“Tell me that was a breakup,” I said.
“That?” she laughed. “That was… just give me a ride back to the house.”
“It’s your vehicle, Claire,” I said.
She walked around to the passenger side and got into the SUV.
I drove up the driveway and she shook her head.
“I’m happy you don’t have a dick, Tinsley,” she said.
I snorted. “Um… thanks?”
“Men are stupid. All of them. Just plain fucking stupid.”
“Are you sure that wasn’t a breakup?” I asked.
“Oh, Tinsley, if that was a breakup his car would have been on fire. That was supposed to be business. But that guy has more balls than brains, which doesn’t work in my line of work.”
“Wow. Well, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. Where have you been?”
She grinned and winked. Basically telling me calmly not to fucking lie to her.
So I didn’t.
“I went back home.”
“Home? Where?”
“You know where. I wanted to go see my old friends.”
Claire nodded. “How did that go?”
“Horrible. They think I’m some stuck up rich bitch. And I’m so far from it.”
“You ever hear of a concept called adapting to your environment?” Claire asked.
I parked the SUV and she reached for my hand.
A hint to not get out yet.
“What’s that mean?” I asked.
“That means sometimes to survive you adapt. We all want to be unique and all that bullshit you get printed on a piece of wood and hang on your wall, right?”
I laughed. “Sure.”
“But it’s bullshit. You adapt. When I’m looking at a building, for example. I don’t give a shit about the building, Tinsley. Or the land. Or the taxes. Anything like that. I look at the environment. The surroundings. Who I have to become to make it work. That’s what makes everything work.”
“So you’re saying I’m a stuck up rich bitch?”
“Own it,” Claire said.
“Even with a screwdriver?” I asked.
Claire snorted. “I swear, Tinsley, I will not sleep with Jacobson to keep you out of trouble.”
I gasped. My cheeks turned red.
Claire looked at me and winked again. “Maybe just a hand job in his office but that’s it.”
She got out of the SUV and walked up the wide steps to the house.
My jaw was dropped as I tried to think about what she said.
I almost felt bad for anyone who had to professionally deal with Claire.
Or in the bedroom.
Yikes.
That made me think about Pres. And his father. And what I saw with his father and Claire. Whether that really mattered or not.
I still hadn’t shut off the SUV.
Part of me didn’t want to go back into the house.
Because it was going to change me some more.
I was adapting to my environment.
Claiming to be the dirty, poor girl. Yet enjoying the little bits and pieces of being a rich bitch too. Being claimed by Pres, Barr, and Kip.
My body shivered as I thought about the three of them boxing me in. The sounds of their voices. The smell of their skin. The way they all found a way to kiss me right there but not on the lips.
I hurried to text Gi.
I needed them.
My new friends.
For my new life.
To make everything make some kind of sense.
And if and when it all came tumbling down, then fuck it.
I would just find somewhere else to go and live.
And adapt.
Gi texted me back and said they were partying on the beach. She told me where to park and how to get there.
I looked at myself in the mirror as though I really cared about how I looked.
And I turned around and got the hell out of Claire’s driveway.
When I got to the beach, Gi and Iris were waiting for me.
Waving stupidly with a drink in their hands.
“Ah, great,” I whispered.
My new best friends were drunk.
I had no idea how Iris was able to sip anything after her night.
But, hey, everyone fakes it, right?
Gi hugged me like she hadn’t seen me in a year.
“Missed you, bitch,” she said in an extra happy voice.
“Missed you too,” I said. “I even missed you, Iris.”
“I didn’t miss you,” she said.
“Glad to see you have pants on this time,” I said. “Did you piss yourself yet?”
“Oh, shit, let me check,” Iris said. She touched between her legs and then threw me the middle finger. “Nope. I’m as dry as you, Ti.”
“She’s not dry,” Gi said. “Not with the Rulz after her ass.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said. “Please. No more.”
“Right,” Iris said. “No more talking about it.”
Gi and Iris giggled like they had some kind of inside joke on me.
I hated that feeling.
But I faked a fucking smile and went down to the beach.
There was a fire. Drinks. I was pretty sure the same two guys with guitars were there too.
All I had to do was adapt.
Pretend.
Fit in.
Enjoy whatever happened.
And, honestly, what was the worst that could happen?
I wasn’t going to fall in love with three guys at once. And I wasn’t going to choose one of them. And they weren’t going to fight over me.
I could fake it and adapt or whatever else until I was blue in the face but at the end of the day I was still the dirty, poor girl.
And as long as I reminded myself of that, nothing could hurt me.
Right?
twenty-one
Everyone got drunk and danced. I kept a look over my shoulder. When the night was over, I gathered up Gi and Iris and got them into my SUV and took them back to Claire’s house. They were loud, stumbling, laughing, hugging each other, slurring their words as they shared stories that made no sense to me.
And the most famous line of the night was the same…
‘Oh, Ti, you weren't here for that!’
Which I could smile at the first few times. I could fake smile at the next few times.
But after that… it got annoying.
So I didn’t belong in BFH because I wasn’t around for that. Whatever the hell that was at the time. And I wasn’t welcome back where I used to live because apparently I had changed so much that Ruby and Amelia hated me. Which was petty jealousy. But you know what? Screw them then.
Gi and Iris ended up falling asleep right in my bed.
Which wasn’t my bed at all.
It was Claire’s bed. Or a bed in a spare bedroom in Claire’s house.
I ended up at the window, looking down to the pool and out to the ocean.
Last time I was annoyed with Gi and Iris, I ended up calling Devin and that was not a good situation. We talked for hours on the phone and met up just before sunrise. He told me he still loved me and I told him I still loved him. And we kissed when the sun came up and agreed that it could be a good start for us.
To save a long story - it wasn’t.
I grabbed a pillow and a sheet from the bed and slept in a corner.
And the saddest part of that?
The fucking corner of the bedroom was more comfortable than my bed at the other place. The carpet was thick and plush. The air was cool and clean. The pillow was extra fluffy and comfortable. The sheet hugged me like it was made just for me.
Everything rich people had was perfect. Amazing. And perfect.
But none of it was mine.
There wasn’t a rich thing about me. No secret money. No million dollar ideas. No high paying skills. The only chance I probably had at anything that resembled that was if I told Claire I wanted to do wh
at she did.
Which really wasn’t the worst idea to have.
If she lived like this because of business real estate deals…
My eyes ended up shutting as I shook my head.
Sitting in the corner of the room in a mansion trying to figure out where I belonged.
My heart sped up, telling me I belonged surrounded by Pres, Barr, and Kip. But that was only because my heart was listening to another body part. Which wasn’t bad. But it definitely wasn’t good. At all.
And then I slept, lost in dreams that were a mix of great and nightmares. Me and Ruby walking the sidewalks in the shithole town we called home. Licking ice cream cones in a hurry before they melted, giggling because of the brain freeze we’d get. And then there was Pres, Barr, and Kip waiting for us at Ruby’s house. Kip would touch my hand and the ice cream would turn into a gold color and taste ten times better. And Ruby’s ice cream turned moldy with cockroaches climbing all over it. And she kept eating it.
Pres handed me a bottle of perfume. It smelled like his but it was a woman’s version. There was a little price tag dangling off of it. Priced at one billion fucking dollars. Pres told me it was just pocket change. And then Ruby saw a penny on the ground and jumped at it. She dropped her ice cream and started to cry when she got the penny off the sidewalk.
Then Barr stepped forward and took the lit cigarette from his mouth and flicked it behind him. When he did, Ruby’s entire house went up in flames. Like instant flames. And it was just her house. She screamed from the sidewalk and ran into the house as it was swallowed up by the fire.
I called for her and jumped forward but they grabbed me.
Kip had my left arm. Barr had my right arm. Pres had his hands to my waist.
They surrounded me.
I could smell Pres’s cologne. Kip’s ocean. Barr’s smoke.
I heard Ruby yelling for help. Begging for me to come get her. To come save her.
But they wouldn’t let me move.
They were beautiful. They were sexy. They were…
All three opened their mouths and there were fangs.
Fangs?
They were vampires.
And they started to laugh.
And that’s when I was never so thankful to wake up.
My eyes popped open and I looked around the massive bedroom, trying to remember anything about myself. It was a weird moment where I couldn’t figure out what was reality and what was a dream.
I put my hands to the carpet and took a deep breath.
I leaned forward and saw Gi’s face almost hanging off the bed. Her mouth open, drool pooling around her. Snoring.
I sighed and forced myself to stand up.
When I looked out the window, I saw the ocean in the morning.
And I thought about the dream.
Stupid dream.
Stupid dream that I couldn’t stop thinking about.
But I knew there was no way Pres, Barr, and Kip were vampires. At least not the cliché kind with fangs and that would burn in the daylight.
Maybe they were a different kind of vampire though.
I laughed at myself.
And then I went to go find some coffee.
* * *
I drank coffee and ate a large bowl of fruit.
When I poured a second cup of coffee I went to the piano room and stood there, staring at the piano. It sat there, untouched since Barr had been playing it that night he and his parents were here. There was a story to each of them.
“Oh, and like you didn’t like it,” a voice echoed from the stairs.
“Stop it, Gi,” Iris said in a groggy voice. “My head hurts and I’m debating shit from two years ago.”
“You always do that though,” Gi said. “Pull your heart out of your vagina, dry it off, and let it decide what it wants.”
I turned and grinned, watching them walk down the stairs together.
Having a full conversation.
Not a care in the world.
If I walked out the door right then and there and never came back… would they even care? Would they even call me? Text me?
Or better yet… when I did leave for real… would they still keep in touch?
“I love how you play it so tough but you fall in love so easily,” Gi said.
“No I don’t.”
“Ohmygod, yes, you do… and you know it.”
“Fine,” Iris said. “That’s why I stick to guys outside of BFH.”
“Distance makes you forget.”
“That’s my secret,” Iris said.
They turned from the stairs and started to walk.
Shoulder to shoulder, just talking away.
I swore they would have walked right by me if I hadn’t cleared my throat to get their attention.
They stopped.
“Hey, bitch,” Iris said.
“Morning,” Gi said.
“Morning to you both,” I said. “How’d you sleep?”
“That bed is great,” Gi said.
“So was the corner on the floor,” I said.
“Ah, that’s cute,” Iris said. “Gives you a little taste of home, right?”
“Iris,” Gi said.
“What?” Iris asked.
“Fucking bitch,” I whispered. “Breakfast is in the kitchen. Then you both can fuck off.”
“She was just kidding,” Gi said as she grabbed for my arm.
Gi’s eyes were big. She was worried.
I put on my fake smile. “I know.”
I looked at Iris and winked.
Iris made a scowl.
“Whatever,” she said. “I need food.”
They both walked into the kitchen like they owned the place.
There was no impressing them with the array of fruits and a chef standing there to cook their breakfast because they probably had the same thing at their own house.
“Hey, your turn is next time,” Gi said to me.
“For what?” I asked.
“To enjoy the beach like that,” she said. “I’m sorry we got out of hand.”
“Nobody got out of hand,” I said. “You had fun and came back here.”
“See,” Iris said. She looked at me. “Gi was worried you’d be pissed at us.”
“No,” I said. “It’s not like anyone got sick and ruined my room.”
“Okay,” Gi said. “Well, next time… I love beach parties like that. Low key. Fun. No drama.”
“Drama,” I said. “You mean the Rulz.”
“Exactly,” Iris said.
“Not always,” Gi said.
“Fuck that,” Iris said. “Always. I’m surprised they weren’t following your ass, Ti.”
“Yeah, me too,” I said.
“Hey, are you okay?” Gi asked. “You seem distant.”
“I’m good,” I said. “Didn’t have a good day yesterday. Some things… whatever.”
“You sure?” Gi asked. “You can talk to us.”
“I’d love to hear all your problems, Ti,” Iris said.
“Okay, fuck her,” Gi said with a grin. “I’m always here to listen.”
“Thanks, Gi,” I said. I turned my head and looked at Iris. “Not so much you.”
Iris touched her chest. “Oh, no, my heart…”
“Your heart would look better with a screwdriver through it.”
Iris stopped chewing mid chew and stared at me.
I shrugged my shoulders. “Have to survive somehow, right?”
“Did you eat anything?” Gi asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
“I’m fine,” I said. “I’m on my way out though. I’m going to go meet up with Beth.”
“Beth?” Iris asked. “What the fuck do you want with that whore?”
“Iris is right,” Gi said. “She’s all hot air.”
“That’s an insult to hot air,” Iris said.
“You can insult hot air?” I asked.
“I don’t fucking know,” Iris said. “I’m tired.”
I laughed.
Gi laughed.
Iris made a weird face and pretended to laugh.
“She’s been driving me nuts about talking about something,” I said. “And I kind of blew her off at the party. It’s probably something stupid with Denny. I feel bad for what happened to him.”
“I don’t,” Iris said. “You don’t know the half about that guy.”
“Hate to say this, Ti, but the Rulz kind of did you big favor there,” Gi said.
“Maybe,” I said. “But at the very least I owe it to her to hear what Beth has to say. I’ll see you two bitches around.”
“Later,” Gi said.
“Mind if I go look for Claire?” Iris asked. “Want to see if Pres’s old man is eating his breakfast… if you know what I mean…”
Gi coughed. “I’m going to throw up.”
“I dare you to bust into Claire’s bedroom,” I said. “You’re afraid of a screwdriver from me?”
“True,” Iris said.
“I can’t live without my best friend,” Gi said as she reached for Iris.
They started to laugh again.
I didn’t.
I walked away.
Best friends…
I used to have those.
I used to have a lot of things.
Actually… in a really fucked up way…
I used to have a lot more when I was truly the dirty, poor girl.
* * *
Of all the places I wanted to be when there was no class… sitting on the stupid bleachers to the stupid giant stadium. The field was empty and quiet, which was a first. I always wondered if Brando and Maverick ever took a break from playing football. At the beach thing last night someone was talking about a football game between BFH and HCH. I guess that was a big deal. Especially since it wasn’t actually football season.
That part I didn’t get.
They played football games when it wasn’t football season?
Whatever.
I sat there and waited for Beth.
I waited so long I figured she was setting me up. Getting back at me for what happened at the party. Which I deserved. I messed up her night that night only because she was trying to be a good friend to me. And I was too stupid to realize it. Drunk and then drunk again on the sight and smell of Pres.
Finally, I stood up and started to walk down the bleachers.
That’s when Beth showed up.
“Sorry,” she called to me.
UNtouched: a bay falls high novel Page 20
