Page 75 of Matched Up

‘We’ll see,’ Niall said.

Hunter showed up first, rolling a keg of beer in front of him.

‘What the hell?’I said.

He stopped rolling and looked at me.‘Lexie, you look amazing.’

‘Thanks,’ I said, and was surprised when my cheeks flushed with heat.‘Kitchen?’I pointed at the keg.

And that was only the start of it.Kid after kid showed up with more alcohol than I’d ever seen.There were already ones from the year below kicking a ball about on the pitch and a group of girls vaping outside.

Megan grabbed my hand and squeezed it.‘Oh my God, Lexie, this is going to be amazing.’

She looked incredible.I was so used to seeing her in a football kit and her baggy jumpers, so now that she’d made an effort, she looked like a different person.I watchedNiall’s face when he saw her, like something from a cartoon: mouth open, imaginary smoke pouring out his ears.And I thought of Shane then, how much I loved it when he ran his eyes over me, and that electric current rushed through my veins.

‘Shot?’Megan dragged me over to the kitchen island where Hunter was handing out shots of something blue.

‘Sure?’I pulled a face when I looked at it.

‘Get it down ya,’ said Hunter.I swallowed it.

‘How come Shane isn’t coming?’

I turned round to see Zoe studying my expression.I wished she hadn’t said his name.Hearing it coming out of her lips felt worse than the constant reel of his face going round in my head.

I smiled and reached for another shot.‘Just busy.’I wished so hard that my lie was true, that he was playing football or something, that we hadn’t had that fight, and that my heart wasn’t shattered.

‘Hey, Hunter, don’t forget me, your date,’ Zoe said with a grin.

They were going out now?

Hunter handed her a shot.‘Sorry, babe.’

In the kitchen, Niall was already picking up rubbish.But a couple of hours later he’d obviously abandoned his efforts, because there were crisp packets, empty bottles and pizza boxes everywhere.My house looked like a bomb site.

The music was so loud that it made my ears ache.There were people everywhere.Every room I went into had people kissing, people laughing, people just hanging out.I’d never felt so lonely.

The shots had gone to my head.But I liked it.The woozy, blurry feeling softened the edges of all my thoughts of Shane.So I drank another.

‘You good, Lexie?’

I looked up to see Hunter smiling at me.

I smiled back.‘I’m good.’

‘Can I show you something?’

I laughed.‘In my own house?’

‘Yeah, in your own house.Actually upstairs.’

I sighed and shrugged.I wasn’t doing anything else and could definitely use a distraction.

‘Come on.’Hunter nodded his head towards the staircase.

I swallowed another shot.They’d actually started to taste nice now.I followed Hunter upstairs to the games room, where he sat down on the sofa.There were only a few other kids up here.Well, there could be some in my bedroom, but I wasn’t about to check.

He turned on the Nintendo.

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