Vodka and Lemonade

“Um, Jimmy? Danni? Mind clueing the rest of us in?” Brian asked.

“What the fuck as all the- holy shit,” another voice said from the stairs.

I turned around and saw Zacky. A smile instantly stretched across my lips.

Zacky looked at Jimmy. “Is this legit? Or am I seeing things?”

“It’s her. All 5’5” of her.”

Zacky jumped the rest of the stairs and squeezed me, much like Jimmy had done. “Dear god, when you walked out- I thought- I thought… God, I missed you so much.”

“Zack, losing air,” I gasped.

He instantly released me from his vice-like grip, but kept an arm rapped securely around my shoulder. “Well, this calls for a celebration! Wendt, go get more booze.”

“What do you mean when she walked out?” Jimmy asked seriously.

“I mean. Um,” Zacky sputtered.

“Don’t get mad. I’m the one who left,” I said, stepping in between them.

“What the fuck is going on?!” Brian roared. I had completely forgotten about him. “Why are you two hugging my girlfriend like you know her?”

“Because we do-”

“Wait. This is the girl you’ve been hiding from us?” Zacky asked, cutting Jimmy off.

“I have not been hiding-”

“You seriously don’t recognize her?” one of the girls- the blonde one- spoke up. She crossed over to me.

I looked at her, my brows furrowed. “I know you…I think,” I stated simply, looking between her and the buffest guy. “My memory’s really fuzzy, but I think you were with him,” I added, pointing to the guy in question.

“We still are,” she said smartly. “And you’re the druggie that fucked Jimmy and Zacky up. You’re the one who walked out on them,” she added coldly.

“I never meant to hurt anyone.”

“Why’d you leave, though?” Jimmy asked, stepping in front of everyone. I couldn’t look into his eyes- he looked like a lost puppy.

“It was the only thing I could do. Now, if you’re going to keep interrogating me, then I’m leaving,” I said, turning on my heel and walking out.

I barely made it out of the front door before Brian caught me.

“What do you want?” I asked wearily.

“Are you really her? The one that Val mentioned?”

“Yes. Okay? Yes. I was the one who supplied Jimmy, and then Zacky. I’m the girl that stayed in this house- in Zacky’s bed for like a week. Yes, I fucked him. I fucked Jimmy, too…sometimes both of them at once. If you wanna dump me, then fine. We can pretend that this all never happened. The experiment failed. You couldn’t show me anything better than what I knew. You lose.” I tried to wrench my arm out of his grip, but he only held on tighter.

“How many times do I have to tell you, I don’t care about your past. If I did, then I never would have asked you in the first place.”

For some strange reason, I believed him. I think it was his eyes. There was just something so warm and comforting about them. “Okay, fine…but those girls don’t like me. That blonde made it very clear.”

“Val’s just like that. She only said those things because she wants to protect us. Think of her like a mother to all of us. She just can’t help it. And besides, do you really think that Zacky and Jimmy would let someone belittle one of their best friends who they haven’t seen in a year?”

“They really consider me their best friend?”

“Yea, Jimmy doesn’t just hug anybody like that,” Brian smiled, pulling me gently closer to him.”

“But, what if that someone is also their best friend?”

“You should know that those two are no nonsense guys.”

I thought back, remembering all the times that they tried to stick up for me. I say try because I normally beat them to the punch and punched whatever sucker was pissing me off. “Yea, I guess you’re right.”

Brian’s smile broke out into a grin. “Good. And, just so you know, they’re waiting right inside the door and will pounce on you the moment it opens.”

I smirked at him and whispered in his ear, “you think I don’t know that?”