Chapter 3: Take Care on the Come-Down

"Oh, I am not drunk enough for this."

When Nikki had said that guys had godawful timing the other day, she didn't lie. In fact, the universe validated her statement by presenting her with Stone.

Brushing her snarky comment aside, he asked, "How are you? It's not everyday I see my ex in a club, so I guess I should ask."

She crossed her arms. "Annoyed now that you're around. Why are you here anyways?"

She wanted to ask if he stalked her during her misery. After all, he seemed to appear at her most inopportune moments last semester.

"I'm with a couple of friends," he replied.

"So am I. So, where's your little girlfriend? Fifi, right?"

"Mimi. And she's with someone else. We broke up."

"Gasp. I can't believe it."

"Still as sardonic as ever, huh? You haven't changed."

"Still popping up when I least expect it, huh? You haven't either."

He chuckled. "I've gotta say: You and your temper are still attractive. You've always had a way with words, Nikki."

"Oh, no—I'm stopping you right there. You don't get to take my virginity, dump me, and then flirt with me when your relationship goes to shit. I'm taken, so you should take the hint."

Before he could respond, she pushed past him and went to the bathroom. She then texted the girls to let them know that she ran into somebody unexpected and that she would tell them about it when she came back from the bathroom. She just needed to be by herself (in a room full of drunk and high bitches) for a moment.

She leaned against the wall with her arms and attitude crossed.

She couldn't believe his gall. He deserved a special place in hell for being horrible in bed, trying to dump her via her best friend, breaking up with the ex he dumped her for, thinking of her as broken without him, and hitting on her when he was the broken one. He was such a slimy motherfu—

Buzz. Buzz.

In the middle of her mental lashings, her phone vibrated her back pocket. She grabbed it and saw Jonesy's name and photo fill her screen. The thought of him calmed her. Though she harbored resentment towards her ex, the drama surrounding him did make her realize that she wanted to be with Jonesy, who had soothed her after Stone stirred her with rage. Jonesy remained there for her in the aftermath.

After accepting the call and holding the device to her ear, she asked, "Hello?"

"Babe, I'm so high right now."

"Really? I'm kinda drunk." (However, her argument with Jen and run-in with Stone made her sober up.)

He snickered. "Hey, if I'm high and you're drunk, you know what that makes us?"

"What?"

"Crossfaded."

She burst into stupid giggles—the kind that made her shoulders jump in amusement. Despite it being a lame joke, plenty of corny things tickled her while inebriated. She heard him laughing on the other line as well, obviously influenced by his high state.

Once her fit subsided, she asked, "So, did you call for anything, or did you only wanna crack jokes?"

"Oh, yeah… So, me and Jude kinda have a situation."

She furrowed her brow despite his inability to see it. "What happened?"

"Um, we accidentally got Wyatt super high off an edible, and we need your help."

Her eyebrows shot up. She blinked once. "I'm sorry—what?"

I'm drunker than I thought.

"I'll explain everything later, but, um, yeah. Wyatt's super high and we're tryna take care of him. So, you've been too high before, right?"

Though her shock remained, she mustered, "Yeah. I had too much of a brownie and that shit snuck up on me."

"Okay, 'cause he did the same thing."

"Yikes. If I felt like I was gonna lose it, I know he's probably going out of his mind."

"Yeah, he kinda is. So what'd you do to calm down?"

She searched her brain for the incident. "Um, Jude made me keep drinking water. My mouth was insanely dry, so it helped me." She stopped to think. Another detail hit her. "Oh, and, every ten minutes, he kept telling me that things would be fine. It really helped hearing it from someone else, because I remember being paranoid and twitchy. It felt like my body was vibrating. Like, I really thought I'd fly away. I couldn't calm myself down for shit, so he helped keep me down to earth. Does that help?"

"Does it? That's exactly what I needed. You're a lifesaver." He paused. "Damn, I love you, baby. We gotta get high together sometime."

"Love you too, Jonesy." She smiled. "So, our couples' bucket list consists of clubbing and getting high, huh?"

"And some other things, too. I just can't think of 'em right now."

A chuckle escaped her lips. "Of course you can't. Then again, I really can't either." She supposed she remained tipsy at the very least. A haze still surrounded her brain. "You're lucky I remembered that time I tripped on that brownie."

"Hell yeah, I am. Anyways, gotta go. Thanks, babe."

"Anytime."

"Bye."


"Okay, dude," Jonesy started as he put his phone in his pocket, "Nikki said to make sure we give Wyatt water. And she said something else, too. Hmm…"

Jude tittered. "Dude, that's like a tongue-twister."

"What is?"

"We give Wyatt water."

After pondering it deeply, Jonesy snickered. "Oh, shit. It kinda is."

"Betcha can't say it three times fast." Jude's voice sped up. "We give Wyatt water. We gift whiter water. Weed killer Wyatt water… Damn, I can't even say it."

The two burst into dumb laughter.

"You said weed killer, man," Jonesy exclaimed through his laughter. Once his laughing subsided, he said, "Oh, shit, I remembered the other thing Nik told me."

"What?"

"We gotta tell him everything's gonna be okay. She said you calmed her down by telling her that she'd be fine and that her high wasn't permanent."

"Oh, yeah."

"So now we gotta go get Wyatt."

Neither of them moved.

"Okay, now we gotta get Wyatt," Jonesy reiterated.

They remained seated on Jude's basement floor, staring at one another.

"Wanna wait a few minutes? I don't feel like movin'," Jude said.

"Yeah, that works."


Duty chased Jen around. She couldn't help that. She followed her father's example. Every time she strayed from her moral compass, she felt like a dirty disappointment. Her strong sense of responsibility didn't render her immune to screwing up. Yes, she had stolen an overpriced jacket from the Penalty Box to impress Carson, a boy whose name she shouldn't even recall. Yes, she had allowed her envy of her older sister to affect her judgment. Yes, she had goofed off at work after finding out her flawless career-aptitude test result. However, after all of these things, she realized her error, repented, and recentered herself.

Yes, she strayed, but not for long.

Lately, with all these responsibilities on her back,—assuming the role of senior-class president, striving to become the assistant manager at the Penalty Box, preparing for university applications, looking at the material for her senior-year classes in advance—she kicked her focus into overdrive. She couldn't afford to make mistakes that would sabotage her progress. Going to the club felt like a regression. She didn't want her aspirations to unravel because of one night. One false move, and she'd be taken down.

A few weeks ago, she relaxed at Jonesy's pool party upon realizing that she wouldn't take the fall for it. She didn't choose to throw it. Tonight, however, she spent money on an illegal ID that she wouldn't need in less than two years. That implicated her.

Ever since her argument with Nikki over a half-hour ago, she remained quiet. It didn't occur to her that she would be the one capable of taking herself and her friends down. When Nikki brought it to her attention, she immediately froze. Sydni always mentioned feeling like someone called "Booboo the Fool." While Jen didn't know who that was, she knew she felt like him (or her). She didn't realize she'd be their own undoing.

She could've gotten them all caught during that argument if someone with a stronger compass overheard.

She longed to redo the night. If presented with another chance, she would have released the tension in her shoulders more, danced without shame alongside Caitlin, tried white wine for the first time, engaged in conversation with Callista and Camryn, and discussed more than her bad nerves with Sydni. Most importantly, she would not have said what she said to Nikki.

She knew she made a mistake as soon as the accusations flew out her mouth. Insinuating that Nikki was careless? A big screw-up. Though Nikki freed her inhibitions more than Jen, she also took everything seriously (except her job).

If anything, Jen should have confessed how she longed to act like Nikki (and Caitlin, too). She envied their carefree natures. While Nikki didn't live for a good time like Jonesy, Jude, and Caitlin did, Nikki had no problem drinking, smoking, pranking, and dancing. An irreverent, sarcastic, and wonderfully dry sense of humor followed her.

She could never be that person. Duty chased Jen into a corner. Lately, with the weight of her future crushing her, she couldn't fight it.

Since childhood, she looked after herself. She knew to do her homework after coming home. She knew the chore schedule by heart, remembering when to do hers (and do extra). She wanted to do more for her mother, who frequently came home tired with plenty of papers to grade and lesson plans to prepare. Dealing with high schoolers drained her mom. She wanted to do more for her father, whom she saw less and less as she grew older and older because he worked longer and longer shifts for his police precinct.

Besides, someone in her home had to become self-sufficient. Courtney had always been a social butterfly, relying on what other people could do for her. She let looks and charm reward her with opportunities. This, in combination with seeing her parents work hard, forged Jen into an independent busybee. She relied on her brawn and brains, knowing that beauty would fade.

I would be the only person in a club thinking about my whole life story, she thought.

Even when realizing that she might have been too tense for her own good, she still couldn't bring herself to relax.

"Hey," Sydni said, gaining her attention, "there can't be two nervous bitches in the club tonight."

"Hmm?"

"I know your fight with Nikki's got you down, but it's just a little lonely out here when you're living in your head."

"I'm sorry," Jen said. "I just… said things that I shouldn't have. I was so nervous about getting caught that I treated Nikki and Cait like they don't know any better."

Children. She treated them like children. All night.

"They're actually pretty tame compared to one of my homegirls back home," Sydni said. "When she gets pissy drunk, she's the one who needs time-out, so I get where you're coming from. I've been in your shoes before. I'm scared of being underage around this stuff, too. But I wouldn't have gone if I didn't think Caitlin and Nikki wouldn't look out for us. If they were acting out of pocket, I would've stepped in by now… Or, at least, I would've tried to."

Jen sighed. "You're right. I guess when I really think about it, they weren't that bad."

"Yeah. Worst thing was when that sleazy guy tried to hit on Caitlin."

She shuddered. "I am so glad she didn't let him get her number."

"Me, too."

She wished she didn't treat Nikki and Caitlin like inebriated infants. She truly acted like a mom when she shouldn't. It not only stressed her out to assume the role of a mother, but it also belittled her best friends' agency. She loved to give others guidance. She demonstrated care that way; she didn't foresee herself stopping anytime soon. Rather, she needed to learn when her friends needed her guidance.

Now that she stopped to think about it, the girls didn't need her help. The boys did—namely Jonesy and Jude. She loved them, but they defined hot mess. (At least Wyatt remained self-sufficient.)

Then again, Nikki could handle Jonesy. Instead, she'd help Jude if the situation really called for it.

What could she say? She liked to be needed.


A while later, Jonesy and Jude decided to get Wyatt and bring him indoors again.

He sat upright. After chugging some more water, he groaned. "I never should have come here."

"Then why did you?" Jonesy asked.

"Don't act like you didn't pressure me into staying!" Wyatt snapped.

Jonesy recoiled.

He calmed down, then sighed. "I just felt left out as 'one of the boys.' I don't know if you guys have noticed, but you guys do some of the same things, like drink and party and smoke weed. And I don't." He frowned. "I miss when the three of us used to be super-tight. Like, I love my sisters and the girls, but hanging out with you guys was a break from being around as much estrogen. I miss when we used to play games more often or talk about comic books or do other things like that. Now that it's about weed and parties and sex and… other forms of hedonism, I don't feel as close anymore. So, yeah, that's why I joined you guys. You guys making plans in front of me reminded me of how much things've changed."

He hung his head low after spilling his innermost thoughts to Jonesy and Jude. He couldn't gauge their reactions since he purposely avoided eye-contact, but he didn't expect much.

A minute later, he heard a tiny I'm sorry, man. Wyatt met Jonesy's eyes, filled with redness and remorse.


After texting the girls and finding out where they were, Nikki joined them again.

"Hey," she said after finding them, grabbing their attention.

Caitlin ambushed her with a hug. "Nikki! You're okay!"

She stood there with her arms down, not reciprocating, being squished by a size-zero. "Why wouldn't I be?" she strained.

"'Cause you left ages ago and I had no idea when you'd be back!"

"Barbie, I've only been gone a half-hour."

Caitlin let her go. "Oh."

Despite being crushed, Nikki understood where Caitlin came from. The passage of time felt different when drunk. That, and being by oneself as a girl in a club could spell disaster.

"Glad you were looking out for me, though," she said to Caitlin.

Caitlin smiled. "Always."

Once the moment between Caitlin and Nikki ended, Jen approached her.

Nikki crossed her arms, wondering what she would say now. Would Jen accuse her of abandoning them? Would Jen lament that Caitlin had been a handful while Nikki went away? Would she complain about dropping it like it's hot being Sydni's go-to dance move? Would she critique Caitlin's bathroom friends for breathing?

"Nikki, I'm so sorry about what I said," Jen said. "I shouldn't have said that you don't care about things. That couldn't be further from the truth."

Great, now I'm an ass, she thought. At least she didn't voice her questions aloud and make the situation worse.

Nikki sighed. "I'm sorry for snapping on you the way I did. I wanna say that it was the liquor talking, but it was really me. I shouldn't have gone off on you like that. I was frustrated as hell… but that wasn't the way to go about it."

"I forgive you. I'm sorry for being a big Debbie Downer. I hope I didn't ruin tonight."

"Jen,"—Nikki's lips lifted into a smile—"stop apologizing. I forgive you."

Jen pulled her into a hug way gentler than Caitlin's. "I love you."

"Love you too."

Given that Nikki didn't contact her sister anymore and Jen envied her own for a while, the two of them regarded each other as sisters. Though things occasionally came between them,—like their fight over being in DawgToy's music video or Jen's middle-school crush on Jonesy—she remained grateful that nothing broke them. In fact, they grew stronger than ever.

"Aww, group hug!" Caitlin exclaimed, wrapping her arms around the two of them.

Nikki laughed at her unrelenting bubbliness. She couldn't tell whether it emerged from tipsy Caitlin or regular Caitlin. Either way, she appreciated Caitlin as another sister, too. She'd had a tougher time taking to her, as her starkly different personality made it harder for Nikki to see a place for her. Despite certain incidents involving Hunter and Tricia, Caitlin really proved herself as a great friend.

Nikki glanced at the gap between Jen and Caitlin's shoulders, finding Sydni staring anywhere but the group hug.

"Bambi," she started, "get your ass over here. It's a group hug for a reason."

Sydni perked up, smiling on her way over as she gently wrapped her arms around everyone else.

"Thanks, Nikki," she said in a dulcet tone.

"Anytime," Nikki replied.

Sydni was a timid yet endearing soul, someone as soft as Caitlin (or perhaps even softer). Given her boyfriend's penchant for arrogance, Jude's permanent residency on Cloud Nine, and Caitlin's affinity for pollyanna, Nikki enjoyed having another level friend within the group. Without knowing it, Sydni had joined the Sane Man Gang, accompanying her, Jen, and Wyatt.

"This is so beautiful," Callista said in an awestruck (and slurred) voice.

"I know right?" Camryn asked. "You guys are so beautiful!"

Nikki snorted as she and the girls parted. "Thanks."

"By the way," Jen started, "for the rest of the night, I promise to loosen up. I won't complain, I won't be uptight, and I won't make a big deal out of things."

Self-awareness from Jen? That's new.

Nikki crossed her arms. "Sounds like a lot. Sure you can handle it?"

She nodded. "I've handled worse."

"True. Well, here's to Fun Jen making an appearance."

"Here here!" Caitlin exclaimed.

"Did you drink more when I left?" Nikki mused.

She laughed a couple dumb giggles. "Just a teenser," she replied, holding her index finger and thumb close together. A moment later, she asked, "Hey, didn't you have something to tell us? You texted about running into somebody, right?"

"Yeah, who'd you see?" Jen asked.

Nikki groaned at the thought of her ex. "Ugh, of all people, I ran into Stone."

Caitlin gasped. "What?!"

"Who's Stone?" Callista asked.

"Nikki's ex-boyfriend. He was her first."

"Caitlin!" Nikki snapped.

"Oopsie," she said, flushing after spilling her friend's business.

"Anyways, what happened? What did he say?" Jen asked.

"He was trying to hit on me and shit, but I shut him down. I told him there's no way in hell that I want him back, not after the shit he pulled before we broke up," Nikki explained.

"Was it the closure you never got?" Caitlin asked.

Recalling the run-in aggravated her, but she simmered down. "Closure is a lie, but it did make me feel better. It means there's one less grudge for me to hold." A snort followed her sentence.

"Well," Caitlin started, "I think you just helped me make my decision about Benj."

"How so?"

She shrugged. "Just hearing about you running into your ex and hearing about how you handled it. As much as I wanted Benj to be The One, I don't wanna be with The One I've Been with Twice. And I definitely don't want The One That Tricia's Been With. I just wanna be able to shop at A&F in peace."

"Ladies, I think we just had a breakthrough," Nikki joked.


Jude's basement remained deafeningly silent save for Jonesy's hushed apology.

"If it makes a difference, dude, I actually kinda look up to you," Jonesy confessed.

"Really?" Wyatt asked, genuinely taken aback.

"Yeah. You're really good with chicks, man. You've got all your sisters and your mom and the girls," he said, referring to Nikki, Jen, Caitlin, and Sydni at the end. "Before Jen and her fam came along, you know how it was just me, my dad, and my brothers, so the only chicks I really knew were her and Nikki. I'm still tryna figure out this stuff. Shit, me and Nik didn't even stay friends, so it's not like I have that many girls that are just friends."

That was true. Despite Jonesy's flirtatious ways (or perhaps because of them), he didn't have many female friends. Jen, Caitlin, Sydni, and sometimes Joanie were the only girls Jonesy interacted with on a friendly basis. Even he and Nikki turned their platonic relationship into a romantic one.

Maybe Jonesy chased girls romantically instead of platonically to fill a void. After all, his mom was absent for a majority of his life…

Wyatt realized how many differences separated him from Jonesy. Wyatt looked up to his three older sisters. Jonesy led his two younger brothers. Wyatt's mother had been present throughout his life. Jonesy's had been absent since the seventh grade. Wyatt led with kind intentions rather than carnality. Jonesy let his hypersexuality drive him. Wyatt liked academics. Jonesy preferred athletics. Wyatt saw the beauty in femininity. Jonesy used masculinity as armor. No wonder the two of them operated differently.

However, all Wyatt could say was, "Oh, wow."

He seldom heard such genuine words from Jonesy. That's how he could validate them.

"I care about ya a lot, Wyatt," Jude added. "If I don't make it seem that way, then I'm really super sorry. You guys know it's a lil lonely being an only child, so you two have always been my brothers."

Between the sleepover that Jude forced while his parents were out of town and plenty of other incidents, Wyatt knew that he cared. He didn't suppress his deeper emotions like Jonesy.

"Yeah, you guys… really mean a lot to me," Jonesy said. He kept scratching the back of his head as he spoke. "I'm not always the best at showing it, but yeah. You guys have been my A1s since day one."

Wyatt fell hush. He didn't know what to say.

"So… do you forgive me?" Jonesy asked.

"Yeah, do ya?" Jude asked.

"I do," Wyatt said.

"C'mon, let's fist-bump on it," Jonesy said as he extended out his fist.

Wyatt followed suit, as did Jude.

He felt like an overjoyed child as they did the secret handshake they came up with in fifth-grade. He couldn't believe he still remembered, as they hadn't done it in ages.

Wyatt chuckled. "That felt nice."

"Yeah, it did," Jonesy said.

"Aww, I love you guys," Jude interjected out of nowhere, probably driven by the friendly vibes in the air.

"We love you too, bro," Jonesy said as he patted Jude on the back.

Jude appeared content.

"Okay, guys," Wyatt started, feeling an empty sensation in his abdomen, "I'm starving."

Jonesy and Jude looked at each other with smirks on their faces.

"Why are you guys looking like that?"

"Oh, Wyatt. Innocent, innocent Wyatt. The munchies are gonna hit you like a runaway train with a high-ass conductor," Jonesy said.


While Sydni, Caitlin, and her bathroom friends danced, Jen and Nikki sat in a lounge area.

After exchanging jokes about Caitlin and Callista's similar lack of rhythm, Jen sobered. Though she had made up with Nikki, something still weighed her down, down, down.

"I know we cleared the air already, but I can't stop thinking about earlier. That's probably why Nick broke up with me, isn't it? Because I act like that?"

"Don't beat yourself over that guy. He didn't even date you long enough to even know all your qualities," Nikki said.

"I know, but he still didn't get to see the best of me." She frowned. "Now that I think about it, none of the guys I've dated have… Well, except for Travis, but, even then, he was away most of our relationship." She sighed. "Am I ever going to find a guy who can handle me? Like, all of me?"

"Don't be ridiculous. You will. Just not at the Penalty Box. You've struck out enough there."

She thought of all the boys she'd gone out on dates with at that store: Nick, Griffin, Cory, and Charlie. None of them worked out. "You're right. From now on, I am not dating anymore of my coworkers. They all suck."

"Good. Also, from now on, don't focus on these boys, Jen. If you keep hunting them down, you're just gonna end up dating another shitty one. Just focus on all the things on your plate, and the right one is gonna come along. Trust me."

Jen did. After all, Nikki never went out of her way to find a stable relationship, yet somehow ended up with Jonesy. Perhaps there was merit in letting the right one find her instead of trying to desperately find him. She didn't need to halt her grind over someone who would hold her back. She wanted someone who would have her back.

Besides, she had the love of her friends, who already had her back and accepted all aspects of her. She also had the love of her parents and sisters. (She could live without the love of Robbie and Diego, though. Those little demons didn't have the capacity.)

Now that she thought about it, Jen didn't need a guy's validation. Her friends and family fulfilled her enough.

"You know what? That makes sense," Jen conceded. "That's it; I'm taking a break from guys from the rest of the summer. If the right guy needs me, he'll find me."

"I've taught you well," Nikki said with a proud grin afterwards. "Now, can you go to the bathroom with me? I've gotta piss so badly right now."

"About to break the seal?" she asked as they got up and walked.

"Oh, I'm about to clobber the seal."

Jen giggled. "You mean club, right?"

"Yeah, that."


Though the club didn't close until 3am, the girls decided to leave around 1.

Caitlin said goodbye to her bathroom friends, who then took off in a Lyft.

The girls stood around in the stale summer air. They all looked at each other with uncertainty. An empty night lay ahead of them.

"So, what now?" Sydni asked. "Are we going back to your place, Cait?"

"Going back so soon?" Jen asked before Caitlin could reply. "I was hoping we could hang out a little longer and ride around the city or something?"

After all, she didn't usually stay out this late. She already broke her self-imposed curfew. She wanted to stay out and sightsee with her girls, especially since her parents didn't know that she broke it.

All of them stared at her with wide eyes.

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with Jen Masterson?" Nikki joked.

"I'm serious, guys. I've been holding you guys back all night, so I want to make amends. I wanna hang out and have fun if you guys are willing to stay out."

Sydni smiled. "I love riding around, so I'm down."

"I don't mind," Nikki said.

Caitlin clapped her hands and bounced in her heels. "Oh, I am so down!"

"Alright then," Jen said. "Let's go for a joyride."


Jude revealed his snack stash to the boys, letting them go ape and satiate their intense need for food.

"Food has never tasted so good," Wyatt said with a stuffed face.

"Truer words have never been spoken," Jude said.

"Bone apple tea, dudes," Jonesy said.

They vegged out to their heart's content while LCD Soundsystem played in the background. Jude binged chips with his eyes closed. Wyatt ate pizza and bopped his head to the music. Jonesy ate chocolate-chip cookies and scrolled on his phone.

"Life can't get any better than this," Jude said.

"Jude Levi Lizowski," a woman's voice started, "what the hell is going on?!"

Wyatt whipped his head around, only to find Jude's parents standing near them.

Life would soon end for all of them. Wyatt prayed that the sweet release of death would kill him before his own parents did.

"What are you guys doing back so soon?!" Jude asked.

"That's not important. What's important is that you and your friends are doing drugs in our house," his father snapped.

His mom shook his head. "I knew you smoked, but I never thought I'd catch you, Jude."

Jude shrunk at the verbal lashings.

His mom continued, "I'm disappointed in you, but I'm most surprised to find you here, Wyatt. I thought you kept my son on the straight and narrow."

Wyatt stammered, "Mrs. Lizowski, I'm so, so sorry. I just— I can't— I have—"

"And you, Jonesy: I'm sure your dad would love to know what you've been doing with my son."

"Please don't tell him I'm down here!" Jonesy pleaded, begging on his knees with his hands clasped. Wyatt had never seen him so desperate. Granted, the circumstances called for it. Both of them had something at stake: survival (especially in a household with no-nonsense parents of color).

"I'll do anything," Wyatt began. "Please don't call my parents! It won't happen again, I swear!"

"Yeah, what he said!" Jonesy cried.

Jude's mom sighed and rubbed her temples. "As long as this is the last time we witness such behavior, we won't tell your parents about this incident."

"We won't?" her husband asked.

"No. Youth is filled with… mistakes and borderline-illegal behavior. However, I better not see any of you making a habit out of this. Understand?"

"Yes!" Jonesy and Wyatt exclaimed without hesitation.

"Alright. May I kindly ask the two of you to leave so my husband and I can speak to Jude?"

Jonesy and Wyatt grabbed their belongings and fled the scene.


The next day, the gang (minus Jen and Jude) met up at the Big Squeeze. The guys listened to the girls as they recounted not only their night at the club, but also the activities afterwards.

"…And then we were at the stoplight next to these guys, and, the next thing you know, Jen was totally racing them!" Caitlin exclaimed inside the Lemon, reliving her astonishment and excitement from the night before.

"Whoa, Jen got into a street race? I didn't know sis could drive over twenty miles per hour!" Jonesy said with widened eyes.

"Regular Jen doesn't street race," Nikki started, speaking on her best friend's behalf, "but apparently Fun Jen does."

"Me and Fun Jen need to have a chat. A long one," he replied.

"So, what happened with you guys last night?" Caitlin asked.

Jonesy facepalmed himself, then asked, "What didn't happen?" Jonesy asked. "Someone over here got too high, we had to help him, and then Jude's parents caught us."

Sydni gasped. "Wyatt, you got smacked?!"

Everyone furrowed their brows at her.

"The hell is smacked?" Jonesy asked.

If her skin could betray her embarrassment, she'd be several shades of red right now. With a nervous laugh, she clarified, "My bad, y'all. Smacked means high. I forgot that Baltimore slang isn't exactly universal."

"Oh," the rest of the gang chorused.

"Well, in that case, he got super smacked," Jonesy explained. "Super-duper smacked. So smacked that we had to drag his ass back inside the house."

"And I'm never doing anything like that again. Worst night of my life," Wyatt said.

"Yeah, I'll bet. I'm surprised that you're still alive if the Lizowskis told your parents," Nikki said.

"Well, actually, they didn't," Jonesy interjected.

"What?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"We had to freaking beg them not to tell our parents, so they let us off the hook, but, to be honest, I'm not sure if Jude's still alive or not."

"Yeah, I tried texting him all morning, but he never replied back," Wyatt said.

"Damn, he might be grounded 'til college." Jonesy grabbed his lemonade, taking the top off and lifting it into the air. "I might have to pour one out for him."

"Oh, no," Caitlin started. "The last time you did that, I had to clean it up, Jonesy."

He set his cup down on the table, looking dejected. "Fine. I won't pour one out for the homie."

"Especially if he ain't dead yet," Sydni added.

"Hmm?" Jonesy asked.

She pointed in the distance, causing him to turn around and find Jude approaching the table.

"Dude, you're alive!" Jonesy exclaimed upon seeing his best friend.

Jude strolled to his seat and sat down. "Barely. My parents really grilled me when you guys left."

"Yikes," Nikki said. "Did you get grounded for eternity?"

"Nah, they didn't ground me, but they basically told me to get my shit together. Told me I can't spend the rest of my life playin' video games and gettin' high. They even asked if I started looking into schools and stuff, which I totally have. It just sucks having them look at me funny."

"Oof, hang in there, buddy," Jonesy said.

"I'm trying. I really am."


Sydni hadn't heard from Alejandro since the previous night, not since one of Caitlin's bathroom friends took her phone and texted him for her. She had tousled and turned in her bed, worrying over his perception of her. She knew the little bit of everything between them had ended after that ghostwritten, drunk text had sent. After all, the message's tone took aim at him; the contents insulted him in so few words. They implied that he had no character.

Okay, he did try to sleep with her on the first date, something which left a sour taste in her mouth. She didn't mind being the object of his affection, but did something about her imply that she sought that kind of connection? Did something about her scream "you can get it on the first night"?

Nevertheless, he seemed to have other redeeming qualities, ones she yearned to discover. He burst at the seams with untold stories and undiscovered traits. She wanted to learn these things about him. Something about his life and the surface details she knew about it excited her.

She had to lay this excitement to rest, though. After last night's texts, their only interactions would be on a hi-and-bye basis.

She needed a distraction.

Folding. Folding would do the trick.

Chrissy wanted her to tackle a stack of baby tees anyways. She might as well do it: steer her mind away from unrealistic thoughts of him and appease her manager in the process.

She lifted a shirt, folded it in half, and then folded it again, setting it down on the display. As she did this for other shirts in the pile Chrissy left for her, she eased into the trendy pop music that played above her. She wouldn't devote anymore mindspace to him. She wouldn't overthink something that was obviously over. She wouldn't let—

Sitting on the edge of the display table, her phone lit up with a new message. She leaned over and read it. Her heart threatened to stop.

Are you at work right now?

The first message she'd received from him in over twelve hours. Regardless of whether she replied back or not, she'd be a fool not to do something.

Yeah, she replied back, hoping that her one-word response without punctuation would distract him from her swiftness in replying. Perhaps the aloofness of her message would mask the eagerness in her response time.

K, I'm coming over.

Oh, God. She thought he'd never interact with her again, not go out of his way to see her. She lamented Nikki not working today; she needed to have a friend on standby in case things went awry. She didn't know what to expect. Would he drag her for last night's messages? Would he tell her in person that he changed his mind about wanting her? What could she expect when he threw all of her expectations by the wayside?

She told herself to calm down and finish folding. At least by the time he came, she would have her work done.

Of course, by the time he came, she completed her work, but she couldn't soothe her nerves. Not when she anticipated him and his every word.

"Hey," she said when he approached her.

"Listen," he started, "I'm sorry for giving you the wrong impression. I shouldn't have texted you so late. My mother raised me better than that, bonita." He grabbed her by the hand and reduced her brain to mush. "That's why I want to ask you the right way: Will you give me another chance? I promise we can go as slow as you like."

"I…" she started.

I don't know what to think. He— He really wants another chance? With me? After last night? For real? …Why?

"Of all the girls you can have, why me?" she asked in a soft voice, barely above a whisper. "What makes me worth having?"

"You're magnetic, morenita. It's something sweet about you, and I want to get to know it. After all, my last girl wasn't exactly nice personified."

She giggled a little. Heather was not pleasant… which brought up another issue. "Don't you like your girls with a little more bite and a little less… whatever I am?"

"I like my girls fascinating. Like you."

She gave him a lopsided grin.

"So, what do you say?"

"You make a very convincing case. So… I say yes. We'll give this another go."

He let go of her hand, instead stroking beneath her chin with his index finger. "Perfect."

Her body temperature spiked by a few hundred degrees. Her mouth went dry. "Yeah. Perfect," she chirped, hoping he didn't notice how she went haywire at his touch.


A/N: I've been dealing with personal issues lately, so, as a result, this story has been on the backburner. However, I got my shit together enough to finish the story. There are still some parts I want to add in or revise, so expect a revision of this story in the near future. I'm proud that I churned out over 6000 words for this chapter, though!

Other than that, the next story, titled "Nuclear Seasons," is already fully written and published. Thus, I will be working on "After Careful Consideration" next. That story will center around Wyatt, Jude, and Sydni as they all deliberate their futures.

Music from "Girls Night Out":

"Girls Night Out" by Charli XCX
"The Line" by RAYE [Explicit]
"Jitter" by Grace Mitchell (from Raceday – EP)
"Boy Problems" by Carly Rae Jepsen (from E?MO?TION)
"Immaterial" by SOPHIE (from Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides)
"Cyber Stockholm Syndrome" by Rina Sawayama (from RINA) [Explicit]
"Vroom Vroom" by Charli XCX (from Vroom Vroom – EP) [Explicit]
"LMK" by Kelela (from Take Me Apart)
"2 On" by Tinashe and ScHoolboy Q (from Aquarius) [Explicit]
"New in Town" by Little Boots (from Hands)
"Roll with Me" by Charli XCX (from Number 1 Angel)
"Green Light" by Lorde (from Melodrama)
"One More" by Elliphant and M? (from Living Life Golden) [Explicit]
"Ridin' Round (DJ Dahi Remix)" by Kali Uchis [Explicit]
"Dance for Me" by ALMA and M? (from Heavy Rules Mixtape) [Explicit]
"Spun" by ?ngie [Explicit]
"He Wasn't Man Enough" by Toni Braxton (from The Heat)
"A No No" by Mariah Carey (from Caution)
"New Rules" by Dua Lipa (from Dua Lipa)
"Jumpin', Jumpin'" by Destiny's Child (from The Writing's on the Wall)