Page 2 of Make You Love Me

“Oh, come on, you’ve been in there for an hour.”

Turning back to the offending corset, I let out a defeated sigh. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll be out in a minute.” There’s no point in faking sick at this point, right?

Ugh! This was a stupid idea. I mean, who has a Halloween party in June anyway? Nori Beach, North Carolina, is a well-known destination around the country. Families from all over come and spend their summers at their lavish beach houses that line the coast. With rich families, there are always over-the-top parties thrown by their spawn trying to one-up their fellow neighbors.

Don’t get me wrong, I love it here and I’m thankful my family has a summer house that has been in the Richmond family for generations. The only downside is that I’m left with the She-Devil herself in an enormous house with nothing much to do.

I don’t have many friends down here. I personally think most of the teen population here are a bunch of snobby assholes. Therefore, I keep myself busy during the weekdays, taking walks on the boardwalk and laying out on the beach with a book in my hand. My weekends are usually filled with more of the same or hanging with Ashley when she’s here.

Luckily I've avoided Ethel Richmond since arriving last week. Living with her brings on a whole new meaning of nitpicking. First, let me start by saying that Ethel is my grandmother on my mother’s side, but she thinks that phrase makes her seem too old and lacks the proper respect she rightfully deserves. Yeah, she’s a real peach. Second, she will be the first person to highlight your flaws and harp on them until you make the adjustments she deems appropriate. I’ve lived with her constant critiques for most of my life and you could certainly blame my body shaming habits on her. Honestly, I can’t stand being around her for extended periods of time, but she’s one of the few family members I have left, so I do what I can to keep the peace. Which means I’ll be keeping myself busy this summer and our interactions to a minimum.

This party will be fun, or at least that’s what Ashley keeps telling me. I just need to get myself out there and make the best of it, leaving Ethel’s critiques behind.

Tucking and fidgeting with this costume for the last time, I grab my phone and quickly send a selfie to Jonathan in hopes of spiking a little dirty talk from him. He’s so straight-laced and proper. Totally not my type normally, but Ethel doesn’t seem to like him or his family much, which just makes me want to hang out with him more.

He’s nice and all, he’s just so serious, always on point—Mr. future President. I like to have fun and be young, and it’s like pulling teeth to get him to relax. I’m trying desperately to loosen him up a bit.Let’s see if a little skin does the trick.

Opening the bathroom door, I see Ashley sitting at the edge of my bed on her phone. The clicking of my heels on the hardwood gains her attention and her head pops up.“Holy shit, Babe! You look so fucking hot! I knew this design would work perfectly on your shape.” She whistles at me as she stands. I immediately blush at her attention and fidget my hands.

“Tig, I’m serious… you’re a knockout. I cannot wait to see the attention you get tonight. We’re going to have these Nori Beach guys drooling all over us.” She takes my hand and twirls me around. Like I said, she’s awesome at being a hype girl and I definitely feel more at ease. Her enthusiasm is contagious.

Ashley hands me a shot of who knows what to help calm my nerves. We raise our glasses and cheers. “Fuck it… here goes nothing,” I murmur to myself as I take it down.

“Did you send Mr. Stick-up-his-ass a pic of how fucking hot you are? I bet he doesn’t even know what to do with it. Probably thinks his phone will get confiscated with such deplorable images on it.” She laughs so hard she snorts, imitating a man with ramrod straight posture and a snooty-looking face. I literally burst out laughing. She’s so ridiculous sometimes.

I smack her arm when I regain my composure. “That’s not very nice Ash. Jonathan’s not that bad.”

“Ha! That’s one way of putting it… besides, do you even like him?” She raises one eyebrow in question, handing me another glass of who knows what.

“I mean… I guess. I don’t know,” I mutter into my drink.

“Oh, come on babe. You should absolutely, without a doubt, know if you’re into someone.”

“I guess you’re right. I honestly think I’m trying to make it work just to piss Ethel off. The look on her face when I brought him to dinner was priceless. Made me think if I held onto him for a bit longer—”

Ashley interrupts, “You can’t string him along just to piss off Ethel. As fun as that may be, it’s not fair to him. Although I’m not sure if he even has emotions, he’s such a robot.”

“Ugh, I guess you’re right.” I glance at my phone to see if he’s responded to my sexy selfie. Nope, nothing. “I’m supposed to see him soon. I guess I’ll break it off, even though we both agreed to just have fun this summer.”

“Set him free girl,” she fake-sings into her fist. This girl has definitely been pre-gaming without me. I smile and down the rest of my drink, holding my glass out for another.

“That’s my girl!” She smiles and glances back at her phone. “Okay, our Uber should be here in about ten minutes, so let’s have another one before it gets here.” I nod, accepting my fate. Ashley beams as she pours us another shot of liquid courage.

***

We pull up to the elaborate iron gates that precede a long stone driveway. Ashley squeals in excitement as they slowly open and our car creeps closer to its destination. The sprawling historic home is decked out top to bottom with Halloween decorations, and it looks like there’s a haunted maze set up on the grounds. We come to a stop and Ash grabs my hand, practically dragging me out of the car.

We approach the steps just as the doors open, allowing the thumping bass to travel outside. Several people spill onto the stairs before us, just barely missing a collision. Still holding my hand, Ashley sidesteps the drunken masses, and we make our way into the home. We spot the bar set up on the opposite side of the room and weave our way through the crowd. I smile, hearing several guys whistle at us as we pass. Maybe this costume wasn’t an awful choice after all.Touché Bitty.

I grab two beers from the ice buckets and hand one to Ash while she scopes out the place. It’s quite dark in here besides the themed lighting and black lights. The space we’re in is super crowded and it appears that all the furniture and most of the decor have been removed to protect it from the impending chaos that will ensue by the end of the night. Because let’s be real, some shit always goes down by the end of the night.

We spot an opening on the dance floor and make our way over there just as “Essence” by Wizkid starts to play. My body takes the reins as the heavy beat pumps through my system, along with the shots we took earlier. Ashley and I love to dance. It’s probably why we like parties so much. If there are good beats playing, we will start a dance party just about anywhere. If I’m being honest, it’s so freeing to just let go and move to the music. I’m not thinking about what’s wrong with my body, who I should or shouldn’t be hanging out with, or what responsibilities I’m ignoring. I just let it all go.

We like to make a show of it out on the dance floor. Our surroundings disappear and we both vibe with one another, feeding off each other’s energy. My insecurities about the damn costume are long forgotten, and I am truly having a great time.

Several songs later, Ashley swigs her beer and leans in to speak. “Holy shit babe, we’re drawing quite the audience.” I peek over her shoulder and take notice of the crowd surrounding us. I give her a sly smile as I turn my ass into her, drop it down low, and slowly work my hips up. When I stand up, she grabs my hand and I spin her around. Just as she’s about to complete her turn, her elbow is grabbed by someone dressed as the Joker. A very tall and jacked Joker. I wish I could see his face beneath all the face paint, but damn, his presence is overwhelming. She side-eyes me, silently asking if it's okay if she dances with Mr. Tall, Dark, and Jacked. I give her a knowing smile and take my tipsy ass back to the ice buckets. My beer has been empty for quite some time now, and a girl needs to maintain her buzz.

Grabbing another beer, I make my way out the back doors that are right off the kitchen. If I know Ashley, she’ll be busy for several songs, so I have a few minutes to cool off. I find a secluded spot on the massive back deck and lean against the railing. It’s a beautiful night out. The bright stars light up the sky and I can’t help but get lost staring at them.

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