Page 21 of All Your Lies
Who does this guy think he is? Like I’m just going to fall at his feet.
Unknown
Oh, you thought I was asking...? This isn’t a request.
I roll my eyes and leave him on read again.
He might have magic fingers and a voice dripping with so much sexual intent I’m putty in his hands, but I’m not interested.
I learned my lesson with Marco. He remained cold and distant until something came over him, and he changed, making me believe we had a real chance to make things work. Then I walked in on him with a girl’s face buried in his lap.
seven
Alexa
10 MONTHS AGO-20 YEARS OLD
Rosie and I stare at our newly decorated dorm room. Rosie’s side is a mix of pretty pastels, while I prefer the darker hues of blacks and greens. It’s like a colorful sunset to a dark storm. You can definitely tell which side is whose.
“I can’t believe this is our life now, questionable decisions, parties galore—”
“Not for long,” Rosie says with a sigh.
“Don’t you dare ruin this monumental moment, Rosalinda,” I say as I hip check her. She had a fight with her father right before we left. He almost changed his mind and wouldn’t let her come. I don’t understand why he always has to be so hard on her, on all his kids.
With my dad’s help, he finally agreed, and we took off like a shot, exceeding the speed limit a few times because we couldn’t bear to miss a single second of our newly earned freedom.
It took a year of begging our parents before they both relented and allowed us a year of college. We took some courses online after high school, accounting for me and dance and art for Rosie, but it wasn’t enough. I wanted this experience, and so did Rosie. Better late than never, I guess.
“I’m hungry. Do you want to go check out the town and see what we can find?”
“Yeah, sounds good to me. I’m starving.”
We decide to try a bar and grill around the corner from the university she heard about from one of the other girls in our dorm while she was checking out the shower situation.
It didn’t take long to locate the place once we stepped foot outside our dorm. The pounding rhythm of the music echoed through the streets, leading us straight to it.
We follow a group of people around our age down a set of stairs. My mind is blown. The bar is in a basement?
“This place is kind of awesome,” Rosie yells in my ear.
“Agreed,” I say with a nod.
My dad would have a coronary. He would consider this highly unsafe, and I can almost envision his protest.What if there’s a fire, Alexandria? What if there’s a shooter? Where’s your way out? Did you bring your gun?
I survey my surroundings and notice a sign against the back wall with an emergency exit highlighted in red neon lights over the top, then I discreetly rub my fingertips against my jean skirt-covered thigh to feel for the handle to my blade. Hopefully, that will chill my dad’s voice out in my head and calm my nerves.
As we hit the bottom step, I see a dozen pool tables off to the right-hand side. A huge collage of TVs sit on the wall along theleft side where a music video is playing. There’s a stage where it looks like a band is setting up. Everything is dark, and I kind of love it.
I can get used to this. I smile to myself before I get pulled toward the bar to order.
Once we’re done ordering, we sit and observe.
“Do you want to play pool after we eat?”
“As long as you keep the jokes to a minimum. I still suck,” I say with a pout. I’m competitive, and I hate losing, which is what I do frequently while playing pool.
When I’d go to her house, we’d play in the game room. It was always her and me against Gage and Marco. The guys would unfortunately always win, which was no fault of Rosie’s, always mine. Poor Rosie would have to deal with a dare for losing.
