Page 69 of Still Here Without You

Following Dylan out the door, I look back at my computer, at Delilah's last message, and sigh. “I’ll deal with you tomorrow.”

HERE NOW

Fourteen months later

Chapter Twenty-Five

Joel

“Arewereallydoingthis?” I say to Dylan as we both make our way toward the foam Slip ‘N Slide. Once again I’m questioning why I’m here. This is my first fundraising frat party, which is actually surprising considering it’s my senior year, but it is what it is. Thankfully, it’s not overly cold right now, because there’s no way I’d be doing this if there was any chance I’d freeze my balls off.

“It’s for a good cause,” Dylan says, stripping off his tee and throwing it at Summer.

She catches it and laughs before shaking her head. “I’m with Joel on this one…are you really doing this?”

Dylan’s eyebrows shoot up to his hairline as he gives Summer a pointed look. “You’re with Joel on this one?” he says with a frown.

“Yep,” she deadpans, as he throws his hands up in the air.

“You signed me up!”

Summer laughs before pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. “Like you said, it’s for a good cause. I didn’t think you’d go through with it, though. We haven’t been Slip ‘N Sliding since we were kids,” she says, referencing their fake childhood friendship.

I roll my eyes but can’t stop the smile from spreading across my face as I watch the back and forth between these two. Summer came into our lives a few months ago, at the end of our junior year, and God, am I thankful she did. It was a year I wish I could forget. While she’s definitely closer to Dylan—so close that we are all waiting for them to finally get together—the two of us became fast friends.

“You didn’t signmeup,” I say, turning toward her. “So, why am I doing this again?”

I take in the chaos that is the frat party and sigh. The yard is full of soapy bubbles, half-naked women, and drunk or high guys. The Slip ‘N Slide barely fits on a diagonal, so if you overshoot the ending you’re likely to wind up in the fence. Party lights hang from the trees and hit music blasts through the speakers. Like I said, it’s chaos.Why, oh why, am I here?

“To support me,” Dylan says with a slap on my back and a nod.Oh, that’s right.

“Well, sometimes I wish I could shove that support—”

“Come on, come on,” Summer rushes out, cutting off my rant. “Two hotties like you are going to raise a lot of money. Think of the children.” She looks specifically at me when she says that, knowing I can’t resist helping kids.

I sigh because she’s right. “Okay, let’s do this,” I say, raising my shirt up and pulling it over my head. Some girls nearby wolf whistle, drawing my attention, and when I spot a girl I’ve flirted with before, I wink her way, smiling as she giggles. I’ve perfected the art of acting like my emotions still exist. Even Dylan’s convinced I’m okay. That my life isn’t completely fucked up and my thoughts are not still consumed by the shit that went down at the end of my sophomore year.

As we walk to the start line, I watch as some girls fawn over Dylan. He’s getting the same female attention I am, but you wouldn’t know it. His eyes haven’t left Summer all night. When we come to a stop, he pulls her into a hug before pressing a kiss to her temple. “Drinks are on you,” he jokes and then lets her go, running full speed at the foamy goodness. Throwing my hands in the air, I cheer him on before following and diving face-first into the white clouds of water.

Dylan and I take five more turns each before we’ve had enough. I’m drenched, covered in bubbles, and stink like some kind of washing detergent by the time I’m done, but I have to admit, it’s more fun than I’ve had in a while.

“Fuck, now that’s over, I’ve realized how stupid it was. Imagine if I’d injured myself,” Dylan says, running his hand through his wet hair.

Looking up to the sky in serious thought, I burst out laughing without saying a word.

Dylan’s brows furrow in annoyance. “What’s so funny?”

“I was imagining you getting injured,” I reply with a wicked grin.

He whacks me on the back of the head, then scoffs at something over my shoulder. “You have a fan club waiting. You have your pick tonight.”

When I bounce my eyebrows, he rolls his eyes. “You act like it’s a bad thing. I’m living the dream.”

“Yeah, how’s that working out for you?” he mumbles as he walks away, not even giving me a chance to answer.Okay, maybe I don’t have him totally convinced. For the record, my response would have been “pretty fucking good.” But I’d be lying.

I’m singing “Let’s Get Loud” by Jennifer Lopez,really fucking loud,taking her wordsveryseriously, as I dance away the night. The girl who wolf whistled earlier hasn’t left my side since handing me a towel when I got off the Slip ‘N Slide, and I know without a doubt I’m getting lucky. Summer walks over, only slightly less buzzed than I am, and offers me another drink. She holds it just out of reach, waving it in front of me. “I feel like this is going to put you over the edge.”

I sing my way closer to her, spinning around to shake my ass in her direction. She swats it away but throws her head back and laughs. “Now I’m thinking you’re already past the point.”

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