2012

San Francisco

"Why do I feel like this isn't a good idea?" I mutter as Aaron hands me a second bottle of beer. Kiara groans, clearly it was her idea to violate all of the rules our parents could ever set for us while they're away, and she hates that I'm trying to keep them all sober.

"Hana, stop acting mom, we haven't played that game since we were eleven," she chides, nudging Safiya in the ribs so that she'd back her up but she just stares at me and shakes her head rather drunkenly.

"I know what we could play..." she grins, crawling over to where I'm sitting and stealing an empty bottle away from around me. I close my eyes and sigh; I can't help but smile at how well she knows me. Kiara laughs. "See this is how you get Han to cooperate," says Safiya as she sits down on the floor, "who's up for spin the bottle?" she announces, hollering like a wild beast. Kiara slides down the couch immediately and lands on her butt.

"I am," all eyes turn around to the arch between the living room and hallway and he stands there; hands in pockets. His bright gray eyes scan the room and then settle on me. I can tell that he remembers, just like I do; vivid and cloudy at the same time.

"Landon, come on here man!" Aaron holds a beer up for him, almost falling on his back.

"Are your parents with ours?" ask Kiara as he sits down next to Aaron, opposite to me.

"Honestly, at this point, I don't even know," he says, shrugging. I know instantly that all of them know him, they must. They're so at ease with him, even Safiya.

"I thought he could use some company," says Aaron.

"I'm still pretty new here, I don't really know how to pass my time now that school's out too," says Landon, "I hope you guys don't mind."

"Oh yeah, we do mind, there are rules and all to join this little Satanist clique," Safiya jokes, extracting a slight laughter from him. And then just like that, his eyes land on me again.

"Have we met before?" He asks as I take a sip from my beer.

"Not really," I tell him, "you took my picture once though." He laughs again. I can feel the alcohol hitting me now, because it feels like I'm buzzing, ever so slightly. Maybe that's good, I need it.

"I apologize, that was purely for the sake of art," he explains, "Landon Evans," he says, offering his hand to me. Leaning forward rather clumsily, I shake it.

"Hana Eastwood," I say, it comes out sort of grumpy.

"Hana..." he says, as if he's testing how my name sounds. "Nice to meet you." I nod, pulling my hand back into my lap. The buzzing switches a gear and I feel the need of taking another sip from my beer.

"Are we ready for some spinnin' or what?" asks Kiara, rubbing her palms together. Safiya supports her cause with a quick wolf-like howl. The bottle spins and I sip on my beer silently, pretending to not mind Landon's brazen gaze on me. Truth be told, it feels like my skin is on fire, inside out. In the back of my mind, I register that in the past few minutes Aaron has had to share his credit card details with us and Kiara has noted everything down, she also had Safiya draw moustaches on her face with a sharpie.

When I finally look in Landon's direction, he isn't the only one looking at me. My breath leaves me in a hurry. Safiya announces that it is Landon's turn to dare me, which in turn explains the smirk that's plastered to his mouth. Side note, was he born with it?

"Hana Eastwood, do you dare?" he asks me. Safiya howls again, I give her a side-glance.

"Hana always dares," Aaron tells him. I take a deep breath and give myself some pep talk, he doesn't know anything about me, at most, he would ask me to jump into the pool in the backyard.

"Bring it on," I tell him, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yes girl!" yells Safiya. When I look at her this time, I laugh. I'm pretty sure she's about to pass out.

"What do I have to do?" I ask him.

"I'd like to know you better, Hana..." he says, tipping his chin up, still testing my name out. What does he want? I wonder. "Give me your number." That earns him a lifted brow from me, a gasp from Aaron and boos from Kiara and Saf.

"Landon, that is worst dare in the history of worst dares," comments Kiara. I roll my eyes.

"Not from a dude's point of view!" Aaron counters, can't blame him, he's only being a dude.

"Why would I do that?" I ask. He pulls his brows together and pouts a little.

"Do you not dare?" he cocks a brow. Holy crap.

"She can do it," says Safiya, squeezing my shoulder, "you can do it." Aaron starts to drum on the carpet, building the situation up and I sit contemplating life as it is.

"Okay," I say, "Give me your phone." Safiya screams out a whistle note and claps rather aggressively in her brother's face.

"Told you, that's my girl!" she says as Landon hands me his phone, grin intact. It's infectious though, I'm grinning too by the time I finish punching my number into his phone. He thanks me rather quietly when I hand it back to him.

In the back of my mind, I register Saf blubbering about how there are three Kiaras and Aaron suggesting her to throw up and go to bed, but that's when my cell starts to buzz inside my pocket. I turn away from the circle to receive the call but I realize who it is as soon as I pick up.

"Hey," he says and I turn back to face him.

"Landon?" I mutter. I want to tell him that his smile is so wide that it makes his eyes look small. I also want to poke the dimple on the corner of his mouth with my finger.

"Just making sure I haven't been robbed," he tells me.

"Of your rights to have my number?" I ask, "Oh, now that I think about it, I could've given you a wrong number." I pout.

"And that's exactly why I'm calling," he says, raising both his brows. I find myself appreciating how his mouth moves, "I don't really know you, Hana," he tells me, but I already know that, "you can't expect me to trust you."