The Brothers

Chapter 3

"Wanna give it a try?" He asks again, a hint of a smirk playing on his lips. 

I take a backward step, shaking my head before I turn away from him. I'm searching for Jayden.

He hurriedly scurries away when he sees Charlie.

Are these guys gods or something? The thought is unsettling.

I make to follow him but Charlie grabs my arm.

"Excuse me?" I glare at him. "Let me go."

"Not yet." He says quietly. His voice is a deep drawl and a few heads turn to looks at him. They turn away the moment they meet his intense glare.

"What do you want from me, Charles?"

"It's Charlie, and I want nothing from you. Your dress code is too conservative for a party. Principled?" 

"You could say that."

I find myself averting my eyes from his searching gaze when he stares down at me. He releases my arm, and I take a step back, rubbing the spot where his fingers pressed into my skin.

"Did I hurt you?" 

"No, I'm fine."

"Lemme see." He reaches for my hand.

"It's nothing."

"Let. Me. See." 

Something about his voice makes me give him my hand. 

He rubs the pink spot for a moment and I'm aware that my heart is racing. No man has ever touched me, and this stranger is awakening feelings I'd rather not feel. I shouldn't be here. I'm leaving as soon as Lisa is done with her show on the dance floor.

I turn to look at the floor but the pole has been taken over by the petite girl named Shanice.

"Where's Lisa?" I ask Charlie.

"I wouldn't know."

His tone is cold just like his eyes. When he drops my hand, I quickly turn around and I walk away from him. I half expect him to grab my hand again but he doesn't. 

I heave a sigh of relief as I try to find Lisa.

The Royal table is empty. I call it royal because it's occupants behave like princes. The crowd either fears or respects them; I have no idea which one.

I can't trace Lisa so I decide to look for her upstairs. I walk slowly up the stairs. Several boys and girls have passed out on the staircase and I try not to stumble on them in my high heels. 

I look around me when I finally make it to the first floor landing. The walls here are whitewashed and the solid wooden floor appears to be classy as hell. There are doors on either rows of the long hallway, and since I have no way of figuring out where Lisa could possibly be in this sea of rooms, I decide to knock on random doors. 

I take a deep breath before I knock on the first door. 

There's no response. 

I push it open. 

It's empty. 

The next room is empty too. The third one is at the end of the hallway, and I push it open without knocking.

I tense as I take in the scene before me. Harry is on his back on the bed; shirtless. Marie is on top of him wearing nothing but matching underwear. They hurriedly pause their kissing session and they both turn to look at me. 

I know I should move but I can't. I'm simply rooted on the spot. 

Harry raises a brow at me when I continue to gawk at them while Marie forces a smile. 

"Hi Brit? We meet again!" She exclaims with mock pleasantness. 

"It's Bree."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Uh, I was looking for Lisa." I feel embarrassed. I should get the hell out of here.

"She's not here." Marie replies, totally unaffected by my presence.

"I guess I should go then."

"You should."

I start to leave before Harry's voice stops me in my tracks.

"Why don't you join us?"

"What?" I gasp, turning to stare at him.

"He's kidding." Marie forces a laugh. 

"I'm not kidding, Maggie." He says quietly, his eyes never leaving me.

"It's Marie."

He shrugs.

"Yeah, whatever."

I can't hide my smile anymore. I eye Marie with contempt, then I hastily walk out, banging the door closed behind me.

Drunkards are really weird. 

I walk up the stairs to the second floor, and when I notice Stan walking into a room, I rush to the door and push it open.

Lisa is in here with Stan and Jayden. They are smoking a joint, and she smiles when she sees me.

"Stan told me that you were talking to Charlie. You didn't do anything nasty with him, right?"

Her speech is slurred. She's really drunk.

"What? No! I just met him."

"And?"

"Lisa, I don't even know his middle name."

"He's cute though, isn't he? Nice edge, impeccable body, killer eyes."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"How many girls do you think Charlie talked to tonight? Not many, for sure. You blew your opportunity."

"Have a Seat, Bree. Just ignore her. She's wasted." That's Jayden. I hesitate before I sit on the bed beside him. He hands me a box of juice and a cup, and I blink when Lisa knocks the box out of my hand.

She turns to glare at me.

"I'm not taking this from you, Bree. It's a f*****g house party. Drink, or drink. Choose one."

"I'm not drinking, Lisa." 

"Why not? It's just alcohol."

"I agree with Lisa." Stan butts in. "You can't go to a party and be uptight all night. You can't just sit around at parties and look pretty. When you go to Rome, you act like Romans."

I stare at him and stay quiet. 

He laughs, and I realize just how drunk he is.

"I knew it. You don't have the guts to take a single drink. You're such a baby. Lemme guess, you wear jeans to bed and you have a dog named poppy. Can you be anymore of a cliché?" 

"I'm not a cliché."

"Well, prove it."

"I don't have anything to prove. I've just never been drunk before."

"There's a first time for everything." He smiles, casually wrapping an arm around Lisa's shoulders. "Drink, and make us proud."

I eye the half bottle of whisky on the nightstand then I look at the anxious eyes trained on me. These are the only people I know in the entire school. They might as well be the only friends I have. 

I gather my courage and reach for the bottle, noting Lisa's eyes widening.

"Are you sure?" She asks but I ignore her. I tip the bottle back then I take a deep swig.

There. I finally had my first taste of alcohol.

The liquor is warm and strong and I close my eyes as it burns my down throat. I feel the scorching liquid settle in my stomach but I don't relent. I take more gulps, savoring the instant lightheadedness, and I cuss when someone snatches the bottle from me.

I turn around, ready to hurl cusses, but I hold my tongue when I realize that it's Willy. His eyes are blazing with anger and my drinking buddies are practically wilting under his stare.

"What the hell is going on? I thought she said she doesn't drink!" He yells.

He's angry, too angry. I have no idea why he's directing his anger at them.

"She..." Stan starts to say, but the look that Willy gives him shuts him up. 

"My head is spinning." I lament as I close my eyes. 

The alcohol is boiling in my system and bouts of dizziness are hitting me hard.

Willy takes my arm to help me up, and leads me out of the room, turning at the door to address Lisa and company. 

"Get yourselves out of my room. All of you."

Oh, so this is his room!

He holds my hand and pulls me down the hallway to an empty room. He makes me sit on the bed then he squats before me to pull my shoes from my tired feet. He then rolls back the covers and orders me to lie down. I oblige, and he pulls the comforter over me.

"Sleep. I'll get Lisa to come and lie with you." He tells me before he starts to switch off the light. 

"I think I'm going to be sick." My voice is tiny but he hears me. He rushes over and helps me out of bed. He walks me to the bathroom and he holds my hair in a makeshift ponytail as I throw up. His face is emotionless as he tucks me back in bed.

"Sleep it out. I'll get Lisa." He says and leaves.

I'm totally confused. Why did he even bother?

Sighing, I close my eyes and take a deep breath. 

*****

I can't sleep. 

It's been ten minutes with no sign of Lisa.

I'm feeling suffocated and too warm in this bed, and I feel like I'm going to be sick again. I'll go outside and get some air.

I tug my shoes on and I stand up, supporting myself with the wall.

I open the door and step into the wide, immaculate hallway. There's no one here. I stumble down the stairs and I finally make it to the living area. 

Someone pushes a cup into my hand. It's Shane. I smile and sniff at the drink. It smells awful but after my first drink, I really don't care. I down the whole thing in one long gulp.

"Woah Bree, easy." He says, but I ignore him as I walk outside into the lawn. I badly need a burst of fresh air away from the smoke and the music.

I'm enjoying the wind blowing my hair about when someone speaks from right behind me.

"It's a dark night."

I turn abruptly. It's Charlie.