Page 3 of Freshmeet
Then we all turned to the resident scaredy cat virgin, Rae.
“Well,” I said, holding the needle and lighter out to her.
“Do I really have to do this?” she whined, making eye contact with Mona, silently begging her to end this.
“Yes,” I said, opening her fist and placing the needle in her palm. Flicking the lighter, I waited until the peer pressure became too much and she caved.
Pouting, she heated the end, pricked herself, and squeezed a few drops onto our intentions. “Happy?” she asked, shaking out her hand.
“Ecstatic,” I deadpanned. “Now, each of you stand in front of a candle.” When everyone was in place, I placed the spell pouch I got off the internet in the bowl and lit it. Setting the bowl in the middle of the pentagram, I stepped in front of my own candle and dramatically chanted, “Suum cuique tribuere.”
The fire in the bowl flared at my words, the candles behind us burning so hot that we all moved in toward the middle of the pentagram. The wind whipped around us as the fire turned pink and shimmery. It was intoxicating, drawing me in, begging me to come closer. Words I didn’t understand whispered in my ear, and excitement washed over me. Goosebumps spread all over my body, and I could barely stand still.
Holy shit, it’s working.
Mona’s eyes widened, and her mouth fell open like she was going to speak.
I threw up a hand and shouted, “Wait.”
Not a second later, a final gust of wind extinguished the fire in the bowl, and the candles went out. The cool night air settled back around us, silent and calm, and it was as if nothing ever happened.
“What the fuck?” Kat murmured, pushing her long pink hair from her pale face.
Britta’s big brown eyes bored into me, searching for an explanation. In fact, all the girls looked at me with wonder and a touch of fear.
They had no idea what they had just given me.
A tingle spread from my chest through my limbs, and I couldn’t help but smile.
It’s done. Let’s get to the mixer.
The red plastic cup cracked in my hand as I watched Carter and Sarah celebrate another sunk shot. They’d run the beer pong table all night, and I was ready to explode.
“He’s got it bad,” Duncan said into his beer. The Gamma junior had been popping up all night, giving me oh-so-helpful words of encouragement.
“Shut up.” I threw my empty cup down and stomped away.
So much for a 4.7 rating on Etsy, that pouch was bullshit.
When I’d shown up, Carter hadn’t even said hello. No, he was too busy chatting up Sarah.
Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Don’t cry.
“Hey! Wait up!” Duncan yelled after me, but I was already down the hall, shoving past the sorority girls and frat boys packed into the Gamma Theta Pi Pierce Street house. All the bodies had the temperature inside pushing eighty degrees, leaving my skin dewy with sweat.
For once, there wasn’t a line for the bathroom, so I ducked inside. As I closed the door, Duncan pushed his way in.
“I need a minute,” I gritted out, barely holding back tears.
Duncan frowned and shut the door behind him, flipping the lock while he finished his beer.
“I mean it. Get out!” I shouted, violently gesturing at the door.
The big doofus smiled at me, crossing his arms over his overly muscled chest. “You’re upset.”
“Yeah, there’s a big asshole who won’t leave me alone.”
Duncan’s jaw twitched, and my stomach dropped to my ass. His nice-guy smile morphed into something far less friendly. Suddenly, the bathroom was too small, and he was too fuckingbig. It didn’t matter that we were friends once he became a giant obstacle between me and freedom.
