Page 34 of All of You

“Why her, Lang?” Hailie pushes again. She sounds really upset.

Langdon says something but it’s too quiet to make out and then, “Just leave her alone Hailie. Don’t make trouble.”

“Ignore them. Come on. I stopped drinking hours ago. I’ll drive us,” Lyra says. She pushes to her feet and holds her hand out to me.

“Let’s go chill at the river for a little while, alone. I have weed.” Miles dangles a little baggy in front of me.

I ignore Lyra’s hand and stand on my own, straighten my shoulders, and jut my chin out. “Sounds like the perfect night.” Taking the elastic from my wrist I finger comb my hair up into a ponytail and say, “Lead the way.”

Eighteen

Langdon

Ilistened to the song from the party all night on repeat from the party while picturing Delia’s face as my lips tasted her. The feelings rushed through me but I woke in bed left with nothing but invisible bruises on my mind, heart and morals. The closet door had swung open and I’d wanted to scream at Niko but the moment had been broken.

Whatever magic had been happening was gone. And Delia, she’d made a crack about me being an animal, and I stormed out pissed. Raging with hormones. Who was she to leave me there with that feeling? She couldn’t possibly have been immune. It was too strong, too tense, and too hot. I thought we were close to a genuine connection but we were still so far.

The sun creeps through the slats in the blind and I’mfull of regret. Like I failed us both. My head aches slightly from the alcohol last night. My phone says eight thirty, which means I have twenty minutes to get up and ready for church before Mom comes hurtling at me with ways my behavior is letting the Lord down.

Church is boring and I can’t stop my mind from drifting to Delia and last night. I wanted to text her so badly, to find out if she was ok, if she got home safe but the girl doesn’t have a god damned cell phone. I’d almost swung by Heath’s on my way home just to check in, but if she was home, I’d surely get her in trouble showing up that late, and if she wasn’t, I’d only worry her mom since I was supposed to be her ride.

Niko nudges my shoulder. “Earth to fucking Lang,” he hisses. “You there?” I snap out of my thoughts. Decidedly torturous thoughts of Delia’s panties, of her skirt scrunched up to her waist, of her soft, warm skin, and the wild look in her eyes as she watched me.Fuck.

“What?” I snip.

Niko shoots me a look. “Dude, you’re all tied up. This about New Girl?” I groan and stand up as we shuffle from the pews into the main aisle. “Oh shit?!”

My mother snaps her head to him and glares. “Sorry, Mrs. Nash.”

He leans closer to me. “Did you and Hailie hook up?”

“Gross, no.”

“So, it is New Girl,” he states, looking smug.

“Stop acting like you don’t know her name. Stop calling her New Girl.” My voice is barely above a whisper.

Niko tosses his hands up. “Woah, sorry. Heard she took off with someone last night to get high.”

I glare at him. “I doubt what you heard is true.”

“Dude, how would you know? You were off with Hailie…alone.”

“Niko, I don’t like Hailie. I know you do. Stop with the Hailie crap, please. Just ask her out already.”

“Ask who out?” Hannah appears between us. “The new girl?”

I groan again. “Her name is Delia.”

Hannah makes a face. “Who cares? Hailie already hates her.”

I scrub a hand down my face. “Hailie needs to get a life.”

Hannah snickers before her eyes go wide. I follow them and immediately want to crawl in a hole and die.

Hailie, looking like she didn’t throw a rager last night, stands with her arms crossed, shoots deadly lasers from her eyes directly at me.

“Hailie,” I say.