15. Maddison

Maddison

F ifteen minutes later and a walk to the back of the campus, I find myself standing on a street lined with massive Victorian houses and lampposts, all of which are labeled with sorority and fraternity names. Most of the houses are quiet, but I can detect music flowing from someplace close by.

“Wow, this place is so pretty,” I remark over the sound of my boots scuffing against the pavement. The air has a slight nip to it, and the branches of the trees move lazily against the night. “It’s crazy it was hidden right behind those trees.”

“It’s so that all the dirty secrets lying behind these walls can stay hidden,” Wren states as she stares at the night sky cut with silver and purple stars.

“Not this again.” Lily shakes her head as she wraps the leather jacket tighter around her. She also has on Wren’s platform shoes. Between the two additions, she does look punk princess. She glances at me. “Wren is really into conspiracy theories.”

“They’re not conspiracy theories.” Wren tosses a dirty look at Lily. “They’re theories based on stories I’ve heard from people who’ve lived them.”

“What kind of stories?” I wonder, my attention drifting farther down the road where a handful of expensive vehicles are parked.

“I’ll tell you later, when we have more time,” Wren replies as she checks her phone.

I’m unsure if she will or not. After overhearing the two of them talking, I’m skeptical about the genuineness of this friendship. Not that I’m convinced they’re being malicious. It could just be that they wanted to be roommates and are bummed out about it. But it felt like they were intentionally keeping a secret from me. Not that I blame them. Everyone has their secrets. Doesn’t make me any less uneasy about it, though.

I might have overanalyzed this all night if I didn’t become distracted by the house we come to a stop in front of. If you can even call the two-story, column-lined, massive mansion in front of us a house. If it weren’t for the sign above the tall, double doors, I’d think it was a city hall.

“Okay, time for rules.” Wren slips her phone into the pocket of her jacket and directs her attention to me and Lily. “We’re going to stay together at all times, but if we do wander off to go hookup or something, let one of us know the where and the who.” She draws this triangle pattern between the three of us in the air in front of her. “No taking any drinks or pills from anyone. If you want to drink or get high, get that shit yourself. And most importantly, do not go back to the dorms yourself. Wandering around at night, especially when we have to cut through the woods, is a dumbass idea.”

Lily rolls her eyes. “Yes, Mother.”

Wren points her finger at Lily. “Hey, I’ve heard the stories about what happens at these parties, so don’t judge me.”

“Maybe we shouldn’t go then?” I suggest, scuffing the tip of my boot against the ground. “If it’s that bad.”

“Not all the parties are bad. Just a few of the partygoers. And that’s generally the rule at any party.” She gives me a funny look. “Not to stereotype, but they have parties on northside—I know they have to. So, why do you seem so sketched out about this?”

“Because they have parties on northside.” And because of my parents. I’m not about to disclose that to her, though. “It’s fine. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“Oh, it’ll be something,” Wren mumbles as she eyes a group of guys exiting the house.

“I’ll respect your rules,” Lily informs her as she runs her hands across the front of her dress, smoothing any wrinkles. “But if my brothers offer me a drink or drugs, I’m going to take it because Finn and River aren’t like that.”

Wren combs her fingers through her hair. “Obviously, Lils, but they’re not going to offer you anything—they’re too protective of you.”

“Don’t remind me,” Lily grumbles then squares her shoulders. “Come on; let’s stop standing around and being lame and go have some fun.” Then she throws her fist into the air and marches forward.

Wren and I trade a wary look, and I get the vibe she’s equally as unenthusiastic about being here as I am. So, why is she here?

That’s an excellent question. Maybe it’s just for Lily, but I feel like it might not be.

“You don’t like parties, do you?” I call out as we walk up the stairway toward the entrance.

As suspected, everyone I pass gawks at me. Or, more specifically, my outfit.

I do my best to disregard it and focus on talking to Wren.

“I don’t necessarily hate them!” she shouts as we step inside the house and into the foyer.

The place is packed, music is blasting from the DJ station, and furniture has been repositioned so that people can dance in the spacious living room in front of us.

“I just hate that there could always be assholes that ruin them,” she adds loudly over the music as her gaze sweeps the area. She’s looking for someone and spots them almost right away. “Come on. I want to introduce you to someone.” With that, she snags my hand and yanks me forward in the direction of where Lily is wandering to.

We have to push past people and squeeze up against walls, but eventually, we break through the mob and to a less crowded side of the room where a game of beer pong is going on.

And on one side of the table, a blond-haired, football god, I guess friend of mine, is holding a ball and talking shit with a guy on the other side.

“Now, this”—I point at the table—“is the only thing I’ve seen throughout the last couple of days that is familiar to me.”

She glances at me from over her shoulder. “Do you know how to play?”

I give a wicked laugh. “Dude, I’m from northside. It’s like a requirement to know how to play. In fact, they won’t even let you graduate high school unless you play a beer pong competition.”

She snorts a laugh. “You’re funny.” Then she almost instantly gets distracted. “Wait, where the hell did Lily go?”

I stand on my tiptoes and peer around, looking for a halo of blonde hair. “Oh, found her.” I point to the corner of the room where Lily is standing with her hand pressed against the chest of a guy with dark, chin-length hair.

Wren tracks where I’m pointing then frowns. “Oh, hell no, she did not just go after freaking James. I thought she learned her lesson the last time.” She marches forward, shoving people out of the way.

One of the girls she pushes stumbles and spills her drink all over her dress. She glares at Wren then at me, as if I was somehow part of it.

“What’s your problem, bitch?” she snaps as she wipes off her dress with her hand.

I open my mouth to say something that will probably result in a fight, but my words are cut off as Finn spots me and shouts out, “Hey, it’s my bestie.”

Great. Now everyone is staring at me like I’m a unicorn that has a horn growing out of my ass.

Finn makes his way over to me, his blue eyes shining with proof that he’s either drunk or a bit high. When he reaches me, he drapes an arm around my shoulders and smiles down at me. “You made it,” he says, all drunkenly smiley. He smells like mint with a splash of cologne and a hint of whiskey. His gaze scrolls over me. “You look so pretty.”

How is this guy for reals?

I angle my head toward him and put my hand on my hip. “Seriously?”

“Yes, seriously,” he replies in all seriousness. When I give him an unimpressed stare, he bats his eyelashes at me. “What? I’m just stating a fact.”

I could ream into him for the remark, but I decide to play nice for the night. “Thanks, I guess.”

His lips part in mocking shock. “Did I just get a thank you from Maddison Averly?”

“Don’t get used to it,” I inform him. “I’ve decided to play princess for the night, but I’ll turn into a rotting pumpkin at midnight.”

He lowers his voice and leans closer to me. “Fair warning: princesses here aren’t nice.” With that, he slants back and returns to his glittering cheerful self. “Wanna play?” He nods at the beer pong table then waggles his brows at me.

I glance at the table where the guys he was playing with earlier are staring at us, just like everyone else. Some of them are smirking, some are glaring, and some are looking at me like I’m trash.

I should decline Finn’s offer and attempt to stay out of the spotlight, but I like the idea of handing these amateur beer-pong players their asses. Because yes, as cliché as this is going to sound, beer pong is the number one game on northside.

“Sure.” I have to bite back a smile when his lips part in surprise, but he hastily collects himself and steers me toward the table.

“Hey, everyone,” he introduces me. “This is Maddy.”

A few people mumble, “Hey, Maddy.” Others choose the silent option.

Whatever. I’m good. I’m used to it at this point.

I give a wave then slip out from underneath Finn’s arm and stand in front of the table.

“Do you know how to play?” he asks me as he picks up the ball.

I nod. “Sure. I’ve played a few times.” I stick out my hand, and he drops the ball into my palm.

Smiling to myself, I turn and bounce the ball against the table. When it lands in a cup, everyone looks shocked as hell.

“Holy crap,” one of the guys across the table mumbles.

A smile breaks across Finn’s face. “Why do I get the feeling that wasn’t beginner’s luck?”

I merely shrug, and his smile broadens as he sticks out his fist for a fist-bump.

I tap my knuckles against his, and he laughs before facing the table again.

For the next twenty minutes, we continue to play. At a certain point, Wren comes to check on me but seems okay when she notes I’m with Finn and wanders off to keep an eye on Lily. I end up having to take three drinks, and it turns out, they’re not playing beer pong, but whiskey pong. I’m not a fan of that at all. My tolerance for alcohol is super low, so I’m fairly buzzed at this point.

And I have to pee.

“Where’s the bathroom?” I ask Finn, leaning in so he can hear me over the music.

He has the ball in his hand but pauses. “It’s upstairs.” He points to a stairway behind us. “Third door on the right.”

“Okay, you’ll have to find another partner to play with you.” I start to walk away, but he captures me by the arm.

“That’s okay. I need a break, anyway.” He sets the ball down on the table and backs toward a doorway behind him. “Come find me when you’re done, okay?”

I give him a thumbs-up then make my way toward the stairway, squeezing past people. When I make it upstairs, I breathe in relief at how much quieter it is up here. Sure, a few people are around but way less than downstairs. And the music is more muffled.

I find the third door on the right, go into the bathroom, and lock the door. Then I slump against the door and release an uneven breath. That was a lot of socializing for me. Way too much. I’m exhausted.

I decide to text Lily after I pee and see if her and Wren are ready to bounce. Doubtful, since it’s not even eleven o’clock, but here’s to hoping.

My fingers feel a bit numb as I message Lily, an indicator that my alcohol level is a bit too high, and that I need to make sure not to drink anything more.

Once I send the message, I head out of the bathroom and into the hallway. Weirdly, all the people who were here a few minutes ago have cleared out. The silence and emptiness has me on edge, like when I’m wandering around in the city past dark alleyways. But I remind myself that this isn’t northside, that I’m not outside, and therefore, I’m safer. But what Lily and Wren told me on the way here echoes through my mind.

“You’re fine,” I mumble to myself as my anxiety starts to get the best of me. “You’ll be okay?—”

A hand comes down over my mouth, and an arm slips around my waist. Then I’m being dragged backward toward the end of the hallway that’s smothered with darkness. Panic sets in, but I work to stay in control as I lift my leg and bash my foot into the shin of the person holding me. They grunt, and it’s definitely a male grunt. As their hold on me loosens, I take off, glancing over my shoulder as I do.

All I can make out is their silhouette, and that they’re tall. I’m not about to go check to see who it is, though, and continue barreling forward until I reach the bottom of the stairs. The room is packed as I enter it, and my gasping for air and frantic demeanor draws a lot of attention. I cringe at how many people are staring at me and suddenly want nothing more than to get the hell out of here. I’ll walk through the woods myself. I don’t care.

“Maddy?” River steps out of the crowd, takes one look at me, and worry flashes across his face. He’s dressed in a black shirt, dark jeans, and sneakers, and his hair is styled messily, wisps hanging in his eyes. “Are you okay?”

I start to nod then pause. “I’m …” I cast a glance at the stairway, my brain frantically searching for an explanation as to what just occurred. “I’m not sure.” I direct my attention back to him.

He wets his lips with his tongue then nods toward the foyer. “Let’s go outside where it’s quieter, and then you can tell me what happened.”

Nodding, I remain close to him as we weave through people until we reach the front door. There, we exit out onto the front porch and into the cool night air. Then we start down the path and onto the sidewalk.

“Let’s walk for a second,” River mumbles with a frown as he notes that everyone nearby is staring at us.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I follow him down the sidewalk until the noises of the party are simply an afterthought. The light from the lampposts cast a soft glow across us along with the silvery moonlight.

He stops as we arrive at the corner of the street where no one is around. Then he faces me. “So, what happened?”

I recline against a lamppost. “Someone tried to grab me in the hallway upstairs right after I came out of the bathroom.”

The soft glow of the lamppost reflects in his wide eyes. “What?”

“Surprised the shit out of me, too,” I say. “And I’m unsure what they were planning on doing to me, but I kicked the hell out of their shin hard enough that they released me.”

He rakes his fingers through his hair, his eyes roving all over me. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

“Nah. They just scared me a bit. But honestly, I’m used to that kind of thing.”

“Getting grabbed against your will?” he questions slowly, as if I’m crazy.

I lift a shoulder. “I worked nights at this café on the weekend, and I had to walk home since I have no car. The area was sketchy, even for northside … so, yeah, I’m used to that sort of thing.”

He silently absorbs my words. “Well, you shouldn’t have to be.”

“I know. But it is what it is.”

He traces his finger along his bottom lip. “I’m going to try to find out who did it. I’m not positive if I can, since that isn’t really my scene, but it’s Finn’s. So, if you’re okay with it, I might get him involved.”

“Sure, but it’s not a huge deal if you don’t find out who did it. It’s not like you can really do anything to the person for simply grabbing me for a second.”

He raises his brows as if to suggest otherwise.

“Or maybe not,” I add at the sight of his expression.

“We’ll see,” is all he says before he takes a drink from his cup.

I admire his confidence, but I’m not counting on him being successful with this. I know the drill with these types of issues.

“You didn’t text me,” he says abruptly as he lowers his cup from his mouth.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, I got sidetracked by convincing your sister that I couldn’t go to dinner with her and Wren, and then she convinced me to come to this party with her.” Still leaning against the lamppost, I stretch my legs out in front of me, highly aware that the stars are a tad bit blurrier than they should be.

I shouldn’t have drank tonight.

“How come you couldn’t go to dinner with her?”

“I had homework to do.”

“Is that the real reason?”

“Well, partly.” I scratch my arm. “The other part is there’s no way I could afford to go where they were eating.”

“You could always have asked her to go to a cheaper place.” He takes a sip of his drink. “My sister’s nice, I promise. I know she probably comes off as dramatic and a bit pushy—which she is—but she’ll be a good friend to you if you’ll let her.”

“I’m trying here.” I gesture at the house where the party is taking place. “It’s the reason why I’m here. Although, I spent more time with Finn than her … She wandered off the minute we got here.”

His brows elevate. “You hung out with Finn?”

I push away from the lamppost and straighten. “Yep. We played beer pong. Or, well, whiskey pong.”

His eyes search mine. “You’ve been drinking?”

“Just a little bit.” When he frowns, I tap his cup with my finger. “Dude, don’t be judge-y with me.”

“This is water,” he explains then shows me the inside of the cup.

“It could be vodka. Or everclear.”

“Smell it.”

I do. It’s water, for sure.

“I don’t drink. Not during the season, anyway,” he explains. “And I try not to because I’m a terrible drunk.”

“Do you get angry or something?” Like my father does.

“No, I cry, actually,” he confesses with a drop of embarrassment.

His confession throws me off so much that it takes me a flicker of starlight to speak again.

“You know, you don’t match my first impression of you,” I finally say. “Unless this isn’t the real you.”

He stares down at his cup. “It is, and it isn’t.”

My head angles to the side. “What does that mean?”

He quietly exhales then lifts his gaze to mine. “It means I live a life where I have to have different versions of myself.”

The breeze picks up, blowing strands of hair into my face. “That sounds kind of depressing.”

“Why do you think I cry when I get drunk?” he quips. Then he drags his fingers through his hair and abruptly changes the subject. “So, about training you … I was thinking that we could meet in the mornings and run. I usually run with a group of guys, but we also run in the evenings, too, so I can just do that with them then.”

“You want to run with me?” I double-check, surprised.

“If that’s okay?” he answers. “I mean, it’s the best way to train you.”

“Yeah, if I can keep up with you.” Not that I think I’m slow. I’m just being a realistic.

“We can go at your pace. And then I’ll have my evenings for my training.” He briefly hesitates. “Unless you don’t want to.”

“No, I do. I just … Are you sure you want to? Because I thought you were just going to give me some pointers?”

He dithers. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but if you want to make the team, you’re going to have to improve your times a bit. Not that they’re bad. They just need to get slightly better.”

I study him. “How do you know what my times are?”

He squirms, avoiding eye contact with me. “I looked you up online.”

Okay, as weird as this might seem, I kind of like that he did—I did the same to him.

Not that I like like him or anything like that.

“You looked my times up, huh?” I can’t stop a smile from touching my lips at how squirmy he’s gotten.

“I wanted to see what kind of training you needed,” he stresses. “I kind of had to.”

“Or you could’ve just asked me. Or were you too shy?” I tease, nudging his foot with mine.

He shakes his head but struggles not to smile. “Well, maybe I would have if you’d texted me.”

“All right, fair enough.” I’m smiling now, which is odd, considering only minutes ago, some guy tried to drag me down the hallway.

That reminder sends my mood plummeting and also reminds me that I need to check and see if Lily messaged me back.

“Your times are good,” he tells me while I’m digging out my phone from my pocket. “And I’m guessing you ran them without a personal coach.”

I snort a laugh. “No, no personal coaches ever. And my high school coach was the gym teacher who couldn’t even run himself, so I basically trained myself.”

Lily has sent me a message.

Lily: If you’re ready to leave, that’s totally fine with me. But can you wait like twenty minutes or so? This guy that I like so much is finally talking to me!

“What’s up?” River asks.

I pocket my phone. “I’m kind of ready to leave this little shindig, but I don’t think your sister is. And I don’t have Wren’s number.” I briefly pause. “Is there like a way back to campus where I don’t have to walk through the woods?”

“Are you thinking about walking back by yourself?” He doesn’t seem to like this idea.

“Maybe, if I don’t have to walk through the woods.” I yawn. “I’m exhausted, honestly. I don’t drink a lot, either, so my body’s not used to this.”

He rubs his lips together. “I can walk you back to your dorm.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’ve already ruined too much of your night.”

“Trust me; you haven’t ruined anything. Like I said, this isn’t really my scene.”

“Why are you here then?”

“Appearances,” he says flatly. “I’m obligated to because of my last name.”

I wrap my jacket tighter around myself as the wind picks up even more. “Are you in the frat?”

“Technically. But I barely associate with it unless I have to.” He dazes off momentarily before blinking and returning his gaze to me. “Let me walk you back to the dorms. You really shouldn’t be wandering around at night by yourself.”

His words strike me hard because he’s right. I probably shouldn’t, and yet that’s all I’ve done since I was four years old. It’s tragically sad in a way that makes my chest ache.

“All right, gothic prince, you can walk me back to my dorm.” I smile in an attempt to lighten the mood.

“Gothic prince?” he questions as we start to walk in the direction of the woods.

“What? It seems fitting.” I retrieve my phone and send Lily a quick text about what’s going on. “The first time I saw you, that’s kind of what I thought. Although, you were dressed a bit differently then.”

“That’s because Finn and I weren’t hanging out in Royal City, so I felt more comfortable being myself.”

“I hate to break it to you, but you still looked wealthy,” I say as we step onto the path that snakes through the trees.

“Really?” His disbelief is absolutely adorable.

“Yes, really.” I playfully bump my shoulder into his. “That leather jacket and fancy watch outed you.”

He stuffs his hands into his pockets. “I guess I didn’t really think about that.”

“I’m surprised you weren’t robbed.” I swing around a bush in the path we’re heading down.

With the branches canopying above us, the moonlight has slipped away, giving the surroundings an ominous sort of vibe. I become highly aware of how dumb of an idea it was to consider walking back by myself. Crossing my fingers, too, that River is a trustworthy person.

He frowns as if this just occurred to him.

I cover my mouth to hide my impending laugh. He totally notices, though, and narrows his eyes at me.

“Are you laughing at me?” he questions. He’s not angry, though. Honestly, he appears slightly amused.

“Sort of.” I lower my hand as my smile breaks through. We’ve reached the end of the path, and I’m grateful as the dorm building comes into view, because I’m feeling a bit dizzy from the alcohol. “I’m sorry. It’s just that it’s cute how na?ve you are about certain things.”

“I’m not na?ve,” he argues. When I raise my brows, he sighs. “Okay, maybe I am about northside, but here, I’m not.”

“Fair enough.”

“And maybe you’re na?ve in this world.”

“Maybe.” I probably am, honestly. But I’m not about to give him that.

We fall into silence as we make our way down the sidewalk and toward the entrance of the building. The sprinklers are on, and the light spritz is the only sound that can be heard, except for crickets. The sidewalks that cross the academy yard are a series of crisscrosses and mazes, yet he appears to know exactly where to go, veering left then right.

“Maybe we could trade secrets,” he suggests as we reach the door to the main building. He digs his phone out to scan the code to get inside. Once it buzzes open, he holds the door open for me, and we walk in. “You know, like you teach me about northside, and I’ll teach you about the ins and outs of the academy.”

My shoes squeak against the floor as we start down the hallway lit up with faint lighting from a few chandeliers that have been left on.

“You really want to help me with something else?” My stomach is starting to twist with the burn of lingering whiskery that I drank earlier. “On top of helping me with my running?”

He lifts his shoulders then stuffs his hands into his pockets. “I don’t mind.”

I question why. Why is he being so nice to me?

I’m about to ask him when we arrive at the door to my dorm room. Suddenly, he slams to a halt with his eyes locked on the door.

“What the hell?” In the low lighting of the empty hallway, he looks pale.

I track his gaze, and my stomach churns.

“ You shouldn’t have come here ,” is written across my door in paint that bleeds down the surface ever so slightly.

“What the hell?” I murmur, and then it hits, vomit burning in my throat. “Shit, I think I’m going to throw up.”