Chapter three: Bonfire Talks

O L I V I A

"Liv!" Carter exclaimed. "It's great to see you again."

"Yeah," I got up from my seat in greeting. He immediately moved in to hug me. "Same." I hugged him back.

I'm doing that a lot lately, hun?

"You look great," he said, holding my shoulders and looking at me.

"Yeah, you too," I replied with a polite smile.

Why? Oh, why?

His eyes traveled to mine and held mild accusation in them. "So, you're a friend of Lena's?"

"Yeah," I said dumbly, again.

"I'm Caine's brother. Who would've thought we'd meet again this way?"

I smile awkwardly. "Yeah."

Apparently my vocabulary loves failing me at the most crucial of moments.

"Are you okay?" He chuckled.

Anything but that damned word, Olivia. For the love of God-

"Yeah," I repeated and winced. Sam cleared her throat loudly and I gratefully turned away from Carter.

"You already know Griffin," I said, catching her drift. The boys acknowledged each other with a nod. "That's my best friend Samantha. Sam, meet Carter Holmes."

Holmes. That should've been the first giveaway when I thought Caine looked eerily familiar. Urgh.

"Hello." Sam smiled invitingly. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Carter grinned back. "I've heard a lot about you from this one over here." He jerked his head in my direction.

"I should hope so," Sam said. "I'm her best friend." She glanced at Griffin and chuckled. "Well, one of them, anyway."

Carter gave her a warm laugh. "You're lucky."

"The fact that you know this little demon here and you still say that?" Sam released out a mocking gasp. "That's very generous of you."

At that Carter looked at me, his eyes twinkling mischievously. "Speaking of the demon, 'Meet Carter Holmes', is that all the introduction I get, love?"

"Yes, actually." I bit back a smile at his breezy attitude. I didn't want to admit it, but I was grateful for it. I admired his way of gelling up with people and getting a smooth casual conversation. Especially after how I had ghosted him for a nice while after our relationship had ended. "That's all you get."

He pouted. "I'm hurt."

"Shut up." I laughed. He looked comical with those puckered lips. Almost like a fish.

"Ah, there's that beautiful laugh," he teased.

I rolled my eyes, keeping a grin. "Stop flirting, Carter."

"Are you taken?" He questioned openly.

"No," I replied hesitantly. Almost reluctantly.

"Neither am I," he said with a smirk. "So I will not, baby."

I shook my head in amusement. Typical Carter.

"Okay," Sam interrupted, giving me a look that promised another interrogation later.

Terrific.

"Why don't you ea-" she was cut off.

"Carter! There you are!" Lena rushed over to us, smiling broadly at her brother-in-law.

"Lena!" He wrapped her in a hearty hug. "Has my brother been treating you well?"

"Of course, he is," she almost chided as he let her go. "I see you've already made new friends." She beamed at us like we were her new favorite people in the world.

"Actually, I knew Olivia and Griffin already. We all attended Berkeley. And yeah, I just met Sam."

"Oh, is that so?" She smiled wider. She looked exactly like one of those housewives they show on TV and that was creepy. The girl was my age, settled, and was basically the head of the household. And here I was, reeling from a breakup that happened years ago. Even the word pathetic didn't seem to do justice to my state at the moment. "That's nice. You will have company."

"That, I will." He simpered, looking right at me with a promise in his eyes. I titled my head, trying to decipher it silently. If Lena noticed the exchange, she did not comment.

"Let's go," she said, grabbing his arm. "Caine is inside."

She shot us a smile and hauled him away.

"I'll catch you later!" He shouted over his shoulder and I nodded awkwardly as heads turned in our direction.

"Sooooo," Samantha gave me a teasing look and I groaned, "'Love'? 'Baby'?" She jested. "Are you sure you're broken up?"

I sighed. "Yes, Samantha."

"Whatever you say," she sang.

"Samantha," I deadpanned.

"He seemed into you," she kept up.

"He's not." I raised a defiant eyebrow. "He's just flirty."

"Baby," she pouted, imitating him. I scowled while Griffin chortled.

I glared at him. "I hope you choke on that."

That just made him laugh harder.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The entire batch was busy catching up the whole day. Our original plan was to go out clubbing but we were all exhausted and decided to stay in and have a bonfire. Aarti had flown in from India for a few days. She was the reason Lena had arranged the grand affair. Lena and Aarti were close back in the day. I had never been friends with her, but we were on polite greeting terms. She looked more tanned than I remembered. More gorgeous too. Indians certainly age well, hun?

Everything was set. We had rested a bit and regrouped near the controlled fire, sitting around it in groups. They had brought in packed snacks and the stuff we needed for s'mores. It looked so nice, everyone sitting at the beach, next to the golden glow of the bonfire. Exactly like we did in the summer before Senior year.

I settled down as well, waiting for my friends to join me. We were all in our PJs. It looked better than this afternoon when everyone was dressed so immaculately. It felt more homely. I pulled the thin blanket tighter around myself and smiled at the scene.

"What 'cha smiling at, Liv?" Carter's voice drifted to me, pulling me out of a conversation with Daisy and Lara. They giggled at him as he approached and I laughed internally.

"Nothing." I smiled, looking up at him. I was surprised that the admission bubbling up my lips, "It's just nice to be back."

He sat down next to me, offering me a beer. "Must be."

"Nah," I declined.

"What?" He chuckled as if he didn't hear right. After all, how could someone deny alcohol? I rolled my eyes.

"I want to enjoy this sober." I gestured around. "I want to be able to remember."

"Oh," he took a swig, "Your loss or whatever."

I watched him carefully. His movements were less graceful, his hair not the sexy mess he always kept it in and his clothes looked less rumpled. His eyes passed over everything with a sense of detachment, unfocused.

"How are you already drunk?" I asked in amusement.

It was hard to tell whether he was drunk or not. He was always that vigilant kind of drunk. As in, he'd be drunk but he would appear to be sober. He would have no real control over his actions but he didn't actively look or act drunk. It would take some detailed breakdown of his state to figure out how drunk he was, and I had learned that gradually over a period of time.

"I've had five of these." His voice slurred ever so slightly.

My eyebrows shot up in alarm. "Okay, that's enough for tonight."

I plucked the bottle of beer from his hands and placed it out of his reach. He didn't even protest, just hung onto my arm and put his head on my shoulder, closing his eyes. I pushed the hair back from his face and he blew air out from his mouth like a child. I chuckled.

I saw Sam approaching and waved. She quickly made her way over to me, taking a seat.

"What's up with loverboy?" She questioned.

"He's drunk," I informed her.

She laughed. "Already?"

"Already," I confirmed, my lips curving up.

"You didn't tell me you dated such a wild guy," she said, eyeing Carter. As if feeling her gaze on him, he opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out. Sam shook her head, looking preoccupied.

"Must've slipped my mind." I shrugged with my free shoulder. Not getting the attention his actions had demanded, Carter resignedly closed his eyes again, muttering something incoherently under his breath.

"A lot of things slipped your mind," Samantha said, looking at the fire. Her tone was thoughtful. Accusing, even. Her body language was slightly aggressive. And her words held a weight I wasn't ready to address. I sighed, choosing silence.

I focused on the embers going up in the sky, listening to the cahhter around me. I distracted myself with the task of separating the sounds of the waves from the voices of my companions while I watched the warm fire crinkle. That's why I didn't notice Griffin till he joined us.

"Are we ready to partayyy?" Griffin announced his presense, plopping down between Samantha and I cheerfully, missing the mood. He was more focussed on what the evening had to offer. I envied him and his ability to live in the present.

"Yup," I popped the 'p', keeping the pang resentment from seeping into my voice.

"What's with Carter?" He asked, craning his neck to look at him where he was seated on my other side. I glanced down at Carter too, noting his even breathing.

"He's drunk and currently passed out," I caught Griff up.

He grimaced. "Oh."

"I'm going to get myself a drink." Sam stood up, dusted herself half-heartedly, and walked away without a single glance at us. Griff watched her go, evidently assessing the room.

"What happened?" He finally asked.

"Nothing," I said automatically.

He sighed, sounding tired. "Olive."

"Everything is fine," I reiterated. I smiled at him to make it more believing.

He stared at me for a long moment, as if giving me another chance to drop the facade and tell him the truth. But what good would that do? So I widened my smile a bit more.

I saw the disappointment creep into his eyes and felt needlessly desolent.

"I'll . . . go check on Samantha," he said. I watched him as he got up, dusted himself, and traced Sam's footsteps.

"I made you fight with your friends," Carter mumbled against my shoulder. I jumped slightly and he awarded me with a deep chuckle.

"I thought you were sleeping," I remarked, recovering.

"I'm sorry," he apologized seriously.

"It's nothing," I said dismissively. I couldn't even convince myself with that delivery.

"Okay," he said. A moment later, he rubbed his head against my shoulder. I wiggled, holding back a giggle.

"Carter, that tickles," I protested. "Stay still."

"Mmhhh," he hummed, neither opening his eyes nor stopping his assault. He tightened his grip on my hand to stop me from escaping.

"Carter!" I hissed through a giggle. He smiled, opening his blue eyes and watching me with mirth. But he didn't stop.

"Carter!" I laughed, finally managing to yank my arm away from him. He grinned at me lazily. "You're a menace."

"You knew that before you dated me, baby." He leaned in. I leaned back with a strained smile.

"Carter," I cautioned. Over his head, I saw Sam and Griff returning.

His head fell back on my shoulder. "Hmm? It was worth a try."

"That looked heated," Griffin commented, expressing his bewilderment openly. They passed me one bottle and I accepted it gratefully.

"Thanks." I broke the seal and gulped down half of it.

"Told you he was still into you," Sam said smugly. She had a beer for herself. I stuck my tongue out at her and she cackled.

Whatever she and Griffin had talked about had lifted her mood and made her forget about our wordless spat. I couldn't thank him enough for fixing it. I settled for kissing his cheek, laughing when Carter yelped as his head dropped when I leaned away to do so.

"Attention, please!" Lena stood up. Carter's head found his way back to my shoulder as soon as I strightened. "First of all, thank you all once again for joining us!"

"Seriously, you guys," Aarti added. "It means a lot to me that you guys made it. I'm so happy. It's amazing to be able to reconnect with you. Thank you so much!"

Everyone hollered in reply and she smiled, pleased by the response.

"I hope the arrangements are to your liking," Lena said, taking back the helm. We cheered in approval. To my liking? It was definitely much better than I had hoped or dreamed of. "Lastly, I wanted to make a toast!"

Everyone scrambled to get their hands on either a beer or a water bottle. Everyone except Carter.

"To the best days of our lives we will never forget!"

"To the best days of our lives we will never forget!" We chorused back, raising our drinks before taking a huge gulp.

Okay, maybe she wasn't as house-wifey as I originally thought she was.

"We're starting with a classic game of 'Would You Rather' for the sake of old times," she resumed and a lot of them began chattering, pumped after the toast. "Here I have a basket with all our names in it. We'll all pick a name turn by turn and ask them our questions. You can ask anything as long as it's not offensive or too personal. If the person doesn't want to answer, they have to take a shot of tequila. Sound good?"

"Yay!" We all cheered like kids and she sat back down, grinning. Her husband leaned over and kissed her affectionately, eliciting more hoots. They broke apart with her flushing and urging Tim to start the game. He picked Martha and hence the game began.

Somewhere in between, an employee came over and whispered something to Caine and he got up, Lena following him quietly. They disappeared behind me inside the resort.

I wonder what's that about.

Josh and a few others were passed out at the opposite end of the circle we were sitting in. When it was my turn, I picked up Georgia's name. She grinned.

"Gimme our worst," she said.

"Sure?" I asked unsurely.

"Yup!" She said and many laughed.

"Okay," I chuckled. "Ummm . . . Would you rather have sex in a jacuzzi or on the beach?"

"Nice one," Maya, her girlfriend, said to me. "I'd like to know that myself."

I smiled. "I had a feeling."

She smiled back before looking up at Georgia amusedly. She crossed her hands across her chest while her partner thought. Meanwhile, I folded Georgia's name neatly and put it back in the basket.

"Jacuzzi," she finally answered.

"Why?" Sam questioned curiously.

"I wouldn't want sand in my holes," answered with a shudder. "That's neither kinky or romantic. A jacuzzi on the other hand . . . " She trailed off suggestively, smirking at her Maya with a promise.

The boys howled and the girls crowed as the she leaned in to kiss her. Even as an onlooker, I could tell that the kiss was teasing. When Georgia pulled back, Maya looked at her with wide eyes and parted lips. The rest of us laughed.

"Onto Carter." Griffin pushed the basket towards him when we settled.

"Pass," he mumbled. Daisy, who was sitting next to him, tittered as she reached over and took the basket.

"Olivia!" She exclaimed, opening her chit.

For some reason, my stomach dropped uncomfortably.

I smiled despite the trepidation that seemed to have invaded my veins. "Okay, go ahead."

"Would you rather . . ." She paused for the dramatic effect. That didn't help my premonition. "Kiss Carter or get back with Kaison?"

I closed my eyes. Appreciative hoots and awed gasps reached my ears.

I knew it.

"Who's Kaison, love?" Carter asked, propping his chin at my shoulder. I opened my eyes, hating how everyone looked at me with so much anticipation. I smiled awkwardly. I decided to answer Carter first.

"He's, um, we dated in High School," I told him.

Should talking to my ex about my other ex feel so weird?

"Oh," he frowned, "I didn't know you dated before me."

I cursed inwardly. I could feel the others soaking up this information and looking at us questioningly.

"You guys dated?" Lily asked, looking inquisitively between Carter and I.

"Briefly," I said at the same time as Carter answered, "Seven blissful months."

Fuck.

A few dramatic ones 'oooo' ed. My hands dug into the sand as if to ground me.

My life is a soap opera.

"So, Liv," Lara said, her eyes gleaming in the firelight. "What's it gonna be?"

Carter looked at me expectantly and I felt torn. I shifted, painfully aware of all the eyes on me. It was like they were all waiting for the answer. All the conversation seemed to have ceased and the sound of the waves stood out starkly. But this time, instead of calming me, it just made me more anxious. I swallowed, feeling sick.

"I . . . " I paused, my brain racing with thoughts.

Kaison wasn't there. I could take a shot, but I didn't like tequila much. It made me get drunk really quick. Plus, it made me super hungover. Carter didn't know my equation with Kaison, not to mention he was drunk so he'd most probably forget about all this tomorrow morning. Thinking this, I answered, "I'd rather kiss Carter."

A few giggles and chortles went around. Some just looked at me awkwardly. Sam facepalmed not so subtly and Griffin seemed to glare at something behind me. Carter made a kissy face at me with a goofy grin.

"That hurt, mon amour."

Fuck.

My heart stopped for what felt like a long time before it restarted beating, wildly this time. I did not even have to turn around to confirm. I knew the pitch, the texture, the quality, the tone, everything. I knew the body that the voice belonged to, and once upon a time I knew the soul that lived in it better than I knew my own.

I knew it too well, and it fucking hurt.

"Kaison," I breathed out.

My hands reflexively fisted the sand beneath me. The entire batch didn't know what happened and they didn't need to. And they definitely didn't have to know about my anxiety. Fuck. I looked at Griffin for help but he was still busy glaring.

My breathing was uneven and shallow. My chest hurt.

"I knew you wouldn't forget me," I heard him reply. He was definitely smirking.

Bastard.

"Haha." I chuckled nervously, not having the courage to turn around. My eyes stung and it took everything in my power to keep the tears at bay.

Breathe in, breathe out.

"Hey, guys!" Someone screeched from behind me and others waved at them. The voice just demanded attention. It was high pitched, overly happy, and infused with excitement. I turned around impulsively.

I thoroughly wished I hadn't.

There, along with the Holmes, standing beside Kaison was Chelsea Marie Connell.

Also known as the girl Kaison cheated on me with.

The breath swished out of my lungs as I lost my breath in the worst way possible.

Death would be a mercy right now.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

A/N:-

Well, fickety fuckety fuck. What next, you ask? Well, how would I know??

Keep reading to find out lol ;)

QOTD: What's that one book on your wishlist that you've wanted to read for a while but never really got reading?

See you tomorrow! Take care, you guys. Get vaccinated, if you haven't already :)

All my love,
xoxo.