Page 5 of The Comeback

“What’s wrong? You can’t deny how hard you’re rocking that. Honestly, if Connor were going to this party tonight, it would be an amazing way to show him what he’s missing.”

My head pops up as I yank at the hemline. “Do you know something you’re not telling me? Is Connor going to be there tonight?”

Her innocent doe eyes arouse my suspicion immediately. “How should I know?”

“Aurelia! I don’t want to see him.” I start to pull the dress off, but it fights back, clinging to me like plastic wrap to itself.

“He might be, he might not be. It’ll be fine. If he is there, I got your back. If not, we’ll have a blast shaking our ass’s and forgetting all about that cheating waste of space.”

This is probably a bad idea, but she’s right. I do look smoking hot in this dress and that is not a phrase I normally apply to myself. Would it really be so bad if my ex saw me looking like this? I have zero desire to tempt him back, but it would make him think about what he’s missing.

“Fine, but I’m wearing tights. I don’t need to flash the entire campus.”

“Of course.” She smiles gleefully as I yank a pair of black tights up over my legs. There’s a chance I won’t even see Sebastian there, right? Strange that the threat of seeing my old best friend turned nemesis scares me more than seeing my lying, cheating ex-boyfriend.

***

The party is in full swing when our Uber pulls in front of the house just off campus. It’s nice for a student house. Pinkish brick with beige painted shutters. Not a chip of paint or broken wood railing in sight. I get a little porch envy at the huge wooden structure gracing the front of the house. People are hanging out on it and spilling over onto the lawn, enjoying the crisp fall air before it gets to the face-hurting level of cold. Michigan in the winter is no joke. Pretty soon, we’ll all be stuck in our puffy coats, hats, and gloves for the season.

A wall of music and heat blast us as we walk through the front door. Relief fills me at the mass amounts of bodies crowding the space. It’ll be easy to avoid anyone I don’t particularly want to see in this crowd.

I trail Ree by her fingertips through the crowd as she expertly weaves her way through the pulsating bodies to find the kitchen. She heads straight for the island loaded with various bottles and mixes. This place has an island? Fancy. She pulls her own flask out of her purse, because safety first, but grabs a can of pop and some blue plastic cups, mixing a couple of rum and cokes for us.

Our cups clash together in a disappointing cheers. Plastic doesn’t have quite the satisfaction of glass. “Here’s to new beginnings and hopefully some amazing endings.” She gets me right as I’m taking a swig and I sputter, choking on the swallow.

“Cheers. I’ll pass on the endings, though. I have enough drama in my life in the actual drama department. Not to mention, I’m quite capable of looking after myself.”

She laughs. “Maybe so, but sometimes it’s nice to let someone else help you out. C’mon. Let’s dance.”

Now that I can get behind. My specialty in the fine arts department is music, but I took years of dance as a kid and participated in all the high school musicals. Music, dancing, and acting are all entwined in my life in a beautiful tangle.

We hit the dance floor hard and the tension in my shoulders eases with the pounding beats. Each sip of my drink spreads a pleasant warmth through my body. Our hips twist and writhe to the sounds surrounding us, and the sweaty bodies writhing around us disappear. I throw my hands up in the air, losing myself to the beat.

The song switches to something a little slower, and I open my eyes. Big mistake. My heart plunges into my stomach when I see Connor staring at me a mere few feet away. Even worse. He’s with Lauren. She grabs his arm, and he snaps back to focus on her. She pulls him in close, grinding against him in a way that has bile rising in my throat. I close my eyes, trying to get back into the happy place I was in, but it’s long gone.

I turn back to my friend, but the sympathetic look in her eyes is unbearable, so I close mine again and sway half heartedly into the next song.

Someone jostles me hard, and I yelp as an icy liquid hits my bare skin. No. Ree’s dress. It’s going to be ruined.

“I’m so sorry.” I snap my head to the side. Lauren’s standing there with a fake smile to match her fake apology.

Heat burns behind my eyes, and I shove through the crowd on the dance floor. No way are they seeing me cry. Not again. They’re not worthy of my tears.

I stumble around until I find a set of stairs.

“Hey, Abby. I’m so sorry. What a bitch. I guess she couldn’t handle Connor checking you out.”

I pull out of her hug. “No, I’m sorry. Your dress is ruined.” My lip quivers as I look down at the beautiful dress.

“Not your fault. Your feelings are much more important than a dress. Let’s find you a bathroom to get cleaned up.”

I shake my head. “You stay down here. I’ll clean up and come find you after.” I’m lying to her. I’m going to find somewhere to cry and then slink off home with my tail between my legs. I haven’t felt this humiliated since high school. I wish I had never come to this party in the first place.

My feet catch on the stairs, and I stumble a couple of times. The first two doors I try are locked, but the third one gives way, so I tumble through as I let the tears finally pour out. My chest heaves and my heart hurts. How can people be so cruel? She got the guy. Good luck to her with that one. If he cheated on me, he’ll have no problem cheating on her. But that is her problem, not mine.

As the tears ease up a bit, I glance around the room I ended up in. I swipe at my eyes with the back of my hand to clear my vision. There’s a large bed sitting against the far wall. It has a plush navy comforter and a dark wood headboard. Everything about it screams guy room, from the hockey posters on the wall to the spicy smell that tingles my nose. I should really get out of here in case its resident decides to make an appearance. There’s a tissue box on the bedside table, though. I glance around one more time and make a beeline across the room. I’ll grab a couple to clean myself up and then get out of here.

As I’m reaching for the box, I hear a door creaking behind me. Shit.

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