Love's Not A Competition

We changed into our last costumes and showed the boys. First Brittney came out as Rangiku from Bleach in a black kimono that showed most of Brittney’s chest off. She had a chain necklace the disappeared down her cleavage and a pink scarf. She had a red fake sword tucked into her belt. Katie came out as a playboy bunny. She was wearing bunny ears and a pink leotard with a fluffy tail on the back. She was also wearing stilettos that made her legs look longer. I was dressed as a sailor. The white dress had an anchor embroidered on the chest and a blue collar. The dress barely covered my butt and I tipped the hat at the boys.

“So what do you think?” we all asked.
“You can be honest with us,” Katie said batting her eye lashes and showing off her cleavage.
“Well, you all look very hot,” Eric spurted out.
“What are you supposed to be, Brittney?” Zeke wondered.
“She’s Rangiku from Bleach. You didn’t know that?” Aidan asked.
“No, was I supposed to know that?”
“Yes,” Aidan and Brittney said at the same time.
We girls sat down and it was the boys turn to try on their costumes. They all came out in wearing a purple bathrobe with slippers and a pipe in their mouth.
“Who are you meant to be?” Brittney asked.
“Hugh Heffner,” they all grinned.
“Well Zeke looks good being Hugh Heffner because of what he does with the playboy
bunnies.” Katie laughed and kissed Zeke on the cheek.

They all went back into the changing rooms to try on their final costumes. Eric came out first wearing a soccer uniform. Aidan came out wearing the weirdest costume I had ever seen.
“It’s Urahara!” Brittney screamed.
“Who’s that?” asked Katie.
“It’s Urahara from Bleach. Duh, didn’t you guys know that?”
“Ah, no,” we mumbled.

Then Zeke came out and Katie and mine’s mouths dropped open. Katie turned to look at me and I quickly shut my mouth and looked away. He was wearing a police costume with a blue shirt and black pants. The front of his shirt was unbuttoned, showing off his abs.

“Has somebody been naughty?” he asked.
“Stop being stupid,” I said, still not letting myself look at him.

After we changed out of our costumes Eric went to go find a vending machine so I went with him. We told the others to stay by the changing rooms before we left.

“Can you get me a soda?” Brittney called after us.

I waved my hand to tell her that I had heard her and we walked out of the store and looked around the mall. We finally found a vending machine and got the drinks before heading back. When Eric and I walked into the store we couldn’t see them anywhere. We sat down outside the changing rooms and were wondering where they had gone when we heard noises coming from the changing rooms. Eric looked under the door and then stood back up.

“I think I found them,” he said.
“Please don’t tell me what I think they are doing,” I sighed.
“Oh, they’re definitely doing something in there.”
Eric opened one of the doors and I cringed away when I saw who it was. Zeke and Katie looked at us and slowly untangled themselves and searching for their mixed clothes on the changing room floor.

“Umm, hey you guys” Katie said slowly pulling down the bottom of her shirt and fixed her hair.
“Why are you guys making out in a changing room?” Eric asked.
“Brittney and Aidan started it, and it’s kind of sexy,” Zeke said.
“Whatever” I scoffed.
“If you don’t believe us then check the other changing room,” Katie said.

Eric opened the next door and found Brittney and Aidan kissing. He cleared his throat and they broke apart. Aidan grabbed his top off the floor and pulled it over his head.
“See, I told you they were in there!” Katie huffed.
“Whatever we have to get back to school so we can set up the party,” I said annoyed.

We went to the cashier and paid for the costumes and went to catch a taxi to get home. Finally after a few minutes we got a taxi but we all couldn’t fit in one taxi. So we all had to split up it to two different taxis. Brittney, Aidan and Eric went in the first taxi while Katie, Zeke and I had to wait for another one.
“See you at school,” Brittney yelled from the taxi window.
“I’ll call a taxi,” Zeke said pulling out his cell phone.

He walked a few feet away so he could hear the person on the other line and Katie and I stared awkwardly at each other. We weren’t really great friends and I had just realized that we were never really alone together except for a few brief conversations.

“So, do you like your costume?” I asked shyly.
“Yea, do you like yours? I bet a lot of guys will want to ask you out wearing that.”
“Ha, doubt it,” I laughed. “You’re lucky Zeke’s so protective of you or else boys will be flocking all over you.”

Zeke walked back over. “The taxi won’t be here for a while.”
We sat down on a bench on the sidewalk. It was quiet for a few awkward moments before Zeke coughed.
“I’m exhausted,” Katie sighed.
Her head rested against Zeke’s shoulder and he put his arm around her. I looked the other way, not wanting him to see the hurt in my expression.
“I’m tired, too,” Zeke said. “Maybe you can come over and have a quick nap in my room since Jasmine moved out.”
“Why did you move out?” Katie asked me.
“I decided that I needed to spend more quality time with Brittney,” I said, sticking to the lie.
“So do you want to have a nap in my room?” Zeke asked.
“You can use my bed if you want,” I said to Katie.
“Who said that she would be using your bed?”

I rolled my eyes and looked away from them again. When the taxi finally showed up I was relieved that I could get away from them. I sat in the front while Zeke and Katie sat in the back. The ride home was just as quiet. When we reached the school Brittney and Eric were waiting for me. When I got out of the taxi Brittney started jumping up and down with excitement.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow! The party’s going to be great but where are we having it?”
“I haven’t thought that far through yet. We could always hire out a hotel room again.”
“Good plan. Everyone had a good time with the Christmas party,” Eric said.
“Yeah, you seemed to have a good time with that girl,” Zeke said, walking over to us with Katie.

They carried on walking into the buildings and I sighed.
“You really should move on, Jasmine. He isn’t good for you and you know that Katie will eat you alive if you ever stole him from her,” Brittney said.
“I should know, I live with her,” Eric told us.

Brittney and I exchanged a look before laughing at him. We walked inside and I went to find the dorm head. I found her in her room and she smiled at me.
“What can I help you with, Jasmine?” she asked.
“I was just wondering if we could book another hotel room for the party tomorrow night,” I said.
“I do have some coupons so I guess that it would be alright.”
“You have coupons for a hotel room?” I asked skeptically.
“Yes, is that so hard to believe?”
“No, ma’am, I was just admiring your organization and smartness,” I lied quickly.
She beamed at me before standing up.
“Well, I will take care of the rest of the preparations. How about I walk you back to your dorm?”
“Ah, no that’s okay,” I said.
“I insist,” she said sternly and I knew that I couldn’t say no.

I hung my head and wished that Katie and Zeke weren’t in the room. The dorm head had no idea that I had moved into Brittney’s room because it was forbidden to move around without permission. We headed up the stairs and down the long hallway to my room. I knocked on the door and she raised her eyebrows at me.

“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I was just checking that Zeke was decent,” I said loudly so that if Zeke and Katie were in there that they would hear me.
“May I come in to speak with him? We needed to discuss his hurdle’s competition for next month.”
“Ah, I don’t think that’s a good idea. He will probably be asleep.”

She reached past me and grabbed the door handle. I grabbed the door and stopped her from opening it.

“I think that Brittney needed to talk to you about something really, really important.”
“She can wait a few minutes. Now, step aside so I can enter unless you have something to hide in there.”

I don’t have anything to hide, I thought to myself, but Zeke does. I stepped aside, giving in, and she stepped into the room before turning on the light. I heard her gasp and knew that she had found the two of them. I walked into the room behind her with my head down.