Page 6 of Never Have I Ever
I see nearly everyone around us take a sip of their drink, including Leila to my right. I cock my head towards her and raise my eyebrows. “You have?” I ask her.
She laughs. “My whole life is a one-night stand,” she says.
My eyes widen. I know she hooks up a lot, but I always thought maybe it was with the same guy. I glance down at my drink, seeing the cup still full. I want to drink and have fun like everyone else, but I haven’t done anything.
“Never have I ever got a tattoo.”
Leila drinks along with three other people in the crowd. One of them being the guy that was standing by the wall earlier. He’s covered in tattoos. His arms are scattered with black ink. I must stare a little too long because his eyes catch mine. I suck in a breath and turn to face Leila.
“You have a tattoo?” I ask her. She’s quiet for a moment before she nods. “How did I not know that?”
“Because I wasn’t going to show anyone. I can’t have tattoos, it’s in my modeling contract,” she says, shrugging. “But I figured if I got a small one where they couldn’t see, it would be okay.”
Leila’s been a model since I met her. At first, she was doing small commercials, but since she turned eighteen, she’s done runway shows and worked for big companies.
She even models for me when I need her to, which I’m thankful for. Having someone at my disposal whenever I need makes my job so much easier.
“Where?”
She lifts her brown hair and turns her head. Behind her ear is a small black paw print. “A paw?” I ask her.
She covers it with her hair and turns to face me. “A tiger paw,” she explains.
“Oh,” I stare back at her. “Is there a meaning behind it?”
She shrugs. “Just thought it looked cool,”
I nod. “It does. It looks really good,”
She smiles, squeezing my thigh. “Thanks,”
“Excuse me,” Madi says, walking past the huddle of people to sit on the couch next to Leila, Gabi coming right behind her.
“I thought you said you were leaving,” I say.
“Forever,” we all say dramatically.
We all laugh, and Gabi shrugs. “Yeah, well, I missed you guys.”
Madi rolls her eyes. “That’s a lie. She was about to hook up with some frat guy, and I dragged her back here before she brought him back to the dorm.”
“She cockblocked me,” Gabi says.
“Yeah, well, be thankful you don’t wake up with a bunch of STDs tomorrow,” Madi says back to her.
“You did that for your benefit, not mine,” Gabi replies.
“Hell yeah, I did.”
Gabi laughs, shaking her head, and turns to Leila. “What are we playing?”
“Never Have I Ever,” Leila replies.
Gabi holds out her empty cup. “Then fill me up. I don’t have the energy to go get a drink.”
Leila pours half of her drink into Gabi’s cup, and they sit back, waiting for the next one.
“Never have I ever stood someone up on a date.”
