Eons Until I Reach You

I DIDN'T FALL FOR YOU, YOU SLAMMED INTO ME

A long time ago...

With one long graceful stroke, I put blush on my cheekbones. A dash of shimmering powder and I am done. With a cream sweater, my pale skin, and the rosiness in my cheek, I get the look that I am going for. I purposefully avoid using eyeliner, going for just mascara and check the mirror one more time.

My green eyes stand out because of the light coloured fabric and shiny brown tresses outline my heart-shaped face. I look like a brittle porcelain doll. Perfect. Just what I want to be tonight. Besides me, Poppy takes out her hooker red lipstick and I gasp.

“You wouldn’t!”

She smirks. “Watch me.”

I’m helpless as I watch my best friend perfect the look that she wants. A baby p********e look, that is. I groan. With her skin-tight red strappy dress complementing her crimson hair and the red peep-toe wedges that I’m sure she is going to take out, I don’t think anybody can mistake her not-so-innocent intentions. Not to mention the dress is see-through, revealing black lace underneath.

If she were a stripper in a seedy bar, she’d be perfect, but unfortunately, we are not going to that sort of a party. We are the lucky few invited by an actual senior to the New Year’s Eve party at a frat house. Needless to say, appearances are everything tonight. I mean, we could go up the social ladder or tumble down to the gutters depending on how we play our cards tonight. I’m already jittery and excited and skipping on my toes.

“Poppy! This is an actual frat party. Tonight is probably going to be the highlight of freshman year! Do you even realize that? Seniors and juniors are going to be there. Everybody who is anybody is going to be there. Do you want to be known as the school slut for the rest of high school?”

In answer, she traces kohl in a thick coat over her eyes. I grimace. Now she looks like a hooker with vampire eyes. Even though she looks hot as hell and bewitchingly beautiful, this is so not the plan I had for tonight.

“Bree, chill. I know what I’m doing.” She winks at me, hooking her purse over one arm and slipping the other through mine. “Let’s have fun tonight.”

And just like that my anticipation disappears. A smile creeps up my face. Like she said, we are so going to have fun tonight. Anything can happen tonight. I feel it. I feel like I’m floating on a cloud of possibilities as we skip down the stairs.

“MOM! We are leaving.” I holler into the hall. She is working on some club stuff and I don’t want to disturb her. Okay. So maybe that’s not the only reason. She would freak out if she saw Poppy like this when she already believes Poppy is wayward and flighty.

We are taking Guy’s old Mustang because Poppy has a driving license, and I don’t. Yet. Guy is her brother who is away in college in California. When we get to the party, we spent about ten minutes finding a decent parking space and I regret bringing the car. We might as well have walked here in twenty minutes.

I spot Aria right away, along with her gang of wannabe-famous brats. As soon as she got picked in junior varsity cheerleading squad, she has been the queen-bee among freshman girls, with her own clique following her around between classes.

She is flirting with some sophomore guys. I have heard all the mean stuff that everyone says she says behind people’s backs but she has always been nice to me and I can’t imagine her being that bad. I mean everybody has flaws right?

Beside me, Poppy is clocking a guy in a red sweater. I don’t blame her. Killer abs, extremely cute boyish face and a sports car. Talk about trifecta! Before I know it, she is making her way over to him and I’m left to fend for myself. I briefly consider joining Aria. I could use some sophomore connections and the guys are hot.

Before I can make a decision, something like a surf-board slams so hard into my side that I tip over like an iceberg, arms flailing. For a moment, I see hard cold ground arriving fast. I close my eyes shut but the impact doesn’t come.

I’m suddenly weightless, my body frozen. When I open my eyes, dark smoky bedroom eyes are peering into mine, my head is inches from the ground, and I’m suspended in this guy’s arms. When he pulls me up, he has no intention of releasing his arms even though I am trying to pull away.

“Well, hello.” There’s an inviting glint in his eyes.

To the people glancing at us now, I’m sure it looks like a hot embrace and a swooning moment. But I’m so furious. Who does he think he is, that he can just tip people over and not apologize?

“Let go,” I snap. He blinks and releases me. My shoulder hurts where he crashed into me and I say crash because it hurts a hell of a lot more than if it were just a bump. “Jerk,” I say under my breath, making sure that he hears it.

“What did you just call me?” The pleasure of annoying him gives a sense of mild satisfaction and I meet his eyes with a challenging look.

Behind him, two other guys approach- I’m sure they are with him and I worry that I’m outnumbered. I rake the surroundings for Poppy. She and the red sweater guy are nowhere to be seen. Peachy.

The guy in front of me turns around and signals something to the other two that I can’t see, after which they nod and leave. I have never seen him before. I don’t think he even goes to our school. In fact, he is older- like he could be in college. He is wearing army pants and a blue T-shirt that says ‘Screw with me. I’ll screw you right back’. That puts a slow smile on my face. Well, what do you know? I’m sharing the same sentiment.

I lean back on my heels and cross my arms. And he mirrors me. Did he do that intentionally? I can’t tell. His steady eyes track me, it’s so unnerving. “I think you owe me an apology,” I say in my most confident voice.