Vrishali let out a squeal when Aryan pulled her into his arms. Hailey rolled her eyes before pulling Jordan to dance with her. Jordan groaned but reluctantly wrapped his arms around Hailey while she smiled up at him. "Loosen up, will you? Are you going to go around with a sulky face?" Hailey asked. 

"What's wrong with my sullen face? I can't enjoy every minute." Hailey rolled her eyes. Yes, you can't enjoy every minute, but don't go days long with a sullen mood." 

Aryan and Vrishali looked at each other before laughing. Vrishali moved her hips along with Aryan as the song became one of the year's hits. "Have you seen Kyle and Lexie?" Vrishali shrugged. "I don't know. They have been spending a lot of time alone. They didn't show up, I guess."

"They were there when I came." 

"Maybe they have left already." Aryan nodded. Hailey found a way to make Jordan laugh and distract him from Michael and Belle, who were in the middle of the dance floor. After three songs, Aryan left the floor while Vrishali danced with Hailey and Jordan. 

"Isn't your friend single?" Troye asked Aryan. Aryan threw the shot back, and it burned his throat. He knew who Troye was referring to. "Yes, Jordan is still single." Troye looked before laughing. "You know who I mean."

"No, I don't." Troye now faced Aryan and raised his brow. "Are you trying to act dumb, brother?" Aryan shrugged his shoulders. "I got friends, brother. Be specific about who you are referring." It was at the moment Jordan had joined them at the makeshift bar. "What's going on here?" Jordan stole Aryan's drink. 

"Troye here is asking about a friend, whether he or she is single." Jordan chuckled. "Vrishali. . . I meant Vrishali. Is she single or not?" 

"Why? Did she turn you down?" Jordan questioned. Aryan laughed when Troye's cheeks turned pink. "Brother, she is seeing someone. All I can say is you try hitting on some other girl."

"She's only seeing them, isn't she? It's not serious, is it?" Jordan and Aryan exchanged a look. "It appeared rather serious to us." Troye's shoulders slumped down as he ordered another from the bar. "I liked her a lot, but every time I tried asking her out, she turned me down." 

Someone stepped in and slapped his hand on Troye's shoulder. "And our mate here thought she was trying hard to get. He is into sports romance, and it's hard to get tropes nowadays." 

"Roger, I will smash your head on the nearest table." Troye pushed Roger away. Jordan's brows frowned in confusion. "Aren't you in our rival team? Isn't he the one you play against?" the question was directed to Troye. Roger smiled boyishly. "Mate! You recognised me? I'm Jasper Roger. People call me Roger." Roger shook hands with Jordan and Aryan. They waited for the answer.

"We are neighbours. He is my friend." Troye answered. Roger looked at Troye with fake hurt. "Friend? Am I not your best friend?" That made the men laugh.

*

Everyone gathered around the bonfire. Aubree and Kreo were standing in the distance. They came over to say hi to Vrishali. Vrishali spent the next two hours with them before they left the bonfire to bring something from their car. 

Hailey handed the beer can to Vrishali. "Kreo asked me to give you this." Vrishali took the can. "Isn't he a good man? Handed out expensive brewed beer to us?" Hailey let out a laugh hearing that. "That man is rich, and it wouldn't cost him so much if he decided to hand everyone one of these."

"You are right." At the same time, Taylor and Garrent joined the group. This is one of the beach parties before the holidays. Nandini's wedding date has been rescheduled due to a family emergency on the groom's side. Vrishali had spent the days going around New York with her friends. She also went on a lunch date with Xahria, while Aubree went on a vacation with her boyfriend. 

"I'm super excited for the Christmas holidays," Taylor said. "Where are you going?" Vrishali asked, sipping her beer. "I'm going home." Everyone in the group knows about Taylor's extended family, which lives together on a family ranch. "And this time my dad promised me he would get me a new pony as a Christmas gift." 

"Awe, that's so nice. Do send me the pictures." Taylor nodded. "Hey, Taylor, I got a question for you," Hailey said. "Shot me up." 

"Are you planning on moving to your family estate after graduation, or will you find something in the city?" Taylor took a minute. "Honestly, I wasn't sure what I wanted to do. Surely, I enjoy the city life, but if I'm being honest, City life isn't cut out for me. Growing up in acres of land and in a big house, I never had to adjust when it came to space. If I'm going to live in the city, I need to make the adjustment which I wouldn't be happy with later in my life." 

"I'm moving back and will handle my brother's ranch business. They need a manager anyway. I have the job, space and family. What do I need more than that?" Everyone nodded. "What about Benny?" 

Taylor bit on her lower lip. "Well, Benny and I have different goals right now. We decided to part ways mutually. It's for the best. I won't stay in the city, and he will not leave. He has an offer letter, and it is his dream job."

Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. Now everyone understood why they weren't together. Benny was on the other side of the party while Taylor was here. They have been inseparable since the freshman year. "Let's not spoil our night, okay? I plan on yapping the whole night before we all leave on Christmas holidays." Vrishali laughed and agreed with that. 

"What are everyone's plans for Christmas?" Hailey asked. "I'm going home," Hailey replied. "I'm going on a vacation," Vrishali added. 

"You are going on a vacation?" Belle turned her attention to Vrishali. "Yeah, it was planned randomly, but I'm happy about the plan." 

"What about you? Are you going home?" Belle blushed and looked at Michael. "Well, hmm— Michael invited me to his home. I'm meeting his parents and siblings." Vrishali's gaze went to Jordan, who immediately looked at his fingernails. 

"That's nice. You are already meeting his parents. He must be serious," Taylor joked. Hailey and Vrishali shared an awkward chuckle. Fortunately, the conversation shifted to their future plans and whether anyone had made any decisions yet. 

"Is anyone bringing out the beer cans or not?" Aryan yelled. Someone at the car trunk looked at Aryan. "Get your ass here to collect them." Aryan stood up and took Jordan with him. Belle's gaze went to Jordan before she looked at Vrishali. "Did I hurt him so much? I know he is good friends with Michael. I'm worried that their friendship might be tarnished because of me." 

Vrishali patted Belle's shoulder. "Don't worry about anything. They are going to figure it out, and Jordan is a grown-up. He will get around; give him some space. They both are going to be good friends no matter what. So don't worry about Jordan, okay?"

Belle nodded while Michael gave Vrishali a grateful smile. Michael had gone out the other day to talk with Jordan. He had been meaning to have the conversation and set everything right. Jordan wasn't in the right place to have the conversation, so he asked him to give him some space to come around. Jordan and Aryan are going on a boys' vacation to Japan along with a few other boys from the swim team. 

"Why aren't you two joining them in Japan? Japan seems like a good travel place," Taylor said. "It's a boy's vacation. They are going to have boys' time without girls around," Hailey explained. "Point." 

By the time Jordan and Aryan returned, Kreo, Kenric, and Xahria joined the group. Kreo sat beside Hailey, and they shared a knowing look—which was kind of suspicious. "Don't tell me you were the one who helped him with that paper," Aubree pointed out, and Taylor's ears turned red. "It was only one time." 

"What are we missing here?" Hailey asked, looking between Kreo and Taylor. "Someone helped Kreo in his finals, and it turned out to be Taylor who helped him." 

"And?" Aubree punched Kreo. "And Kreo won the bet we were having by three marks. I was hoping to win the bet to get to boss him around. Now, he won't clean up our house for Christmas." 

"Not to sound rude, don't you have maids to do that? I mean, I thought you got house help and all." Kreo and Aubree laughed. "We do, Taylor. We have a rule in our house. No househelp will clean our rooms. We clean up our mess and keep our rooms tidy. Now that I have lost the bet. I will be cleaning his room." 

*

"Where is Xahria? I haven't seen her since I had my drink with her," Vrishali said. Aubree pushed her hair away. "She went with Nikolai to pick up Xaiden from the airport." 

"Nikolai?" Aubree looked at Vrishali. "You don't know about Nikolai?" 

"No."

"He is her elder brother. And Xaiden is her second brother." Vrishali hummed. "Sometimes I feel bad for being the only kid." Aubree smiled. "I understand. . ."

"So, how is your husband?" Aubree made sure that no one was listening to their conversation. "He is good. We are going on a vacation." 

"Are you excited?" Vrishali nodded excitedly. Aubree could feel the happiness radiating from her. "I'm so happy for you, girl." Vrishali's cheeks were hot from the alcohol. "He is kind of shy, but I love that about him. I love it when his cheeks turn so red so quickly. It's just adorable." 

"Hmm—" Aubree leaned her chin on her knee as she watched Vrishali talk about her husband. It was the cutest thing. "Are you planning to move back to India once you graduate?" 

"Oh yes. I have thought about it for a long time and I— I know what I want. New York is great, but India inspires me with my work, and I have my husband there. It's a win-win." Aubree laughed. "Good."

"What about you? What are your plans?" Aubree sipped her beer. "My plans? Hmm— I will be helping my Mum with her NGO and spending as much time as possible with my busy boyfriend. Maybe try out new projects that my parents were discussing." The girls spent the time talking about girlhood, sisterhood, and relationships. 

*

Snipers series will be available in November!