Double Threats Forever (Double Threat Series)

by Prestsater, Julie

  I make a beeline for the freshmen, and chatter picks up between them as I get closer.

  “Hey, girls.”

  Chapter 2

  “Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry,” the lovesick girl says. She’s a lot prettier up close. Her eyes are a light shade of brown, and her lashes are so sickeningly long and thick she could do a cosmetic commercial and not have to wear fake ones. They make me want to pluck them out and glue them to my own eyelids.

  “For what?” I take a sip of my drink, a beer I snagged off the counter on my way over.

  “I didn’t mean to stare at your boyfriend.” My boyfriend? It takes a second for me to realize she thinks Josh is my guy. “He’s just really cute. And I love watching him play baseball. He’s like my own high school version of Andre Ethier.”

  “Who’s that?”

  She grimaces like I’ve offended her in some way. “Only like the hottest right fielder in major league baseball.”

  “Oh, okay. Sorry. So, what grade are you in?” And how does she know he plays ball? The season hasn’t started yet.

  She scrunches her face, seemingly embarrassed to say. And it’s cute. I just want to pick her up and put her in my pocket. “We’re going to be freshmen this year.” Her friends nod repeatedly, smiles plastered to their faces.

  “So when did you see him play?”

  “Oh, we went to all the home games for the last two years. Shayna’s been obsessed with him from the first time she saw him pitch a no-hitter. Our parents wouldn’t let us go to football games because they’re at night, but baseball games are played after school. So we’d go and hang out at the field,” the other girl explains.

  “So you’re Shayna?” I hold out my hand, and she takes it. I gesture at the other two. “And you are?” They tell me their names are Sophie and Sasha. “Cute.”

  “What’s cute?” Shayna asks.

  “Your names. They all start with S.” I take a long pull of my beer. “So you have a thing for Josh? Wanna meet him?”

  Her eyes bug out of her head like a sci-fi character, and her cheeks flush even more so than Andi’s do all the time. “That would be weird, don’t you think?”

  “Well, you are in his house. How weird could it be? I can’t believe your parents won’t let you go to a football game, but they’ll let you go to a party at a guy’s house without any supervision.”

  Sasha puts her hands up. “What they don’t know won’t hurt them.” I like these girls. They’re the younger versions of me, Keesh, and Steph.

  I scan the house looking for my hot baseball throwing friend. Thinking of Josh as hot makes me laugh inside. If this girl only knew what a dork he is … she probably wouldn’t care. She’d eat it up. And that’s just what he needs.

  The goober is sucking down Jell-O shots with Eric and Travis. He’s playing around. Tonguing the clear plastic, licking around the rim and jutting it in and out of the cup. Sicko. Maybe I should just tell Shayna and her friends to run. I look over at her and notice she’s gazing in his direction with stars in her eyes. She’s a goner. No amount of warning from me will help.

  “Joshie!” I yell. He looks over at the sound of his name and I wave him over. Like a little kid, he bounces our way.

  “What’s up, baby cakes?” Oh goodness. He’s really tore the eff up. “Just kidding, Megster. Stop giving me the evil eye.” Never mind. He’s good.

  “Whatever, dork. I want you to meet my new friends.” His eyebrows arch and a smile spreads across his mouth as his eyes take in the three girls. His gaze fixates on Shayna as I introduce them. “Shay is a fan of yours. She even saw that game freshmen year when you kicked ass.”

  “The no-hitter?” He’s definitely interested.

  She nods, smiling from ear to ear. She’s obviously incapable of speech at the moment. Reminds me of someone I know. Alex still gets me tongue tied to this very day.

  “Yeah, she’s a total baseball fan. You two chat. I’m gonna go dance with Sasha and Sophie.”

  I drop my brew in a trash can on our way out of the house. “Let’s dance, girls.” They look at me like I’m crazy, but start to bust a move anyway. I position myself so I can see Josh and Shayna through a window. He already has her laughing. She’s cracking up so much she’s actually wiping her eyes. Yay. There’s my good deed for the year.

  Eric, my ex-boyfriend slash friend dances his way towards us. Another guy from our ASB class follows. I give him a nod in the girls’ direction and try my best at a wink. He smiles taking my hint. Cool. That’s two good deeds. I’m on a roll.

  I’m done drinking so I dip my hand in a cooler full of ice and dig out a bottle of water. Then, I go into the garage to hide from the party goers. I find Andi and Keesh watching a movie. Travis, Steph, and Dom are right behind me.

  “Hiding out in here, girls?” I ask.

  “Yeah, I’m just not feelin’ it tonight,” Keesh says, kicking off her shoes and tucking her feet underneath her.

  “Me either. I tried the whole ‘fake it to make it’ thing when we got here. But that didn’t last long.” I sigh, relaxing into the soft cushy sofa.

  “There’s not much eye candy out there either. It might not have been so bad if we could gawk at some hot guys,” Keesh tells us.

  “We’ve know these guys too long for them to be hot anymore.” I sigh as I sink lower into the sofa. “Except for Colin. I never get tired of looking at him. If I was looking, I might shake my ass his way.”

  “It wouldn’t do anything for him,” Travis says through a chuckle. “There’s a reason they call him Dead Meat.”

  “What a nickname. Why?” I ask. Keesh laughs, and so does Steph. I throw up my hands. “Did I miss something?”

  “That guy has been smoking weed for so long his wang has no twang in it anymore.”

  I narrow my eyes at Trav. “Excuse me?”

  “His helmet head is at first and goal and he can’t make a touchdown.”

  “Huh?” I’m confused.

  Andi smacks her hand against her forehead. “Dude, and you guys think I’m the innocent one. Meggie, the guy can’t keep it up. His pecker is like a wet noodle when it should be hard as a rock.”

  “Oh.” My eyes widen. “And why do we all know this?”

  “Thelma,” Travis adds, like the answer is an obvious one. “If the school’s go-to sexpert can’t get the dude to the finish line, then you know he’s hit one too many bongs. She actually gave him the nickname.”

  “Dead Meat?” I ask for confirmation.

  “Yes,” he says. “I don’t know about you, Dom, but if I knew smoking the ganja was going to make my dick defective, I’d quit that shit in an instant. No questions asked. I like my boners too much.”

  Dom squirms next to Steph, grabbing his crotch. “I’m with you, bro.”

  “All righty then,” Steph says, obviously ready to change the direction of our conversation. “I know Ben didn’t go to all of our parties, but it just seems weird without him.”

  It’s quiet for a while as we all consider it. My nose starts to tingle. I try to fight the tears pooling in my eyes. I can understand what Steph is saying. It sure feels weird to me too. It’s one thing to lose Alex to college for the last two years, but it’s a whole other thing to lose one of my best friends to the military. I still can’t believe he’s gone. I can’t call him whenever I need him. I can’t text. I can’t see him. It sucks.

  “Hey,” Dom says, running his hand up and down Steph’s arm. I wish I had someone to comfort me. “Once he gets settled, he’ll be able to make a call. Maybe on Sundays, but don’t forget those will probably be to call his mom. When he can, he’ll write. Be patient.”

  He has a point. But it’s just not the same. “I wish I was a dude. You guys don’t get all sappy about stuff like this,” I tell them.

  “I think it blows that he’s gone. We’ve been friends for a long time. But I totally get why he did it. I’m happy for him.” Dom takes a deep breath and lets out a long sigh. Maybe he’s more affected than I t
hought he was.

  “But not so happy that you’d join too, right?” Steph asks, lifting her head to look at him.

  “No, babe. You’re stuck with me. I’m not going anywhere.”

  Travis groans, and then says. “How about we all stop acting like little bitches and go have fun. Ben wouldn’t want us sitting around mourning his absence like he’s dead. He’s not. He’s off training to fight for our freedom. The least we can do is get trashed, dance till we’re sweating like pigs, and wake up with a massive hangover.”

  “Some of us have to drive,” Dom says.

  “Fuck it. We’ll all call our parents and tell them we’re staying the night here.”

  Steph shakes her head. “My dad won’t go for that.”

  “Mine won’t either,” Andi chimes in.

  Travis raises a brow. “Then lie. We’re all staying.”

  Before I can open my eyes, I already know today is going to be a long one. It feels like someone crapped in my mouth. My tongue feels hairy and the inside of my cheeks feels like dirt. What the hell were we thinking? I can’t go home like this. Scratch that. I can’t even get up.

  Slowly, my eyelids peel apart allowing the sun coming through the blinds to burn my eyes. Where in the hell am I? I’m lying on my back squinting at the ceiling trying to orient myself. There’s a Tecate light fixture I recognize. Okay. I’m in the garage. After closing my eyes again to keep the swirling in my head to a minimum, I roll to my side to fight the nausea. When I reopen them, I’m face to face with Eric. Son of a bitch. Seriously?

  There’s a blanket on us. I lift it and have never been so happy to see that I slept in my clothes in my entire life. I touch my lips. They don’t feel swollen from kissing. I touch my girl parts over the denim material. Feels intact. Not like anything got put where it wasn’t supposed to be. I’d know if something ventured down there, wouldn’t I?

  Oh shit.

  Eric’s eyes pop open. I think I’m going to throw up.

  “It’s okay,” he blurts. He must sense my unease.

  “Don’t say another word.”

  “Nothing happened, I promise.”

  “Then why did we sleep together under the same blanket?” I ask, tugging at the covers.

  “Same reason Josh is on the other side of you. An open surface. Almost everyone stayed the night. This party is going down in the books as the best Carver party ever thrown.”

  I flip over onto my back. Josh turns also, throwing a leg and an arm over me. Perfect. The weight of his arm on my belly makes me want to gag but I hold it back. I can’t get up and tossing my cookies on myself or my friends just doesn’t seem right. I lift my head to get a good look around.

  Just great. I passed out on the freaking pool table in between Josh and Eric. When I glance at Josh, I notice him smiling. “You’re awake, aren’t you? Get your ass off me,” I tell him. He cuddles closer. If he wasn’t such a goof, I’d kill him.

  He starts shaking with laughter. “Look who’s pimp now, Meggie. You’re the center of a stud sandwich.”

  I push his leg off of me, but snuggle into him with his left arm tucked under my head. “Some party, huh.” My head is starting to settle, thank god.

  “Pure awesome.”

  “That little freshman was all up on you,” Eric says.

  I roll my eyes. “She was not all up on anything. She does like you though.”

  “I know.” I can’t see his face but I know he’s smiling like an idiot right now.

  His right arm still rests across my body and I notice black ink scrawled across it. I lift his arm to get a better look. “Cool. You got her number. You gonna use it?”

  “Hell yeah. She’s my fan.” He reaches over and bumps fists with Eric.

  I smack both their hands. “Don’t be a dumbass. Be nice to her.”

  “Hey, you either have a B.O.B. in your pocket or your phone is vibrating,” Josh says.

  He’s right. It’s my phone. Oh god. It’s Alex. And it’s Skype. Really? Video chatting right now while I’m the meat in the middle of two pieces of stud bread!

  I tap my phone to accept the chat.

  “Hey, babe,” he says when the call finally goes through. “Wow. Did I wake you?” I must look like hell. “Wait. Where are you? And who’s arm is that under your neck?”

  Josh peeks his head in. “Hey, babe.”

  “Josh, you gotta be kidding me. I’ll break your fucking neck, you know that right?”

  “Mine too?” Eric pops into view.

  “Megan.” Alex’s tone is flat. “What the hell is going on?”

  “Stud sandwich.” Eric squishes his face close to mine, and Josh does the same.

  “You guys are dumbasses.” I push them both away. “Hi, Alex.” I smile the best I can, although my nausea is coming back. “We all got shit-faced in honor of Ben last night and crashed here at Josh’s.”

  “Is that the pool table?”

  “Yeah. Can you believe it?”

  “Must have been some party.”

  “It was,” Josh and Eric chime in.

  “Do I need to break your legs?” Alex asks.

  “I’m assuming you’re talking to them,” I say, trying to crack a joke.

  “No need, bro,” Josh says. “You know I got you. Ben told me to take care of her so her virtue is safe with me. As long as I’m around, consider her pink taco stand closed for business.”

  To that, Alex busts up laughing.

  “Would you guys shut the front door already? I’m trying to sleep so I don’t throw up.” Steph’s voice is coming from the other side of the room.

  “Hey, let me get up and get the hell out of here. I’ll call you when I get home.”

  He’s still laughing his ass off as he says goodbye.

  Chapter 3

  There’s a pounding at my door that startles me from my slumber and then it flies open. “Wake up, lazy ass! You can’t be late for school your senior year.”

  It’s Steph, Keesha, and Andi. I reach over to my nightstand, pawing the surface for my cell phone. It’s only five thirty in the morning.

  “Are you guys crazy? I’m not gonna be late. I set three different alarms and told my mom and my dad to make sure I didn’t oversleep.” After sleeping in on the first day since I started high school, I didn’t want to take any chances. Freshman year, I thought I was going to die running into class with wet hair, huffing and puffing till my lungs burned. I was up almost the entire night worried I’d do it again.

  Keesh puts her hand on her hip. “We wanted to make sure. Can’t have you dragging ass when it’s our turn to rule the school.” She sings the last part like she’s one of the Pink Ladies in Grease.

  “Yeah, and we thought we’d kidnap you. The boys are gonna be here in a bit and we’re all going to breakfast before school.” Steph is overly excited, I can tell by her bright eyes and the wiggling of her booty like a dog wagging its tail.

  I sit up and sweep my fingers back and forth over my eyes, gathering the strength to pull my tired butt out of bed.

  Andi, who’s been quiet until her phone rings, says, “Dude, hurry up. They’ll be here in a half hour.”

  Great. I’m awake. On time. But I only get thirty minutes to get ready. It’s wet hair for me again.

  Then, I inspect my friends. They spent a lot more time in front of the mirror than they’re giving me. Keesh’s dark smooth skin has hints of sparkle from her mineral powder. Her rose colored lip gloss has a perfect shine. And her outfit. Wow. The girl is hot. I want curves like hers.

  Steph has a different set of curves. But she’s still beautiful. She’s wearing a turquoise sundress and her boobs display a subtle hint of cleavage peeking over the top. Her shoulders are covered with a dark denim jacket. Very stylish. She looks like she belongs on a runway with her cute outfit, long dark curls, and smoky eyes.

  Tossing my blankets off of me, I stand and glance over at Andi. She’s smiling at her phone as she taps away on the screen. I’m not sure what her natural ha
ir color is but today it’s bleach blond. She has it pulled into a high spiky pony tail. The underside of her pony is bright orange. It sounds crazy, but it’s totally cute on her. She’s sporting an official school tank top, jean shorts, and orange Converse with black laces. Only, Andi would wear school colors on the first day.

  “Tell them forty five,” I say as I grab my clothes and head to the bathroom for a quick shower. If these bitches get to look good, so do I.

  There’s a definite feeling of confidence as we pile out of Josh’s truck. The boy was lucky to inherit it when his dad decided to purchase a monster truck that has all of our dad’s drooling. It looks like a beast to me, but I heard my dad telling my mom that he wanted one just like it. My mom said she thought old guys got sports cars during a mid-life crisis, not big trucks.

  I’m just glad Josh’s ride is big enough for all six of us to fit in. For the drive to school anyway. Josh has baseball practice after school, so we’ll be hoofing it home. I don’t mind at all. We could bum a ride with anyone, but I enjoy the walk.

  We take a quick look at the printed schedules taped to one of the buildings to make sure our classes haven’t changed. We’re all clear. Andi and Josh have English together, and the rest of us are on our way to Math.

  “Thanks for breakfast, guys,” I tell them all before we part ways. “It was a cool surprise.” We went to Denny’s, of course. My belly is stuffed with eggs, bacon, and toast. Now, I need a nap. Not math. But hey, at least I’m not late.

  We’re hanging out in front of our first class when I get a text.

  Have fun on ur last 1st day of HS. Kick ass baby!

  I send Alex a quick reply thanking him just as the first bell rings and we shuffle into class.

  Travis bumps fists with Eric on the way in. Eric hugs me, Steph, and Keesh before we all take a seat in the back corner of the room.

  “Hey, check it out,” Keesh says, nodding toward the front of the class.

  “Oh hell,” I blurt out. Amy whips her head around and scowls at me. I roll my eyes, mouthing the words, “Bite me,” to her. She raises a brow with a smirk. After what she went through last year—after what I went through with her last year—you’d think she’d be less bitchy. But no. She’s still the same old Amy—catty and heartless. Sometimes, I think she’d like to be my friend again so she’d have someone to talk to about her abortion—the one she asked me to go with her to. But who would believe that we’re talking again after she screwed Eric when he and I were together, without an explanation? That’s basic best friend’s code of conduct. Or like one of the commandments. Thou shall not screw my best friend’s boyfriend. Right?