Tear Best Friends Apart

As per usual, the boys were waiting in the living room for us girls to finish getting ready so we could all go over to the party together. I adjusted the hem of my too-short dress while Marla did her last makeup check before we walked out to meet the boys. I was nervous. I had never dressed in so little, and although I never much cared what everyone thought about me, I was a bit self-conscious about what Alex might think.

Marla entered the living room ahead of me, walking over to sit on Jack’s lap, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “You boys ready?” she asked, looking at Alex the whole time.

I stood by the door, waiting for some kind of reaction. Surely Jack would disapprove of my outfit. I wasn’t disappointed. As soon as his head turned, taking in my appearance, he tried to stand up. “You’re not going out in-”

Marla cut off his protest, “Shh. Yes she is.”

“But-” She shut him up with a kiss.

I smiled and tried not to laugh at her power over him, but the smile quickly faded when I caught Alex’s eye. I hadn’t even been paying attention to his presence until now. I watched as his eyes traveled from my heel-clad feet, up my legs to my soft pink, strapless dress, and eventually to my freshly done-up face. I couldn’t hold back the smile that crept onto my lips. This was the exact reaction Marla had hoped for.

When Marla was done sucking face with my brother, everyone made their way to the door, ready to leave for the party. As I went to shut the door behind me I could hear Alex’s disbelieving voice. “You’re seriously going to let her go out like that?”

Jack glanced at me before looking at his girlfriend who simply nodded her head. “Uh, Yeah. I guess I am,” he answered unwillingly.

Marla sent me a wink as we all piled into the car. She took the passenger’s seat next to Jack, who was driving, leaving Alex and I to sit together in the back. I sat with my legs crossed, hands fiddling with the necklace that was resting against my chest, as I stared out the window. Phase one: Ignore Alex.

I thought phase one would be the simplest. He had been ignoring me for the past few weeks, so why couldn’t I ignore him for one night? But he was the only thing on my mind. I found myself wanting to look at him, to see if our plan was working. I wanted to talk to him, to act like the normal friends we were. Who knew acting was so hard.

When we got to the party Marla and I made a beeline for the kitchen. Normally I never drank at parties and if I did it wasn’t much, otherwise I would feel guilty because Jack and Alex wouldn’t have a good time, their attention focused on me. If I stayed sober they didn’t have to worry as much and could drink as much as they pleased. But tonight I wanted their attention on me. Well, Alex’s at least. I was going to let loose and have fun.

After I had fixed myself a fairly strong drink I turned my attention to the people at the party. Some were mingling around the kitchen, observing the activities around them as they held conversations with friends. Others were dancing, anywhere and everywhere, with anyone and everyone. The rest were in the backyard doing much of the same.

I recognized a majority of the kids; many of them went to my school. I noticed the looks some of them were giving me. Some unbelieving, I didn’t normally dress this way, nor would Jack let me if Marla hadn’t of distracted him. Others wore curious or determined expressions. I smiled at the new found attention; exactly what I needed to fulfill Marla’s plan.

Marla and I stood and talked while we scoped out the room, trying to find a target to make Alex jealous. Time for phase two: Pay Attention To Every Guy But Alex. We were laughing about one of the guys who had just winked over-enthusiastically at us when Alex and Jack made their way over. Jack immediately snaked an arm around Marla’s waist while Alex stood awkwardly in front of me. I didn’t acknowledge his presence but could see the glare he was sending a group of guys behind me. I smiled to myself.

“Want to dance?” Marla asked my brother, sending me a sideways glance and smile as they took their leave.

Alex excused himself, most likely to tap into the alcohol supply, leaving me alone in the crowded room. I wasn’t alone long. A guy I recognized from school, not to mention the concert Alex and I had gone to a few weeks back, approached me just moments after Alex made his exit.

“Hey. Elena, right?” At my nod he continued. “Having fun?” I nodded, sending him a sweet smile as I brought my cup to my lips once again. “You wouldn’t want to dance would you?”

I smiled even brighter. “I would love to.”

We made our way in the direction Marla and Jack had gone, finding a spot big enough for the two of us. Instantly, we began dancing to the beat. Chris placed the hand not holding a beer bottle on the small of my back, pulling me closer. This didn’t feel right in the slightest. It’s not something I normally do, dancing with random guys. But I reminded myself of my mission as I placed my free hand on Chris’ shoulder.

We danced for a while before taking a break and walking out into the backyard. The air was still cold, it was December after all, but the alcohol in my system kept me warm enough. Chris took a seat on a small rock wall that surrounded a garden as I followed, stopping just in front of him. He took my drink, setting it down beside him along with his own, before grabbing my waist and pulling me into him. I was now standing between his legs, his hands roaming from their place on my hips to my backside. Our faces were level with one another’s and I let a smile grace my features as he whispered, “I never thought I’d see the day.”

“Oh. And what day would that be?”

“The day Jack released the reigns and let his little sister run wild. I’m actually surprised he hasn’t come to kick my ass yet for dancing with you.”

I laughed genuinely. “Well, we can thank Marla for that one. She’s playing devil’s advocate tonight. Mission: Keep Jack Busy.”

“I’ll have to thank her later then,” he said quietly as he leaned in to kiss me. Our lips touched softly, the kiss remaining simple and innocent until his tongue lightly traced my bottom lip, asking for entrance. It only took me a moment, not long enough for Chris to notice, to decide what to do. Do I kiss him back; lead him on in order to make Alex jealous? Or do I stop this now before anything else happened, besides who knew if Alex was anywhere close enough to see me.

The answer was simple. I parted my lips, allowing Chris’ tongue to collide with mine as we began a battle within our mouths. He groaned loudly as he pulled me even closer. My arms found their way behind his neck, fingers tangling in the short hair at the nape of his neck.

If I were honest I’d tell you that this was my first real kiss. I’d never kissed anyone like this before. But that’s not to say that Alex was my first kiss ever, because that’s not true. I had had boyfriends before, both one’s who were brother approved and those who I dated behind his back, but every kiss was innocent, never leading to any type of heat.

Our kiss deepened to the point where we both had to pull away for air. I smiled sheepishly at the boy in front of me, hoping that he hadn’t noticed how inexperienced I was. “Damn.” His voice was rough, breath jagged.

I moved out of his grasp slightly, reaching to take his hand as I led him to the porch where a small group of kids were dancing in the moonlight. We once again joined our friends and schoolmates as we danced to the beats pouring out of the house. The latest hip-hop song blared from behind us causing the dancing to turn a bit dirty. Girls now grinded into and onto their dance partners and guys grabbed onto the closest girl, pulling her into their crotch.

I laughed at the simplicity of everyone’s thoughts as I did the same, Chris and I too, grinded into one another not leaving an inch of space between us. Our grinding became sloppier as we both became tipsier, so much so that Chris backed us both into the wall of the house, using it as support as we continued our drunken dance. As our heated dance continued, Chris hands continued to roam my body and soon we were kissing again. I didn’t mind. I too, was caught up in the moment. The alcohol in my system pushing me to do things I normally wouldn’t.

I had lost all track of time. I had no idea how long I had been dancing and kissing and then dancing and kissing again with Chris. I was having fun, letting loose. Truth-be-told, I had completely forgotten about Alex, he was no longer my every thought, until Chris was being pulled away from me. Alex stood facing me with a look of shock mixed with hurt.

“What the hell, dude,” Chris slurred to Alex, trying to move back towards me. But Alex wouldn’t let him. He now stood between Chris and I as he shoved Chris away.

“Alex,” I tried to calm him down, placing a shaking hand on his shoulder. He spun on his heel, coming face to face with me.