GB96 - Carla's Way Part 3

CCL parties are crazy. That’s evident before you and Stef even reach the front door. Britney is blasting so loud in there that it’ll probably keep people in town awake. The stars are out over the Hornie County swamp, and there’s so much humidity that it’s like being underwater.

Lily opens the door for you, and bright light from inside spills over the dark gravel.

“Oh shit,” Lily says, looking you and Stef up and down. “Y’all here for me?”

“Not tonight,” you reply.

You and Stef don’t look like yourselves. You’ve both had your hair and nails done, and you’re dressed like real coeds instead of tomboys who work for a mechanic. Stef has reluctantly accepted that she looks good in a skirt, and you wear flattering cutoff shorts. Your tube tops match and you’re particularly enjoying your bold, hoop earrings. You don’t get a lot of opportunities to put yourself together like this. It’s not as though Stef was ever big on taking you on romantic dates.

“Well, you look tasty. Sorry about your dad, Gibson.”

“It’s OK,” Stef replies.

For once, the first thing you do upon arriving at a party is not seeking out ****. You’re here on business, after all. The house is full of girls, but only half are sorority sisters. CCL House is just the hot place to be.

“Are we going to run into Jessica here?” you ask Stef as you make your way through the house together.

“Not tonight,” Stef replies. Jessica is a prickly subject. Like Nadia did with Ellen, Jessica has distanced herself from Stef. You honestly don’t know if that’s because of Stef’s arrest, Mr. Gibson’s ****, or that she learned that Stef was two-timing. Unlike Nadia, Jessica is not pretending that Stef doesn’t exist. She just told her that she needed time.

Naturally, Stef immediately turned to you for affection, which you didn’t give her. She handled that well. She’s growing up. Slowly.

CCL House is huge. You reach the kitchen, so it’s only natural to get some beer while you’re there. You’ll just have to stop at one; you don’t want to get drunk tonight. A minute later, Stef nearly spits beer all over you and you see why.

Destiny Harris is in the next room, leaning against a pool table.

She’s similar in size to you and Stef, skinny and flat-chested. She wears cutoffs like yours and a pink tank with a shark on it. Lots of bracelets rattle on her thin, pale wrists. She has a nose ring and tattoos of roses all over her hips and lower back.

She’s talking to Jessica.

You yank Stef out of sight.

“You said she wouldn’t be here,” you mutter.

“I was wrong,” she replies, looking shaken. She cannot be rattled by this minor complication to the plan. What’s the problem? Seeing Jessica?

“Jesus,” you say.

“What?” she snaps.

“You really do like her.” It comes out sounding bitter.

“Of course I do. Are we doing this or not?”