Tia, Ethan, and Nala were waiting for me outside the subway station when I turned up nearly forty minutes fashionably late. Don’t ask me how that happened. It kind of just did.
“How are you still late even though we told you to arrive half an hour earlier than we planned to?” Ethan groaned before taking another swig straight from the red wine bottle.
It appeared that we were treating ourselves this evening so when he passed the bottle round to me for a swig, I accepted graciously. I wasn’t the biggest fan of wine, especially not red, but I wasn’t one to turn down a drink.
They all laughed as I pulled a face.
“I’m not late,” I corrected him with a grin as I passed the bottle back. “I’m fashionably late.”
“There’s no difference between the two,” Ethan snorted, lifting the mouth of the bottle to his lips once again. It was a large bottle and between the three of them, it was nearly empty.
It appeared that I wasn’t the only one that was big on the pre-drinking today.
“It’s our own fault,” Tia laughed as she weaved an arm around Ethan’s. “It was silly of us to even think that she would actually turn up on time.”
“Be a good boy and listen to your girlfriend,” I grinned at Ethan, my lips only twitching higher at the corners when he narrowed his eyes at me.
Tia laughed and pretended to console him, and I turned to face Nala. I wasn’t surprised that she had started with the pre-drinking as well, but what did surprise me was just how wasted she look already.
I made a mental note to keep an eye on her tonight.
“Nala,” I called out to her. “Your look beautiful, babe!”
“Thanks, Yas!” she grinned happily and leaned in to pull me in for a hug, tighter than I had expected. When she turned her face to press a sloppy kiss to my cheek, no doubt leaving a light lipstick stain at the very least, I laughed and wriggled out of her arms.
“You’re so wasted,” I chuckled, reaching out to steady her when she stumbled in her heels.
“I’m not wasted,” Nala was quick to deny despite her evident drunken stupor. “Just a little bit drunk.”
“The last time I checked the dictionary, drunk and wasted meant the same thing,” I pointed out. “Where’s Toby, by the way?” I asked curiously, glancing around. “I thought he and the team would be here for the party.”
“They had practice today, so Toby is running a little late,” she told me. “He texted me earlier to say that he’ll just meet me there.”
“I’ll keep you company until your man shows up to whisk you away,” I grinned and moved to stand next to her, looping her arms together, just the way Ethan and Tia was stood next to each other. “Come on, lovebirds,” I called out to them with a chuckle, trying not to pull a face at the way they ate each other’s faces as if they forgot they were amongst friends right now. “We’ve got a party to get to.”
We were at the closest station to the house party on the Upper East side, and we all agreed to head over there together. It was very easy to lose your friends at parties, especially when it was packed. And we just knew that it would be packed tonight.
Not many college students actively chose to miss a party on the Upper East side. For most of us, it was probably our one chance in life to experience life on that end of the spectrum. If even for a few fleeting moments while drunk and surrounded by sweaty college bodies who should be studying and making worth of the college tuition that most of us could barely afford to pay.
If it wasn’t for my partial scholarship, I never would have been able to pay the extortionate fees that these colleges were trying to charge us.
The walk from the subway station to the house party was no more than ten minutes away, but we could hear the music all the way from the entrance to the long, winding private road.
“This house never fails to take my breath away,” I murmured as I gazed up at the grand structure which we had frequented two or three times in the past for similar house parties.
The guy who lived here, his parents were super rich, and they often went away on business. Despite that, he didn’t throw many parties but the few that he did, they were always off the chart.
From being here in the past, I already knew the structure of the place. Including the layout of the ground floor which includes two large family bathrooms, and the five bedrooms on the second floor, all with large walk-in wardrobes and ensuite bathrooms. Those were usually locked during the party, and only the three family bathrooms – the two on the ground floor, and the two upstairs – were available for us party people to use.
Judging by how the large, spacious hallway was packed to the brim of people who then bled into the living room, dining rooms and the huge kitchen at the back, it appeared as if everyone from college was here.
“Seamus must have invited everyone from NYU tonight,” Ethan whistled lowly, but then he was dragged away when his friends called out to him.
Tia and Ethan excused themselves to go and talk to them, leaving Nala and I to navigate through all the party people to get us started off with a drink.
“What do you think is going on out there?” Nala asked, gesturing to the bi-folding doors which had been left wide open, encouraging the people to spill into the back yard.
“I don’t know but they’re making a lot of noise,” I murmured, craning my neck to get a look over everyone but failing miserably despite my more than average height for a female. But alas, I was no match against lanky basketball players that were smoking their zoots and puffing it out faster than they scored baskets during the game. “But let’s go find out.”
I couldn’t resist investigating all the noise and commotion coming from the back yard, and I dragged a tipsy Nala behind me. When my eyes landed on the ping pong table that had been set up and the triangle of filled cups on either end, I grew excited at the prospect of beer pong.
I absolutely loved beer pong! Not only was it a way for me to show off my drinking skills, but I also got to throw balls into cups.
What was there not to love?
Nala and I waited patiently by the side as the current game finished and as soon as it did, we volunteered ourselves.
“I’m going to try and join the next game,” I told her. “Are you down?”
“It looks like it could be fun.” Nala shrugged before taking a large cup from her drink of orange mixed with an unknown, random liquor that had been left out on the counter.
The fancy, make-your-own-drink counter was fancy and refreshing compared to the common keg that was always present at regular house parties. But of course, there was a keg set up in the centre of the huge living room so when I got fed up of living the high life, I would return for a cheap drink.
My eyes followed the balls as they cut through the air, missing the cups, and bouncing off the rims each time. The worst of them all was a dark-haired I recognised from seeing around campus a few times. I had caught his eye on more than one occasion as he had a nice smile, and I always took a moment to appreciate his thick beard…and then I saw a girl approach him and wrap her arms around his middle. His eyes remained on me for several seconds before he begrudgingly dragged them away to stare down at his partner.
Well, I definitely wouldn’t be sleeping with him tonight. Not even if he begged for it on his knees.
I didn’t have time to finish glaring at him as someone knocked into me from behind. I would have flown forward if they didn’t grab my shoulder to level me.
“Sorry,” an apology was quick to sound from behind me in a gruff voice. “I didn’t see you there.”
Seeing as I was quite tall which in turn, made me pretty hard to miss, especially since I was wearing heels, I didn’t believe this guy for a moment. Knowing just how college boys my age could be like, I didn’t doubt for a second that ramming into me from behind had to be intentional.
“You’re either really tall, or really…” my voice trailed off as I turned around to face him. I was going to call him blind, but after catching sight of him – and might I add, I had to crane my head back to get a good look at him – it would have been really stupid of me.
Perhaps it was judgemental of me, but one look at him and I was certain that he was probably on the basketball team. His height was a sure give away of it. He had to be six-foot six or seven at the very least.
“Blind?” he chuckled. “You were going to call me blind, weren’t you?”
“If you go around walking into people like this, then I have every right to call you blind,” I countered, quirking a questioning brow at him for good measure.
He chuckled, and I couldn’t help but note that he had a nice face. His skin was a beautiful deep brown, his face perfectly symmetrical and his hair very well groomed. He was a very handsome more, and I was sure that he was probably even more attractive when he was dressed in uniform and shooting hoops.
I could see myself underneath him tonight. The thought brought a grin to my face, and I didn’t bother hiding it from him. When he returned it, I knew exactly what he was thinking.
“I can’t argue with rights,” he chuckled, and looked like he wanted to say something but before he did, he paused to drop a small white pill onto the tip of his tongue. The grin remained on his face as he swallowed it, and I knew then that I didn’t need to see anymore.
I loved vodka, and had tried weed on more than one occasion, but anything more than that was a big no from me.
“Sorry,” I was quick to apologise with a sweet smile. “My friend and I were about to join the next game, but it was nice meeting you.”
Thankfully, it wasn’t a complete fib from me as they were deciding the teams for the next game. I grabbed Nala’s arm and pulled her along with me, and the look of determination on my face was enough to get us into the game.
“He was kind of cute, you know,” Nala leaned over to whisper to me as the guys began clearing the table and setting up the cups for the new game. “Why’d you turn him down?”
“He took one look at me and then popped a pill,” I told her, unable to stop myself from pulling a face. When I spied him still watching, he chuckled and turned around to join his friends who were more concerned with smoking than watching their friend get turned down.
“What kind of pill?”
“I don’t know,” I shrugged. “I didn’t stick around to ask.”
“He’s cute, but not cute enough for you to settle for a drug addict,” she snorted and nodded her head in approval. Though I would argue that it was a little too late for that now.
“That’s a weird way to say that but I agree,” I chuckled, and our conversation was quick to fizzle out when everyone our team of five assembled behind us. Somehow, I ended up first and Nala second with the three guys lined up behind us.
“I guess I’m going first then,” I shrugged and reached for the ball.
Ten plastic red cups had been set up in a triangle formation on either side and after a quick flick of my wrist, the ball travelled from my hand to the red cup at the top of their triangle.
Cheers sounded from my team and groans from the other team. I received a pat on the back from each of my teammates as I travelled to the back of the line.
“Good job!” one of them congratulated to me, and I grinned.
I watched eagerly as Nala and the guy next to her missed, while the next two landed their balls into the cups. The game progressed quickly and as we neared the end, two cups left on our side and one on theirs, a small crowd had gathered around us.
It was next turn next but before that, I needed to wait for the opposing team to have a go first. When he flicked his wrist and the ball went flying in my direction, slowly losing momentum before falling into one of the two cups that remained on our side which meant that I had to drink.
This was my first drink of the game and boy, was I excited for it. I grinned as I picked up the cup and downed the drink in big gulps. Everyone watching us cheered and counted me down from ten, but I finished by five and slammed the cup down on the table, tipping it on its side and showing them the empty cup.
It was now my turn and if I missed this – not that I had missed the three other throws that I had taken – then the opposing team would be given the opportunity to beat us. But of course, I wasn’t going to let that happen.
“How do you do that?” one of my teammates, I think his name was Callum, asked, an incredulous look on his face.
“Do what?” I asked, playing coy even though I knew exactly what he was talking about.
“Be so good at the game! And you had that drink so quickly, like it didn’t even burn!”
“Practice,” I grinned before turning back to face my competitors. With a simple flick of my wrist, the ball cut through the air and landed in the centre cup which just happened to also be the last cup.
We all celebrated in a big group hug before rushing over to pour double vodka shots for the opposing teams, offering no chasers for them to follow it up with. When the prospect of another game popped up, I agreed immediately.
I lost Nala after the first game when Toby turned up and coaxed her into the house with the promise of some dancing. They both offered for me to join them, but I declined politely as I wanted to stick around and play some more.
Did I mention that I loved this game?
Our team for the second game was pretty much the same, except for subbing in one new player for Nala. It was another girl and she turned out to be pretty good. This time, unlike the fifteen throws that it had taken us last time, we finished in thirteen while the other time still had three cups remaining on our side.
Before I could get roped into my third game of beer pong, Tia showed up at my side with a big, tipsy grin on her face.
“Come play with us. We need more people,” Tia insisted as she tugged on my arm, leading me away from the large group of people that had gathered around the table outside, and back toward the grand house.
“Play what?” I asked, eying up the cute brunette next to me who avoided my eyes, shy, as he poured vodka in new red plastic cups.
“Spin the bottle.”
“Aren’t we a little too old for that?”
“We’re only as old as we think we are.”
“Touché,” I chuckled. “Go on then. You’ve twisted my arm.”
Tia grinned excitedly and grabbed my hand, pulling me behind her toward the house.
Spin the bottle was an immature game, and not once since I had played since the junior year of high school – and even then, it had been immature and felt silly – but hey, why not? It’s not like there would be anyone potentially mad at the prospect of me kissing someone else.
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Layla Knight
27.01.2022
