The Night We Said Yes by Gibaldi Lauren

Author:Gibaldi,Lauren
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: HarperTeen

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

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THEN

10:45 P.M.

“So,” I whispered, catching my breath after getting off the roof and landing, somewhat easily, on the stairs. “You lead,” I said, nodding toward Jake. He smirked back and dug into the paper bag and produced two small airplane bottles of rum.

“Liquid courage, eh?” I eyed Jake, wondering how much more he had in his bag of tricks. Normally I’d worry about his alcohol intake, but with skinny dipping on the horizon, the alcohol actually looked tempting. And I hated myself for thinking that.

Jake took a swig from one bottle, and then passed the rest to Meg. He gave the unopened bottle to Matt and me.

“Well . . .” Matt said, twisting the lid open. “Bottoms up?” He took a big gulp and then handed me the rest. I took a deep breath, held back my head, and downed the liquid. Despite it being cold, it burned, forming flames inside my body. I gagged, wanting to get the fire out, but I knew vomiting wouldn’t help. I swallowed it, extinguishing the flames, but the nausea didn’t go away.

“I’m never doing that again,” I whispered. Meg threw her arm over my shoulders and squeezed. We were in it together, it seemed. As soon as we packed the booze back into its bag, Jake took off toward the pool, and we followed obediently.

The pool was next to the building, closer to the forest surrounding the school than the street. A thin, metal gate was around it, but it was easy to hop. We’d all hopped taller fences before; earlier that night, in fact. Lampposts on each corner illuminated the area, casting a shadow on the water. Once inside, we all stopped in front of the pool, waiting for someone—Jake—to make the first move.

“Showtime,” he said, stripping off his shirt and pants, leaving his boxers on. He was pale with clothes on, but without them he was ghost white, almost translucent.

“Honey, you really need a tan,” Meg said, shaking her head.

“And ruin this body?” he asked, and just like that, turned around and jumped into the pool. We remained frozen until he surfaced.

“WOOAAHH, feels great!” he said, tossing water from his hair as he broke the surface. “Who’s coming with me?”

Meg took her shirt and pants off, and jumped in next. I tried to remember if I shaved my legs. Check. I also thanked myself for choosing a black bra and matching underwear. Simple, but classic. I always wore nice undergarments to parties. It wasn’t like I planned on hooking up with someone; I just liked looking good under my clothes. It made me feel more confident.

“So . . .” Matt said, looking at me. The night was dark, the pool barely illuminated. I was glad he couldn’t see the redness spreading across my cheeks.

“I guess it’s our turn?” I picked at my shirt, waiting to see what he’d do. To my surprise, he turned away, motioning for me to go first, and it made me smile. It was something Nick never would have done.

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