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Just because my cock wants Reece doesn’t mean I can’t satisfy it with someone else. I know exactly who can substitute for her.

Before I hunt Summer down, I need a drink. Fuck, I need multiple drinks. After all, it is my twenty-first birthday.

Happy, fucking birthday to me.

* * *

The clear liquid burns the back of my throat. It’s not as bad as the first four times I’ve poured the substance down the back of my neck. I must be getting numb. Numb is nice. Numb is where I want to be.

“You better slow down. You’re going to fucking yack. You have at least sixteen more shots to do, birthday boy.” Shorty stands on the other side of the bar pouring shots for everyone.

Every year, the night before Thanksgiving, Matt Lopez has a huge party. Prior to this year, I would drop in for an hour or two and leave. I’ve been here at least three hours and I’m on shot five of twenty-one. Before that, I’ve accepted a beer from what seems like everyone who is here. To say I’m fucking loaded is an understatement.

Faces are starting to blur and time doesn’t seem to exist. There is a warm excitement burning in my belly. I feel like I can fly. Everything is hazy but I still know what is going on around me. It’s a nice feeling.

“C’mon baby, you can do it.” Summer is working my shoulders with her hands, cheering me on. My arm extends above my head bringing her mouth to mine. I stick my tongue in her mouth without care. The kiss is sloppy and obnoxious. It’s supposed to be. I want people to know that I’m no longer Hannah’s bitch. I pull away wiping the spit from my mouth.

There’s another shot in front of me. Instead of taking the shot by myself, I ask everyone to take a shot with me. Pretty soon, there’s a shot in everyone’s hands and they are toasting it to me. The toasting turns into a serenade. My ears are filled with the “Happy Birthday” song.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the one person who doesn’t have a drink in her hand. Reece stays close to Maria and Shorty. In fact, it looks like she is hiding behind them. She eyes the people in the room. There is a faint look of disgust adorning her face.

The alcohol fueled comment creeps up from the back of my throat before I have a chance to push it down. “For fuck’s sake, Reece. Have a drink. You’re boring me to death.”

Her eyes narrow in a v-formation. Reece’s attempt to blend in fails miserably. Then again, a girl like Reece could never blend in anywhere. I’ll be damned if I feed her ego.
Stuck up little bitch
.

The snarky smile I saw when we first met is back. “I didn’t know I was here for your entertainment.”

I grab Summer’s ass as rough as I can. Summer squeals in my ear. If I had a knife, I’d stab my eardrums so I never have to hear that sound again. I silently thank the inventor of alcohol because the effects are working to help drown out Summer’s annoying qualities. “This is my entertainment for tonight.” I want to irritate Reece.
I want her to notice me.

Wait. What? No.

She’s indifferent or it seems like she is. “Summer is a lucky girl.”

Summer bites my neck in attempt to arouse me. It doesn’t work. What is meant to bring me pleasure just brings me pain. I bite my tongue and pretend to enjoy Summer’s efforts. “So? Where’s your drink?”

I don’t know why I am making such an issue out of this. So she’s not drinking. Big fucking deal.

She’s excluding herself from me. She thinks she is better than me.

Maria gives Reece a sympathetic look. They gaze at each other longer than I expect. Reece winks at Maria. “Alcohol doesn’t play well with my crazy. Besides…I’m having way too much fun watching you get wasted,” she yawns.

“Am I boring you?

“Kind of.”

“Are you always a bitch?”

“Are you always an idiot or just when I’m around?”

There are ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ surrounding me.

My best friend, Anger, wants to come out and play. Hannah has locked Anger away in a closet for way too long.

Shorty steps in before things turn ugly. “Maria, take Reece in the other room.” Maria happily guides Reece out by the arm. Reece gives me a cunning stare as she walks away.

Now that Reece is gone, I push ‘Little Miss Goody Two Shoes’ out of my head and focus on the shots ahead of me. The dispute between Reece and me has given me the momentum to finish the alcohol as fast as I can.

By the time I finish my twenty-first shot, I can barely see straight. I try to stand but my feet feel like jelly. I stumble into Summer and she welcomes it. “C’mon birthday boy, let’s go someplace private.”

A silly grin displays across my face. I’m going to get laid. Meaningless, empty, quick sex is exactly what I need. I let Summer lead me down the hallway to one of the empty bedrooms. She leans against the door. My arms cage her in, mostly because I can’t support myself. Taking advantage of the position, Summer kisses me. Pulling her tongue from my mouth, she kicks the door open and drags me to the bed. I fall on the bed and wait for Summer to straddle me. Yeah, she is going to have to do most of the work. My limbs do not want to move. I feel her hands on the zipper of my jeans. To my surprise, she’s managed to peel both my boxers and jeans off at the same time. Clever girl. Summer shows determination. I’ll give her that.

Poor girl has her work cut out for her. The alcohol has left me with a semi hard-on. Realizing the dilemma, she peeks up from between my legs and says, “Happy Birthday, Caydon.” The last thing I remember is Summer between my legs with her lips on my dick.

* * *

It’s a damn shame God made Caydon so damn beautiful because he is truly an ass. What a waste of beautiful body.

Dick.

For no good reason, he has decided to hate me. Fine. I don’t care. He took our first insignificant encounter and blew it completely out of proportion. A missed phone call is hardly a good reason to dislike someone. It is a window of opportunity to justify hating me. Evidently, I trigger some kind of deep psychological issue within him. I can see why Hannah dumped him.

However, my inner nun does feel sympathy for Caydon. The rumor is that Hannah was engaged to someone else while she was supposed to be with Caydon. It must have been heartbreaking to learn that Hannah was cheating on him. I have no idea what it is like to give someone your trust and realize they never deserved it. Stories like Caydon’s make me feel comfortable with my decision not to date anyone.
I cannot take the chance that someone I care about will let me down.

I think I’ve consumed every water bottle in the house. I’ve got to pee so bad my teeth are floating. My bladder has morphed into a toilet seeker. “Mar, I’ve got to pee really bad. Where’s the bathroom?”

Maria is straddled across Shorty’s legs. I feel horrible I’ve interrupted their make-out session. But I’m going to pee myself if I don’t find that toilet. “It’s down the hall on the left side.”

“Okay. I will be back.”

Maria grabs my arm. “Hey, if we aren’t here when you get back, don’t worry. We are going to Shorty’s truck for a little bit.”

Great. She is leaving me to fuck her boyfriend. Wonderful.

“Okay.”

Dodging people left and right is the easy part getting to the bathroom. Once I get to the bathroom, there is a line forming. Luckily, I am second in line. I lean against the wall and focus on the bedroom door across from me.

There are moans and groans coming from behind the door.
Gross
. There is nothing worse than hearing other people have sex. I am sickened enough by the grunts and squeaking of the bed. Then, I hear Summer call out Caydon’s name.

There is a strange feeling rising from within me. I can’t decipher if the feeling is anger or yearning. Whatever it is, it is coursing through my veins, making me sick. This self-imposed bubble I’m stuck in is suffocating me. There is a small, irrational fear that Caydon will fall in love with Summer. The thought terrifies me and fuels the rage in me, at the same time.

The bathroom door finally opens. I rush to the sink and splash cold water on my face. The heat in my cheeks subsides. I use the toilet and wash my hands. I breathe in and breathe out. My body begins to respond to the calming, noiseless bathroom.

Someone bangs on the door. “Seriously? I just got in here!”

There’s more commotion at the door. I’m beyond pissed off. I waited for my turn. The person on the other side of the door can wait too.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

My frustration increases and I give in to the douchebag knocking on the door. The door swings open. Summer is standing in front of me crying and screaming. She is missing her shirt. Vomit decorates the front of her chest. There are multiple people pushing her past me to get her into the shower. I push my way out of the bathroom.

There is a part of me that is relishing in the fact Caydon vomited all over Summer. But again, my secret nun persona feels bad for her. I’m really going to have to think about which side I’m on…good or evil.

The bedroom door where Summer ran from is wide open. I expect to see Caydon standing in the doorway ready to deliver an insult in my direction. However, he is not there. I begin to walk past the door when I see Caydon lying on the floor. He is passed out cold smothering in his own vomit.

Flashbacks of my drunken mother help me recognize that Caydon needs help. I look around to see if anyone can help him. Mostly, everyone is helping Summer rinse the vomit from her breasts. I run to him and drop to my knees. Immediately, I do my best to roll him to the side and try to bend his higher knee.

“Caydon? Caydon, can you hear me?” Nothing. “C’mon Caydon. Please. Answer me.” I wipe the vomit from the side of his face with his discarded t-shirt. He is completely passed out. I’m going to need someone to help me.

I run to the door and look down the hall. The only familiar face I see is Nash. “Nash! Nash! Come here. Please.” I disappear from the hallway and return to Caydon. I put a few pillows behind Caydon’s back to prevent him from rolling over.

“What the fuck is going on?” Nash is now by my side. This is the first time I’ve seen him all night. He wasn’t around when Caydon was drinking himself to death.

“I don’t know. He was in here with Summer. Next thing I know she is busting through the bathroom door covered in vomit. I found him on the floor like this.”

Nash smacks Caydon’s face trying to wake him. “Cay! Cay! Wake the fuck up!” He tries a couple more times. Finally, Caydon makes a slurred moaning sound. The sound is music to my ears. “Reece, we’ve got to get him home. I can’t drive him. I have my bike.”

“I have my car. I will drive him. Help me get him to my car. Then you can meet me at his apartment.”

“Okay.”

I find it oddly amusing the same people who shoved the shots down Caydon’s throat can’t be found while Nash and I are struggling to get Caydon into my car. Caydon helps by dragging his feet and dry heaving on his way there. Needless to say, a few extra hands would be much appreciated.

With Caydon crammed in the back of my car, I take a minute to breathe. I haven’t felt this helpless in a long while. Memories of my mom lying in her own vomit flash through my mind. The scary and familiar sensations urge me to protect Caydon. He has been nothing but nasty to me. Still, I will not let anything bad happen to him. If I couldn’t save my mom, I can, at least, save Caydon.

“Reese? You okay?” Nash asks me.

I break out of my stupor. “Yeah, I’m fine. Where does Caydon live?”

“He lives in the apartments by Shorty’s shop. I will meet you there,” Nash promises me.

“Ok.” Nash begins to walk away. The realization that he is the only one that helped me despite the fact I kicked his ass hits me. “Hey Nash?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for helping me.”

“Yep.” He smiles and walks away.

* * *

I ride down the street where I think Shorty’s shop is located. I don’t see apartments anywhere. When I think of calling Nash, I remember that I didn’t ask for his phone number.
Dammit.

What the hell am I going to do? I try asking Caydon but it is no use. Anytime I wake him, he moans and heaves.

Without thinking, I drive to my house. My dad won’t be happy that I’ve brought a random drunk guy home. However, I need a strong person to help me get Caydon out of my car. Caydon has to be watched through the night. What is the difference whether I do it at his apartment or my house?

“Caydon? I have to leave you here for a minute. I will be right back,” I promise him.

“You’ll leave me. Just like she did. Just like he did. Just like everyone does,” he slurs.

What the hell?

“Who? Who left you? Hannah? She’s not worth it, Caydon.”

“Fuck Hannah. Not her. She left me. He left me. You’ll leave me, too.”

“Who is ‘he’? Who is ‘she’?”

“He’s a fucking asshole. But she said she’d be there. She wasn’t there. It wasn’t my fault. I tried to get there. I tried. She was gone.”
Who is ‘she’?

The alcohol must be confusing his thoughts. He has to be speaking of Hannah. “Hannah doesn’t deserve you. No one deserves to be cheated on, Caydon. Not even you.”

“You would leave me too. I’m no good.”

“There is good in everyone. Sit here. I’ll be right back.”

For only minute, I leave Caydon in the car to get my dad. To my surprise, he is still up watching television. I must startle him because he jumps when I walk in. Immediately, his face changes from surprise to concern. “What’s up Reece?”

“Daddy, there’s a problem.”

“What’s wrong, baby?” He examines me. I must look frightened.

“There’s a guy in my car. He’s really drunk. I found him in a bedroom at the party I was at. He was choking on his vomit. I was going to take him home, but I couldn’t find where he lives.” I ramble on and on. I don’t want my dad to think I was with Caydon.

He’s skeptical. I can see it. “You found him in a bedroom?”

I’m a little pissed that I need to explain myself. I have never given my dad any reason to think that I would lie. “Dad, he was in the bedroom with someone else. She ran out with vomit all over her. As I walked passed the bedroom, I saw him on the floor.”