A Real Disaster (5 page)

“What’s your favorite drink?”

“A jack and coke,” Turner said.

“Well then you’ll have to get me one
tonight,” I responded with a wink. “I want to see what it’s all about.”

If Turner could see through my façade he
didn’t say anything. I looked at my watch and my eyes bulged.

“We better get going if we want to make
it to the concert,” I said to him.

I grabbed a jacket and my bag. Turner
held the door open for me and I slipped through, locking it behind us.

“Don’t worry about being too late,”
Turner assured me. “We won’t miss anything. The concert doesn’t start until at
least an hour later than they say.

“So why not tell people the real time?”

It was a good question. Too many events
were like this anymore and it was kind of annoying
..

“Because the
best part about this type of concert is waiting and anticipating the music.
It also gives
people enough time to get nice and drunk.”

“Why drunk?”

“Because the
music is so much better when you’re drunk.”

I stared at Turner, wondering if he was
joking or being serious. Oh geez, he’s serious. I realized it when he didn’t
start laughing.

“Why?”

This time Turner did laugh.

“You want the truth?”

“Obviously.”

“The music sucks. Every year the music
sucks. Drinking is the only way to get through it without wanting to rip the
hair out of your head.”

“But then why continue it every year?”

Turner shrugged.

“It’s tradition. You don’t mess with
tradition here. If you do, or even if you try to, you’ll be tarred and
feathered before you know it.”

“Are you serious?”

“Deadly. This is serious stuff that
happens here. You don’t try to change it.”

He began laughing.

“You’re joking aren’t you?”

“Sort of…”

The two of us stepped into the elevator
and pressed the first floor button. Standing next to each other, Turner and I
each looked different ways, lost in our own thoughts.

“If I haven’t said it already, you look
really pretty tonight.”

“Thanks,” I said and felt myself
warming. “I wasn’t so sure about the outfit. I thought maybe it was too….”
Revealing?
Slutty?
“Not me,” I decided to explain. “I’m not used to showing so much of my body.”

Was I really trying to explain my outfit
choice?

“Why not?
You have a body
that was made to be shown off.”

Almost immediately Turner put his hand
over his mouth and closed his eyes. “I’m sorry, that sounded wrong, totally
wrong. I didn’t mean to say that…
Or at least to make it
sound so
pervy
.”

“It’s fine.”

He had about the same amount of
confidence that I had.

“I’m not that type of guy,” he continued
to explain. “My mother taught me to be a gentleman and she would have my ass if
she knew what I said.”

“Well, then maybe I should give her a
call,” I teased. “I’m kidding. Turner, you worry too much, did anyone ever tell
you that?”

I was the same way though.

“More than once.
 
I’m what they call a ‘worrywart’.”

“That makes two if us.” I smiled. “I’m a
bit neurotic myself.”

The elevator opened and we stepped out
into the first floor. Turner rushed forward to open the door. We stepped into
the night, the warmth and humidity encompassing us like a blanket.

“Thank you.”

“My pleasure.”

Turner held out his arm and I linked
mine through, letting him guide me towards the Great Lawn. Turner was a…
Gentleman.
It came off as a little cheesy but at least he
was nice. Others were milling about, all slowly making their way to the grass.
I could smell the booze from where we were and the hum of voices greeted us as
we sifted into the crowd.

Sabrina was sitting on a rock, a
cigarette in one hand and a drink in the other.
Sabrina smokes?
I couldn’t help but wonder if the cigarette was to
look cooler and fit in better. Elizabeth stood next to her, nursing a red solo
cup.

“Hey guys,” I said and waved at my
roommate.

Sabrina waved back and the two of them
blatantly stared at Turner and me as we passed. Turner nodded at them but
didn’t remove his arm from mine.

“Have fun!” Sabrina cried out. “Don’t do
anything I wouldn’t do!”

I ignored Sabrina’s comment and held
Turner’s arm tighter. I didn’t want him to think that I spent my time gossiping
about him.

“Can I get you a drink?” Turner asked
when we finally stopped a bit of a ways from the crowd.

 
I
shimmed up on a rock, keeping my legs crossed and putting my jacket over my lap
to stop myself from flashing anyone.

“Sure.
Whatever you’re
having.”

Turner squeezed my arm.

“I’ll be right back,” he said and
disappeared into the crowd.

I shifted on the rock, trying to relax,
as I looked at the scene in front of me. People were already drinking and
dancing even though no music was playing. I averted my eyes from a couple of
people grinding up against each other, the girl’s skirt riding up on her tanned
thighs. Any higher and she would be showing off everything. That was probably
her plan. She wanted to be noticed, no matter what it meant. She didn’t care
about what people said about her as long as they were talking about her.

A twig snapped to the left of me and I
turned my head to see a guy sauntering up to me, a cocky grin covering his
face.

“Are you an angel because I’m sure I
just saw you falling from heaven.”

You have
got
to be kidding me. Could he be any cornier?

“I’m
sorry,
do
those lines actually work on girls?” I asked.

The guy paused and then threw his head
back in a boisterous laugh.

“Usually, except now.”

“I’m so sorry that I have more than two
brain cells in my head,” I retorted. “Can I help you?”

“I don’t know, can you?”

Oh, I was dealing with a smart ass. This
was perfect. I looked around for Turner but didn’t see him emerging from any
part of the crowd.

Come on Turner, come back already.

“I’m Nash.”

“And I should care because?” I said as I
stared at him.

Was he seriously standing there and
bothering me with his lousy pick-up lines? Did I not make it clear enough that
I wanted nothing to do with him?

“I’m the main singer in the band you
came to see.”

“Good to know.”

I looked Nash over. He was good looking,
I would give him that. He had a mop of black hair, the color that most couldn’t
pull off, but it complimented his green eyes and tanned skin that were covered
in tattoos. He wore a button down shirt, opened, and I could see the faint
outline of muscle tone. Against my will my body started to hum.

Come on Lily.

He’s sexy…

He’s also incredibly dumb.

His narrow waist disappeared behind
loose fitting jeans, ripped at the bottom, and his sneakered feet.

“So…do you have a name?”

“Of course I have a name…”

Again Nash laughed but it wasn’t a
malicious laugh. It was a whimsical laugh that disappeared with the wind.

“Okay, I’ll admit it. That was a stupid
question. It’s probably one of the stupidest questions I’ve ever asked.”

He took another drink.

“Well at least we’re in agreement about
that,” I said.

This time I smiled at him, my cold
shoulder growing warmer by the minute. Nash shifted on his feet and ran a hand
through his hair. It bounced once and then lay back down exactly in the
position it started in.

“So can I have your name?”

“It’s Lily…”

I opened my mouth to say more when I
finally spotted Turner. He carried two cups and was smiling as he walked
towards me. His smile abruptly disappeared when he saw Nash.

“Nash,” Turner said.

“Turner,” he replied. “Long time no see.
How are you doing buddy?”

“Fine.”

Turner stepped between Nash and me,
blocking him from my view.

“Do you want to walk around a little? I
want to check everything out.”

I wanted to ask Turner what exactly he
hoped to check out. It wasn’t as if things changed a lot, at least to him. From
what he told me, the concert was the same, year after year.

But Turner’s face lost all its color and
his chin trembled just slightly. There was something between these two guys…
What had happened between them? Why, when Turner saw Nash, did he change so
much?

“Sure,” I said and carefully slid off
the rock.

I peeked around Turner’s shoulder.

“See you around Nash.”

“Thanks.”

Nash never lost his smile, even as
Turner took my hand in his and pulled me away. Turner didn’t talk to me. I just
followed him through the crowd of sweaty, drunk college students. My feet were
killing me and I knew now why I hadn’t worn heels until that night.

I wanted to ask Turner to stop, or at
least to slow down, but his grip on my hand stopped me from making the
suggestion. I knew that Turner wanted to get me as far away from Nash as
possible.

Finally the two of us stopped. I had no
idea where we were, or where Nash was. Turner pulled me away from the crowd and
we hung out against a tree, watching students continue to arrive. I could hear
the echo of conversations fluttering over to me but I couldn’t hear what they were
talking about. Turner turned to me and frowned, distracted.

“Turner,” I said slowly, tentatively.
“What was that about?
What’s with you and Nash.”

“Nothing.
Nothing is
going on.”

I knew it wasn’t my business, I knew
that, but I pushed anyway.

“That wasn’t
nothing
.”

“Lily-”

“I know it’s none of my business and I
know I shouldn’t be asking but you look so…
Angry.
You
practically dragged me away from him like I was some kind of child.”

“I’m sorry,” he said and pulled me close
to him.

He held my hand and stared into my eyes.

I could feel our bodies mixing together and
I wouldn’t have minded if he just kissed me.

“Don’t worry about it. It’s not a big
deal.”

I was telling the truth, it wasn’t a big
deal. It wasn’t the first time I saw two guys circle each other like two
animals ready to attack.

“Nash and I go back… Way back. I’ve
known him since we were kids.” Turner cleared his throat and I stood there,
waiting. “We were inseparable.”

“So what happened?” Turner laughed a
short, harsh laugh.

“What happened?” Turner repeated. “What
didn’t
happen? One night I come home
after a long day of work and find the asshole screwing my sister.”

My eyes popped and I gasped.

“Are you serious?”

Turner nodded.

“He had her up against the wall like
some kind of whore. It was sickening.”

I nodded, sick myself. I couldn’t
imagine what Turner felt when he walked in on the scene in front of him. I knew
that if that happened to me I would have flipped out.

“What did you do?”

“I grabbed the douchebag by the collar
of his shirt and threw him out of the house. I told him that I didn’t want to
see him at my house anymore and if I did, I would ruin him. Thankfully he
listened. Now, the only time I see him is at these stupid concerts.”

Turner shook his whole body out and then
smiled at me.

“And now I have made this, officially,
the worst date ever.”

“It’s not ruined,” I assured him. “We
still have the rest of the night.”

After a moment of hesitation, I pulled
Turner down and kissed his cheek.

“Let’s make the most of it.”

Chapter
Five

The music was deafening. Turner was next
to me, jumping up and down. He had a drink in his hand that he expertly kept
from falling and took glugs from every few minutes. It was his fourth drink
while I just finished my second. I wasn’t sure if he was drunk yet or still
getting there but I didn’t want to find out. My feet were killing me and so was
my head. All I wanted to do was
go
home and climb into
bed.