Anything Goes on a Friday Night

by Sara Daniell

  Bad things didn’t happen in our small town, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t.

  Anything could happen, and it was a Friday night: my own personal doomsday.

  Seventeen-year-old Elena lived a vibrant life with a great boyfriend and great friends. Little did she know that turning in her pom-poms was the least of the changes she would experience in the upcoming year. Life-changing, heart-shattering circumstances would soon cause her happy life to crumble right in front of her.

  The once fun-loving Elena retreated into herself, finding it easier to push people out than chance more heartache. Just when she figured out how to keep herself busy enough to ignore the imperfections of her life, Finn Kerr showed up with one mission: to prove that life could be more than disappointment and betrayal. Life could be fun and exciting. Life could be unexpected. Life could be forgiving.

  ANYTHING GOES ON A FRIDAY NIGHT

  Copyright © 2016 Sara Daniell

  All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher.

  This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Published by

  Opine Press

  Library of Congress Control Number:

  2016900630

  ISBN-13: 978-0692614303

  ISBN-10: 0692614303

  HOLLY NATHER SERIES

  A Life Unexpected

  Cohen’s Tale

  Daughter of a Monarch

  STAND-ALONE NOVELS

  An Unfortunate Journey

  THE RIVERBEND SERIES

  WITH J.L. HACKETT

  Collide

  Igneous

  MULTI-AUTHOR

  ANTHOLOGIES

  In Creeps The Night

  A Winter’s Romance

  To my husband…

  my best friend…

  my partner in crime.

  I love you.

  ONE DAY SHE FINALLY grasped that unexpected things were always going to happen in life. And with that she realized the only control she had was how she chose to handle them. So she made the decision to survive using courage, humor, and grace. She was the queen of her own life and the choice was hers.

  — Lupytha Hermin

  THIS WAS MY YEAR. I was grabbing it by the horns, wrestling it to the ground, and claiming victory. I was done hiding the real me behind trying to achieve the status quo. First thing to go were my pom-poms. I taped the box of cheer memorabilia shut and shoved it into the back of my closet.

  I could never jump as high as the other girls. I couldn’t cheer as loudly, and I was as clumsy as a toddler after riding a merry-go-round. I thought being a cheerleader would help me fit into this crazy little world called high school, but it didn’t. It only made me realize how horrible it felt to try to be somebody I wasn’t. My senior year was full of plans to figure out exactly who Elena Johnson was. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

  I shut my closet door and slipped on my black Toms. I gave myself one last look in the mirror to make sure my green eyeliner was smudged in the corners—just right—and left my room.

  The smell of bacon filled the hallway, and my mouth watered. Breakfast for dinner was always the best.

  “What time do you plan on being back tonight?” Mom flipped a pancake and smiled at me as I came through the kitchen door.

  “I guess that depends on what time you want me home.” I opened the fridge and got out the orange juice.

  She put her free hand on her hip and stacked the finished pancakes on a plate. “No later than 10:00.”

  I put the orange juice on the counter next to the glasses Mom had already set out. “Alrighty.” I slipped my rubber band from my wrist and pulled my long blonde hair into a messy bun.

  “Can you help me bring everything to the table?”

  “Yup!”

  I grabbed the plate of bacon and followed Mom into the dining room. We filled our plates with eggs, bacon, and a pile of pancakes. I smothered my pancakes with syrup and then handed it to Mom who did the same.

  “How do you feel about this being your first game in the bleachers instead of cheering?”

  “I’m excited. I was never that good anyway. I’m doing everyone a favor by not being on that field!” I chuckled.

  Mom laughed around a forkful of food. After chewing and taking a drink she looked at me. “You were great, Elena. Better than most of the girls out there.”

  I rolled my eyes. “You have to say that because you’re my mom.”

  “No, I say that because it’s true. You have always been hard on yourself. If you aren’t the best at something, you find something else you can do that you can be better at. You get that from your father.”

  “Speaking of Dad, shouldn’t he have called by now?”

  She looked at her watch and frowned. “Yeah. Maybe his meeting went longer than he had planned.”

  “Probably. Tell him I’ll text him during the game if he calls.”

  “I will. Are you driving tonight or is Channing?”

  “I’m driving. Channing is meeting me there, because he’s going to be late. Katie will be there when I get there, though.”

  Mom smiled knowingly. “You and Channing sure are getting serious.”

  “Yeah, he’s great. We’re doing really good. But it’s kind of scary, ya know?”

  She nodded. “I know. You become so vulnerable when you love someone.”

  “How did you know you loved Dad?”

  Her eyes turned dreamy, and her smile grew like it always did at the mention of Dad. “I just knew. You just know these things, Ellie. Deep down in your bones, you can feel it. It almost hurts.”

  “And you think I love Channing?”

  “I can’t answer that. Only you can. I know you tell him that you do.”

  I took a bite of bacon and thought about what she said. I tell him, and he tells me the same thing. I feel like what we have is love, but he’s the first guy I’ve felt this way for, so it’s hard to be sure.

  I looked at the time and saw I needed to leave if I was going to meet Katie on time. I stood with my plate in my hands and kissed Mom on top of her head. “Love you. I’ll be home at 10:00.”

  Mom looked at my plate. “Honey, you barely ate anything.”

  “I’ll take it with me and finish it on my way there. I don’t want to be late.”

  “Please, be careful, okay? And text me as soon as you get there!” She stood and hugged me tight.

  “I will. See you later!”

  SOMETHING WAS SHOVED INTO my lap, and I felt its spillage on my feet. I grabbed the bag of overflowing buttery goodness and laughed at Katie. She plopped down on the bleachers next to me, and pulled a beanie over her brown curls.

  “Thank god your name isn’t Grace,” I teased, grabbing a handful of popcorn.

  She smiled with her straw between her teeth and started drinking her blue Icee. We both turned to the field when the people in the stands jumped to their feet. She stood and waved the blue and white pom-pom in her left hand to accentuate her cheers. I stood and smiled at the field. The guys were playing great this year.

  The cries of victory calmed down, and everyone sat, intently staring and waiting for another touchdown. I looked over at Katie who had her eyes glued to number 27, her twin brother Ben.

  “I swear, if he doesn’t pay attention, he’s going to get himself hurt! Again!” she shrieke
d. She set her Icee down to bite her nails but huffed when she saw she had already bitten them down. “He just recovered from his last injury! The coach allowed him back too soon.”

  “Calm down. He’ll be fine.”

  My phone vibrated in my back pocket.

  Dad: I got your text earlier. Sorry I didn’t respond sooner. It’s been a bad night.

  Me: How so?

  Dad: It just has.

  Me: Vague much?

  Dad: Gotta go, Elena.

  Me: See you Sunday?

  No response.

  I scrunched my nose as I stared down at my phone. Several seconds passed and there was still no reply from Dad. Weird. Dad never blew me off like that. I was just about to put my phone back into my pocket when it vibrated in my hand. I was hopeful it was Dad, but it was Channing.

  Shit!

  I completely forgot to meet him!

  Channing: Where are you? I thought you were meeting me at the entrance.

  Me: OMG, Channing! I forgot!

  I looked at the time and saw it was 8:00. I was supposed to meet him fifteen minutes ago. I stood and looked at Katie.

  “I gotta meet Channing, and then we’ll find our way back here.”

  “Or you two will get lost,” she said, winking at me.

  I rolled my eyes. “I’ll be right back.”

  I frowned when I saw Channing standing with his friends. He smiled when he saw me. He came over, his friends in tow. “You look pissed. What’s up?”

  I shook my head and forced a smile. “I’m fine.”

  Honestly, I thought it was going to be just us tonight after the game. But once his friends were around, that never happened. We’d end up at a party, and Channing would get way too drunk. I’d end up going home, and he’d crash God-knows-where. I might or might not hear from him the rest of the weekend depending on the severity of his hangover. But who was I to tell his friends to hit the road?

  “I miss seeing you shake your ass out there on the field, Elena,” Jake said with a smug grin.

  Sleazy comments—Jake’s specialty. Reason number 1,034,999 I hated being around his jerk-face friends. I didn’t answer. Channing took my hand as I led them to where Katie and I were sitting. Channing sat between Katie and me. Jake tried his hardest to flirt with Katie who wouldn’t give him the time of day. I laughed.

  “Would you shut up? Seriously!” Katie squealed. “I’m trying to watch my brother out there! God, Jake! You’re disgusting.” She slapped his hand away from her thigh.

  Channing smiled around the straw as he took a drink of my Icee. He handed it back to me and looked over his shoulder at Jake who was still messing with Katie. “You might want to cool it. Ben will kick your ass.”

  Jake winked at Katie when she glared at him. “You’re sexy when you’re angry,” he teased her some more.

  Katie stood in all her rage and kicked Jake in the shin. “I swear, you’re like a damn two-year-old! I’m going to watch the rest of the game in peace!” She stomped off down the stairs.

  I turned to look at Jake. “Happy, asshole?”

  He shrugged and grabbed the drink she left behind to finish it off.

  WE LOST BY TWO points. It wouldn’t have been bad if it weren’t for our rival town, Kerrville. The two towns were separated by 20 miles and a whole hell of a lot of hate. You didn’t dare wear red and black in my town, and you’d better not cross the border wearing any shade of blue.

  The forecast for fights and vandalism was 100% tonight. Cops would be spreading as fast as rumors, guarding the border at the Welcome to Kerrville sign. Maybe that’d keep Channing from rushing off to party with his friends. Ha! Yeah right. Who was I kidding? That’d make him want to go more.

  I leaned against my car, waiting for Channing to ask me to go to a party with him.

  Here it comes.

  That cocky grin.

  The pleading kiss down my jawline…

  “So, there’s—” I put my finger to Channing’s lips. He chuckled and tried to bite the tip of it, but I moved it before he could. “Come on, Ellie? It’ll be fun.”

  “For who?”

  He shrugged and looked over his shoulder at his buddies waiting in their truck.

  “Come on, Channing! Leave her here if she doesn’t want to go!” Jake lit a cigarette proudly. He thought he was the shit because he was the first of all of us to turn eighteen, and he could buy them legally now.

  I glowered at Jake before looking at Channing. “Go. Have fun. I’ll be fine. I need to study anyway.” I really wanted to punch Jake in the face, but instead I focused on Channing’s full lips. I kissed him to distract my mouth from cursing Jake and giving him fuel to be an even bigger douche bag.

  He gave me another quick kiss and whispered, “I love you, Elena,” in my ear. “I’ll text you tomorrow! Maybe we can even go see a movie or something.”

  “Sounds good! Now, go have fun.” My laugh was fake, but he was too caught up in his pre-drunk excitement to notice.

  “I love you, ya know that?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. And if Katie shows up, please keep Jake away from her.”

  “I will. I promise.”

  I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “Love you, Channing.”

  “Love you, too.” He kissed me and then headed to the truck.

  I got in my car and watched the dust cloud fill the air as they sped out of the gravel. I put my head to the steering wheel and sighed loudly. I loved him so much it hurt—just like mom said. Normally, I’d go to the party with him. I’d drink. I’d even get drunk sometimes. But tonight, I just wasn’t feeling it, and I was proud of myself for saying no—something status quo Elena struggled with.

  I called Dad on my way home to grill him for answers as to why he was being so weird tonight.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, Dad.”

  “Are you driving? You better not be driving and talking on your cell phone! You know how I feel about that!”

  I laughed. “Calm down, Daddy! I’m driving, but I’m almost home.”

  “Most wrecks happen close to home. Call me back when you get there.”

  “No. I’m literally turning into our neighborhood now.” I flipped the blinker and turned onto my road. “What’s your deal tonight? Is everything okay?”

  He paused. “I don’t know. Just a bad week. I miss you.”

  “Miss you too. But I’ll see you Sunday! Do we have any plans?”

  “No plans.”

  I pulled into the driveway and parked behind Mom’s red Mustang. “Okay, so are we just gonna have one of our lazy days where we watch Netflix and pig out on junk? If so, I’m totally down for that. We haven’t done that in a while, and if you ask me, those are my favorite kind of days.”

  Dad didn’t say anything. All I could hear was his breathing.

  “Dad?”

  “Huh?” He sounded like he had forgotten he was on the phone.

  “We were talking about Sunday.”

  “Oh. Yeah. I don’t know. Hey, ummm, I gotta go.”

  “Okay, I’ll—”

  He hung up before I could finish.

  He. Hung. Up.

  On me.

  I got out of my car, trying not to be upset by my dad’s behavior. He was never like this. When we had conversations he always gave me every bit of his attention. We’d talk for hours some nights.

  I went inside and set my phone on the nightstand next to my bed. I stared at it, contemplating whether I should call him back but decided against it. Instead, I got ready for bed and told myself I’d talk to him again tomorrow.

  I COULDN’T BREATHE I WAS laughing so hard. Channing had me pinned to the couch and was tickling me. “S-ss-top!” I barely got the word out.

  Our laughter filled his small living room. Finally, he stopped and leaned down to kiss my nose. I put my hand to my chest, trying to catch my breath, still laughing a little.

  “My mom will be home from work soon. I promised her I would do the dishes.” He move
d so he was sitting by my feet, pulled them into his lap, and started rubbing them.

  “I can help you do them. And are you sure she’s not gonna be mad I’m here?”

  “No, she loves you. You’re always welcome here, Ellie.”

  I smiled. “Okay.”

  We went into the kitchen, and I frowned at the sink and counter littered with dirty plates, cups, and baking dishes. I scratched the top of my head and looked at Channing. “Do you people ever do dishes?”

  He laughed and rolled up his sleeves. “When we have no more left.”

  “My parents would freak. As soon as we finish using one, we have to put it in the dishwasher.”

  He turned on the faucet and kept his hand under the water until it got hot. “My mom doesn’t care.”

  “Apparently.” I laughed, and so did he.

  I bent over to put the detergent in the dishwasher, and when I stood, Channing’s arms wrapped around from behind me. The warmth of his lips against my neck made me melt against him, and goosebumps appeared in multitudes. I smiled and closed my eyes.

  “We should watch a movie,” he whispered.

  We quickly put a safe distance between us when we heard the front door open.

  “Channing? You two better be behaving. I don’t want any grandkids just yet.”

  I stifled a laugh and felt my cheeks get warm. Channing smiled and kissed my forehead. We walked into the living room, and his mom smiled at us.

  “What were you two doing?”

  “Dishes.” I smiled.

  “Thank God. They were about to take over and kick us out of our own home. You two hungry? I was thinking about ordering a pizza tonight.”

  We both nodded.

  “We’re gonna go watch a movie in my room.” Channing laced his fingers with mine.

  “And the door stays open. I’m serious, Channing.” She looked at me. “Ellie?”