Every Little Piece (6 page)

Jamie was heading over with the pizza, and I waited until the last minute. “My dad’s leaving us tonight. Probably for good.” I left it at that. I couldn’t bear to share that it was because my mom was sleeping with Carly’s dad.

Carter nodded and a look of understanding passed across his face.

Jamie dropped the pizza platter. “I knew it. I knew I’d miss the good stuff.”

“Stop it, whiner,” I said, joking. “You didn’t miss anything.”

I needed to put on a really good front, because I couldn’t handle comments the rest of the night, or girls flocking to me at the party to ask me what was wrong. Girls seem to have this special radar and sensed when I was upset. They chatted more, touched more, and tended to linger longer than Haley or I’d like. I especially didn’t want Haley picking up on it, because I was sticking with my decision to let it go for tonight.

I smiled even though it felt like a crack spreading across cement. “Just saying that tonight might be the night with Haley and I.”

Sex was about the only thing that would get Jamie off my case. Carter laughed and Jamie rubbed his hands together as if he couldn’t wait for the juicy details.

“Don’t get any ideas.” I grabbed a slice. “Details stay between Haley and me.”

In about five minutes we’d gone through the two pizzas. I slurped the last of my soda and leaned back. Jamie belched.

“It’s 8:30. Time to party.” I plastered on a smile and we headed out the door for the best night of our lives.

Others must’ve had the same idea as us because cars filled the driveway and lined the road. The music poured from the window, its beat vibrating through the air. I was ready to put on my party face and lose myself in the crowds.

I busted open the door and the crowds welcomed me. I swaggered into the middle of my classmates, shaking my hips. A guy from my soccer team handed me a red plastic cup.

“Thanks, dude,” I said.

I guzzled the whole damn thing. I wiped the last from my mouth and crunched the cup in my hand. Everyone around me let out a whoop. I drank another. Friends pounded me on the back and cheered me on. This continued as I moved throughout the party. I played some drinking game at the kitchen table until my heart numbed over.

This time, Haley wouldn’t be able to see through me.

It didn’t take long to get ready. We showered, changed, and did our make-up in record time. We’d planned our outfits last week. My black jeans with the trendy well-placed holes hugged my hips and a sparkly blue shirt dipped a bit low in the front. Seth loved this on me.

“So,” I said. “Do we have our story down?”

Brin stuck up her fingers one at time. “I’m sleeping at your house. You’re sleeping at Kama’s. And Kama’s sleeping at my house. No problem.”

“And,” Kama added, “if we don’t want to party all night, we’ll call my parents with a change of plans and crash there.”

“But first,” I said, “we have to convince my parents that our plan is on the up and up.”

“Right,” Kama said. “Let’s go.”

Ten minutes later, Kama pulled the Beast into my driveway.

“Kama, you’d better come.” Her smile, confident words, and the way she chatted up my dad usually persuaded him into saying yes for anything. She’d widen her eyes, beg pretty please, and Dad fell for it every time.

“I’ll keep the Beast company.” Brin waved and put in her earbuds.

We ran up the walkway. I wanted to get this over with and prayed Mom and Dad were in agreeable moods. I opened the door and peered inside. “Mom? Dad?”

My older brother, Noah, had his head stuck in the fridge. Probably searching for the last of the spice cake, which I’d already eaten.

“Hey, bro,” I said confidently and walked into the room. “Where’s Mom and Dad?”

Kama bounced through behind me.

He shut the door with an apple in hand and eyed her suspiciously. “What are you going to try and talk them into now?”

I shrugged. “Just a sleepover at Kama’s.” But he wasn’t stupid. “You know, one last night together before our lives change forever.”

“Oh, please. I can see right through you two.” He leaned against the fridge and crunched down on the apple. “What’s really going on?”

Kama batted her eyes. “Just a sleepover, like she said. We thought that maybe since it was the night before graduation, your parents might want Haley home.”

“And that’s why you’re here?”

Kama nodded just as my parents came in from the back porch. They noticed Kama’s presence next to me, as if we were about to head into battle. Their eyebrows went up along with the secret glances. Some kind of silent code of communication only married people can get away with. They weren’t stupid either.

Dad pulled the kitchen chair out and rested his hands on the top of it. Silver tinted the hair above his ears and it hit me that my parents had gotten older too. Just like me. His smile lines were a little bit deeper than I remembered, but he was still the same Dad I knew and loved. Mom sat in the chair and folded her hands in front of her. All business. Her shoulder-length hair was up in a clip. Her lips were pressed together as if she was ready to say no.

“Okay, let’s hear it,” Dad said.

Noah stepped in. “Basically, they’re here to beg you for a sleepover with their desperate plea of it being their last night together before their entire life changes.”

Dad nodded. “Really, now.”

I was shocked. Noah had never done something like this for me. He was attending the nearby community college and after losing a soccer scholarship and his chance at his dream college, he’d carried a bitter chip on his shoulder the size of Texas.

“And why is that, Noah?”

Noah approached the table and for the first time in a long time let down his guard. His shoulders lowered and his voice dropped. “If I could go back to the night before graduation, I would do it in a heartbeat. The truth is that life does change. People change. Friends change. They can’t help it.”

Kama reached over and squeezed my hand. I stared at my brother in shock at the curtain he’d dropped, giving us a peek into his life. I realized how hard it must be for him to live at home while his friends were gone.

“So I think you should let her,” he continued. “She’ll have enough time to be stuck at home with us.” He smiled. “No offense, Mom and Dad.”

Minutes later, Kama and I rushed down the walk to the Beast, holding back our squeals until we got in the car. We shut the door, blasted the music, and roared out the driveway.

“Noah!” I gasped out to Brin. “Noah convinced my parents to say yes!”

“What?” she said. “No way!”

I let out a happy scream and started jamming to the music. The night was ours, to laugh, to cry, to love.

The music pounded, spreading through my body. The writhing, teeming mass of dancing classmates surrounded me as I headed into the fray. My ears were ringing from the blasting music and the random whoops.

I stayed numb to it all until I saw a flash of Haley’s dark hair, with Brin and Kama following her. A cheer echoed through the room, encouraging them to dance it up. Haley laughed and my heart pulsed. I stood at the edge of the room, watching. Her cheeks were flushed. Her long brown hair swung around her shoulders. So damn sexy. Everything about her got me going.

Brin handed out red cups filled with foamy beer. They always used a driving system, so they must be planning on staying for a while if they were all drinking. Haley bumped and wiggled her hips. I couldn’t take it one more second and parted the crowds to reach her. My hands circled her waist, her skin burning my fingertips with heat. She immediately leaned her back into me. My body felt like a live wire, every nerve ending shooting sparks.

“Did you wear that top to drive me crazy?” I ran my fingers up and down her sides and smiled when she shivered at my touch.

“For you, baby,” she whispered and lifted her arms up around behind my neck.

This was different than any other time. She touched. She caressed. Her fingers worked magic. My skin sizzled and craved more. I swayed with her and let the pulse of the music work between us. She turned, not taking her hands off me.

“Can’t we go somewhere else?” she murmured in my ear, then lowered and brushed her lips against the pulse on my neck.

“You bet,” I said, trying to hide how fast I was breathing. “Meet me out back.”

Haley disappeared into the crowd to tell Brin or Kama she’d be off with me. They were like that and had been since Haley’s dad made them all take a safety course at the police station. It was annoying at times, but when I wasn’t around, I knew she’d be safe.

The current song ended and people scattered. Justine had a huge game room in her basement with pool, air hockey, darts, and large couches. I tried not to act like I was about to make out with my girlfriend on the hammock in the backyard. I’d heard enough stories in the locker room about the hammock in Justine’s backyard and it was my turn. If some couple were there, I’d kick them off. Liquid fire shot through my veins and other parts of my body.

In search of a blanket, I followed the crowd down to the basement. Maybe a quiet spot in the backyard would work better. I grabbed the first one I found, a soft fleece, perfect for snuggling and other things. Back upstairs, Haley gabbed with Brin, and I came up behind her.

“Wanna head outside?” I whispered. Then I grasped her hand and dragged her away from Brin.

“Sorry, gotta go!” she cried, laughing, so I knew she wasn’t mad.

I pushed open the screen door and tripped on the mat. I caught myself and continued down the steps.

“Are you drunk?” she asked.

“Not at all.” But then I gripped her hand, more for support.

Tiki lamps and candles flickered on the deck. The sweet smell floated in the air, fighting off the swarm of bugs. A glow spread across the yard, revealing a couple going at it on the hammock.

“Oh,” she sighed. “The hammock’s taken.”

“The hammock’s old news. I got something better in mind.” I kissed her at the edge of the deck. We stood still, the world spinning around us; she was my center. Her hands traveled to the skin showing in the back and her fingers worked magic as she traced small circles above my jeans. More people moved onto the deck, so I broke away and turned my back to her. “Hop on. Your carriage awaits, Mademoiselle.”

“What?” she gasped, and eyed the couples.

“Forget about them.” I tried not to slur my words. “Tonight it’s just you and me, baby.” No parents. No interruptions. No Carly and her words digging into my soul and ripping apart my life. If this night couldn’t be my fairytale, I’d make sure it was Haley’s. “Come on, hop on.” I nudged her.

With a giggle, she jumped on my back. “Giddy up!”

She tried to slap my butt and knocked the cup from my hands. It landed on my shoe, so I just kicked it away to water the grass. I trotted straight toward the hammock.

“What are you doing?” she said in my ear. “Someone’s there.”

If I couldn’t have the hammock, then I could have a little fun. I trotted around the hammock and made neighing noises. I stopped and stomped my foot right next to the couple’s head. It was a girl from my science class with her tongue stuck down the throat of some jock.

“Fuck off,” he said.