Page 219 of Plaything

Reesia cringed at him and his boomer-ish humor. “It blows my mind that the youths of today look up to you, truly, Niko,” she sneered. After graduation, he was swarmed by graduating students wanting pictures with him and thanking him for his support throughout the years. To his credit, he was one of—if not the best professors at the university.

“He deserves all the kudos,” I chimed in.

“Bias,” Vincent smirked.

I couldn’t reasonably defend myself in a way that would mean anything to them. Maybe I was slightly biased, but he was my favorite professor even before I knew, slept with, or loved Niko. I shrugged. If you can’t beat them, join them! “Horribly,” I agreed.

Reesia was already making a devilish concoction of fruits, orange juice, and tequila in Jamie’s blender.

Just as the rest of my guys walked through the front door, Reesia held up the blended drunk juice and wiggled it at me. “Want one?”

Before I could answer yes, Aiden interrupted me. “Nope,” he chimed as they rounded the corner.

Pushing my brows together, I eyed Aiden. No? They were controlling in a lot of ways—the best ways, ways that I liked and thought were sexy—Daddyish, if I may. But for him to say I couldn’t drink after graduation was beyond confusing. They never cared when I drank before...

As if he sensed the ick radiating off of me, Aiden turned and shot me a smile. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small bag of candy while walking to me. “The two don’t usually mix well,” he explained mysteriously.

Jamie huffed out a laugh, watching us as she placed bowls of chips and snacks on the counter. “How did I forget about Aiden’s infamous end-of-school-year tradition?” she sang into the open, earning chuckles from the others.

Gesturing for me to take the bag, Aiden analyzed my reaction closely while I inspected it. I’d never actually seen edibles, but I knew what THC was, and it was plastered right on the front, next to ‘mango flavor’ and ‘ten milligrams each’.

I wouldn’t have guessed that Aiden Anderson, dean of psychology, got high at the end of each school year. It was perfect timing, though. He was off for the summer and had no drug tests for three months. Once I figured out that the candy wasn’t candy, I returned the bag to him.

“Want to try?” He offered. “You don’t have to, but I figured I’d offer before Reesia poisons you—”

“Hey!” Reesia chimed in, pulling the straw she was sipping from her mouth. “One time...” she mumbled to herself and rolled her eyes.

Intrigue hit me. Sometimes, my old roommate and her boyfriend would come back from a party where they smoked weed. From what I witnessed, they giggled, snacked, then promptly fell asleep for hours. It wasn’t anything crazy like what they show in movies. “What exactly do they do?” I asked. Obviously, I knew what they did. But at the same time... not really.

Luckily, I didn’t have to elaborate as Aiden pointed to the bag. “It depends on the person. In general, sativa gets you high—giggly and whatnot. Indica relaxes you. This is a hybrid,” he explained. “I’ll give you half. We’ll wait an hour and see what you think,” he suggested.

“Is ten milligrams strong?” I asked. This was uncharted territory, and I wouldn’t take one without being sure.

“No, I’m taking two. But—”

“But you’re tiny, and he’s a giant,” Niko finished. He squeezed my shoulders before he let go.

“It’s better to start small, especially if you’ve never taken an edible before. They can hit you like a train,” Collin chimed in. Reesia nodded next to him.

I agreed to take half as everyone disbursed around Jamie’s haunted house. Aiden and Vincent took two gummies each, and everyone else had a beer or a glass of Reesia’s drunk juice.

Forty-five minutes had passed, and I still felt as normal as ever—strangely. I didn’t know what I expected, but it wasn’t nothing. Alcohol hit me fast when I drank (almost as fast as it was hitting Reesia and Niko), so I expected to feel something.

Jamie’s stereo system played a mix of rap, rock, and pop music. Reesia and I sat at the kitchen counter as she showed me her and Collin’s wedding photos on her phone. Wyatt and Collin were playing pool just outside the back door as the sun set behind them. Everyone else was at the dining room table, gambling their money away in a Texas Holdem game.

“Awe, I love this one,” I gushed as I smiled at Reesia’s phone. It was a simple, candid picture of her and Collin, clad in a white Vera Wang dress and Armani suit. They were sitting at a table, Reesia glaring over her shoulder at a blurry Jamie in the background, and Collin smiling at his bride—had I ever seen him smile before? I didn’t think so.

Reesia laughed, “It was such a fun night. Wyatt got so drunk that he ended up talking in an accent—”

“Cowboy Wyatt!” I giggled, turning to smirk at Wyatt through the screen door.

He shook his head, denying any cowboy-ish behavior. “There is no ‘Cowboy Wyatt.’ Not that I remember, anyway,” he smirked before taking a swig of beer.

“Drunk Wyatt is my favorite,” Niko smiled, joining our teasing.

“As soon as he unbuttons his shirt, that’s when you know it’s game over,” Dominic added.

“Alright, alright,” Wyatt put his hands up in surrender, pointing a warning finger at me as I started it.

---