The More Boys I Meet

“Why are we here?!” I whined to Pat as he dragged me towards a club, complete with blinding lights, deafening music, and the smell of vomit, alcohol, and sweaty people. “This brings back. . . unpleasant memories of a one night stand with my best friend!”

“Oh shut it!” he shoved me playfully. “You’ve kept me on a short leash all summer long!”

I gaped at him. “So you can’t wait one more night to whore around?!”

“And this is your goodbye party,” he added on.

“I would have been perfectly satisfied with a glass of wine and the Cubs game on the television as everyone made fun of you!”

“Yeah. . . well you get to think about the time we met instead,” he winked at me, ran his fingers through his hair and walked in, leaving me at the door.

“Please tell me you’re of age,” the bouncer eyed me.

I pulled my license out of my bra (Pat said no purse). “Barely, but I’m of age.”

He nodded. “Good. Already had one sneak in.”

My eyebrows rose. “Scrawny little kid? Floppy brown hair, looked absolutely tortured probably?”

“You must be with them. I take it you’re. . .” he searched his clipboard. “Ells?”

I hung my head. “Unfortunately.”

“VIP floor. You’ll see them obnoxiously waving at you I bet,” he grinned. “Good luck in there.”

“Thanks. Let me know if you want to switch places. I’ll just be up there revisiting my choices in life.”

He laughed and let me in and sure enough Seabs, Johnny, Viktor, Hammer, and Crow were waving obnoxiously to me from the balcony.

I got up there no problem and collapsed in a chair, next to my favorite underage Swede. “Hey there sweetheart. You’re very popular with the bouncer,” I chirped, ordering a whiskey.

His raised eyebrows said everything his mouth wasn’t.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m here aren’t I? Plus, I don’t have to get the cheap stuff here. Patty wants girls, he’s getting my bill too.”

He snorted, looking on at the guys living it up on the dance floor. “I wish we could just leave. This place is giving me a headache,” he complained, sipping from a bottled water.

“Tell me about it,” I sighed, throwing back the last of the whiskey. “No thanks,” I declined the bar tender’s offer to another drink.

“Only one?”

“You have the two Swedes to look over, but I mean I’m pretty sure Pat beats them both out.”

“Stally and Kaner could tie a slut contest,” he said after a moment.

I nearly choked on the water I was drinking. “What did you just say?!” I spluttered.

A small smirk made its way onto his face. “Don’t ever tell him I said that. We live together after all.”

“Lips are sealed,” I leaned back, reeling from the shock of his snide comment on both of our housemates. “Come on!” I jumped up, pulling him with me. “Since we’re stuck here babysitting, we might as well make the most of this. Take me dancing baby Swede,” I wiggled my eyebrows.

He looked reluctant at first, but gave in as soon as I started the pout. The more boys I met, the more they fell for that pout.

He was awkward at first, not sure what he could and could not do. I was more bold, having that whiskey flowing through my veins.

“Grind it up you two!” one of the guys, not sure who, shouted from somewhere across the floor. I shot them the finger.

“Don’t be nervous. Just let it flow,” I told him. “They’re all drunk and won’t remember any of your awkward dance moves tomorrow morning,” I promised the young player.

He loosened up after that and we were actually quite the dance pair for the next little while.

Until Pat pulled me away. “You’re not coming home tonight,” he told me, hiding behind a pillar.

“Um, why not?” I asked. “Why are we hiding? Patrick what did you do?” I glared at him, folding my arms across my chest.

“A girl. I don’t want her getting the wrong idea, so I have to distract her and hide all of your shit and shut your door.”

“Where am I going to go?!” I groaned.

“Um. . .” he looked around. “Aha!” he pulled Marcus over. “You and the little Swede can be bunk mates tonight. Hammer and Stally both have girls and are going to their apartments. You two kids can bunk at his house. Good idea Pat,” he spoke for us. “Have fun. Bye,” he said and ran back over to the puck bunny.

“You have got to be kidding me. That little slut,” I said in disbelief. I turned to the confused kid. “I am so sorry but you lost two roommates and earned a temporary one.”

“Does that mean we can leave?” he asked hopeful.

“Yes.”

“Then I don’t give a shit,” he said simply, guiding me to the door.

“Let’s blow this popsicle stand!” I shouted as we hit fresh air. I turned around and saw an angry look Johnny Two Toes at the door. “Hurry before they drag us back!” I cried and we ran to his car and jumped in, both laughing.

We drove back in silence and once we got back to the Swede household as I was calling it, I made a beeline for Viktor’s room.

“Where are you going? Do you know how many germs must be on that bed?” he shouted casually.

I backed up. “You ruined my life,” I told him with a straight face.

He threw a tee shirt and a pair of shorts at me. “You can sleep in my bed. I promise there’s nothing questionable about it,” he chose his words carefully.

“I am so not taking your bed from you!” I told him, walking into the bathroom to change.

“Whoa!” he shouted, backing away. “Do you ever shut doors?” he asked.

I snickered, pulling the shirt over my head, already in the shorts he lent me for the night. “Aw, don’t be so innocent. I’m sure you’ve seen a half naked woman before,” I said as I passed him. “I’ll sleep on your floor,” I declared.

He snapped out of his trance and narrowed his eyes at me. “No. You can sleep in my bed tonight.”

“No,” I told him, poking him in the chest. “I am merely a humble guest satisfied for not having to go home tonight to my slut of a BFF and his new BFF.”

“Scared you might be replaced?” he asked, taking off his shirt and digging around in his dresser for another.

“Do you ever shut doors?” I mimicked, bouncing on his bed.

“You act like you’ve never seen a naked man before. And I know for a fact you’ve seen Kaner naked. Which is quite disturbing actually,” he crinkled his nose.

I laughed. “Drunk, he was cute at the time, I had finally gotten out after being locked up for midterms. Weird choices.”

“So I’m going to guess you didn’t get out much before you met us?” he asked walking into the bathroom to brush his teeth and change into shorts.

I laughed. “I crammed so many credits into my first two years, I didn’t even know what the term “social life” meant. I literally studied, wrote papers, went to class, sometimes ate and watched a few hockey games. Usually listened to them.”

He came back out in only shorts, throwing the shirt on his dresser. I wasn’t going to complain or even say a word. Definitely not risking that sort of body for a snide comment. “Well I guess that phase of your life is over?” he asked, grabbing two pillow and setting them on the floor.

“Nah. I’m taking another eighteen credits again this year.”

“Wow.”

“And I have a job.”

“When did you get a job?”

“I had to go back up there to finalize some class schedules last week and I went for a few job interviews as well. Coffee shop right around the corner from my dorm.”

“You’re crazy,” he said, laying down on the floor. “You know what? I never asked you before. What are you studying?”

I laughed. “Secondary education with an emphasis on English. Minors in Spanish and Psychology.”

“Wow,” he said again. “You’ll have options,” he told me. “You chose wisely.”

“I thought so. I like the idea of teaching.”

“It suits you,” he agreed.

“So when are you going to give up your pride and come fight me for the bed?” I asked, leaning over the bed.

He smiled. “I’m not fighting you for the bed Ellie.”

“Well good. Cause you won’t have to. We can share. Get your scrawny ass up here now,” I ordered.

After a sigh, a moment of contemplation, and another sigh, he threw the pillows back up and sat next to me. He looked even more awkward than before on the dance floor.

“Your bed. Pick a side,” I said.

“This side is fine,” he said quietly, laying down cautiously.

I laid down next to him. “It’s been a while since I’ve met such a gentleman,” I admitted. “Either that or you’re just not used to this.”

“It’s been a while,” he said slowly.

“What happened with her?” I asked, turning over to face him.

“She cheated on me,” he said after a moment. “With my best friend.”

No wonder he was so wary. “Wow.”

“We had been dating ten months and he had been my best friend since middle school.”

“That must have broken your heart,” I said after a moment.

He sighed. “Yeah well, I should have seen it coming.”

“You should never have to see your girlfriend cheating on you with your best friend coming. That’s just wrong,” I stated. “They’re idiots. You’re a good guy and it’s entirely their fault for screwing you over.”

“Thanks Ellie,” he didn’t sound too convinced.

“I’m sorry I brought up old wounds.”

“Not that old,” he admitted, his voice slightly strained.

I leaned up on one elbow. “When did this happen?”

“Do you remember when you and Stally invaded my date at the diner early in the summer?”

“Yeah of course. Defining moment in my life. What of it?”

“That was the day after I found out. I was in a blind rage and wanted to make them jealous.”

“That was you in a blind rage?!” I exclaimed. “Jesus Marcus! That was the equivalent of a PMSing boy! Do you Swedes even know how to properly get mad over something?!”

He laughed slightly. “You didn’t see me the night before. It took me an hour to clean up all the glass I broke.”

I took a look around his room and noticed that there was nothing in his room that was made of glass. Not even pictures. “Where were the guys?” I asked.

He shrugged, eyes on the ceiling fan. “Out somewhere I guess. I was still really new here and shy I guess. So I broke some stuff, they came home and didn’t even notice that we were down two plates and a glass cup,” a tiny smile rose on his lips.

I sighed and I did something I would only think of doing. I took his hand in mine and I squeezed it. “I wish you would have called me,” I said.

“What would I have said?” he asked, still not looking at me.

“‘Hey do you want to bring over a pint of ice cream and a broom while I yell Swedish curses and break shit and afterwards eat all your ice cream’ would have worked just fine,” I told him, smiling.

He shook his head, laughing. “You really are the weirdest girl I have ever met in my life.”

“You know, that’s just who I am,” I smiled. “And next time will you please tell someone so you don’t go on dates with sluts anymore. I mean she was a real looker, but no charm whatsoever. Viktor and I didn’t want to have to do that but we will do it again,” I told him.”

“Obviously, since you and Stally haven’t invaded any more of my dates,” he finally turned his head to me, smiling.

I must have looked shocked. “What?!” I sat up. “What are their names? Why wasn’t I informed about these women? Where’d you go? When?! I saw you like all summer long! How did Viktor not tell me!”

“Because I got sneakier,” he said, flashing a grin on me. “And it was only two more dates with the same girl. Then she said she wasn’t a dog person and she only dated cat people.”

“You’re a dog person, aren’t you?” I tried not to laugh.

He shrugged at me. “Apparently it showed on my face. So that was the end of my dating attempts here in Chicago. Which is okay. I’m kind of alright not having a girl. I don’t have to try and impress her,” he admitted.

“If she really loved you, you wouldn’t need to impress her,” I told him and turned off the lamp. “She would love you, just the way you are.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“I’m always right sweetheart. Good night and sleep well.”

“You too Ells.”