Rosalie
“Never have I ever had a threesome.”
A sigh escapes my mouth as I drop my eyes. When Leila said we would be playing Never Have I Ever, I thought this would be fun. I would maybe even attempt to get drunk. I mean, it is a drinking game. But apparently, you have to have a life for that to be possible.
The game has been going on for over ten minutes, and I haven’t taken one single sip. I think people are starting to notice, and that makes me shift in my seat a little.
“Never have I ever had a one-night stand.”
I see nearly everyone around us take a sip of their drink, including Leila to my right. I cock my head towards her and raise my eyebrows. “You have?” I ask her.
She laughs. “My whole life is a one-night stand,” she says.
My eyes widen. I know she hooks up a lot, but I always thought maybe it was with the same guy. I glance down at my drink, seeing the cup still full. I want to drink and have fun like everyone else, but I haven’t done anything.
“Never have I ever got a tattoo.”
Leila drinks along with three other people in the crowd. One of them being the guy that was standing by the wall earlier. He’s covered in tattoos. His arms are scattered with black ink. I must stare a little too long because his eyes catch mine. I suck in a breath and turn to face Leila.
“You have a tattoo?” I ask her. She’s quiet for a moment before she nods. “How did I not know that?”
“Because I wasn’t going to show anyone. I can’t have tattoos, it’s in my modeling contract,” she says, shrugging. “But I figured if I got a small one where they couldn’t see, it would be okay.”
Leila’s been a model since I met her. At first, she was doing small commercials, but since she turned eighteen, she’s done runway shows and worked for big companies.
She even models for me when I need her to, which I’m thankful for. Having someone at my disposal whenever I need makes my job so much easier.
“Where?”
She lifts her brown hair and turns her head. Behind her ear is a small black paw print. “A paw?” I ask her.
She covers it with her hair and turns to face me. “A tiger paw,” she explains.
“Oh,” I stare back at her. “Is there a meaning behind it?”
She shrugs. “Just thought it looked cool,”
I nod. “It does. It looks really good,”
She smiles, squeezing my thigh. “Thanks,”
“Excuse me,” Madi says, walking past the huddle of people to sit on the couch next to Leila, Gabi coming right behind her.
“I thought you said you were leaving,” I say.
“Forever,” we all say dramatically.
We all laugh, and Gabi shrugs. “Yeah, well, I missed you guys.”
Madi rolls her eyes. “That’s a lie. She was about to hook up with some frat guy, and I dragged her back here before she brought him back to the dorm.”
“She cockblocked me,” Gabi says.
“Yeah, well, be thankful you don’t wake up with a bunch of STDs tomorrow,” Madi says back to her.
“You did that for your benefit, not mine,” Gabi replies.
“Hell yeah, I did.”
Gabi laughs, shaking her head, and turns to Leila. “What are we playing?”
“Never Have I Ever,” Leila replies.
Gabi holds out her empty cup. “Then fill me up. I don’t have the energy to go get a drink.”
Leila pours half of her drink into Gabi’s cup, and they sit back, waiting for the next one.
“Never have I ever stood someone up on a date.”
Haven’t dated, so I don’t drink.
“Never have I ever kissed a friend’s sibling.”
Never kissed anyone, so I don’t drink.
“Never have I ever gone skinny dipping.”
Nope.
“Never have I ever had sex in public.”
No.
“Never have I ever had a friend with benefits.”
Nuh Uh.
“Never have I ever been to a sex shop.”
Nope.
“Never have I ever sent a nude.”
No. No. No.
I want the ground to swallow me up. I haven’t done anything. All eyes are on me. They all know I haven’t done any of it. Is this the part where they all laugh and throw things at me because they find out I’m a virgin?
My eyes meet with the tattooed guy. He’s looking back at me, his face is blank, like he sees right through me, and maybe he isn’t paying attention to me, but I’ve been paying attention to him. He took a sip every time. Everything they said, he’s done.
I wonder what that’s like. To actually live. This guy doesn’t seem to have that problem. He seems to have done everything. It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s even killed someone before.
Our eyes lock, and I gulp. Neither of us has broken eye contact yet, and I don’t want to challenge him, but I also don’t want to stop looking. His eyes narrow as he smirks at me, making my eyes drift down to his lips. Those lips. Have kissed someone. I want to know what that feels like. Having someone’s lips on mine.
“Why is Grayson Carter staring at you?” Gabi asks.
I wrench my head away from him and look at Gabi instead. “Grayson Carter?” I ask.
“Yeah. He’s a sophomore. He’s a drug dealer who sells drugs to support his mum’s addiction.”
I frown. “Is that true?”
Gabi shrugs. “I don’t know, could be a rumor. It’s what people have been saying since freshman year.”
I glance back at him, and his eyes are still on me. Shit. I quickly avert my gaze and focus on my still-full.
“Never have I ever used a pickup line.”
Most of the guys drink, and some girls, too, and to my side, I see Gabi sipping her drink.
“You’ve used a pickup line?” Madi asks her.
Gabi raises her brow. “Of course. Haven’t you?”
Madi shakes her head. “No, but out of curiosity, what do you say?”
She smirks, clearing her throat. “I say, do you like to sleep? And they obviously say yes, because, duh, who doesn’t? And then I say, me too, we should try it together sometime.” She grins, taking a swig of her beer.
We all laugh at how ridiculous that is. “That’s the worst pickup line I’ve ever heard,” Madi says.
“But it works every time.” She smirks.
“Even on girls?” Leila asks, skeptically raising her eyebrows.
Gabi scoffs. “Of course not. Girls aren’t stupid.”
“Never have I ever faked an orgasm.”
Again… to no one’s surprise, I don’t drink.
I sigh, letting my head hit the back of the couch. “This is stupid,” I mutter.
Leila turns her head to me, along with Gabi and Madi. “What is?”
I shrug. “This game. The fact that I haven’t done anything at all.” I frown. “Everyone’s looking at me.” I glance over to the group of girls staring my way, whispering to each other.
“Don’t pay attention to them. They’re judgmental bitches,” Gabi says. “So, what if you haven’t faked an orgasm or sent a nude? Who actually cares about that?” She turns her head and glares at the girls, and they stop whispering.
“I don’t want to be the boring person who has no life,” I tell them.
“You couldn’t be boring if you tried,” Leila says.
I try to smile at her, but it falls flat. “Still,” I sigh, “I would have liked to join in. It’s a drinking game, and I’m stone-cold sober.”
I feel so out of place. I always knew I missed out on stuff. I knew I was sheltered, but this is just embarrassing. Sad, really. I realize now that I’ve missed out on so much more than I thought.
“Never have I ever skipped class,” Leila says.
I turn to my side, seeing Leila smile down at me. I freeze for a second. I have done that. The first week of school, my mother showed up wanting to furnish the apartment and kept me up all night, making me miss the first class of the day.
She gestures to my cup, and I smile at her as I take a sip. Some people start to murmur, and a couple of guys even cheer. I don’t know whether to laugh or to be embarrassed by it.
“There. You’ve done something,” Leila says, and I smile back at her.
It’s something small and not at all scandalous, but the fact that Leila did that for me makes me so happy.
I glance back at Grayson, and he’s got the cup covering his mouth, but his eyes are on me. He takes a sip and brings the cup down. He swallows the drink, his Adam’s apple bobbing while his eyes stay locked on mine. He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, then he smiles at me and leaves.
His smile was quick and small, I probably imagined it. What was that about? Why would Grayson Carter smile at me?
The game continues, but all I can think about is Grayson Carter. Are the rumors about him true? And why do I want to know more about him?
