eyes, searching deep within me for the strength to face him. And when I opened them, my heart shattered at the look on his face.
Nic was crushed.
SEVEN: Nic
I ’m losing her.
Beer bottles toppled from the hood of the Porsche as I reached out, searching for one that wasn’t empty. Stupid frat guys and their stupid parties. And where in the hell was Steve? It was his idea to come to the party. He drank all my beer. I know he did.
Through bleary eyes, I scanned the crowd for Steve and Kristie. Music boomed from the party at the frat house. Everywhere I looked there were cheerful faces, all laughing and having a good time. I didn’t want to be here. I shouldn’t have given in. I should’ve insisted Mandi let me stay with her and help her watch over Miguelito and Selina when she said she couldn’t make it because her father had picked up an extra shift at the factory and her mother was doing some office cleaning at night.
But with Kristie batting her eyes, pleading that I go, and with Steve doing the same, I caved.
Finally, I found a half-filled bottle. Was this mine? I couldn’t remember. I shrugged, quickly emptying its contents, desperate to numb the painful knowledge that I was, in fact, an idiot.
I was losing Mandi, and it was all my fault.
The moment I’d seen her with Julian at the park, it was like a hammer had slammed into my chest. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. Everything I had worked for, everything that made sense in my life was suddenly failing apart right in front of me. And all I could do was smile as Mandi walked up to me with a guilty expression on her face. She’d given me some excuse about talking to Julian about Juan.
And what did I do?
I had brushed it off, ignoring the way her hand touched his cheek and how much I wanted to rip that smug expression off Julian’s face. I pretended that I didn’t see how she gazed into his eyes and how much I wanted to ask her why she didn’t look at me like that anymore. Instead, I asked if she had remembered to bring the guacamole.
Guacamole!
I heard a familiar laugh and saw Steve getting into a car with a couple of other guys. He waved at me, looking way too happy.
“Where’s Kristie?” I yelled out to him.
“I don’t know. She’s around here somewhere. Don’t wait up!” he said before he took off.
I checked my watch. A few more minutes and I was going to hunt Kristie down and take her home. This place was a mess.
A guy with fake dreadlocks and a rainbow colored knitted hat stumbled, landing on me.
“Hey, man. Got a light?” Foul breath washed over my face.
“No.” I shoved him off of me. “Check inside, man.”
“Right. I’ll see you in there.” He winked and staggered up the steps to the frat house.
Okay, time’s up. I need to get out of here.
“Kristie!” I stumbled across the lawn toward a loud crowd of frat guys. They were in a circle, yelling at something they were watching. Knowing my luck, Kristie was probably in the middle of it.
I elbowed my way to the center. There were a couple of guys with water hoses, soaking down the grass, which was now a mud pit. The crowd hooted and hollered at a couple of girls wrestling in the mud, wearing nothing but thongs.
Relieved that it wasn’t Kristie, I made my way out of the crowd, my mind still on Mandi.
We didn’t talk about what had happened with Julian. I didn’t want to know, and I convinced myself that I must have seen things wrong at the picnic. But deep inside, I knew something was wrong.
Rehearsals were different now. Now I saw everything that I’d missed all these months. My heart slammed into my chest when I remembered each time they touched, how his arms wrapped around her, how his leg slid between hers as their hips moved together to the Latin beat, and how his lips would come dangerously close to hers.
I whirled around, throwing my bottle at a tree. It smashed, sending shards of glass flying through the air.
I had let him get close to her. I
Nic was crushed.
SEVEN: Nic
I ’m losing her.
Beer bottles toppled from the hood of the Porsche as I reached out, searching for one that wasn’t empty. Stupid frat guys and their stupid parties. And where in the hell was Steve? It was his idea to come to the party. He drank all my beer. I know he did.
Through bleary eyes, I scanned the crowd for Steve and Kristie. Music boomed from the party at the frat house. Everywhere I looked there were cheerful faces, all laughing and having a good time. I didn’t want to be here. I shouldn’t have given in. I should’ve insisted Mandi let me stay with her and help her watch over Miguelito and Selina when she said she couldn’t make it because her father had picked up an extra shift at the factory and her mother was doing some office cleaning at night.
But with Kristie batting her eyes, pleading that I go, and with Steve doing the same, I caved.
Finally, I found a half-filled bottle. Was this mine? I couldn’t remember. I shrugged, quickly emptying its contents, desperate to numb the painful knowledge that I was, in fact, an idiot.
I was losing Mandi, and it was all my fault.
The moment I’d seen her with Julian at the park, it was like a hammer had slammed into my chest. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. Everything I had worked for, everything that made sense in my life was suddenly failing apart right in front of me. And all I could do was smile as Mandi walked up to me with a guilty expression on her face. She’d given me some excuse about talking to Julian about Juan.
And what did I do?
I had brushed it off, ignoring the way her hand touched his cheek and how much I wanted to rip that smug expression off Julian’s face. I pretended that I didn’t see how she gazed into his eyes and how much I wanted to ask her why she didn’t look at me like that anymore. Instead, I asked if she had remembered to bring the guacamole.
Guacamole!
I heard a familiar laugh and saw Steve getting into a car with a couple of other guys. He waved at me, looking way too happy.
“Where’s Kristie?” I yelled out to him.
“I don’t know. She’s around here somewhere. Don’t wait up!” he said before he took off.
I checked my watch. A few more minutes and I was going to hunt Kristie down and take her home. This place was a mess.
A guy with fake dreadlocks and a rainbow colored knitted hat stumbled, landing on me.
“Hey, man. Got a light?” Foul breath washed over my face.
“No.” I shoved him off of me. “Check inside, man.”
“Right. I’ll see you in there.” He winked and staggered up the steps to the frat house.
Okay, time’s up. I need to get out of here.
“Kristie!” I stumbled across the lawn toward a loud crowd of frat guys. They were in a circle, yelling at something they were watching. Knowing my luck, Kristie was probably in the middle of it.
I elbowed my way to the center. There were a couple of guys with water hoses, soaking down the grass, which was now a mud pit. The crowd hooted and hollered at a couple of girls wrestling in the mud, wearing nothing but thongs.
Relieved that it wasn’t Kristie, I made my way out of the crowd, my mind still on Mandi.
We didn’t talk about what had happened with Julian. I didn’t want to know, and I convinced myself that I must have seen things wrong at the picnic. But deep inside, I knew something was wrong.
Rehearsals were different now. Now I saw everything that I’d missed all these months. My heart slammed into my chest when I remembered each time they touched, how his arms wrapped around her, how his leg slid between hers as their hips moved together to the Latin beat, and how his lips would come dangerously close to hers.
I whirled around, throwing my bottle at a tree. It smashed, sending shards of glass flying through the air.
I had let him get close to her. I
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