Page 14 of The Lies We Tell Ourselves

Sure!

Mal

Just hurry up or there will be no mimosas left. Ava is drinking from the jug.

Ava

STFU!!!

“About time, angel boy,” Ava grouched as I walked through the door to find her splayed across my bed looking like a more colorful version of Cleopatra. Her costume was exquisite, and even though I’d expected nothing less, it still blew my mind and it made me feel like a fish out of water. I was so out of my depth.

I dropped my bag in the bottom of my closet, toed the door shut, and collapsed on my bed next to Ava. A smile that reached all the way to her eyes lit her face as she turned to look at me as she traced her index finger along my eyebrow, down my nose, and onto my lips. I tried to nip the pad of her index finger before she lifted it off my lips, but even in her intoxicated state, she had lightning-fast reflexes.

“Here you go, JJ.” Mal leaned over Ava and passed me a cold glass filled with bubbling golden liquid. I arched my brow as I watched the glittering liquid swirling around inside the glass, having never seen anything like it before.

Ava smirked up at me and winked. “It’s safe. I saw it on Amazon, and I just had to buy it. Looks freaking cool, right?”

“What is it?”

“It’s a gold standard mimosa.” She chuckled. “Oh, JJ.” She wrapped her arm around my neck and pulled me in for a side hug. “You know how everything is better when it sparkles?—”

“Or is a rainbow,” Mal added.

“If you say so.” I sipped my drink and ran my eyes over their outfit. Ava’s was obvious, but Mal’s left me confused. “So what are you, Mal?”

Ava snorted at Mal’s affronted look and tried to hide behind her glass. “He’s… he’s…” She couldn’t get her words out before she broke into a giggle.

“Seriously, you can’t tell?” Mal slowly turned in a circle as I took in his low-slung blue jeans sitting just below the tight band of his boxers, and his open short-sleeved button down that exposed the slight definition of his muscled stomach.

“Have you used bronzer to give yourself abs?” I squinted, trying to get a better look. I couldn’t deny the product added extra depth, making the fake six pack look real. Ava snorted, slipping off the edge of my bed and unceremoniously falling in a heap on the floor.

“Might have.” Mal crossed his arms, puffed his chest out, and clenched his stomach. “Looks good though, right?”

“H-have y-you got it yet?” Ava wheezed.

I looked at her then at Mal again. My head tilted to the side as a flicker of recognition filtered through my brain. “I want to say it’s on the tip of my tongue.” I chewed the inside of my cheek as the answer buzzed around inside my head. “But… no?”

Mal cringed as Ava barked a laugh. “Oh, angel.” She sighed and pulled herself back onto the bed, sitting criss crossed facing me. “I have one question for you… were you team Edward or te?—”

“JACOB!!! Oh my god, you’re Jacob Black!”

Mal rolled his left hand through the air and tucked his other hand against his stomach and took a bow. “Finally! Jamie, I was worried about you there.”

“Oh shut up,” I grumbled. “My eyes are sore.” My head dropped to my chest, and I took a deep breath as my anxiety swelled inside me.

“Jamie,” Ava said softly. “What’s wrong, sweetie? You look like you’ve been crying.”

I sniffled. “I’m good.” I popped off the bed and grabbed the hanger off the back of the door and slipped into the bathroom to get changed. “Why are we getting dressed up?” I asked through the closed door.

“‘Cause it’s a costume party,” she sang.

“Duh!” Mal chuckled.

I rolled my eyes at Ava’s response, even though she couldn’t see me. “Should have fucking guessed they’d keep something like that from me,” I muttered to myself as I slipped on a white toga dress type thing, then battled with my lack of balance to buckle up some Roman sandals. “Ava, are these shoes yours?”

“You know it, angel. They fit?”

“Ah, yeah. I guess.” To be honest, they were a bit snug, but at least they worked with the costume. I caught my reflection in the mirror as I slipped on my wings and took in my side profile. I rolled my shoulders and chuckled to myself when my wings moved, but then my gaze snagged on my face and I froze. “Shit.” My face was flushed, my cheeks tear-stained, and my eyes were swollen. Thank god I hadn’t put any makeup on before I went out earlier. But now, after seeing what I looked like, I had even less of an inclination to go out and be surrounded by drunk people.

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