8. Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Dallas
I nsisting on doing something to celebrate was the bare minimum for Abby’s acceptance into the LAO and getting nominated for an award. Whether she wins or not, that in and of itself is a huge accomplishment. I’ve heard my dad talk about the LAO my entire life. He’s one of the directors. So, from what I’ve gathered over the years, getting an award from them and getting accepted, especially as an undergrad, is a big deal.
Abby had tried to refuse any sort of formal celebration, so we met in the middle. Something simple, yet still fun at home. I let her choose who to invite but told her she had to pick at least one person.
“What is up, party people!” Meredith yells as she walks in, a large bottle of wine in hand.
I cheer with her, as does Logan, who stands from the couch to give her a fist bump. She passes the wine to me, and I set it on the counter next to the other bottles of liquor, the collection growing large.
“I’m not sure another bottle was necessary,” I joke.
She eyes the counter. “Maybe not, but I wasn’t about to show up empty-handed.” She looks around the small space. “Nice place. It's better than the dorm I suffered in for four years and the basement I moved back into with my parents after my undergrad." She laughs at her self deprecating joke.
"Thanks. It works for a college budget."
She nods. "Where’s Abby?”
“She’s in the bedroom getting ready. I’m sure she’s almost done.” I’m not exactly sure what she’s getting ready for in the first place. It’s not like we're going out, but I’m not going to question her ways.
“Cool. So, what’s the plan?” Meredith asks, taking a seat on the couch.
“Honestly, I’m not sure. I figured we could play some games or something.”
“Sounds fun. I brought some card games if everyone's up for them.” She pulls out a thick deck of cards labeled Truth or Drink.
Logan grabs the deck. “Oh, man. I haven’t played this game in a while.” He reads through the back of the box, smiling, seeming to replay memories of past games.
“Get ready. There is a good chunk of create-your-own question cards in there, and I have been known to be a wee bit feisty with them.” She grins, clearly ready for an outrageous night.
“Does this look okay?” Abby asks, smoothing out the wrinkles of her tight black crop top. She wears a pair of dark gray leggings with diagonal mesh slats running up the length of her legs, stopping in the middle of her thighs, her random tattoos peeking through the fabric. “Oh! You’re here.” She smiles, running up to Meredith for a hug.
“Girl, everything looks cute on you. Including sweats.”
Couldn't agree more. She does. It’s humbling, really.
Abby rolls her eyes but takes a seat next to Meredith on the couch. She cuddles into her, her smile growing by the second. To say I'm glad they made up is an understatement. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind getting to be the person she runs to for everything. In fact, I love being that person, but I also want her to have more than just me. She needs a good support system, especially through this legal process.
Her happiness is effortless with Meredith. She doesn’t hesitate with any of her actions, any of the words that fly off her tongue. No filter. She doesn’t care how Meredith perceives her. Doesn’t seem to ruminate over every word, every action that passes between them.
That’s what I want. Not to steal it from them. But to add to it. I want Abby to be as comfortable with me as she is with Meredith. She’s so headstrong about everything, yet so judgmental of herself that it makes it hard to reason with her sometimes. I’m sure Meredith would agree, but she seems to have an easier time talking to Abby about those things. And Abby doesn’t seem to get so riled up by it either.
“Did someone order food?” Logan asks, already scrolling through his delivery app.
“I ordered pizza. That’s what Abby said she wanted, so that’s what she’s getting,” I say. Abby grins, nodding with approval. “It should be here in a half hour or so.”
Once the pizza arrives, we all settle on the couch. Abby places herself between Meredith and me, feet tucked under herself. Abby gave everyone one rule tonight. No shots. Smart girl. If we're playing drinking games, there’s no need for the extra “help” of a shot glass. I’m sure everyone will gladly drink when it’s their turn.
Meredith readily pulls the cards out of the box, explaining the rules and that there are three different decks, all getting increasingly more scandalous than the last. Everyone agrees to start on the first one as an easy icebreaker.
“I’ll go first.” Meredith pulls a card and reads it carefully. “Oh, good one to start on. Uh … Logan, if the house was burning down right now and you could only grab three things, what would you grab?”
Logan sits up straight, thinking deeply for a moment. “Hmm. My phone, my baseball bag, and … probably my signed baseball from Willie Mays.”
I laugh at the thought of his panicking about his signed baseball. “Why am I not surprised.”
“Dude, I would die if I ever lost that thing. Plus, my grandfather got it for me for me for my twelfth birthday."
Everyone laughs as Abby pulls the top card off the pile. “Meredith. What’s your go-to song for singing in the shower?”
“Easy. Bohemian Rhapsody.” She smiles and holds her head high.
“The whole thing?” Logan asks through a mouthful of pizza.
Meredith gives a confident nod. “The whole thing. Instrumentals and all.”
My turn to grab a card. “Abby, what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?”
She thinks for a short moment before a delicate smile graces her lips. She looks down and lifts the left side of her shirt, revealing a tattoo on her ribcage. I’ve seen it, sure, but I’ve never asked about it. She reads it aloud. “‘What we do now echoes in eternity.’ It’s a quote by Marcus Aurelius. I don’t know who he is, but my dad used to say that to me all the time.”
“I’ve always liked that tattoo,” Meredith says, leaning her head on Abby’s shoulder. Abby returns the gesture.
A moment of silence passes before Logan breaks it. He wipes his greasy hands on his pants. “Okay. My turn.” He draws the card, and a wicked smile breaks across his face as he reads it. “I know the answer to this, but I always give him crap about it. So, Dallas, who was your first celebrity crush?”
I give a short laugh. “Oh, boy. My first celebrity crush was Lindsay Lohan.”
Everyone chuckles at that. Abby turns to me with a huge smirk. “Lindsay Lohan? Really?”
I shake my head but laugh. “Okay, I can explain. Rose used to make me watch Mean Girls and Freaky Friday with her almost every weekend. They were her favorite movies.” Meredith lets out a loud cackle before regaining her composure and taking another bite of pizza. “I didn’t have a choice! Cole refused to watch them with her and our parents were always busy with work. So, the duty fell on me. And when that’s basically all you watch, your ‘tastes’ are limited. So yes. Lindsay Lohan was my first celebrity crush.”
As the game progresses, the cards get juicer, dirtier, and much harder to answer with a straight face. Though I will admit, not drinking has its perks in games like these. I can refuse to answer anything and not worry about how quickly my mind will deteriorate. Meanwhile, the other three, already buzzed, move through their drinks faster and faster with each round, sometimes drinking even when they don’t have to. It’s a wonder they manage to answer any questions.
Abby happily answers a question about her worst first date by telling us about one she went on her senior year of high school that was supposed to be a motorcycle ride, but the guy showed up on a scooter so they could only cruise around on slow roads. Logan practically chugs his drink when Meredith asks him if he’s ever sent an unsolicited dick pic, which is an answer in and of itself. And Meredith laughs and says, “I’m a single lesbian living in my parents basement. What do you expect?” when Logan asks her if she owns any sex toys.
“Your turn,” Logan says, kicking my knee.
Quickly grabbing a card, I read through it and immediately want to redraw. “What are the rules for drawing a new one?”
Meredith sits forward, answering quickly. “Absolutely not. You’re supposed to finish your drink if you don’t read out the drawn card. But as the only sober person in this room, you don’t apply to that rule. So read the card, scaredy cat.”
I feign offense with a hand on my chest and my mouth hanging open. “Fine.” I look around the room, pretending to choose who to ask, but I already know who I’m going to ask, especially because I don’t have any desire to know the answer to this card from the other two in this room. Problem is, I’m not sure this is the right setting to ask such a question. “Uh, Abby,” I start, drawing this out a little longer than necessary. “Name a sexual desire you’ve never entertained.”
She pales and blushes at the same time. And then takes a very large swig of her drink.
“Not going to answer that one, huh?” I ask.
She holds her drink up as an answer. I narrow my eyes at her as if I can read her mind but have no such luck. “Fair enough.” I make a mental note to ask her about that later, in a much more private setting, where maybe she’d divulge such secrets. She’s been pretty open through most of these cards, but anything more than second-base questions, she won’t answer.
Meredith grabs a card. “Oh, it’s a create your own.” She thinks for a moment before the question comes to her. “I know. Abby, if money wasn’t an issue, which dress would you have bought yesterday?”
I am curious about this one. She showed me the dress she bought. It’s simple, cute. She would no doubt look good in it, but she did mention there were a couple of other dresses she liked but didn’t buy because they were too far out of her price range, so I didn’t question it further.
Abby doesn’t hesitate when she says, “The black one.”
Meredith laughs and points a finger at her. “I knew it.” I catch Meredith’s eyes when they land on me. She smirks, wiggling her brows.
Abby draws a card this time. “This is also a create your own. Apparently, they’ve been bunched together this whole time.” It doesn’t take her long before she turns her body toward me. “Dallas, the day you and Meredith met, what did she run back to tell you?”
Meredith laughs loudly. The memory flashes through my head, and I smile, recalling those words she whispered to me. “She told me that if I wanted to keep my dick, I had better make you happy and not screw this up. Oh, and that she doesn’t mind going to jail over it.”
Logan snorts from his seat. "I wouldn't put it past her."
Abby rolls her eyes and turns toward Meredith. “You are ridiculous.” Meredith shrugs, and they both start laughing. “Who’s next?” Abby asks.
“Me,” Logan says, drawing a new card. “Ah yes. Such an important question. Dallas, boobs or butt.”
Abby eyes me curiously. I laugh but answer quickly. “Butt all the way.”
“You are also ridiculous,” she says.
I lean in closer, eyes meeting hers. “Maybe I am, but I could look at yours all day long.”
She smacks me on the arm and shakes her head.
“Okay. Final question, and then I say we watch a movie or something.” Meredith draws a card. “Hmm, this could be good. Abby, what’s the dirtiest dream you’ve had about someone in this room?” Meredith immediately looks to me like I might know the answer. Alas, I do not, but now I wish I did.
Abby doesn’t hesitate before downing the rest of her drink. But she elbows me discreetly. Another question for later, I suppose.
The girls pass out on the couch together, cuddled next to each other under a hoard of blankets. I would be dying of a heat stroke if I was under that much fabric. The last of the movie plays before Logan and I disappear into our rooms for the night. Tomorrow’s game might be rough on Logan if he drank as much as I think he did.