Chapter 15
fifteen
Tate
December
Can you fucking believe that?” Brinley swings her arms in the air. “Like, the nerve. Who does he think he is?”
“Your brother.” I shrug.
“He sent me to the garage, Tate. THE GARAGE!” She leans forward. “And left me out there. Like, completely forgot about me. I was out there for hours before I realized the argument between him and our dad was over.”
“You stayed out there for hours?” Ember holds back a laugh.
“Nearly two of them. I knew he was only sending me to the garage for the pie, so I wasn’t there for the explosion.”
“And you just stayed out there?”
“He said to take my time. So, I did. I ate half of the pie and watched Turkey Drop. By the time the credits were rolling, I realized I was still sitting in the freezing cold garage.”
“That’s a great movie.” Maia ignores the comments, and Brinley’s eyes narrow at her.
“Did you miss the part where I was just sitting outside?”
“No.” Maia’s eyes scan the diner. “I should go see if table twelve’s food is ready.”
“I’m not stupid, Maia. There’s literally nobody else in here!” Brinley turns toward Maia, who is heading through the double doors.
“Did I say table twelve? I meant the to-go order that came in right after you guys arrived.”
“Did you yell at him?” Ember shifts her focus to Brinley. “For not getting you to come inside?”
“I can’t exactly yell at him. He was trying to protect me from it all. I don’t know what’s going on between the two of them, but Declan’s been acting weird for weeks.”
Ember’s face falls slightly, and I can’t help but wonder if she knows exactly what’s going on.
“Did you know about this already?” Brinley crosses her arms. “Did my brother tell you he banished his little sister to the garage during Thanksgiving dinner?”
“He might’ve mentioned it.”
“Might’ve?”
“Okay, we talked about it on Thanksgiving. If it makes you feel any better, just know he felt really bad when he realized he never got you.”
“And the asshole still didn’t go to check if I was still sitting in the garage? What if I sat in the garage the whole night and died of hypothermia?”
“You wouldn’t have sat in the garage the whole night. Eventually, you would’ve been like, it’s been enough time, I’m gonna bring this pie inside.”
“Or I fell asleep because I was waiting and then—”
“Okay, I will be sure to tell Declan that he’s a horrible brother for not making sure you were safe in your bed.” Ember places a hand on Brinley’s forearm to stop her rant.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Ember bites her lip, containing a smile. As her eyes meet mine, she shakes her head.
“So, how was everybody else’s Thanksgiving?” Brinley grabs a fry and dips it into her milkshake. “Better than mine, I’m assuming.”
“Well, my mom basically told me to go get plastic surgery, then said I needed to move home because the world is a cruel place, and rounded all that out by insinuating that Declan would never date me.”
“But… you are dating.” My eyebrows knit in confusion.
“Yes. But they can’t know that because Cam doesn’t know yet, and I just keep adding stuff to the list of things I can’t tell Cam, and every day, I feel a little more guilty about it.”
“I’m sorry, Em.” Brinley wraps an arm around her shoulders. “Just wait until the day your mom finds out you are indeed dating Declan Sanderson. I’d pay good money to see the look on her face.”
“You and me both.”
“Think of it this way,” I begin, “since your brother doesn’t know about the two of you, Declan can’t drag you to the ridiculous hockey banquet they have every year. I bet he’s been complaining about the fact that he has to take on the event without you.”
“Hockey banquet?” Her face twists.
Oh shit. Declan hasn’t even mentioned the banquet to Ember. Maybe he didn’t want her to feel bad. I know Fletcher said that Declan would be all for telling Cam about their relationship, but Ember isn’t ready yet.
“Yeah, my sorority plans it every year. It’s basically a banquet for the hockey players to kiss donors’ asses, and their reward at the end of the night is getting laid.”
I kick Brinley under the table.
“Ow!”
“Brin.”
“Oh, not everyone, though.” Brinley backtracks. “Tate goes with Fletcher every year, and they’ve never slept together after the event.”
“Or at all.” I clarify. “Trust me, he’s probably just trying to save you.
I only go with Fletch because he’s worried a girl will ask him, and then he’ll have to find a way to let her down; he’s not great with confrontation, especially with strangers.
So, I’ve been going with him since freshman year, since I know the team, and it’s just easier that way. ”
There’s still a sadness in Ember’s eyes.
“And you don’t need to bring a date!” Brinley adds. “It’s totally optional. Jere tends to avoid the date part. So, Declan will probably avoid it, too, this year. And I’m bringing Alex, so add me to the list of people going to this banquet with no plan to get laid at the end of it.”
“Yeah, right.” She forces a smile. “I’m probably overreacting to the whole thing. I just don’t know why he wouldn’t tell me.”
“Probably slipped his mind.” Brinley clasps her hands together. “A lot is going on with our dad, so he probably didn’t even realize how close the banquet was.”
“Exactly.” I reach across the table. “Nothing to worry about, okay?”
“Okay.”
Fletcher and I spent the majority of that stupid banquet getting drunk, and then once we realized the Hawks game was on, we watched it.
We showed up at the banquet with all the guys, but by the end of it, I had no idea where they had gone.
Ember and Declan disappeared for a while, then came back separately, trying to hide the fact that they had run off together from her brother.
Cam was nowhere to be found when they arrived, though.
“Have I ever told you that you’re insanely smart?” Fletcher shoves the last bite of pizza in his mouth.
“Why do I feel like there’s a but coming?” I sink down onto the couch, using my arm to cover the light from my eyes.
“No, but. Not everyone would be smart enough to order a pizza so that by the time we got back here, it was just delivered.”
“What can I say? I come from a very smart group of individuals.”
Fletcher decided it made the most sense to come back to my place after the banquet. For starters, we only had to get one Uber, but we also had no idea how many of his roommates would be getting laid back at his place.
I think he actually just came here because he knew I was ordering pizza.
“Those banquets fucking blow, man.”
“Yeah, you might have to find someone else to go with you next year.” I groan. “I’m banqueted out.”
“Tatum Lewis, you can’t not come with me in our senior year. It would be like ending a tradition.”
“Maybe you could take Becca.”
I don’t mean for her name to come out the way it does; honestly, I think I’m just a little tipsy and don’t have full control over what I’m saying.
“Becca is only a friend,” he argues.
“So am I.”
“It’s different.”
“Is it?” I sit up, my head spinning a little bit.
“Yeah. You’re my best friend.” He leans forward and pokes my cheek. “No one will ever compare to you.”
I feel slightly uncomfortable at how close we are right now.
It feels like high school all over. Drunk faces mere inches away from each other. If I really wanted to, I could kiss him right now. It wouldn’t take much effort; he’s so close I can smell the mixture of booze and pizza on his breath.
Last time, it didn’t work out very well, though. And I fear there would be no coming back from this one.
Plus, I know what the girls would say, ‘Drunk actions are sober thoughts,’ I’d never live the kiss down. Especially if nothing came from it.
But I also can’t ignore the look in his eye. We’re sitting face to face, and there’s a glimmer in his eyes. A challenge. Almost as if he wants me to risk it all and lean forward.
I let out a shaky breath and pat his leg.
“We should go to bed.”
As hard as it is, I stand, creating the distance needed between us.
I don’t add that we should go to bed before we do anything we regret.
“Agreed.” He grunts as he stands. “I don’t know why my best friend would let me drink so much when she knows I have practice tomorrow.”
“You’ll survive.” I pat him on the shoulder, grab the empty pizza box, and set it on my trash can before walking into my room.
Fletcher follows behind me and collapses onto the right side of the bed.
“You’re not even gonna change?” I peek my head out of my bathroom.
“Don’t have the energy.”
“Not even to brush your teeth? I don’t know if I want to sleep next to someone with nasty breath.”
“You’ll survive.” He mumbles, grabbing the nearby pillow and pulling it under his head. His feet are so close to the bottom, I’m surprised they aren’t dangling.
“Must be nice being a guy.” I grab my makeup remover from the bottom drawer. “If I went to bed right now, my face would break out tomorrow.”
“That sucks.”
By the sound of his mumbles, he’s barely awake. He's just providing me with minimal responses, so I know he'll be out in a matter of minutes.
I wipe off my makeup and then wash my face thoroughly. I pat my face dry and tiptoe into my bedroom, grabbing sweats and a t-shirt from the middle drawers. There’s a faint snoring behind me, and when I turn around, Fletcher is knocked out.
I pull my sweats up over my legs, then untuck my dress from the waistband.
I glance at Fletcher one more time before pulling the dress over my head and throwing it into the nearby laundry basket, my bra quickly following. And in one swift motion, my t-shirt falls over my body.
I climb into the bed next to him, but unlike him, I crawl under the covers.
I glance over at him. He seems so peaceful.
“Goodnight, Fletch.”
I give him a soft smile before turning onto my side.
And with the sound of his snores, I fall asleep.