0 8

knight in shining armour

     I'm not surprised.

     Being Justine's best friend and one of the most popular girls in school, it's no shock that Iris Goodwin's hosting one of the biggest and wildest parties I've ever seen.

     Drunk teenagers. Red plastic cups. Keg stands. Ear-exploding electronic music. Swimming pool. Big, big house. Vomit. It's like the time in the club. Except, this time, more people are going to recognise us. A lot of people. And I don't have any of the dark strobes, circulating bodies or out-of-this-world atmosphere to render me invisible.

     An hour we've arrived and an hour Justine has chosen to ignore me. Maybe she's testing me again. Right now Liv and I are by the pool, where a couple of unlikely drunken girls are swimming — or floating — on the water. The only way I know they're alive is by the bubbles popping out of the water.

     The patio door is wide open, so even though we're outside, music still blasts in the air and chatter still radiates everywhere. So we're not avoiding, not really. Not when I sense Justine giving me furtive looks whenever she passes by the area. I try not to notice.

     I do notice, though, Liv strained beside me.

    "Stop looking so paranoid," I tell her. "You're scaring potential suitors."

     She nods hysterically. "Good."

    "They're just guys, Liv."

    "Horny guys," she rephrases, "that expects too much of me."

     I pat her affectionally in the back. Nothing has ever gone too far, because I'm usually the one who shoos them off, but there was one guy who squeezed her ass. I chased him through the whole parking lot. 

     So I guess I'm not so far off when I assume that Liv doesn't want trouble tonight. Sometimes it ends well. Sometimes it doesn't.

    "Don't worry, Liv. I'll be your knight in shining armour."

     A familiar figure walks over to us and I sigh gratefully. I will never admit this out loud but I'm glad he came. None of our usual friends go to these A-list parties, and frankly, I need more company.

    "Hello, ladies," Trey greets, looking as annoyingly handsome as ever.

    "Hi," I reply dryly. "Nice of you to finally show."

    "I was trying to make an entrance, and I couldn't miss an opportunity to advertise myself." His eyes gleam with mischief. "Thanks for the invite."

    "You got an invite to the party, not to Justine's pants," I counter, erasing his million-dollar grin in a mere second. "Let's see you work your magic."

     Suddenly Liv tenses beside me. I know this because her shoulder touches mine now, more of a natural instinct to stay close. I frown. She's never been that nervous around Trey, now that we're friends. So who could she possibly —

    "This is Vic, my most valuable acquaintance."

     The guy who came with him, Vic, is more or less the same height as Trey. If not a few inches taller. His hair is a darker shade of brown, but his eyes are crystalline blue. And his cheekbones — dear God, those cheekbones can cut through ice. With his lean muscular build and added features, he's totally model-worthy.

    "You can always say 'best friend,'" Vic retorts, his face scrunching up. "You make me sound like a trophy."

    "But you are."

    "Thanks, love." Trey winks at him and Vic lets out a laugh. Something tells me this type of banter happens a lot between them.

     Speaking of best friends, I look over and Liv is still pressing against me. Oh, no. This is bad. She cannot be this nervous of boys 'til the rest of her life.

    "Nice to meet you, Vic. I'm Addie." I gesture to my unmoving tall friend. "This is Olivia, my most valuable acquaintance." Trey's lips turn up, and involuntarily, mine does too. "I don't think you've met her before."

     I nudge her out of my shoulder, and she stumbles but keeps herself upright.

    "I haven't," Vic says, his voice in a daze.

     That's what makes me look at him. The way he's staring at her — and the way Liv studies him back — it's a look I've seen from many guys. He eyes her head-to-toe, taking in her maroon sweater, shorts and ankle boots. In fact, my best friend looks more of Justine's company more than I do.

     Oh, boy.

   "Yeap," I sling my arm around hers. "She's with me." I step in front of her like she's my cub.

     Vic notices my protective stance because he suddenly steps back and glances away, almost looking guilty. He coughs, and Trey observes our little spectacle with an arch of his eyebrow.

    "Iris stepped up her game," Trey comments casually.

     Vic looks up with relief, a change of topic. "Yeah, the food actually looks good. Better than her last shitty party. I think I almost died of food poisoning."

     We all laugh, and even Liv can't hold back her own. Vic's eyes swivel at her like he's done something good today, his expression brightening.

    "The music's not that bad, either," Vic continues. "It's the new single from — "

    "DubVision," Liv instantly says.

     Vic looks at her with surprise and, if it's even possible, more awe. "You listen to DubVision?"

     She gives him a hesitated smile.

     And then they're looking at each other again. It's the look that says I like you and you're interesting and I want to get to know you all in one. And it's the type of look that gets Liv in trouble.

    "Okay!" I burst out. No more eye-fucking! "We have a party to get into!"

***

     The crowd expands after midnight.

     People around us start dragging friends and partners to the centre of the floor, where the disco ball is hung over the wall. Liv is by the punch bowl, and after a lot of interrogating, I let Vic tread towards her to check if she's alright. So now it's only Trey and I. 

     Or so it had been at the beginning.

     Before I can react, the both of us get pushed on opposite sides, bodies cramming and crowding. The strong scent of alcohol wafts through my nostrils, and the sensation of skin against skin almost knocks the breath out of me.

    "Trey," I call, my voice small underneath the roars. "Trey!"

    "I'm here," he murmurs, appearing behind me.

     My heartbeat dwindles down and I look up to meet his eyes. He's asking me a silent question that screams are you okay? I nod, surprisingly at ease with his presence. I can't believe how embarrassing that was, though he doesn't seem to care one bit.

     My eyes travel more on instinct and I see Justine flocked with people by the drink stand. At first I don't notice anything off, but when I really look at her, gesticulating to the others, I realise something isn't right.

     She's clearly trying to explain something but her friends are laughing. They're motioning from her to the dance floor, and there's reluctance in her eyes. Justine keeps shaking her head, her mouth wide in laughter but the look in her eyes —

    "Trey," I yell-whisper, tugging at his shirt.

     He looks at me and follows my gaze, locking eyes with Justine's situation. He frowns a bit, concluding what I just did: that this might be more than what it looks like.

     I say, "Help her."

     He doesn't glance away from Justine. "You sure?"

    "Positive."

    "Will you be okay?" That's when he turns to me, brown eyes serious.

    "Super," I assure him. "Now go be a hero."

     He holds a smile, if not tighter than usual, and with a deep breath he saunters to her with determination. A path clears for him and I just know he's grinning because he knows he has this sort of power.

     Justine looks up when Trey is close. He only needs to say a few words and immediately her friends start to back off. To me it looks like Justine's even more annoyed that he showed up, but Trey obviously sees something different. Because when he gently grabs her arm to take her away, she lets him. Doesn't matter that Justine's lips are downturned. Trey just got a free pass.

     Oh my God. Progress, people!

     He leads her outside — back to the patio where we first were — and I can't help but follow. Hey, I have the right to listen; this was my plan.

     And to make sure Trey doesn't screw up a third time.

    "You okay back there?" Trey asks nonchalantly, keeping his hand on her arm.

    "I'm fine." She lets go of him and her expression hardens again, crossing her arms. "I don't remember inviting you, Gonzalez."

    "Maybe you just have a bad memory," he answers suavely.

    "Maybe you're just trying to trick me," she retorts back.

    "Why are you always assuming the worst of me?"

     She pauses as if to wanting to say something truthful about it. Trey begins to lean in, sensing this too. But Justine builds up her walls fast. "Because you've already tried fooling me once."

    "And it didn't work, did it? So why are you still concerned?" He cocks her head at her. "You've clearly showed me that you can take care of yourself well. Unless... for an unspecified reason... you're worried that, some day, one of my little tricks is gonna work."

     She blinks. She didn't expect him to turn the tables so fast. "Of course not."

     He grins. "Then there's no misunderstanding here."

     Justine's mouth opens, but no words come out. For the first time I've seen her, she's rendered speechless as Trey walks away and leaves her at the patio. At a complete loss. 

     What the hell did Trey tried to do? I'm about to walk over there and scold him when —

     She looks after him. Actually looks after him.

     He's playing hard to get.

     Damn. Even I didn't think about that. I can't help my grin or the fist that I raise up high in the air — not until Justine goes inside and spots me behind the glass patio door, that is.

     I divertingly pretend to yawn, raising both my arms up above my head.

     Justine enters the house again and smirks at me. "Sleepy already?"

     She says it like it's a challenge. I hold my chin high. "Just taking a break." I pause. "So, this is your exclusive, huh? Hanging around outside? I guess you don't like the crowd that much."

     Her smile fades at my tone. "I have no problem with crowds," she argues, eyes narrowing. "A little breath of fresh air doesn't hurt."

    "Okay."

     Justine decides to give me one last warning look before going back to the centre of the dance floor, as if trying to prove her point to me. Her golden smile is back and everyone cheers for her return, but from what Trey and I saw, we know it could be a facade.

     The stakes are changing. I can feel it. Justine doesn't have all the advantages. They're both practically on middle ground right now. And I'm excited, I'm thrilled, but...

     ...they're both strategic. They both have equal popularity in their fields. They both have influence in this school, one way or the other. So most of all —

     I'm freakin' scared.

A/N: Baby steps, everyone. Trey Gonzalez has finally stepped up his game. Also, introducing Vic! Now you know the Core Six.