops were on their way, and began to agree with the statement Carrie had made.
It wasn’t even midnight yet, and the cops would undoubtedly break this party up for this mistake. It would be the first year since this tradition started that the evening would end before dawn.
Chaos broke out. Some people began to run away, while others knew it was better to stay put because driving drunk in this state would just make things worse.
I started to make my way toward where Astrid and Collin were, but then I saw Sam’s lips moving. I didn’t want her to keep hurting Astrid, and after our little showdown I knew she was out for blood, so instead I made a beeline toward her knowing she was pissed because of me.
I had made this fucking mess, and now I needed to fix it.
When I took hold of Sam’s hand, I dragged her with me away from everyone else so she could stop spewing her poison.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I spat.
Sam pulled her hand away from mine.
“Your stupid best friend ruined everything!”
I shook my head as I looked at Sam and wondered how the hell I ever found her attractive. Which was fucking sad because she was many of my first—firsts I resigned myself to the fact they could never happen with my best friend—first that would never be Astrid’s but belonged to her.
“Collin looked like he was about to pass out,” I stated. “That wasn’t Astrid’s fault.”
Sam laughed.
“Of course not, she’s so fucking perfect.”
I bit my tongue so I wouldn’t say anything, because it wouldn’t do anyone any good. Sam was just reacting to the mess I had created. Even though a part of me told me to lash out at her and make her feel an ounce of the pain Astrid was currently feeling, I refrained.
“You know…you never even bothered to find out how Astrid and I became good friends. You never gave her a chance.”
It was the wrong thing to say because Sam glared at me.
“How fucking stupid are you? You wanted me to become friends with the girl who’s in love with my boyfriend?”
My eyes widened at her words, and something tugged at my heart. It wasn’t anger or desperation at this situation—it was hope.
“We’re done here, Sam,” I said softly.
I had wasted enough time.
I turned around and began to walk away. Sam yelled after me, but I didn’t bother to hear her out, not anymore. It didn’t matter what I said. Astrid would always be a villain in Sam’s book when the only asshole in all of this had been me.
When I came back, the medical van was already there, along with the cops. Collin was already being loaded and Astrid was nowhere to be seen. I decided to wait until tomorrow morning and go to her then. I needed to clarify a few things in my mind.
Despite all this mess, I decided it was time to start being honest with myself and with Astrid.
Sam and I were done—we should never have begun. Hell, I should have never let fear stop me from taking what was always meant to be mine. Astrid and I weren’t bound to repeat the same fate as EZ and Sabby. Despite his pain, I knew my dad would choose my mother all over again.