Page 25 of Resist Me

“What?”

“I’m trying to figure you out,” he said with a shrug.

“Probably a bad idea. I’m an ancient tomb. Open me up and you’ll release a bunch of bad shit. Curses and all that.”

He burst into laughter, shaking his head. “See? I knew that you were more than the stuck-up evil spawn that West claimed you were.”

“Stuck-up evil spawn,” I repeated. “Sounds like he’s projecting.”

My neck prickled, making my shoulders rise. Turning around, I found West there, holding out a beer. I took it with a grateful nod.

“I have an idea,” he said as he leaned his elbows on the back of the couch. He was looking at Brooks, who seemed to know it was going to be something he didn’t like. “Karaoke.”

Brooks laughed. “Are you serious? How would we even do that?”

“Well, I had to make one irresponsible purchase with that money my dad sent me. I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t.”

“You bought a karaoke machine?”

“Damn right, I did. And I need you to get the people excited.”

“I don’t see how I’d do that.”

“You start. If I do it, they’ll just pass it off as my usual erratic behavior. You’re likable.”

“So are you.”

West’s jaw ticked, but he just shrugged. After a moment, Brooks swore and got to his feet. He followed West’s directions and groaned before he started setting it up in front of the TV.

West swung himself over the back of the couch and landed in the seat beside me, making my beer slosh over a little. I frowned at the spot on my jeans. He was so fixated on the impending shit show that he didn’t notice.

When he stretched his arms over the back of the couch, I considered moving somewhere else. Or leaving altogether. He smelled strongly of citrus and musk, which reminded me that he’d just taken a shower before I got here. He’d answered the door in just a towel, displaying his broad chest and a body that shouldn’t look so chiseled considering how much he ate. He was always stuffing his face- in the locker room, during half-time, before games, after games, and on the way to class. It was the most insane thing I’d ever seen.

Even though I’d been surprised when he opened the door, my eyes had immediately fallen to his side. A huge, mottled bruise decorated his skin in dark shades of black and purple. I knew he’d gone down hard and was in pain during the game, but seeing the aftermath was shocking. I probably should’ve hit Drake a couple more times.

The bruise had to hurt like a bitch, but he didn’t show it. That infuriating smile was still pasted on his face while he watched Brooks as if he didn’t have a care in the world. Must be nice. Not that I had any particular issues in my life right now, but I also didn’t have a reason to smile like that.

“Hello,” Brooks said into the microphone, drawing out the end of the word. Everyone turned toward him and his lips thinned. “I’m gonna kill you, West.”

“You’ve got this!” West shouted. I recoiled from the sound. He looked at me and quirked a brow, but I refocused on Brooks.

“Yeah, yeah. Since I’m here, I’m gonna dedicate my performance to my friend who’s trying really hard not to be noticed.”

I followed the direction he pointed in and found a guy with blonde hair who looked like he wanted to crawl inside his beer bottle and disappear. I recognized him from practices, but I didn’t know his name. He wasn’t on the team; he just sat in the stands often and did homework while he smoked.

Brooks winked at him, then took a dramatically large breath and started the song. It took me a moment to recognize it as Meet Me At Our Spot. I wasn’t a fan, but Brooks actually sang pretty damn well. Maybe that was why West chose him to start this ridiculous activity.

Most of the people around us were watching him while they carried on talking. I spotted Kai and Sen by the back door. Kai had his arms around him from behind and it looked like he was eithertalking or singing in his ear. Sen laughed softly, then twisted at the neck to kiss him. Even that simple gesture seemed full of passion as if they couldn’t help but get lost in it.

That was what I’d seen from my parents when I was growing up. It was why I refused to settle. When I went on a date and I wasn’t feeling a connection, I cut it off. I just didn’t want to waste my time on something if I wasn’t feeling it. Maybe I came off as a dick, but some things were more important than date etiquette.

The song ended and West cheered loudly. Everything he did was loud.

“Who do you nominate for the next round?” he asked.

Brooks tapped his chin as he surveyed the room. I had a horrible feeling when he met my eyes. I gave him a look, pleading with him not to do what I knew he was thinking. He bit his lip and pointed at me.

“Linc. He’s officially a simple, measly college student like the rest of us, so he has to lower himself to our standards.”

---