Page 57 of Still Here Without You

“Nope, take your shot.” I have to laugh because he’s acting pretty ballsy for a freshman.

The night goes on, drinks are flowing, and I’m feeling better. At least I was, until Rachel started peering up at me from her phone with a frown on her face and a look that can only be described as pity.

I raise an eyebrow, laughing at her. Nothing could bring down my mood right now, but she has me intrigued.

I move to grab her phone, but she pulls it away from me. “Joel, I—”

“What’s the big deal? Just give me the phone, Rach.”

After some convincing, she hands it over and moves beside me so she can look at the same time. She has a photo open that gives me pause. “When the fuck was this taken?”

“I was just tagged in it.”

“Why were you tagged?” I ask, staring at the image.

“Her Paris bestie wanted to rub it in my face, I guess,” she says with a shrug, swaying as she does.Or maybe I’m the one swaying.

I look down at the photo again, feeling a little sick. Delilah’s smiling wide while a guy, who's wrapped around her, kisses her cheek, dangerously close to her mouth. He’s possessively holding her waist, and her body is angled toward him.Fuck! “Fuck!”

“That’s why I didn’t want to show you. I’m sure it’s innocent. It just looks bad.”

“Then why the fuck did you draw attention to it and give me a look.”

“What look?”

“Pity!” I toss my hands in the air before grabbing my head, squeezing my eyes shut.

“I don’t know. But I’m sure there’s an explanation. Let’s just get another drink and forget about it.”

There’s not much I can do about it until I talk to Delilah tomorrow, so I look up, nod my head, pulling the girl closest to me in for a dance. Rachel giggles as she walks away, and I wish I could laugh in this moment but…Fuck!

Stumbling out of the bathroom stall, I zip up my pants, the regret instantly plaguing me. I try to look at myself in the mirror, but it’s all a blur, like the entire world has been for the last hour. Running my sleeve over my mouth, flashes of the past five minutes come to mind.

“Don’t worry, it was meaningless for me too. No need to stress about it.”

What the fuck did I do?I’m going to be sick.

Dropping my head into my hands, I curse into my palms. “Fuck!” I need to get out of here. Turning to leave, I run straight into a brick wall.One that moves.

“Hey there, Joel. Need a hand?”And talks.

I’m sixty percent sure it’s one of Dylan’s teammates, so I allow the help. And considering I can’t really stand up, I don’t have much choice anyway. I nod, I think, as he props me up on the wall opposite the stall I just vacated. I stare at it in disgust.

“Dylan’s looking for you,” the guy says, turning around to see what I’m staring at. The toilet flushes as bile rises in my throat.

“Fuck! I need out,” I grunt, massaging my temples to try to rid myself of the blinding headache.

The guy looks back at the stall again and seemingly understands, hooking his arm around my waist to help me walk.

Dylan’s in the hall when we push through the door. “Jesus, Joel. You’re a mess; what the—”

“You might want to skip the lecture for now,” the guy cuts Dylan off. “Joel’s currently trying to escape his bathroom romp.”

“What the fuck?” Dylan yells, while at the same time I try to defend myself. “That’s not—”

“Save it. We can barely understand you. Come on.” The guy, who I’m now certain is Luke, walks me toward the exit and into the fresh air. As soon as Dylan’s outside, Luke dumps me in his arms. “He’s your problem now. I’m heading back in. The ladies are calling me.”

I roll my eyes and they almost roll into the back of my head, making me feel dizzy. “I’m gonna chuck.”

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